Two days since she investigated the murder in Cockburn. Joanna was glad that she could have her two days off. While she was looking for a Christmas gift for her girlfriend in the centre of Perth, she tried to ignore the intrusive thoughts about the murders that plagued her mind. This feels nice, she lied to herself. Denying the eerie nature of the case. She read the report of Faith’s autopsy the night before, how unnatural the whole thing came across.
Her blood was completely drained from her body, and her bone marrow was also mysteriously gone, yet her muscle fibres were preserved for approximately 30 hours before they went through the stages of decay. In the end, the nature of her death as well as her corpse was a mystery to her and the forensics team.
It has to be a mistake, there is no way someone could drain someone's bone marrow without cutting into her. She pulled out her phone and flicked through Facebook in the hopes of taking her mind somewhere more pleasant. She flicked through her girlfriend’s pottery-making page, but the shaping of the clay reminded her of the dry texture of the corpse of John and Faith. This is fucked up! She told herself, upset that a relaxing moment was tainted by the murders.
Nor did walking around Perth do her any good. People were talking of the murders, how the victims had their skin stolen. Joanna wanted to break free, only for her to find that the details of the murders would always follow her. She noticed how no one travelled alone and had at least one or two buddies with them. She even picked up how some people made up certain details about the murders. Though she never corrected them, for the lie they conjured was a better version than reality.
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As she entered Forest Place, she noticed a few teens huddled around the green cactus monument. Besides talking to one another, or even facing each other, they just stood there with their arms by their sides. Yet Joanna couldn’t help but notice the smaller details. Their necks looked slightly longer, their foreheads looked sunken at a certain angle, their pinkie fingers were as thick as their thumb but also as long as their ring finger, their legs were bowed inwards, and their hair looked thin and sickly.
The more she looked, the uncannier their appearances were. She had to look away so as to not get caught glaring at kids. However, she also noticed a strange figure wearing an all-black suit and sunglasses staring at the teenagers. Thinking something was wrong, she approached the figure to determine if they had any good intentions. In truth, she just wanted an excuse to get her mind off the murders. Even if it meant unnecessary confrontation.
Yet before she could approach the man, he walked away. Well, at least it wasn’t something bad. She turned back around to make her way to the train station. Only to be welcomed by every teenager at the cactus giving an awkward, toothy smile.
She didn’t know what to do, so Joanna smiled and waved at the teens to alleviate the awkwardness between her and the group. Yet, they raised their right arms in unison above their heads and twisted their hands from left to right as a poor imitation of a wave.
Yet at a closer expectation, one of the teens looked familiar. She had blond hair, and her face was covered in freckles. Yet her lower jaw looked unnaturally small for a normal human.
Foetal alcohol syndrome? She reasoned to herself, rationalising that they were a support group. Even if they were strange to her.