by Mehdi Hasan
I have seen gruesome murders on the TVs before but they never looked so visceral yet why can’t I stop looking at these? Smith couldn’t hide the nauseating response on his face as he was looking for details to note down. Jonathan Smith has been a forensic detective for the better half of his life, coming across all sorts of criminal acts. The crime scene photos along with other evidence have been passed down to him for further questioning the killer and assessing the case.
A family of four was murdered recently, which made the front-page news. House caretaker named Cline killed the family, he’s denying the murders he committed, but admitting about the possession of the murder weapon.A single knife was used to slit all the children in their sleep, and the same weapon was used to kill the husband and wife. Children’s bodies remained in the beds as if they were sleeping in a pool of blood, while there were signs of struggle between the caretaker and the husband-wife.
Initial questioning revealed that the caretaker has lost all memories associated with the killings. And what he said was right out of a horror movie.
Cline said he found the knife while cleaning the garden; it was buried quite deep in the garden. While rooting out weeds, he felt something sharp on the soil which made a cut on his hand. It looked like a horn of some sort, placed on a handle. He felt a thrill throughout his body while holding it. After careful examination, he figured what he was holding is actually a Rhino horn placed on top of an ebony wood handle; it looks like a ceremonial knife. Both the handle and the horn had some sort of foreign language written on them, and the rhino horn was quite sharpened. Cline carefully washed the knife and cleaned it. The knife glistened like it was made in this very moment.While holding it he felt an immense desire to cut something, anything or anyone with it. Not that he was feeling an intention to kill someone with it or hurt anyone, but only the desire to use it. At that very moment, he was feeling as if using the knife even for only once would fulfill and give meaning to his entire life.
That’s how much he remembers about the killings. After that, he found himself and the knife covered with fresh blood, and the entire family dead.
Smith being shocked already by the murder scene and the gathered evidence;he didn’t question Cline any further. He returned home early that day where he lives with his wife and daughter.
Jonathan Smith also has a forensic lab in his house. He brought the Cline case evidence back with him for further analysis.There was something bugging Smith for a while about Cline, how he described finding the knife, and felt about it, but denied the murder charges.
Smith started searching about the murder weapon. It looks more like a ceremonial knife. A Rhino horn crafted as a knife? He kept on thinking about what Cline said, “As if using the knife even for only once would fulfill and give meaning to his entire life” and how the knife got a hold over Cline. Searching through the internet and the old archives provided no such results fora Rhino horned knife. Smith however found something about a legend describing “Karkadann”, a mythological creature with one horn, said to have lived in the Persia and Indian region. It has a lot of similarities with a Rhino. Here’s what intrigued Smith, “Only a virgin has the power to subdue Karkadann”, recalling the Cline’s victims there were no virgins, the children he killed were all underage.
I am tempted with the idea, Smith thought about holding the knife to see what happens. The thought also crossed his mind that he has a wife and daughter in the house. If the legends were to be true, there will be unforeseen consequences. I’m not a man of faith, nor do I believe in these stories of gods, beasts, and mythologies. I have spent my entire life in the study of the forensic.
What Jonathan Smith did in the next few minutes can only be described in the very words that Cline said to him. Smith found himself covered in blood in front of his daughter. His bleeding wife was lying on the floor a few feet away. When Smith realized what he did, he dropped the knife and looked at the motionless body of his wife. Being a forensic detective, he very well knows she’s already dead from the deep wounds that he inflicted on her with Krakadann Knife.
Before turning himself to the law, Jonathan Smith threw the knife into the water as far as he could.
The daughter of Smith, who was a virgin, survived the onslaught.
(Bio: Mehdi Hasan is Writer & Photographer. Check out his portfolio for more works,