Revenge After Death

Chapter 519

I grabbed Steven from behind and directed my middle finger at the crowd with an indifferent gaze. I was aware that the murderer possessed a strong sense of self-esteem and would not tolerate provocation from others.

Therefore, I had to take the lead in provoking... This way, he would focus on targeting me instead of Rachel.

Rachel immediately understood my intention and stepped forward in a panic to press down my arm. Stephie, what are you doing?"

I steered Rachel toward Zion. "Tell him to come to me. Get her out of here."

11

Zion was about to speak, but as soon as he saw my determination, he grasped Rachel firmly. "Don't stir up trouble. Come with me to examine the first body. You're a forensic doctor. You should be able to uncover some clues."

Only after that did Rachel react. She nodded and followed Zion. After taking a few steps, she glanced back at Steven and said, "Protect Stephie."

Steven nodded in response.

"A steel nail was found on top of the victim's head, indicating she was killed by a direct blow to the skull, leaving no external wounds." Eason meticulously inspected around and discovered only the steel nail on her head.

"To ensure a successful attack, the perpetrator must possess considerable strength while the victim must have been defenseless. Given the victim's serene facial expression, it appears that she did not suffer greatly in her final moments." Joel carefully checked the corpse.

I shook my head incredulously and examined the nail cap intently. "But if a steel nail were to strike the skull, the deceased would not lose consciousness, and there would also be signs of pain on her face. Unless it was carried out with a nail gun..."

The nail gun's power drove the nail directly, preventing uneven force that could occur when using a hammer.

"The steel nail embedded in the skull wasn't the fatal injury." Steven examined the victim's mouth, nose, and eyes. The arachnoid hemorrhage appeared to be not severe, suggesting that the major blood vessels were not affected by the steel nail. The deceased likely did not die soon after its insertion.

"The victim was killed by suffocation." Steven pointed to the victim's neck. The murderer must have strangled the victim from behind.

"Then why did the murderer drive this steel nail in?" Eason was utterly perplexed. He found this completely unnecessary.

Steven followed the line of sight to the top of the deceased's head and gestured toward the railing. "To stabilize the body.

"The deceased's muscles will experience slight contractions within one to three hours after death, and the joints will become immobile, which will occur throughout the body within 12 to 16 hours.

"Assuming that the murderer was the first person to test the safe last night, then the time window for him to commit the crime was only 12 hours. However, before the body becomes completely stiff, and if he wanted her to stand here flawlessly, he would need something to stabilize it."

Steven assumed that the steel nail should have been fastened with something like a fishing line and thenProperty of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

looped around the railing. After the initial discovery of the first body, he discreetly severed the fishing line of the second body while no one was looking.

I carefully glanced around. "The surveillance on the deck has been destroyed. The bathroom area is actually a blind spot. This lunatic is quite clever."

"To strangle a person without resistance, the murderer must possess exceptional arm strength." Steven carefully examined the body, noting only a steel nail lodged in the head and faint bruises on the neck. The absence of any other injuries indicated a lack of struggle or resistance.

"The deceased trusted the murderer, or... did not believe that the murderer would pose a threat to her," Steven analyzed again.

In conclusion, it was dangerously easy to ignore the identity and appearance of the murderer.

Joel snuck up behind Eason, put his arm around his neck, and strangled him forcefully. Eason nearly passed out and slapped Joel's arm hard while scolding him, "Are you out of your mind-"

"With my size and arm strength, it'll still take some time to strangle him, and he can resist..." Joel was trying to convey that the murderer was significantly stronger than him.

At that moment, Zion had confined the people to the deck, forbidding anyone from leaving. However, among the onlookers on the deck, Joel appeared to be the strongest person. There was even an elderly woman with a stooped back among this group of individuals.

The elderly lady was trembling as she expressed her desire to leave the deck. "We're all hungry. Why don't you let us leave?"

The elderly lady gestured in sign language, prompting the woman with her to inquire why they were not permitted to leave.

"Allow the elderly and the weak to go down first. It's windy up there," Eason walked over to Zion and informed.

Zion nodded in agreement.

The elderly woman walked down trembling, leaning on the support of the woman.

Directly beneath the deck lay the bathroom on the 15th floor, where Rachel was carefully examining the body. Rachel looked up at Zion.

"Suffocation was indeed the cause, but it wasn't strangulation. If it were, we would see visible marks on the neck. When an external force fractures the neck, it results in a spinal cord injury.

"This will cause immediate death since the spinal cord break disrupts the respiratory center, consequently leading to respiratory and cardiac arrest. The killer violently snapped the victim's neck."