Bloodstains and Whispers
Ollie and Alesha's hearts sank when they saw the pool of blood.
Though they wanted to convince themselves that Eric was still all right, that the blood belonged to someone else—perhaps even the person who had attacked him—the bloodstain was exactly where Eric had been sitting. There were also marks on his seat left by a bladed weapon. Combined with Eric's unknown whereabouts and the fact that he had not contacted them at all, Ollie and Alesha both knew that their companion was most likely dead.
Zhang Heng followed them to the van and inspected the scene. "Hmm. The blood didn't come from a single wound. The victim was stabbed at least twenty times. He was struggling and twisting throughout, which is why there are knife marks on the seat. That also suggests the killer wasn't particularly skilled. But it looks like the victim's movements were restricted—at the very least, his hands and feet were tied, which was why he couldn't avoid the blows."
"Is... is he still alive?" Song Jia asked. She had followed them out and could not help asking after hearing that.
"No chance. With that much blood loss, even if none of the wounds were fatal, he couldn't have been saved," Zhang Heng said.
Song Jia's expression darkened. Then she noticed Zhang Heng looking into the distance and asked, "What is it?"
"I'm worried something may have happened at Doctor Beck's place too," Zhang Heng said. "Ollie and Alesha said they had been watching Doctor Beck's residence to protect him. But they mistook us for Apostles of the Evil Spirit and followed us here, so no one is watching Doctor Beck anymore."
Song Jia was startled. She had only met Ollie and the other two today, especially Eric, whom she had only encountered