The Moonlight Lilac Chapter 25: 4 - THE ONE WITH THE BROKEN PHONE 1.3

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**CHAPTER 4 - THE ONE WITH THE BROKEN PHONE 1.3**

\- Third Person's Point Of View -

6:00 AM

There are six police mobiles parked in a vacant lot next to an abandoned factory. Apart from the police vehicles, you can also see various media outlets around. Reporters from various TV stations are currently reporting. The subject of their news is a body found in the vacant lot. The body of a man estimated to be in his 30s-40s.

The only barrier between the media and the police is the yellow crime scene tape that only law enforcement officers are allowed to cross.

"Name?" Luna asked her male detective coworker when he approached her.

"Benjamin Eliseo, 36 years old. Lives in Pembo, Makati. According to those who were last with him, Eliseo said goodbye to buy ice last night for their drinks. But he never returned. The drinking took place in the area where he lives, in Makati." stated the male detective. "That's why they were very surprised that he was found here in Quezon. According to the examiners, the victim had been de*d for about 7-8 hours. If we estimate, he was k*lled around 11 PM or twelve o'clock last night." He added.

Luna and her companion looked at a man talking on his cellphone while crying in the distance. This was Eliseo's friend and this was also his friend who had a birthday last night and invited. Eliseo to have a drink. Fear and anger were evident on his pale face. When the man turned his head in the direction of the body, his crying became even louder. Mykel immediately patted his back as a comfort. Mykel was the one who was ordered to interview the man. This man was the first they called after Eliseo's body was found, because when they opened his cellphone, he was the last person the victim had spoken to.

Luna shook her head and started walking towards Eliseo's corpse. His corpse was currently nailed to the wall of the vacant lot. Both arms were straight and both legs were spread out, both of which were nailed using large concrete nails that if you measure it, it's about a hand's length. But it wasn't just the hands and feet that were nailed, even the victim's head had a nail stuck in its forehead.

The body was completely naked. On the wall where it was nailed, a red sun-colored face was painted using spray paint. Eliseo's body up to his face was painted with small flowers of different colors. His nipples were pierced using multiple pins in different colors. So were his wide eyes, full of stapler bullets. But what first caught the attention of the police was his genitals, which were surrounded by flowers.

Lilac..."It's the moonlight lilac again." Luna whispered to herself.

"No doubt."

Luna quickly turned to the man who spoke behind her. It's Mykel. He's now staring at the dead corpse in front of them.

"What did the victim's friend say?" she asked.

"According to Domeng's story," Mykel pointed to Eliseo's friend. "They say Eliseo has many enemies. His ex-girlfriend's entire family. Just two months ago, he was accused of raping his girlfriend's daughter. The child was only 13 years old. Because there was not enough evidence and because he had a strong connection with the police because he had an uncle who was a police officer, Eliseo was not convicted." Mykel continued, closing Luna's eyes.

"According to Domeng, last month, Eliseo's 13-year-old victim committed suicide. The victim's mother, who was his ex-girlfriend, couldn't handle it. The child's mother is now completely lost," he added.

Luna took a deep breath at Mykel's words. "Apart from that case, does Eliseo have any other cases?"

"Yes. He has had many previous cases of sexual harassment."

"But he wasn't even imprisoned once? How the fuck!" She cursed when Mykel shook his head.

For Luna, one of the roots of this continuous killing is the neglect of the law. Most of the victims of the famous serial killer are sinners who are not sentenced to prison. This killer is putting justice on his/her own hands.

"We're going to conduct a deeper investigation on Eliseo's crime records. Also, check on his ex-girlfriend's family members. We need to get their statements." That's all Luna said instead of venting her anger at Mykel. She knows that even Mykel feels the same way about the series of crimes. Mykel nodded his head in response.

The failure of our justice system to provide the necessary punishment for these criminals led to the birth of this vigilante.

"Did you find any evidence?" Mykel asked Luna. Luna shook her head in response.

"Nothing at the moment. But the team is still circling the area. Aside from the body, there is nothing suspicious around. There are also no CCTV cameras in the area. I have already instructed Sanchez to ask for a copy of the CCTV at the place where Eliseo went to buy ice and also-- -Mykel? Why?" Luna stopped speaking when she noticed Mykel walking away from her.

