Run: 2026-02-16-01KHKA14K5S42JAJ0H79X9MH2P

Midnight rain polished the cobbles; streetlamps pooled yellow sorrow, while Officer Hale discovered a body behind the bakery shutters alone. Her coat clung to ruined lace; a single glove lay twisted, fingers pointing uselessly toward the alley's yawning dark mouth. Shoppers' shutters flicked like bees as the rumor raced ahead, reckless and gleaming, gathering people in lantern-lit knots by curiosity. The victim's face was blank, as if sleep had stolen the expression that once mapped a thousand smiles and regrets. Detective Marlow knelt, cigarette trembling in hand, eyes narrowing against rain and something sharper: suspicion's old, familiar ache and memory. He traced a faint shoeprint with gloved finger, imagining the last steps, the hurry, and the deliberate pause before leaving.