GODDESSBLESSYOUFROMDEATH, Case File 30: Hibiscus

The hospital was a place Thup always tried to avoid. He never thought of stepping in unless absolutely necessary. This place wasn’t just for those about to depart; it also harbored souls eager to be reborn. He followed closely behind the older man until they reached the reception counter. The hospital here wasn’t very large, crowded to the point where Thup almost got lost among the people.

“Excuse me. I’m here to see the head nurse, or anyone who’s been working here for over twenty years.” The police badge was shown once more that day.

“Please wait a moment.”

The young nurse walked into a room, and while they were waiting, a friendly greeting was heard from behind them.

“Hey, what brings you here?” Charn, in a clean white lab coat, didn’t make Singha feel any less annoyed.

“Business.”

“When at uncle’s house, you didn’t talk to me, and even outside you still don’t talk? So, you’re really not friendly at all.”

“What are you doing here, Phii?”

“It’s about a case I need to help investigate. What about you?”

“Officer, this is the person you wanted to meet.”

“Hello. I am the head nurse here. Is there something wrong?” The newcomer was a nurse in a clean white uniform, around sixty years old, her calm face showing a slight hint of concern.

“Can we talk for a moment? I have some questions.”

“It’s work time now, I’m not really available. Can it wait until after work?”

“I don’t think we have that much time.” Singha held up a piece of paper for the person in front of him to see; the photo of one of the murder victims seemed to shock her quite a bit. “We need to talk.”

Inside the police station’s interrogation room, King was standing with his arms crossed, looking at the elderly man in yellow robes sitting calmly across from him. Since being arrested, he hadn’t shown any signs of panic or worry, despite all evidence pointing towards him.

“Chief, could you step outside for a moment?” One of the team members opened the door. King nodded slowly before turning his gaze back to the monk. “If you have a personal lawyer, you can call them now, or if not, you can use a state lawyer.”

Only silence answered back. King walked past the monk to talk with his subordinate. Now that they had apprehended the suspect, all that was left was to find concrete evidence.

“What is it?”

“Doctor Say and Doctor Darin have brought the victim to the infirmary. Preliminary checks show no signs of external or internal injuries; we’re just waiting for her to wake up from the effects of the drug.”

“Has the evidence collection team found anything?”

“From the site inspection, no additional evidence has been found yet, sir, but the latest update is that locals are chasing the team out of the temple area.”

“Why?”

“Uh, because the abbot is highly respected around here, the villagers are getting upset. I think they’ll be here soon.”

“Cordon off the area, tell them anyone who acts violently is obstructing official duties, punishable by both imprisonment and fine. Call the department, also let them know I’ve caught the suspect. They can issue a statement.”

“Understood.”

“Let me know if there’s any progress, and where is Lieutenant Khem?”

“I’m not sure, it seems like he’s been missing since morning.”

“Call him back. I need to see him.”

“Yes.”

After giving orders, his sharp eyes caught sight of someone who had just walked in.

“Xylazine.” Say reluctantly handed a document to King, as he should have actually reported this to Singha, except his friend wasn’t here. [1] Xylazine is an anesthetic used on animals like horses, cows, deer, and various experimental animals. It’s a derivative of Clonidine, acting on a2 receptors in the central nervous system and throughout the body, causing sedation to unconsciousness.

   “Animal tranquilizer?”

“Yeah, the test results from the water bottle near the crime scene found traces of this in the water.”

“Is it dangerous?”

“There are side effects, but Rin checked and there are no worrying symptoms yet. She should wake up in about two or three hours.”

“Hmm. I’ll go in for the interrogation.”

Say slipped his hand into his lab coat pocket before shrugging off as if to say ‘just my luck’. He smiled at Bom, peeling a wrapper off as he entered the observation room. The situation was now being fed into his sweet-smiling lips. Though not a detective, working in the investigation team for so long made him suspicious about all these events. A murderer who had evaded capture for years suddenly making a mistake today was too odd.

“Let’s begin the interrogation. Should I call you Phra Amaro, or Anupab?” King sat down opposite, not too tense but not too relaxed either.

“Call me as you find convenient, I don’t cling to such trivial matters.”