He followed the young man, "Why? Did you notice anything?" he asked as he approached the body.

"Gloves. I need gloves." was his only order. Luna didn't ask any more questions and quickly approached the box where the white gloves were and handed them to Mykel. The young man immediately took two pieces and put them on.

"Do you see this?" he asked while staring seriously at the victim's chest. Luna also looked at Mykel's gaze.

"Where is that?"

"Her nipples, Luna." Mykel replied seriously, making Luna frown. "Her nipples are uneven. The right one is higher than the left one."

Luna only noticed it when Mykel said that. He's right. You might not notice it at first glance, but if you look closely, his right nipple is higher than his left one.

"James checked the body, right?" Mykel asked pertaining to their forensic examiner.

"Yes. And yes, I can see the difference now." Luna pointed out what Mykel noticed.

From his right nipple, Mykel drew a straight line using his finger going to where his left nipple should be placed. After doing that, he realized something that really surprised him.

"What the fuck?!"

"Why Michael? Tell me."

"This is a painting! His left nipple should be here. It's in this place, but it's not. Can you see it. This part, the killer glued his nipple to a lower part and then lowered it a little! I think the Lilac killer glued the nipple to a lower part. You won't immediately notice that there is a flap of skin because it looks like a painting. He painted using a color that took the color of Eliseo's skin here on the part he folded. This! This left nipple is glued. This skin is wounded but it's painted." Mykel explained. Luna's eyes slowly widened after the realization of what Mykel was telling her.

"That fucking monster." Luna commented, also quickly putting on gloves.

"Move" he ordered Mykel as he moved closer to the bagkay. She tried pulling the glued nipple and it started peeling off. "Oh, that fucking son of a bitch." Luna commented while slowly pulling the victim's left nipple which was still full of the pierced pin.

When he pulled it out completely, they were both surprised. In the part where the victim's nipple was attached, the skin behind that was hollow. It looked like it had been scraped until there was a deep hole.

"What---what is that?" Mykel asked in disbelief because inside the hole in Eliseo's skin there was a small object inside. Luna quickly took it out.

"It's an earring." There was a small earring inside the hole where the victim's left nipple was covered.

"That fucker...he left on purpose?" Mykel asked.

Luna took a small zip bag and put the earrings they had found in it. "Yes. But what does he want to do?" she asked. Luna's face was filled with anger because she felt that this serial killer was playing a trick on them.

"He put it there on purpose. He wants us to find it. This could be a trap, Luna."

"I doubt it." Luna answered briefly.

"What? What do you want to do with that earring?"

"We'll find out where you bought these earrings." Luna answered seriously as she walked away from Mykel.

She doesn't care if it's a trap or what message or game the serial killer wants to convey. Luna is itching to meet that killer face to face. It's causing her a lot of stress and hardship at work. She wants to see him in person and hear the contents of his mind. Despite the annoyance, she can't help but be amazed by the criminal's way of thinking.

Moonlight Lilac is a maniacal genius without a doubt.

\- Skylar's Point Of View –

I woke up when my phone went off. I immediately felt around my bed to find it. When I reached it, I quickly turned off the alarm and yawned for a long time. Time flew by. It was morning again.

I opened my phone and started scrolling through my notifications. I still have a hard time opening my eyes while scrolling. I checked my messenger and there are multiple chats from Mykel and Luna. They're both telling me that the Moonlight Lilac has a new victim and that they discovered something. They said earrings. Luna sent the picture of the earrings to the Three Duck Babies gc. That was the gc of our three Rileys.

Luna was asking us for help, asking if we knew a place where that kind of earring could be bought. Riley was the one asking Luna a lot of questions, like what kind of stone was in the earring, if it had a brand, if it looked original. She also said that if the earring had a brand, it would be easier to locate which store it came from. I just reacted to their messages. Riley knows more about jewelry. I'll let her investigate that earring.

I replied to Mykel's message. I just asked how he was doing and advised him not to stress too much. I also told him that I would get back to him on Saturday and Sunday when I was off. That was definitely stressful.

After checking all my notifications, I got up from bed to wash my hands and have breakfast. After I got ready, I left the room and took the elevator down to the first floor. As soon as the elevator opened, I immediately heard loud yelling from a person who looked very angry. I walked towards the person who was yelling.

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