Chapter 17: The burst
796 Words
Seoul — Night Market District
The city was loud.
Lights.
Food stalls.
Crowds.
Music.
People walking freely — unaware that danger was moving among them.
The Attack
A woman screamed.
Not playful.
Not dramatic.
Terrified.
People turned.
A man had grabbed her.
Dragged her toward a dark alley.
Witnesses froze for a second.
Then someone shouted —
“Call security!”
The attacker was fast.
Strong.
Calculated.
He overpowered the woman easily.
Within minutes —
Silence.
Then —
A sickening sound.
A struggle.
A violent fall.
When people finally approached —
They saw her body.
Stab wounds.
Blood spreading across concrete.
And —
Her lips were stitched together with black thread.
Tight.
Cruel.
Symbolic.
Someone screamed.
“Oh my God…”
Another person threw up.
Police sirens echoed in the distance.
Panic Spreads
News spread instantly through social media.
Photos.
Videos.
Hashtags.
“Another Stitched Victim.”
“Serial Killer Strikes Again.”
Adrian saw the news on his phone while sitting in his apartment.
His fingers froze.
His breathing slowed.
His eyes scanned the image carefully.
Stitched lips.
Same pattern.
Same brutality.
His stomach tightened.
It’s him.
The man who killed his parents.
Or someone connected to him.
The threat wasn’t gone.
It was active.
And it was getting closer.
Damien Learns About It
At the company headquarters —
Damien’s phone kept vibrating.
News alerts.
Security reports.
Emergency notifications.
He opened the live feed.
He watched footage of the crime scene.
His jaw tightened.
“Lock down the building.”
He ordered immediately.
His assistant looked shocked.
“Sir?”
“Increase security patrols.”
“Why?”
“The killer is targeting public areas.”
He paused.
Then added quietly:
“And if employees are moving around at night — they’re at risk.”
His mind shifted instantly.
He thought of Adrian.
That boy moved alone.
Trained alone.
Worked late.
His suspicion wasn’t fear.
It was calculation.
If the killer was hunting randomly —
Or targeting specific profiles —
Adrian might become a potential target.
Adrian’s Realization
Adrian zoomed into the victim’s photos.
He studied the stitches.
The precision.
The placement.
The brutality.
His breathing became heavy.
His mind flashed back.
His mother.
Her body.
Her lips.
Sealed.
Same method.
Same cruelty.
His fists tightened.
“He’s not hiding anymore.”
The killer had escalated.
It wasn’t quiet manipulation.
It was public domination.
A message.
Adrian whispered to himself:
“You’re confident now…”
His eyes darkened.
“Good.”
Because now —
He had proof.
He wasn’t chasing a ghost.
He was chasing someone who believed they were untouchable.
The Hidden Pattern
Later that night —
Adrian went deeper into research.
He found something disturbing.
The victims shared similarities:
• Young women
• Linked to specific corporate or tech circles
• Some connected to hospital birth records
• Some connected to identity documentation systems
His fingers paused.
Birth records.
Identity systems.
Corporate connections.
His mind clicked.
Dominic had worked in cybersecurity.
The killer had access to data manipulation.
Access to records.
Access to tracking.
This wasn’t random killing.
It was systematic elimination.
He whispered:
“You’re cleaning evidence…”
His eyes widened slightly.
“Or removing traces.”
The killer wasn’t killing for pleasure alone.
He was erasing something.
Someone.
Or multiple someone’s.
And Adrian might be one of the remaining pieces.
Public Threat Escalation
The next morning —
Police announced publicly:
“This is a serial offender.”
“We urge citizens to avoid isolated locations.”
“We believe the killer targets individuals connected to confidential data systems.”
That statement made headlines.
Damien read it carefully.
Confidential data systems.
His company handled massive data.
Security infrastructure.
Client databases.
Employee records.
His expression turned serious.
If the killer had insider access —
It could mean someone inside corporate networks was involved.
He immediately ordered:
“Audit all internal system access logs.”
“Trace external intrusion attempts.”
“Lock employee authentication.”
His assistant asked quietly:
“Do you think the killer is connected to the company?”
Damien didn’t answer immediately.
He remembered something.
Adrian’s background file had gaps.
Unverified entries.
Incomplete history.
He narrowed his eyes.
“Maybe.”
A Silent Warning
That night —
Adrian received an anonymous message on his phone.
No number.
Just text.
“You are being watched.”
His heart skipped.
Another message followed:
“You survived longer than expected.”
His eyes widened.
He typed quickly:
“Who is this?”
No response.
Then —
A third message:
“The past always returns.”
Adrian stood slowly.
His breathing steady.
This wasn’t random.
This was intentional intimidation.
The killer knew he existed.
Or suspected.
Or had identified patterns around him.
He whispered under his breath:
“You’re closer than I thought.”
- Writer
