Dark shadows loom down as a full moon dominates an inky black sky and a hazy fog permeates throughout the night. An unassuming house lay silent and undisturbed; however, as the clock strikes twelve, the humble apartment’s peace is finally broken. Deep inside, a woman arrives at the quiet residence, and, stumbling out of her car, slowly walks toward her house, marred by her unsteady countenance and impaired senses.

 As the woman steps into the house, she falters and nearly falls to the floor, but, with the support of a nearby counter, she manages to stay on her feet. Walking further into her greeting room, the woman, with ample support, succeeds in entering her kitchen, and, arriving at her dining table, tenses up suddenly, her eyes wide open.

 Clutching onto her heart, the woman’s face tightens in fear, and she finally falls to the floor in absolute silence, never to speak again.

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 Hours later, the unrecognized silence is broken when, in a dark, lonely house, a phone begins to ring loudly. A man sleeps soundlessly in his bed, promptly awoken from the fog of unconsciousness by this strange disturbance. Still, in an indistinct haze, the man taps lightly on his phone and mumbles,”Apples, snap the call to TV.”

 The TV screen in front of him lights up brightly, and a robotic voice responds,”Very well sir, call transmitted to television.”

 A face appears instantly on the impressively large screen, and it begins to speak, saying,”Hello...Are you there Kyle?”

 The man sits up in his bed, and turns his attention to the television, finding a recognizable face, and, sleepily responds,” Boss, no need to worry, I am quite...Alive. What do you need?”

 The face replies,”Kyle, I need you to come immediately to the coordinates I have sent to you, at 949 Eighth Street. There has been an… unusual case, and I need your expertise.”

 Kyle glances at the coordinates listed on the screen, and, directing his gaze to his clock briefly, complains,”Really, I have to leave at three o’clock in the morning? Couldn’t someone else do it?”

 The Boss responds,”No other detective has the capabilities you do. Hurry up.” The face suddenly disappears, leaving only a string of coordinates visible.

 Kyle sighs, and pushes himself out of bed, saying,”Apples, get my coffee ready, and pre-heat some steamed buns for me. I’m going out.” Moving over to his closet, Kyle slips on a stylish red-and-black suit and steps out of his bedroom. Quickly walking to his kitchen, Kyle grabs his coffee and food, and, snatching his keys on the way out of his house, begins the drive to the crime scene.

 Once out of his driveway, Kyle, still sipping his coffee, taps on the car’s electronic display, and, says,”Autopilot activate”, foregoing control of the car as he continues on to the crime scene. After arrival at 949 Eighth Street, Kyle exits his car and walks silently toward a man waiting in front of the house. As Kyle approaches the house, the man steps out into the light of the moon, and a serious, solemn face is revealed. The man questions Kyle, asking,”What took you so long?”

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 Kyle, still annoyed, answers,”The Chief gave me notice only fifteen minutes ago, John. What do you expect?”

 John responds tiredly,”Fine, fine. Just get to work soon.”

 Kyle asks,”Anyway, what is the situation inside the house?”

 John replies,”We’ve only just stepped into the house to survey the scene, but a woman, looking to be in her twenties, has passed away, with little signs of anything strange.”

 Kyle glares at John, asking,”Then exactly why was I called in? Why would I be needed for this?”

 John answers,”Annoyed today, are you? You were called in because the Chief felt like there was something odd at the crime scene, and she needed someone with a deductive ability even more refined than her’s.”

 Kyle responds,”Fine, if she felt so strongly about it, then there is probably something there. Give me a second to prepare, then we’ll go in.” Closing his eyes, Kyle clears his mind of any distractions, then opens the door to the house.

 As Kyle enters the house he begins to concentrate and opens his eyes fully; information floods into his mind, and it begins to quicken, moving faster and faster. The house is paneled in a dark maple, and the walls are painted in a deep brown; to the left of the tiny greeting room is a living room, seeming to be 404 square feet in size, and to the right is a kitchen, lying at around 206 square feet. Kyle slowly walks through the house, carefully inspecting every inch of the house with his piercing eyes. The kitchen is painted in white and tiled in a light grey; the kitchen table is a stable oak structure, and next to it lies the woman, sprawled on the floor in a bright yellow jacket and azure blue jeans.

 The floor surrounding the woman is spotless, and the counters lining the north and west walls of the kitchen share a similar cleanliness. Kyle turns the woman over on her side and finds her wallet in her left pocket, and inside it reveals her identity; an ordinary twenty-three-year-old woman named Janet Briand. Her body shows no signs of any abuse physically, save for some poorly applied make-up. Kyle performs a short inspection of her body, and finds no odd marks or bruises; however, Kyle does find a slightly swollen throat and small amounts of hair falling out from the victim’s head.

 Kyle turns his attention to his surroundings, and finds a purple margarita machine on the north kitchen counter, and, as Kyle opens up Janet’s black kitchen pantry, he finds an empty bottle of “4 Copas Blanco” tequila. Moving to the backyard, Kyle observes the handle of the back-door, which contains only one tiny scratch on the interior opening of the handle, and looks almost brand-new. The entire back-yard is merely a fake lawn and two oak trees, and looks untouched, save for some odd occurrences; the lawn has two slight deformations where the grass is pressed down slightly, and one of the trees has a leaf under it partially crushed. Kyle closes the back-door, relaxes, and turns to John.

 John asks,”How did the search go? Did you find any signs of foul play?”

 Kyle, still in contemplation, narrows his eyes, replying,”Maybe...But I know one thing for sure; the Chief was right about this case. It is extremely strange, and we have to pursue this further.”

 John says,”If it is remarkable enough to interest you, it must be very strange indeed. Very well, we’ll go to the station to further investigate this.”

 “What?” says Kyle, taken aback,” I never said I would go to the station tonight. I’m going home. To bed.”

 John says,”I thought you would help explore the intricacies of this case.”

 Kyle cheerfully replies,”Nope. I will go back to sleep instead. Have fun though.”

 John says,”I thought Ann would stop you from shirking your duties at the station- you aren’t even teaching at the UCHI tomorrow.”

  Kyle responds,”Ann is visiting her parents, and so I don’t have to do anything. Plus, I’m only a part-timer at the station. Anyway, I’ll meet you at the station at...Nine o’clock a.m. tomorrow. Goodbye for now.” Kyle promptly rushes away, leaving John to handle paperwork at the station.”

 John hangs his head in sadness, saying,”Guess it’s going to be a long night at the station…”

  And as the pair goes on to their duties, the majestic moon slowly lowers from its peak, and daybreak inches closer to arrival...