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"Who is she?" Amelia asked, her voice barely above a whisper.
"We don't know yet," Mulberry replied. "We just got here ourselves."
Finn frowned, his instincts already kicking in. Another victim, he thought, the weight of responsibility settling on his shoulders. He glanced over at Amelia, who seemed lost in thought as she stared down at the lifeless form.
"Let's find out what happened to her," Finn said quietly, determination fueling his every step as they approached the body. Finn was desperate for answers, he couldn't shake the feeling that they were only scratching the surface of something much darker.
Finn and Amelia climbed up the hillside, their boots slipping on the damp leaves and mud. As they reached the forensic team, one of the investigators looked up and nodded.
"Detective Wright, Inspector Winters," he greeted. "I'm Doctor Cartwright. We've not long arrived ourselves."
"Any ID on the victim?" Finn asked, his eyes scanning the broken form before him.
"Nothing yet," Mulberry replied.
Amelia gasped as she drew closer, recognition dawning in her eyes. "I think this is one of the girls from Charles Keatings' room last night. One of the two..."
"Prostitutes," Finn finished for her, his gaze narrowing. "Doctor, any idea about time of death?"
“Did Charles come back to finish his dirty work?” Amelia pondered out loud.
“Any idea of time of death, Doctor?” Finn asked.
“I'll know better when we perform an autopsy, but I would say that the woman was killed about ten hours ago,” he said. “No sign of stabbing like the other victims so far.”
Finn sighed. “That rules out Charles Keatings then. He was still being interviewed at the station."
"Then who could have done this?" Amelia wondered aloud, concern etched in her expression.
"Good question," Finn mused, studying the body more closely. He noticed something unusual: a tattoo that resembled a coat of arms on the dead woman's leg. Finn felt guilt that they had taken Charles away from the women and then the worst had happened. "What do you make of this?" he asked, pointing to the inked design.
"Interesting," Amelia murmured. "A crest of some sort?"
"Seems like it." Finn turned to the forensic team, curiosity piqued. "Have any of you found evidence of a hole nearby? Maybe where she fell from?"
The investigators exchanged puzzled glances, clearly not expecting the question. "No, nothing like that," one of them said.
"Keep an eye out for it, would you?" Finn requested, his mind already racing with possibilities. "A hole, a tunnel, anything that might connect this to the previous cases." The thought consumed him, gnawing at the edges of his consciousness as he surveyed the scene.
"Let's keep looking," Amelia suggested, her voice determined but tinged with sadness. "If there's a connection, we'll find it."
"Agreed," Finn replied, forcing himself to stay focused and present.
But as he continued to examine the body, the tattoo lingered in his thoughts like a puzzle piece that refused to fit. It felt significant, somehow - a vital clue hidden in plain sight. Finn took out his phone and took several photographs of the tattoo.
Amelia squinted her eyes as she scanned the steep hillside above them. "Look at those marks," she said, pointing to a series of indentations in the dirt and foliage. "I think she fell from up there."
The forensics team looked up, following Amelia's gaze. One investigator nodded in agreement. "It would explain the broken neck and the position of the body."
"Great catch, Winters. Come on, let's check it out," Finn said, determination etched on his face. He and Amelia began climbing the slope, carefully navigating the slippery terrain.
As they reached the top of the hill, Finn spotted something that made him stop in his tracks. "Amelia, over here," he called out, his voice tense with anticipation.
Amelia joined Finn, and they both stared at the entrance of a small tunnel, partially obscured by earth and foliage. "This must be what she fell from," Amelia whispered, her eyes widening with realization.
"Bet it links to the other tunnels under the castle and at the riverbank," Finn added, pulling out a torch and shining its light inside the dark passage.
"Be careful, Finn," Amelia warned as they peered into the tunnel. The beam of light revealed a cave-in, piles of rock and debris blocking the way forward. "It doesn't look safe."
