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Hemworth hospital's morgue was serving as their temporary base of operations, a mere stone's throw from Richmond castle, still a crime scene.
"Inspector Winters," a man in his fifties with a balding head, beady eyes, and a white lab coat on, greeted, nodding towards Amelia who stopped and stood by a gurney, her posture rigid but her eyes revealing a storm of thoughts beneath a calm exterior.
"Agent Wright, I presume?" the man then said, acknowledging him with a curt nod. "I'm Dr. Henley, shall we go over the preliminary findings for Lily and Thomas Richmond? I think you'll find it quite thrilling."
“I don't find people being dead, thrilling, Doc,” Finn said.
“Of course,” the man retorted. “What I mean is the chase.”
"Right, let's hear it then, Doctor," Finn said, folding his arms across his chest, trying to shake off the chill that had nothing to do with the room's temperature.
Dr. Henley, a man whose features were as sharp as the scalpels he wielded, peered at them through round spectacles. He gestured towards an array of photographs spread out on a nearby table. "Our murder weapon," he began, pointing at an X-ray image, "we believe is a medieval dirk, or something quite similar in design."
"Medieval?" Finn echoed, leaning forward to inspect the images more closely. The outline of the deep incision was unmistakable, even amid the shadows of tissue and bone, but it looked like many others Finn had seen before. He was unsure of Henley's conclusion.
"Indeed," Dr. Henley confirmed.
“How can you be sure it wasn't an ordinary knife?” Finn asked.
“The shape of the wound and some oxidized metal on the bone,” Henley continued. “I've never seen it, but I was able to compare the shape and samples to a similar case in Romania where an ancient dagger was used in a murder case.”
“That's... Different,” Amelia observed.
"Not your typical choice for a murder weapon in this day and age, eh? In fact, this is a first for me. The idea that a weapon not used for hundreds of years has been wielded once more, it's poetic... And tragic, of course." The doctor seemed to add that in at the last moment.
Amelia picked up one of the photos, her fingers tracing the shape of the weapon as if she could feel its weight. "So we're looking for an antique? Possibly someone with access to historical artifacts?"
"Or a very dedicated murderer," Finn added, his mind racing through possibilities, motives.
“I wonder if it's from the castle,” Amelia added. “There were plenty of old swords on the walls. The killer could have opportunistically grabbed one and used it to kill Thomas and Lily.”
“Lily Richmond looks to have died from blunt force trauma to the back of the head,” Dr. Henley interjected.
“But the stab wounds?” Finn asked.
“Superficial,” Henley replied. “They could have been done afterwards, it wouldn't be the first time a
killer has mutilated a body.”
“Or to make sure she was dead,” Amelia replied.
“Antique swords...” Finn mused. He recalled the disgruntlement of locals over the castle's renovations. Was it possible the killer had chosen such an anachronistic tool as a statement?
Finn stood over the stainless steel slab, where the coroner had meticulously arranged photographs of the wounds for analysis. The chill of the morgue seemed to seep into his thoughts, crystallizing them with a surgeon's precision.
"Note the trajectory," the coroner said, pointing to a series of gruesome close-ups. "Lily Richmond's wounds look to have been inflicted after she was hit on the head and had died. But Thomas... Some of his were during the active attack, and of those, each entry wound is low on the body, suggesting the assailant struck from a position of lesser height."
"Or they could have been kneeling," Finn countered softly, but he knew the angles told a more telling story.
"Unlikely," Amelia interjected, leaning closer to the images. Her voice carried an analytical edge. "These are upward thrusts with considerable force. It suggests someone short, perhaps even diminutive in stature." She glanced at Finn, her eyes reflecting the sterile light fixtures above.
"Exactly my thought," the coroner agreed, tapping the photograph. "I would say it's possible the killer is a woman."
Finn let out a sigh. If that were the case, then it wouldn't have been Vilne. Max Vilne stood even taller than Finn. But then, he wouldn't put it past him to fake the trajectory.
"Let's consider the weapon," Amelia proposed, turning back to the coroner. "We're dealing with something medieval, a dirk. It's not your everyday choice for murder."
"Could it have been taken from the castle?" Finn asked, his brow furrowing as he considered the implications.
