"It really is!" Suzuki Sonoko had kept feeling that something was missing. Now, at Sato Miwako's words, she slapped a fist into her palm in sudden realization. "The ligature mark is much shorter than it should be!"
Officer Takagi got along well with her. He muttered to this kindred spirit, "When a murderer strangles a victim with a thin cord, they often wrap it around the victim's neck and cross it over. In that case, the ligature mark should tightly circle the entire neck.
"Some people, in a moment of panic, don't have time to cross the cord and just pull hard in one direction... Even then, the mark should cover at least three sides of the neck. But this victim's mark is only on the front."
Suzuki Sonoko frowned and thought hard. Then inspiration struck. "If the murderer was very strong, couldn't she pin the victim face-up on the floor, pull a length of rope taut with both hands, and press it straight down across the victim's neck?"
"This..."
Officer Takagi's eyes lit up!
Then, after thinking for a moment, he scratched his head.
Suzuki Sonoko looked confused. "What is it?"
Officer Takagi said, "I can't quite put my finger on it, but... it just feels like something isn't right."
"Theoretically, it's possible, but there would be a small difficulty in carrying it out." Jiang Xia pointed at the ligature mark on the victim's neck.
"There are some Yoshikawa Lines beside the mark—wounds made when the victim desperately scratched at the murder weapon while being strangled.
"This is not only an important sign forensic pathologists use to identify homicide, but also shows that the victim's hands were not severely restrained when she died. At the very least, she could raise them to scratch her own neck.
"In that case,