Demetrius stood before a group of men from the local garrison. He had them block off the alley where he found the body. The Stratigos didn't even want to look at it, so he kept his eyes away from the corpse. It was luck that Demetrius found them so soon, eating at a nearby restaurant.

While most of the men guarded the alley, Demetrius had one deliver a message to Tourmarchēs Khalid and another see if he could get a doctor. At that moment, the boy's head was filled with a swirling mixture of nausea and anxiety.

Tourmarchēs Khalid rode over with a sense of urgency on his face. His horse was clearly tired from the fast ride.

"I came as soon as ordered, despótēs," Khalid said. "What do you need?"

"The alley. There's been a murder," Demetrius pointed.

Tourmarchēs Khalid sighed.

"A murder? That's what you called me over for?" he asked.

Demetrius nodded.

"Look at the body," the Stratigos said.

Tourmarchēs Khalid did as commanded, dismounting and walking past Demetrius. When he came out of the alley, there was a look of understanding on his face.

"I have seen worse in war, even worse being done to women," he stated. "But for something like this to happen in Cea, in the middle of the city, and for no one to notice it..."

Khalid's face turned dark. His grim expression surveyed the area before he nodded.

"You were right to call for me, despótēs. Such a crime cannot go unpunished. What do you need me to do?" the Tourmarchēs asked.

"See if you can find the woman's family," Demetrius answered.

After a moment of hesitation, Khalid spoke again.

"I do not mean to bother you or suggest someone in your family should do more work, despótēs. However, your sister is a witch. Perhaps some of her magic could help us?" he suggested.

Demetrius let out a deep sigh. He slumped back, leaning against a wall.

"I'm hoping that we won't have to get Adriadne involved," the boy said. "Or at least that she won't have to see the body. She shouldn't have to witness something like this."

Khalid nodded. His gaze was filled with a degree of sadness.

"Your hesitation is understandable, despótēs. If it was my own sister, I would hesitate too. However, lives are at stake. You should at least discuss this with her, should you not?" he asked.

Demetrius went silent for a moment. Then, he sighed once more and spoke.

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"Very well. It's best that we find the murderer as soon as possible."

The Stratigos turned to one of the soldiers.

"Go to the Tagaris Estate. Bring Adriadne Kallergis here, now," Demetrius ordered. "Tell a steppe nomad named Ganzaya to come too. In fact, have him escort her here."

Not hesitating, the garrison member ran off right away. Tourmarchēs Khalid then inclined his head to Demetrius.

"Cea is a large city. I had best start trying to find the woman's family right away," he said.

"Yes, you should," Demetrius replied.

Khalid mounted his horse and rode off at a decent pace. Demetrius sat by the alley, still leaning against the wall. After a few minutes, one of the garrison men returned with an old man. The Stratigos didn't waste any time.

"Are you a doctor?" he asked.

"Yes, I am," the old man answered. "What does a Stratigos require of my talents?"

"There's a corpse in the alley. Inspect her and tell me everything you can figure out about her death," Demetrius said. "One of the garrison will stay by you."

His eyes were filled with suspicion.

"If the doctor did this and tries tampering with the body...well, there isn't much I can do about it, but having one of the men looking over his shoulder should help deter any foul play," Demetrius thought.

The doctor nodded.

"As you command, despótēs," he said.

Then, the doctor entered the alley. Demetrius sat outside and waited. And waited. And waited. Hours passed. Pain flashed through the Stratigos. Worry soon met it.

"Why haven't Ganzaya and Adriadne arrived yet? They should have come here by now. I hope nothing bad happened to them," Demetrius thought.

The image of the corpse in the alley flashed through his mind. Demetrius imagined Adriadne in the same position. It took all his efforts to not throw up.

"Calm down, Demetrius," the boy was shaking. "Adriadne knows the world is dangerous. She grew up as a prostitute's daughter, after all. She's probably with Ganzaya or someone else who can protect her. She's safe. She has to be."

The doctor walked out of the alley, followed by the garrison member. Demetrius saw that the doctor was shaking his head.

"It doesn't make any sense," the doctor said. "It just makes no sense."

Demetrius pushed off from the wall.

"What did you find, doctor?" he asked.

"First, the wound that made the woman's intestines spill out was done with a single blow."

"Then, a sword or an axe was the murder weapon?" Demetrius questioned.

The doctor shook his head.

"Most likely not," he said. "The wound goes just deep enough to cause the intestines to spill out. It doesn't go any deeper. You would need to either be a very skilled swordsman to pull that off, or you would have to use something like a knife. But the strength required to cause an injury like that with a knife..."

"Is it possible that the swordsman was trying to inflict a deeper wound and just got unlucky?" Demetrius asked.

"No. The intestine wound was caused after her death," the doctor answered.

Demetrius turned pale.

"After?"

"Yes. I am certain of that. But she had to have been standing up for the intestines to spill in the way they did. There is no evidence that she was held up either."

Demetrius' eyes widened in slow realization. He felt sick to his stomach.

"What killed her?" he asked.

"A large blunt force, delivered from the back of her head to her lower back. All her bones were shattered, but the skin was not broken. It makes no sense," the doctor answered.

"By the gods," Demetrius was on the verge of screaming. "I need to find Adriadne. She could be in danger."

Another, darker, thought came to him.

"And not just her. Tomoe and Theodora could be in danger too!"

He turned to the garrison soldiers.

"Call a curfew, now! We have a demon on our hands!"