Lines of Deception

Case File Entry #001

In the dead of night, a figure drenched from head to toe stumbled through the rain-soaked darkness and into the dimly lit police station. His bare feet left a trail of red-stained water with each sluggish step, his body shivering, his gaze fixed unblinkingly at the ground. It was as if he couldn't—or wouldn't—lift his eyes from the concrete beneath him.

Inside, the station was eerily quiet, populated only by a few officers fighting off sleep. They lounged in various corners, lulled by the stillness of the early hours. The man stopped in the center of the room, a ghostly figure dripping rainwater, and, without looking up, made his way toward the nearest desk.

"I... I need to report two murders." His voice was a faint murmur, but it snapped the drowsy officer in front of him, Captain Leo, into full awareness.

The sight of the man stunned Leo—a figure with tangled, wet hair obscuring his face, blood streaks smeared along his arms, his clothes plastered to his trembling frame from the rain. Leo took a deep breath, regaining his composure. "Murder?" he asked, unable to mask the wariness in his voice as he strained to make out the man's face.

The man nodded slowly, clutching the hem of his soaked shirt with quivering fingers. "Joe Suwan and Cherry Phayut."

The names seemed to hang heavy in the air. Leo's fingers tightened around his pen as he jotted down the names. "Who are they?"

"The ones who were killed," the man replied, his voice devoid of any discernible emotion. Without invitation, he dragged a chair out and slumped into it, the scrape of wood on tile jolting two other officers, Captain Por and Captain Beam, awake. They straightened immediately, their gazes fixed on the strange, pale figure in front of Leo.

Leo's initial shock deepened as he noticed the faint stains of blood still clinging to the man's face and hands, as if rainwater alone hadn't been enough to wash it all away.

"Where did this happen?" Leo pressed on, his voice steady as he resumed taking notes.

"St. Joseph's Hostel on Sinom Road," he replied, his voice raw and cracking. He glanced around, spotted a glass of water on the desk, and drained it in one go, leaving faint smears of red around the rim. "It's called a hostel, but it's more of an orphanage," he added, wiping his mouth with his bloodstained hand.

Leo felt a chill run down his spine as he scribbled down the details. "And who are you?"

"Nanon Korapat." He placed the empty glass back on the desk, his fingers leaving faint crimson stains.

Por and Beam exchanged uneasy glances. They moved to stand beside Leo, their expressions a mirror of his own—a mix of confusion and apprehension. Por's mouth opened as if to say something, but he quickly closed it, his eyes narrowing as he took in the unsettling figure.

Beam, sensing the tension, leaned forward and knocked lightly on the desk to pull Nanon's attention. "If you're here to file a report, we'll need more than names," he said, his tone direct. "Who were they? What happened? When? And where exactly?" His voice was steady, but his eyes betrayed his unease.

Nanon's gaze shifted to Beam, his face blank, eyes empty. For a moment, he simply stared, unblinking, unfeeling, until Beam raised his brows in expectation.

Finally, Nanon's hand lifted, his index finger pressing into his own chest. "I killed them. Both of them."