Over the next few days, the Martha exclusive team throws themselves into the investigation process. They interview several people in the hope that they may know Martha. Contact people to see if she had any relatives or friends. Read thousands of documents and police reports, and try to make sense of the present clues. But no matter how hard they tried, they couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something more going on in the background which was still not visible to their eyes.

Maya re-visits the crime scene multiple times for on-spot check and analysis. Only markings are left there, but it is enough for statistical references. This time, when she visits the crime scene, she sees the silhouette of that mysterious man again. He is standing on the street corner, again around 25 feet far from where she is standing. He seems to be watching her with those piercing dark eyes. Maya feels the chill run down her spine. Who is he? And why does he seem to be following her?

Maya walks towards the man, and this time too, her head becomes a bit hazy. She tries to hold her composure with all her might, but it happens again! She loses her sense for a fleeting second and he is gone when her sight returns. But thankfully, this time, there is a CCTV, covering that area of the road.

She rushes over to the CCTV department and requests quick assistance in the footage review. It is an ongoing investigation, so they have the permit to check the footage during the phase. But when the CCTV is reviewed, nothing can be seen there. From the viewer’s perspective, it looks like she stops in her tracks, looks at the void, starts walking towards the wall, then stumbles, and then acts all surprised. It is a bit different from what actually happened!

Was she dreaming this time? Is she being paranoid because they are not getting anywhere with the case? Was it a dream last time, too? What is going on? Little did she know that she was about to be drawn into a deadly game orchestrated by the devil himself. A game that would test her strength, her courage, and her very existence by pushing all the limits that she is maintaining for the peace of her mind. 

Well, anyway, this time, even though it should have been a discovery of some sort, it turns into another part of the puzzle. She discusses this with the team and writes every detail in the case references, transcripts, and reports, but still, it is hard to believe what just happened to her. The day goes by with these discussions and little here-and-there research with no results. 

Martha Murder Case Investigation: Day 10

Maya returns home, but those thoughts follow her even to her dreams. She wakes up with a jolt as she dreams about the mysterious man fading far and far away from her approach. She is a bit upset and annoyed too. An unusual dream ruins her morning, and she is the type of person who never dreams. She has a rare sleep disorder that prevents her from dreaming. This is a situation where she dreamt for the first time in her life, but she couldn’t be happy about it at all. Rubbing this off, she decides to carry on with her day.

Maya follows her daily routine, as usual, and when she opens the door to leave the apartment, her eyes travel to the letter that is very intentionally placed on top of the doorknob. It falls as soon as she opens the door. It is an unconventional way of delivering a letter because her building has a separate mailbox for each apartment. This kind of direct mailing is not allowed at all. The building premises have cameras that monitor and set aside such mail for further checks. These security checks happen multiple times at night and day. So, how was it able to remain here till this time of the day?

But since it is delivered anyway, she wears her investigation gloves and brings it back inside. Scans it for any prints or evidence and then opens it. It is indeed intended for her. It is written in elegant cursive, and the message is daunting:

Dear Maya,                                                       

“I see you. I know what you’re doing.             

Watch your back.”                                             

                             - Someone you don’t know.

It feels like a threat. The surge of anger and thousands of questions emerge in her mind. Who left this note? Is it the killer? So, it is now certain that this case is a murder and could very well be more like a cult circumstance as well. She doesn’t know for sure, but she knows that she has to be more careful from now on. Only with enough attention to this side will she find the loose end in this case. 

She carries on with her day and reports the incident to the team. They check the CCTV footage of her apartment lobby and finally; it happens! A loose end is discovered! They catch the person who left the letter on her doorstep with exceptional skills and stealth but turns out; he is just a highly paid part-time worker, making money off of making suspicious deliveries anonymously. The rest of the information is unknown or false to the most extent. But it is a good start because now they know that it isn’t as mysterious as it appeared on the canvas till now.

She shows the letter to Rebecca and announces, “Well… looks like someone got impatient here! I have received a mellow threat, it seems.”

Rebecca looks with an expression of shock and responds, “Oh, well! It took a turn. Let’s discuss this crucially.”

Maya agrees and pings Runo and Daniel, reporting the news of the immediate meeting. They all sit together and discuss a bit about the possibilities and risk factors. 

