Fragments Gallery
Broken Calm
The room was dark; the only faint light came from the sun which seeped between the folds of the thick curtain to illuminate the table. The early morning light glittered along the jagged edges of the crystal which lay on the table. Amber liquid ran from the ruins of the glass. Slowly the liquid weaved its way through the ornate pattern carved into the tabletop before it finally reached the edge. Once there the liquid welled up and finally dripped to the floor. The liquid orb shattered as it hit the marble tile, the amber spread out marking a rough circle around the orb's impact amidst the other stains on the floor.
A door swung open at the front of the room and light flooded in from the hallway fully revealing the scene within.
The young man lay sprawled across the floor; his eyes were open, staring vacantly at the ceiling. Dried blood surrounded a small hole in the front of his t-shirt and his arms bore numerous small cuts below the sleeve. A large pool of blood stained the tile all around the body and smaller spots of the fluid were splattered out further across the floor.
A faint breeze from the door moved the victim’s hair as the detective stepped into the room. She brushed her long wavy auburn hair back from her face as she surveyed the room. A heartbeat behind her entered a well-dressed consultant; he looked around carefully, absorbing every detail. Together they surveyed the crime scene. After a minute the detective pulled out her phone, dialed a number and waited. A faint sound stirred the quiet air as someone answered on the other end.
"They got here first,” the detective responded.