Lei Mi - Profiler

On the way back to their rooms, the three of them ran into Liu Jianjun in the dormitory hallway. A huge smile on his face, he greeted them loudly. Although Fang Mu and Zou Tuanjie responded, Du Yu just stared at the ceiling.

"You see that? What did I tell you!" said Fang Mu to Zou Tuanjie with a smile.

Du Yu smiled as well, and then punched Fang Mu in the shoulder.

The victim was a seven-year-old girl named Jin Qiao. She had been in class three of the second grade at the JiangbinCityUniversity employees' elementary school. Her father, Jin Bingshan, was 42-year-old and the president of the Metropolitan Culture Company. Her mother, Yang Qin, was 41 and an assistant professor of philosophy at JiangbinCityUniversity.

When her body was returned, Jin Qiao had already been missing for over 50 hours. According to her parents, on the night Jin Qiao disappeared, her father was supposed to have picked her up from school, but because he was dealing with some clients at the time, he arrived late and she was no longer there. After alerting the police, the parents papered the city with missing person notices, but for the next two days there was no news, up until the victim's corpse appeared on her parents' doorstep.

At the time of discovery, the victim's corpse was completely naked and covered with wounds. According to the medical examiners, the cause of death was shock resulting from painful, large-scale tissue damage. In other words, Jin Qiao was tortured to death. The examiners also determined that after she was dead, her body was raped. However, because no trace of semen was discovered inside, they suspected that her killer used a condom.

The corpse had been placed inside a large cardboard box, which was soon identified as an old Adidas packing box. In addition to the body, two other objects were found inside, both seemingly inexplicable. One was a videotape, the other a broken piece of some ceramic object.

The videotape was of the standard variety compatible with the average family VCR. No fingerprints were found on its exterior. The tape itself was only 15 seconds long and consisted of a single close-up on a young girl's genitals. She was lying on a black sheet (probably to conceal the colors and characteristics of any other objects in the room), her legs were spread wide, and from beginning to end the camera never moved. The girl didn't either, and this coupled with the color of her skin suggested that she was already dead. Based on her physiology, she did not appear to be older than 14. Later, after the victim's parents were shown the video, they noticed a birthmark on the girl's thigh that identified her as their daughter Jin Qiao.

In her right hand the victim was found holding a piece of an unknown ceramic object, with a surface area of eight-square-inches. This was soon determined to be a broken piece of pottery, likely part of some sort of container, and it appeared to be decorated with pictures of naked men and women. The police then sought the advice of the chairman of the Jiangbin City Ceramic Artists Association. He responded that based on the images on the broken pottery, it looked very much like the work of Grayson Perry, the British ceramic artist who specialized in vases. However, it was extremely unlikely that this was an original.

To begin their investigation of the case, the police decided on the following steps:

First, visit the victim's elementary school, making sure to interview the students and teachers she came in contact with on the night she went missing.

Second, because the crime was so savage, it was very likely to have been done out of revenge. Therefore, a comprehensive investigation needed to be made of Jin Bingshan and Yang Qin's social relationships.

Third, because the box in which the victim was found was fairly large, her killer would probably have needed a car to transport it to her doorstep, but because the driveway was laid in cement, it was impossible to obtain any trace of tire tracks. Therefore, immediate interviews would need to be made with everyone living nearby, to determine whether any suspicious cars were seen on the morning of the murder. At the same time, car rental agencies across the city would need to be investigated for news of any suspicious renters.

Fourth, although the box in which the victim was found likely originated at either an Adidas company store or specialty shop, the killer had already removed any label that might have identified the place from where it was purchased or shipped. This was obviously done to conceal its origin, so a citywide search would need to be made for the source of the box.

Fifth, while undergoing intense torture, the victim had probably attempted to dodge or resist her killer, and police suspected that it was during one such attempt that the victim grabbed the piece of pottery. This meant that the vase from which the piece was broken had likely belonged to the killer. Therefore, all markets in the city that sold this kind of pottery would need to be investigated for clues about its purchaser.

Coughing. Insuppressible coughing.

And then endless vomiting.

Leaning on the rim of the toilet, grabbing for the toilet paper. Ripping off a piece and carelessly wiping away the vomit and then throwing it into the toilet and flushing. The filthy paper swirling out of sight.

So dizzy.

With difficulty standing up. A familiar face in the mirror. Skin pallid, unkempt hair.

Smiling at the face.

Eyes shut as the lips curl upwards.

No-must not look at that monstrous smile.

Stumbling back into the living room. Collapsing on the couch. Tightly shut living room windows, thick curtains blocking out the sun. Pale yellow light from a single bulb on the wall. The air stiflingly hot. But then, why does it still feel so cold?

Hair soaked with cold sweat, plastered uncomfortably to the forehead. Forcefully pushing it back with a damp palm. Sniffing.

The room smells of rot.

Striding quickly to the window, throwing back the curtains with a whoosh , and then, as if burned by the sunlight, immediately drawing them closed. Over to the desk now, tearing open the drawer, pulling everything out. At last, a bottle of air freshener. Psh. Psh. Psh. Spraying until there's not a drop of liquid left.

The dense lemon scent burns, but now everything is much more comfortable.

Falling back onto the sofa. Grabbing a book from the floor, flipping through the pages. On one: a large fold-out drawing of the human anatomy.

Get the fuck away!

The book is thrown hard against the wall, hits with a thunk , and falls to the floor with a rustle of paper. Innocently, it lies open.

Body going limp, sliding to the floor. Instantly chilled by the cold tile.

Hands propped at sides, trying to rise, feeling something cold, damp and oily beneath one palm.

Lifting it from beside the sofa. One glance. A small piece of someone's ruined skin.

Throat suddenly clenching. And then mouth covered, scrambling to the bathroom, no time to get the toilet lid up before the horrid sound of retching echoes off the walls.

Although bent like a bowstring, although stomach twitching violently, only a few mouthfuls of yellowish liquid fall into the bowl. Despite tear-blurred vision can still feel drops of mucus trickling down the lips.

Again that face in the mirror. Tiredly wiping long trails of saliva hanging from the mouth. Staring at the face.

It was someone else, the face was just as pale but it was someone else.

Laugh! Open your mouth and laugh.

The stranger in the mirror cackled right back.

Looking back into the living room, at the photograph on the computer screen.

You'll never defeat me.

Fang Mu took a few quick steps over the grass and then hurried down the little path back to his dormitory. When he reached the building he saw Liu Jianjun, who was wearing a suit and tie and talking to Deng Linyue just outside. Seeing Fang Mu, Liu Jianjun waved enthusiastically, and Deng Linyue gave a very polite smile. Fang Mu waved back at them distractedly and then rushed into the building.