The Missing Eyes
Two Days Later – Police Headquarters
In the dimly lit conference room, a projector cast a series of grisly images onto the screen—photographs of newly discovered hidden compartments within the apartment complex. Each contained more bodies.
Jack stood at the head of the table, his expression grim. "Autopsy reports confirm that all the victims died from massive blood loss and infections following the removal of their eyes. The disturbing part? These victims span a timeline of over twenty years, with the most recent ones appearing within the past three months."
Jamie leaned back in her chair, fingers rhythmically tapping against the table. "Have you identified the previous owner of the building?"
Sandra flipped through the case file, her tone steady. "The apartment complex was built thirty years ago. Ten years ago, it was purchased by a man named Li Ziran—a former doctor at a private clinic. However, he disappeared five years ago."
Jamie frowned. "Li Ziran… the man circled in the old photograph?"
Sandra nodded. "Yes. And according to our research, he wasn't just a doctor—he was affiliated with an underground organ trafficking network."
Jack scoffed. "Figures. Scum like him always get what's coming."
Jamie exhaled, her voice pensive. "But if he's been missing for five years… how do we explain the victims from the last few months?"
A heavy silence filled the room.
Jack glanced at them before muttering under his breath, "What if… he came back?"
—
That Night – Jamie's Apartment
Alone at her desk, Jamie sifted through stacks of police files, illuminated by the glow of her desk lamp.
Her eyes landed on an old rental contract—a record of rooms leased after Li Ziran's disappearance. Strangely, most tenants never stayed long; some even fled within days, without explanation.
"What were they so afraid of?"
Just as the thought crossed her mind—
The lights flickered.
Jamie's head snapped up.
From the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of something in the window reflection.
Her pulse spiked.
A shadowy figure stood just behind her.
She spun around—nothing was there.
A gust of wind rustled the curtains, whispering through the room. Everything was silent. Too silent.
Jamie exhaled, trying to steady her nerves. She walked over, checked the window—locked.
Just stress. Just paranoia.
She turned back toward her desk—
And then—
Drip.
A cold droplet landed on the back of her hand.
A chill ran down her spine.
Slowly, she tilted her head up.
A figure was hanging upside down from the ceiling.
Its skin pale as death, its face eerily expressionless—because it had no eyes.
"Give me back my eyes…"
Jamie's breath caught in her throat. The chair beneath her tipped as she stumbled backward, crashing to the floor.
The thing fell.
A sickening thud.
Heart hammering, Jamie scrambled for the desk lamp, shining it toward the floor—
Nothing.
No body. No presence.
Just a dark stain slowly seeping into the wooden floor.
Her hands trembled. She wasn't imagining this. Something was here.
She grabbed her phone, hastily dialing Sandra.
The line rang twice before Sandra answered.
"Jamie?" Her voice was sharp, alert.
Jamie swallowed hard. "I just saw… someone. A man. He had no eyes."
A pause.
Then Sandra's voice turned ice-cold. "Stay where you are. I'm on my way."
—
Thirty Minutes Later
Sandra and Jack arrived at Jamie's apartment.
Jack eyed the dark, reddish stain on the floor before muttering, "…Are we sure you didn't just spill coffee?"
Jamie shot him a glare. "Jack, do I look like I'm in the mood?"
Sandra crouched beside the stain, pressing her gloved fingers into it before bringing them close to her nose.
A beat. Then she said, "This isn't coffee."
Jack arched a brow. "Then what is it?"
Sandra's expression darkened. "Saline."
Jack blinked. "…What?"
Jamie stiffened. "Saline… like the kind found in—"
Sandra nodded. "Like the fluid inside the human eye. If that thing once had eyes…"
Jamie felt a cold dread settle over her. "It was crying."
The air in the room turned frigid.
Jack shifted uncomfortably. "Alright, can we not turn this into a horror movie?"
Sandra ignored him and turned back to Jamie. "Describe what you saw."
Jamie took a steadying breath. "He looked… decayed. Like a corpse. But his eye sockets—just… hollow, empty. He had no eyes."
Sandra's expression tightened. "If his eyes were removed, then… could it be—"
Jack's voice was uneasy. "Wait, wait. Are you saying…" He hesitated before forcing the words out. "That thing was… one of the bodies from the wall?"
Jamie's stomach twisted. "If that's true… then maybe—"
"Maybe his eyes were never found."
Sandra's gaze darkened. "You think he's searching for them?"
Jamie nodded. "If he was a victim… his spirit might still be bound to this place, lingering until he reclaims what was stolen from him."
Jack exhaled sharply. "So what? These ghosts actually come back to take revenge?"
Sandra didn't answer immediately. Instead, she pulled out her phone and dialed the forensic team.
"This is Sandra. I need an update on the recovered bodies—do we have confirmation on whether any of them were missing their eyes?"
The response came quickly.
"Three corpses had their eyes completely removed and likely sold. But there was one…"
Sandra's grip tightened. "One?"
"One of the victims only had a single eye missing."
Jamie's breath hitched. "Do we have an ID?"
A pause.
"DNA testing is still underway, but based on records… he matches the profile of a missing person from five years ago."
Sandra's voice was razor-sharp. "Li Ziran?"
"Yes."
The room fell deathly silent.
Jamie whispered, "Then that means… he's still missing an eye."
Jack paled. "Jesus Christ. So that was him? He's back… looking for his own damn eye?"
Sandra's jaw clenched. "Or worse."
Jamie met her gaze. "He wants someone to replace him."
A tense hush settled over them.
Then—
Drip.
A single, wet drop splashed onto the floor.
Jack's breath hitched. "Tell me that's just a leaky pipe."
Slowly, their heads tilted up.
A bloodied eye was wedged into the cracks of the ceiling's wooden panels—staring right at them.
(To Be Continued…)