Daniel speaks, “Well, this lead is much better than what we previously had. Even the Demonologist couldn’t give any good hint of the case matter. But this might. Seems like there is no 3-only rule of such. There is a rule for letter 6, though.”

“Right. And technology is not that friendly for these people. It betrays pretty easily. Won’t be that hard to trace the buyer’s tracks,” assures Runo.

Rebecca smiles at hearing his reassuring words and declares, “That is great! Let’s start from there and we’ll reach somewhere, eventually. And…”

She is about to complete her sentence when she sees Maya sitting there, looking in the center of the table, a bit listless. Her head is tipping a bit downwards, almost looking like she is dozing off during the discussion. Maya is never the person who would sleep during the work hour. It never happened, even during the toughest duty calls and tightest schedules. So, it stood out as something weird. 

Rebecca taps on Maya’s shoulder and it is almost like Maya is not in the present moment. After 1-2 taps, it is clear that Maya wasn’t sleeping at all. Everyone becomes concerned and they tap and call out for her again. Finally, after almost half a minute, she jolts back to her senses, acting as if nothing happened.

Runo asks in concern, “Whoa! What was that?”

Maya is a bit confused. She questions, “What… what?”

Rebecca questions, “Are you serious? Is this some kind of prank you are pulling right now?”

Maya is still very much confused and lost. She inquires again, “What do you mean? We all are discussing important matters. Let’s focus on that. What are you all guys saying?”

Daniel gestures to Rebecca and Runo to stop and confirms instead, “What is the last thing you remember discussing?”

Maya verifies, “Rebecca saying that someone got impatient here.”

It is a nightmare situation for Maya and this team as well. But what needs to be done is evident. Rebecca advises and provides references to Maya for professional counseling and medical checkups.

Additionally, they decided that they needed to enhance security measures for everyone on the team and follow every lead that could bring them to the person who tipped the delivery guy enough to risk jail time for a letter.

Maya doesn’t seem to understand the gravity of her health at that time, so she brushes it off for another time. She is happy that she isn’t crazy enough to be thinking that she saw a man who wasn’t in the CCTV footage. But her relief is very short-lived.

Even though things are taking a turn for the better, her health is deteriorating day by day. Her headaches are overpowering her thoughts every now and then. And soon, she starts experiencing episodes of blackout that would last a few seconds. These episodes occur once or twice a week, but soon in a matter of a week, her episodes become more common. She starts experiencing them multiple times a day.

At first, Maya was a bit hesitant to visit a counselor or psychiatrist for help because of the case secrecy protocol. Even though the doctors are strictly under a confidentiality agreement, still taking such chances could bring worse results in worse scenarios. But it becomes necessary for her to consider professional and medical advice when she starts behaving more and more paranoid over the case, and even in her everyday life.

While the paranoia is consuming her thoughts, her vision is not left in peace. She starts seeing the silhouette of that man even in the corners of her cabin, apartment, and other regular places where no one can be present without anyone noticing.

Soon enough, by the end of that week, wherever she looks, she sees shadows and hears whispers. It is becoming a common phenomenon in her life when she sees the man standing in the corner, who is never present in the CCTV footage of any place. The voices are always in her head and shadows are always in the dark. The vague nature of these events is messing with her head, rendering her useless for the investigation.

Things are changing way too quickly to predict anything. She eventually considers taking medical help. But doctors couldn’t conclude anything with the base reports and suggested a bunch of other tests for further check-ups. The counselor and psychiatrist rule out the possibility of any psychological disorder that could cause it. They conclude it to be a physical disorder of some kind. 

Her work has always been her priority, and she never thought she would be the one bringing this to her team. But, she decides to step down from her post till her health improves. It is a heart-wrenching moment for Maya. Her heart is crushing into pieces as she takes steps… one by one… towards the bureau… to break out this news. When she reaches the bureau, she walks directly to Rebecca’s cabin and braces herself to say the words. Maya could tell by the look on Rebecca’s face that something was wrong. She is about to suggest her resignation but Rebecca looks at her and speaks with a big sigh of exhaustion and sadness, “There’s been another murder.”

Maya’s words suspend in the track and her mind turns blank. What?! Another! WHAT!

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