The lily

Ethan's eyes drifted back to the symbols.

The lily on the dresser kept creeping back into his thoughts, a symbol that gnawed at him. He needed to find out what it meant, how it tied into the killer's twisted game.

Minutes later his assistant had pulled up everything he could find on white lilies—floral meanings, cultural symbolism, anything that might give him a clue. Traditionally, lilies were associated with purity and innocence, often used in funerals to symbolize the soul's restored state after death. But in this context, it felt like the killer's innonce had been destroyed.

The marks on the body were precise, almost ritualistic, and they reminded him of something he couldn't quite place. There was a pattern here, a method he knew needed surgical skills, but what was it?

As he stood in the room, his mind racing, Ethan felt a strange feeling of settle over him. It wasn't just the violence of the crime that bothered him—it was the feeling that this was only the beginning. The killer was escalating, growing bolder with each murder, and if they didn't catch him soon, the body count would only rise.

But there was something else too, something that nagged at the back of his mind. A connection he hadn't made yet, a piece of the puzzle that was still missing.

"I'm going to check out the security footage," Ethan said suddenly, turning to leave the room. "Maybe we'll get lucky and catch something."

Max followed him out, and they made their way to the security office on the ground floor. The head of security, a burly man with a no-nonsense attitude, was already reviewing the tapes when they arrived.

"We've got footage of him entering the hotel," the man said, not looking up from the screen. "But nothing unusual after that. No one suspicious hanging around, no sign of forced entry."

Ethan frowned, leaning over the man's shoulder to get a better look at the screen. The footage showed Gregory Hanes walking into the hotel at 4:00 pm in the evening, looking perfectly normal, even smiling at the receptionist as he passed by. But then he disappeared into the elevator, and there was nothing after that.

"Play the footage from the hallway outside his room," Ethan instructed.

The security officer rewound the tape and pulled up the footage from the 14th floor. They watched as Gregory exited the elevator and walked down the hallway to his room. He inserted his key card, opened the door, and stepped inside. The door closed behind him, and for a moment, everything was quiet.

But then, a shadow moved at the edge of the frame.

"Wait, stop," Ethan said, his heart rate spiking. "Rewind that."

The security officer complied, and they watched the footage again, this time more closely. The shadow appeared just as Gregory was about to enter his room—a figure standing just out of sight, watching him.

"There," Max said, pointing to the screen. "Someone was waiting for him."

Ethan's mind raced. Who was this person? How had they gotten into the hotel unnoticed? And why had they targeted Gregory?

"Can you enhance the image?" Ethan asked.

The security officer nodded and zoomed in on the shadowy figure. But the image was too grainy, too distorted to make out any clear features. All they could see was the outline of a person—a tall figure, dressed in white clothing, with dark boots that didn't linger that much in front of the scene before disappearing into the fire exist.

"It's not much to go on," Max said, frustration evident in his voice.

"No, but it's something," Ethan replied, his gaze fixed on the screen. "We need to find out who this person is, and fast."

Ethan re-watched as the screens displayed a series of grainy images—various angles of the hotel's interior and exterior. Guests came and went, staff moved about in their usual routines, but when the clock hit 2:00 AM, the screens flickered and went dark. For nearly an hour, there was nothing but static, and then the footage resumed as if nothing had happened.

Ethan's brow furrowed. "Could it have been tampered with?"

The technician shook his head, his expression troubled. "We've checked the system. There's no sign of external interference. It's like the cameras just… stopped working on their own."

Max crossed his arms, his face darkening. "So, we've got a killer who can manipulate security systems now? What next, teleportation?"

Ethan ignored the comment, his focus sharp. "Anything else unusual? Any guests acting strange, anyone out of place?"

The manager hesitated before nodding. "There was one thing. Earlier in the evening, a woman came in asking about the suite. She wasn't a guest, just wandered in off the street. We told her it was occupied, and she left without any fuss. But now… well, it seems odd."

Ethan's eyes narrowed. "Did she give a name?"

"No, but we've got a description. Mid-therties, dark hair, blue dress. She didn't look suspicious at the time, but now I'm not so sure."

"Check the guest list for anyone matching that description," Ethan instructed, turning back to the screens.

The lily on the dresser kept creeping back into his thoughts, a symbol that gnawed at him. He needed to find out what it's innonce meant, how it tied into the killer's twisted game.

---

As they left the security office, Ethan's mind was already working through the possibilities. The figure in the footage could be the killer, or it could be someone who had seen something—someone who could lead them to the killer.

"We need to talk to the staff," Ethan said as they walked back to the elevator. "Someone might have seen this person hanging around the hotel."

Max nodded.