“Alright then, you probably know about the disappearance of the seven individuals who became victims, and about the murder cases as well. I’ll be direct to save time; you are our prime suspect. With the witnesses, the surrounding circumstances we found today, the recent video of animal remains disposal, and the statements from the witnesses.” King placed documents, photos, and various written evidence on the table, “Where were you when the police found the seven bodies?”

“I was at the temple, you know.”

“Do you have any witnesses?”

“That day, there was a new monk, so I had him stay and discuss Dharma until 10 PM, before we all went to rest because in the morning, there were devotees coming to have their cars blessed.”

“Can I have the name?” The abbot nodded before picking up a pen, writing down the name of the mentioned monk on paper. “About the animal remains in the black bags we found, would you like to say anything about that? Because I think ordinary people wouldn’t do that.”

“Sigh, there are lots of dogs and cats at the temple, some are abandoned here, some breed. But lately, I’ve found animal corpses being dumped at the temple’s Bodhi tree daily, both old and new, so Khuean and I have been burying them because we’re afraid the villagers might get scared.”

“Khuean? Is that the temple’s groundskeeper you’re talking about? Does he know about this too?”

“Yes, yes, that Khuean. He found them and told me. I don’t know who did it or why they left them there, but those cats and dogs never caused trouble in the temple. They might wander to the villagers’ houses, but surely no one would be that cruel.” The abbot shook his head in resignation and sighed.

“You often don’t have a clear confirmed location during these incidents, and you’re involved with multiple victims. Being a suspect now, if there’s nothing to argue against it, it’ll be hard to clear your name.”

“If you want to know what I was doing or where I was, you could ask Khuean. He doesn’t just manage the temple affairs, but he also takes care of me and the other monks.”

“What does taking care of the temple include?”

“Everything, layperson. From expenses, contacting for blessings or invitations, wherever we go, Khuean manages it all.”

“Do you trust him that much?”

“I do trust him. Even though Khuean has made mistakes in the past, he returned to the shelter of the Buddhist faith.” King glanced up at the person opposite him.

“Mistakes? Can you tell me what they were about?”

“Sigh, before this, Khuean was involved in vices, and he even physically harmed his child and wife. But after his case, he turned over a new leaf and came to serve his life here.”

Say, who was listening in the observation room, slightly tilted his head before taking the lollipop out of his mouth. Earlier, he had heard some information from Singha, having already looked into some of it. And it seemed there was also information about this Uncle Khuean as well. He turned to talk to one of the police officers who was sitting and recording the conversation next to him.

“How far have the police investigated?”

“We’ve searched the abbot’s quarters thoroughly.”

“Where else?”

“Around the other monks’ quarters and the dining area.”

“And have you checked the residence of the abbot’s assistant within the temple yet?” The young policeman’s hesitation made Say roll his eyes at the room before walking out.

A thick hand knocked on the interrogation room door three times. When it opened, the lollipop he was holding pointed straight at King.

“Aren’t you going to wait for the info from Singha?”

“No need.”

“Are you sure it’s not necessary? Your brows practically tied in a bow should indicate that you’re also suspicious.” King met the sharp gaze of the person in front of him; Say wasn’t wrong. Now, not only the abbot but also the temple’s caretaker, Uncle Khuean, was under suspicion. “What you should do is wait for the information from Singha and send someone to check Uncle Khuean’s residence.” But…

Say popped the cola-flavored lollipop back into his mouth before turning to walk away. His clean white sneakers stopped when the person behind him spoke, a sentence that wasn’t overly surprising.

“I’ve already sent word to the investigation department.”

“So what? I’m not the one rushing to report news for credit.” Say managed a smirk at the corner of his mouth before walking away with ease. If the abbot really was the culprit, good. But if not, a misreported case would bring misfortune directly to the informer, King, immediately after.

Singha had been sitting and talking with the head nurse for quite some time, explaining everything to her and recounting the events they were facing until she burst into tears. It took almost twenty minutes to console her before she calmed down and started to share her side of the story.

“Her name is Chaba, sob, the nurse you’re looking for, her name is Chaba.”

“Do you have her records?”

“Yes, we do.”

“You said you were friends with her, did she tell you anything?”

