Chapter 2 - The Clogged Drain
Three hours before the police arrived, the apartment had been completely peaceful. Sunlight filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the high-rise suite, illuminating the sleek minimalist furniture. Mariana had been preparing breakfast for little Sofia while Diego sat on the sofa, scrolling through his phone with his usual relaxed expression. He had kissed her forehead, complained playfully about running out of fresh fruit, and announced he was stepping out to buy oranges.
Once Diego left, Mariana went into the master bathroom to bathe Sofia. As she ran the warm water into the glass shower, she noticed the water was draining agonizingly slowly. A thick, dark water line began pooling around Sofia's feet. It was strange; their apartment was brand new, and the plumbing had never caused a single issue before.
Mariana grabbed a small flashlight and a rubber plunger from the utility closet, trying to clear the blockage herself. When the plunger failed, she used a small wire coat hanger to probe into the stainless-steel drain cover. As the wire snagged on something heavy and solid lodged beneath the grate, a faint, chemical odor rose from the pipe—a combination of heavy bleach and something sweet, metallic, and distinctly unnatural.
She pulled the coat hanger back. Hooked onto the end of the metal wire was a small strand of dark hair wrapped around a small, sharp piece of calcified material. Mariana stared at it, her heart skipping a beat. She was an illustrator, not a scientist, but the texture and density of the fragment looked unsettlingly like bone.
Drawn by a sudden, inexplicable sense of dread, Mariana remembered her best friend, Lucia, who worked as a senior technician at the city forensic pathology lab. Panicked and unsure if she was overreacting, Mariana snapped a photo of the fragment and texted it directly to Lucia.
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Within three minutes, Lucia’s name flashed on her phone screen. Lucia didn't write back; she called immediately, her voice unusually strained. "Mariana, don't touch anything in that bathroom. Don't let Diego touch it. I am coming over with an officer right now."
👉 Read PART 3 to see what Lucia revealed when she arrived at the apartment!
