WALKÜREN - THE THREE MARIAS - Chapter Five

WALKÜREN - THE THREE MARIAS

Chapter Five

Inspection of the corpse did not bring any clue as to what was at work in that town. The only thing that Juvêncio could verify was that the animal that had attacked the man was extremely violent, as it had killed him with a single blow. The head was practically severed from the trunk, being trapped by some tendons. And there was no sign, no trace of blood. Along with the body that the police chief had inspected the night before, the most recent victim, who had been checked in loco, was added. Same features as the previous body and, as the sheriff and coroner had commented, no blood spatter in the surroundings. Due to the violence of the death, there should have been splashes for a good amount of time, but… Juvêncio couldn't understand. He would have to dig deeper to find out what was going on. The most recent victim was a drover who was probably coming to town to bring his wares to sell. And that he was taken by surprise by who knows what had attacked him. But whatever it was, it didn't bother the troop of donkeys and horses that the man was leading, because even now the animals were grazing calmly, without any sign of stress... yes, the troop was meek, calm. It was as if nothing had happened there. The animals simply ignored the corpse.

After the police chief and his assistants collected the body and headed for the city, Juvêncio began to look for signs in the surrounding area. But his search was fruitless. Not even a crumpled blade of grass could find it. As the sun began to hide in the mountains, he thought it best to return to the village. As long as he didn't have a vision, the slightest bit, about what was happening there, it was better not to expose himself too much...

Juvêncio went to the boarding house where he had stayed and tried to eat that day's dinner. After all, it wasn't always that he could afford to enjoy pot roast meat, accompanied by browned potatoes and good white rice... yes, he was already getting used to the cuisine of the place. Certainly, when he was in the field, eating dried meat with flour and a mug of black coffee, he would miss the homemade food at the boarding house… after finishing dinner he decided to take a walk to the police station. He needed to talk to the chief, clear up some doubts. Surely Santana had some idea about what was going on in her town. And any clue, no matter how small, would shed some light on the case. He also had to talk to Doctor Carneiro, and find out what he thought about everything that was happening…

- And then, doctor? Got any ideas about what's going on around here?

- To be honest, no... we always hear a story from here, another from there... but they are meaningless stories, which can't help anything.

- Well, I know one thing, doctor… the victims were not attacked by animals…

- Not even for one person, Juvêncio… I don't know what attacked those people… but their claws were very sharp…

- Claws?!…

- Yes... if you observe the cut, you will see that it was a blow delivered like a slap...

- A slap?!

- Yes, like a cat attacking a mouse…

- But a cat doesn't slap a mouse's head off...

- I know… but he manages to slap with his claws exposed…

- Does it mean that...

- Please, don't put words in my mouth… I didn't say any of that!

Juvêncio was thoughtful... the doctor was right, for the victim's head to be almost torn off in that way, it was necessary for the force of attack to be parallel to it... and the closest action to that would be a slap, with an open hand...

- Doctor, would you mind standing in front of me?

- For what?

- I want to experiment...

- Want to test the slap theory...

- That…

- Don't worry, I've already tested it...

- And?!….

- Matches the blow.

- Well I…

- All right, you can take the test…. Just don't miss the blow, please... I wouldn't want to get my throat hurt...

- Rest assured… I promise not to hurt you….

The doctor stopped in front of Juvêncio, who then made as if to strike Carneiro's throat. Satisfied with the result of the simulation, he could only admire the doctor's sense of observation...

- But, doctor… okay, it could be that people were victims that way… but how would you explain the total absence of blood at the scene?

- I still can't think of anything, my friend...

- Tell me something… is there any legend, any story that is just from the region, that talks about some kind of monster?

- There are several… what kind of stories would you like to hear?

- Really, none... but if you have any stories that serve as a basis for the events around here, well... I'd like to hear it...

- I even have one, but I think we'd better discuss it with Santana... and maybe with Torquato, one of his helpers...

- And what's so special about this Torquato, so that we can hear his story?

- Despite the name, it has Indian blood... their ancestors walked through these forests for a long time, when we arrived here and included them in our way of life...

- I know… let's get this straight… you have an acquaintance with Indian blood who may have a story that could explain what's been happening around here… am I understanding correctly?

- Yes, sir, that's right...

- And the delegate...?

- Unofficially, you agree with my theory...

- Officially...?

- Neither I nor he are crazy to put this idea on paper... they would commit us to the act like crazy...

- But isn't the situation... special?

- Yes, it is... but the solution has to be rational... you know that the supernatural is not always accepted by the authorities...

- Oops… I am an authority… and I only work with supernatural solutions…

- You understood me...

- Yes absolutely yes…

- We are a society that secretly believes that the supernatural world interferes in our lives...

- Yes…

- But no one admits this possibility in front of their peers...

Juvencio was momentarily unresponsive. Yes, the doctor was right. As much as the people around them believed that a certain event had been caused by something supernatural, they would never admit it out loud, in front of other people. Reason... they didn't want to be a laughing stock... after all, how could a civilized, cultured person admit that forces from another world had influence over the lives of poor mortals? That was a thought that should have been restricted to the peonada... luckily for our friend, there was no need for an immediate response to the good doctor... Santana was entering the room, and logically the conversation, at least at the beginning, changed direction . Juvêncio brought the two up to date on his investigations, which have so far been fruitless. Which was logical, since he was starting his work... he still didn't have the elements to build a theory about what was happening in the region. After half an hour of conversation, the delegate asked those present if they wanted to have dinner... Juvêncio declined the invitation, explaining that he had already had his evening meal, but he was still urged to accompany his colleagues, so that they could continue the conversation in front of a large table... well, there was always room for a sweet or a drink, wasn't there?...