"I see." I frown as I go through the reports. Every single Chimera incident had happened at the same time I'd been in the area. It's uncanny.
"It's personal." I utter out loud what I've been thinking for a while now. "And Catalina's being targeted because whoever it is knows what she means to me."
Vlad nods, his gaze intense.
"It has to be someone around you. Who else would know Chimera's M.O. to a T? Another question is why now?"
"See, the ones that we know of started two years ago. I think they're trying to play with me."
"Mind games. Could be."
"The only other person who would be so intimately aware of Chimera is dead." I add, knowing both of them will catch my meaning.
"And dead people don't go around killing other people." Adrian replies drily. "I asked around, and the FBI is seeing the cases as full priority. They've brought in some famous forensic psychologists and criminal profilers, and they had a few things to say."
"Go on." I nod at Adrian, curious for any insight.
"There was more care given to females. And they were always accompanied by some sort of religious symbol. There was one instance in which the female had a cross carved in her palm, another where the cross was physically present next to the corpse. The opinions are split really. One profiler said it might be some internalized misogyny, going on about how the woman is inferior to the man in different religious interpretations. Then another suggested the opposite, that the killer is giving special care to females, and that it might be a case of recreating a certain type of death all over. Conversely, the males are always subjugated to the worst treatments, and their corpses are the ones desecrated."
"That's..." I frown, thinking back to the nun. I turn to Vlad, and see he's thinking the same.
"Theoretically speaking, the nun wasn't desecrated. It was almost like an offering, with how the organs were put on display. The religious symbols are certainly most prevalent in this instance."
"You're right. And the position of the teeth inside her cavity... her womb." I add pensively.
"I think it's a man." Vlad suddenly says, standing up. "If my previous theory is right, then the nun offered herself up, exactly as an offering. Why would a woman do that for another woman? Now I'm sure it could be a case of sapphic love, but what are the odds, really? My bet is on a men though – a very charming man. And you're right about the placement of the teeth. We have to think about this as the killer would – every detail is intentional. The teeth could be interpreted as some symbol of fertility; he's laying his seed in her body."
"Was the nun also sexually assaulted?" I don't remember reading that in the forensic report.
"No, she wasn't. But then none of the other victims were either."
"Right, purity not profanity." I say, going back to the very basic concepts that religion and Chimera both have in common.
"Yes, the women are treated almost reverently, and the men opposite."
"I think we're going off the deep end." Adrian puts a hand up. "You're looking into this too much. Do you really think everything is a symbol?"
"That's the thing. The original Chimera's M.O. was to appeal to the baser instincts. He would intentionally use any personal references to elicit a strong reaction." Vlad mentions, giving me a side glance.
"Then why don't we try to look at the clues through Marcel's lens? If he is the target, then the symbols are directly connected to him."
"A woman with strong religious connections?" I give a dry laugh. "I think I know a few of those."
"Right." Vlad suddenly says, pursing his lips. "Well, let's take them one by one."
Chapter Twenty
AGE FIFTEEN,
WITH ONE LAST SLASH, I throw the knife to the ground and grab a cloth to wipe the blood off. I head to the bathroom and look at myself in the mirror.
Damn, the blood really got everywhere this time. Even my blonde hair is now splattered with red. I turn on the faucet and splash some water on my face.
When I return to the room, father is already there inspecting my work.
There are four lifeless bodies on the floor. This had been one of my more intensive torture sessions, since they didn't seem to fear a teenager as they would an adult.
I'd set to prove them wrong.
It had taken me two hours to break the first man. The others had quickly followed, which proved my theory that they would be more malleable if they were to see what happened to their friends.
Father stoops low and inspects the mortal blows, his brows furrowed.
"Are you sure you got everything?" He moves over to the next corpse and does the same.
"Yes, sir." I answer, addressing him with his due.
"That was fast." He stands up, looking pensive. "I have to say, boy," he pauses and I mentally cringe at his use of boy, "I am impressed." He doesn't look like it. In fact, his expression shows how much it cost him to admit this. After all, I am always the disappointment.
I don't reply. Even his praise can't affect me anymore. If anything, I find myself growing colder.
"I think it's finally time for the next step." Father narrows his eyes at me, almost reluctant for what's to come.
I simply nod.
In the last years, I've learned that the less I talk, the less I reveal of myself to the world. This way, no one will find any faults or weaknesses in me.
I simply am.
My existence is to serve the famiglia and to do father's dirty work. I've come to terms with the fact that I can be nothing more.
I am, but I am not.
Even the notion of pain can't phase me anymore. Physical pain is just that – physical and as such ephemeral. I can close my eyes and dissociate.
Emotional pain... That doesn't go away. So I do the only thing I can. I stop feeling.
"I'll have someone clean this up." He points to the dead bodies before adding. "Let's see how you'll fare in the position I have in mind." He turns to the exit.
I give him a brisk nod, following.
"There is a reason people don't mess with us." Father continues as he leads me towards an area of the basement I haven't been to until now.
"Not that they don't want to, but that they don't dare." He smirks, pride reflected in his gaze.
He opens the door, and inside I see a man strapped to a chair.
The room is much smaller than any of the others, but I've never seen so many instruments of torture in one place before.
"There's a tradition in our family. The younger sons are trained to serve their capo, which is what I've been doing with you until now. Every test I've given you has been for this." He motions me towards the center of the room.
"You've proven yourself to be beyond my expectations." Father muses, and it's the first time he doesn't scowl at me. "But now you must pass your biggest test yet."
"Yes, sir." I confirm. What can be worse than what I've been through so far? I almost want to laugh at that thought.
Yes, father's done something alright, and that's erasing what little humanity I had left.