Taken

Epilogue

A police car was seen patrolling near a warehouse complex. A female voice came over from the police radio:
"All unit rendezvous to block B warehouse compound. Another body was found. Victim is female, Asian, approximately 17 years old, suffered from severe pre-mortem blunt trauma. It is suspected that the victim is linked to the recent serial killer case for the marking in Chinese characters on the victim's skin."

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The buzzing sound of static TV was heard throughout the living room. The middle aged woman sat down on a pale colored sofa, staring vacantly at the television in front of her, a remote in her grip. She hadn't had proper rests all day; exhaustion clearly written in her eyes. Wrinkles were visible on her forehead; she appeared older than she actually was. She switched the channel while massaging her temples. An entertainment weekly program was broadcasted; she immediately paid attention to the screen. Their headline suddenly grabbed her interest.

"The new rising boy group EXO-M, which recently is very popular among teenage girls, arrived at Incheon International airport yesterday morning, after previously held several successful shows in Beijing. They are scheduled to stay in South Korea for several weeks, to hold other promotions on variety and music shows. Their arrival at the airport was greeted by huge crowd of fans."

The woman sat still on her seat. A small smile appeared on her lips. The news reminded her of her daughter. She was a big fan of this group. Her room was filled with their posters. She recalled her daughter once said that meeting them personally was her dream come true. She sighed heavily at her own thought and changed the channel to another station, which apparently was broadcasting Breaking News. The female news anchor in red blazer was delivering news in impassive expression. The old woman, got curious, turned up the volume so she could listen to the news properly.

"Recently, there have been disturbing cases happening across the capital, targeting female teenagers."
The woman gulped, frowning as she was processing the words that the anchor said.
"So far, there had been 6 victims found; 3 were found dead and 3 were found alive. The victims' conditions indicates that all of them had been extremely tortured. The police had issued a warning to all citizens, especially teenage girls to be careful. To always travel in pairs or more, even in daylights. To avoid alleys and deserted places and to report any suspicious activities if ever encountered one. These killers are dangerous because they are evolving fast and are on rampage."
As the news went on, she tried to fight off the eerie feeling that surrounded her. Her eyes were burning, yet she tried to hold back the tears that threatened to fall.

"The Police also informed that all of the victims were found in different districts. However, the police couldn't get any additional constructive information or evidence to precede the investigation from the victims, except that they were all marked. The first three, were found with the same Chinese characters carved on their skin; "遇见你是我的荣幸" meaning "It's a pleasure meeting you". The other three, on the other hand, were found alive, yet too traumatized to normally function. Even though the police haven't found any clues that can determine the suspect, it has been informed that it is possible that they are facing two different suspects."

She abruptly turned off the television., then sat still facing the blank screen. There, she could see a reflection of a tired old woman with eyes full of anxiety, hopelessly waiting for her beloved daughter to come back. Dire thoughts were running through her mind. Her head pound, her heart ached. Suffocated, she felt a sharp tug on her chest. Couldn't hold it any longer, a drop of tear fell down from her eyes, as the sun set up in the bright morning.