“When she first moved here, I had just moved too. We were both new, so we got along well. At that time, she was heavily pregnant. I often took care of her. She was kind-hearted, lovely, and well-liked by colleagues. I met her husband when he came to watch over her during childbirth, but about five years later, she started to look worn out. Chaba kept saying it was because of raising the child and working hard, so I didn’t suspect anything. One night, she suddenly came to the hospital with her son, crying that her child was seriously ill.”

“And then what happened?”

“Her son had dengue fever, probably because their house in the forest had more mosquitoes than elsewhere. We treated him fully until he recovered, but what was strange was her husband never visited his son once. After that, Chaba started showing signs of fear, paranoia. I often saw bruises on her body, but she just said the child was naughty and she’d bumped into things, or she was just clumsy.”

“Did she tell you anything about her husband or home life?”

“A bit, yes. She mentioned that both her children were frequently ill, not strong since they were little, especially her daughter. She would complain about minor things about her husband, but I thought there was something odd.”

“Odd how?”

“She said her husband liked to wake up at three in the morning to pray and then disappear into the forest, sometimes returning in the morning or around four or five AM. She thought he might be involved in the murder case that was causing fear at that time.” Her face paled as she mentioned the murder case.

“Speaking of that case, were the victims’ bodies sent here?”

“Yes, the bodies were sent here before the police and forensic team took them away.”

“And did anything happen?” she asked.

“Well… yes, there were incidents. At the hospital, there were strange events like things moving on their own, power outages, some people heard noises in their throats, others heard banging on the floor and walls. At that time, nurses were quitting left and right.”

“And where was Chaba during that time?”

“I really don’t know. Chaba took a week off, but when the time was up, she didn’t show up. I tried calling, but no answer. When I went to her house, it was all quiet and shut. The next thing I knew, the villagers were talking about it.” Singha turned and made eye contact with the kid beside him who was also looking back.

“Did you go to that house?”

“Yes. I went there just once… and I don’t plan on going back.”

“Why is that?”

“Because it… it doesn’t feel like a place where people live.” she said, lifting her face from her hands and looking at Singha with trembling eyes, fear spreading so much that even Thup could feel it.

“What’s wrong with that place?” Thup asked, feeling a chilling sensation at his back.

“It doesn’t feel like a house; it feels more like a graveyard.” she concluded. As she finished speaking, the lights in the room flickered slightly, plunging the room into silence. At that moment, Thup was sure he saw a dark shadow standing in the corner of the room before it disappeared when the lights came back on.

“Do you have a picture of Chaba?”

“Yes, I think I still have one. Just a moment.” She walked out of the room, leaving just Singha and Thup.

“Singha, just now…”

“What?”

“Never mind.” Thup shook his head vigorously. He wasn’t sure what he had seen, or if it was just a spirit lingering in the hospital.

“We’ll have to move up our schedule. We need to return tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow? How will we manage everything in time?”

“What time is it now?”

“Three in the afternoon.” Thup said, lifting his watch before answering his older brother, “We should still make it in time. Are you sure the ghost you mentioned knows about the rituals, the spirit medium, and all that ghost stuff?”

“Yes. I think he should know.”

“Let’s deal with this first, then we’ll go.”

“Phii.” Thup pressed his lips together before grabbing Singha’s shoulder, “What?”

“If we’re going there, I have something I want to ask of you.” Singha raised an eyebrow at the young man; Thup’s worried demeanor made him uneasy, “No, whatever happens, please listen to me.”

“And if what you’re going to say isn’t worth listening to, what then?”

“I still want you to listen to me. Otherwise, we won’t get the information you need, okay?” Their eyes met, and for the first time, Singha saw the determination in Thup’s eyes, though he couldn’t understand why he was so anxious.

“Alright.” His mother had told him before to believe in what Thup thinks, so he would believe that Thup had his reasons for speaking like that. He believed this kid had his logic.

The sound of the door opening made both of them look away; the only clue was handed to Singha and Thup – a photograph taken in front of the hospital many years ago. Two young nurses smiled cheerfully at the camera, hugging each other happily; one of them was the elderly nurse in front of them. The other was someone Singha felt vaguely familiar with, but for Thup, she was someone he recognized well.

“Phii Singha… that’s her.” Thup said softly before taking the photo from Singha’s hand, still not looking away, “She is the ghost I saw.”

 

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