Hello, people. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy and leave a comment. Bye-bye!

The Panther

Chapter 2: New target.

Orihime rang the doorbell and waited a moment till the door opened.

"Detective, please come in," Isshin greeted.

Orihime entered his home with her notebook and files underneath her arm, as she wasn't accustomed to toting around a briefcase. Her standard firearm was in her purse, next to her detective badge. Ichigo told her to sit at the kitchen table, where they had some boxes of Chinese food and soda. They gave one to Orihime and sat down with her.

"Shall we begin?" Ichigo asked.

"I worked on the details of each case. There are three students, a teacher, a dancer and a waitress. This is, unfortunately, a dead end. We can't get anything else out of this data set. If we took the age as a point of reference, it's the same, completely random. The zone where they lived is famous by its high level of crime, so it's not surprising that they were kidnapped or murdered, and that's where our problem is."

The younger male found himself at a loss, "What do you mean?"

"Murders are common in that area and its surroundings. In fact, were it not for the peculiar marks in their throats, I would say their deaths were quite normal. But they're not. Our man or woman is a predator."

"You think it could be a woman?"

"Let's not discard anything. After all, no victim was sexually assaulted. On the contrary, if I'm wrong about this, it means the killer is not a pleasure seeker. So, what does he seek? How does he choose his victims? Will he attack again? When?"

The unanswered questions were many, and frankly they had no idea how to start answering them. What was primordial?

"I've been working on the profile, but there's too much missing data. First of all, I can say he is a low profile man, he doesn't take the risk of being remembered or identified. Secondly, if he has a job, it's in the morning from Monday to Friday, otherwise he wouldn't have time to watch his victims and know when to attack. Thirdly, he likes to use strength, all the victims were small thin women, so he avoids any force if it's not necessary. Fourth, he takes time out to study his surroundings, choose a destination, and find somewhere to dump the bodies once he's finished. Fifth, he 'works' in a private space. I doubt he does any of this at home, which leads me to believe he may live in a public space, an apartment complex maybe? Finally, he plays with his victims before killing them. This is all based on the file of course where it says he ties the victims' wrists and ankles together and muzzles them stronger than necessary."

Ichigo listened to the detective with his mouth wide open. Her deduction level was amazing. Gaining all this intel just by studying the little information they gathered was nothing short of impressive. She clearly knew how to read between lines.

"According to some witnesses who claimed to have seen him, he was a thin but burly man dressed in all black."

"Are they reliable witnesses?" Ichigo inquired.

"I'd say yes. At least none of them has mental illnesses or visual problems."

"I see. We can provide some officers to make rounds in the area."

Orihime shook her head.

"It's useless. He won't attack if he knows he's being watched."

"But if we don't, surely there'll be another victim very soon."

Isshin thought about it a moment.

"What if they go undercover?"

"If that's so, then I don't think it's a problem. As long as your agents know how to control themselves and act like civilians."

Ichigo disliked Orihime's condescending attitude with regards to their department. She made it seem like she was leaps and bounds ahead of them all

"I think we can handle some rounds, detective. It won't be a problem at all."

Orihime evaluated him with her eyes. He was the kind of daddy's boy who felt offended if the shoe fit him. She smirked.

"I'm not questioning your capacities, agent."

Isshin laughed at the comment. Few people could put Ichigo in his place. Detective Inoue was fascinating.

"Dad, do we have enough agents for this task?"

"I'd have to check the available ones ready to do the rounds."

"I wanna make the rounds with them."

"Ichigo, are you sure? It could be dangerous."

Ichigo blushed and glanced at Orihime off to the side.

"It's ok, dad, I think I can handle some rounds without problem."

He wanted to do more than just collaborate with Orihime on the case, but also prove his worth. A vigilante job was perfect, if he was lucky, he could even gather some clues before getting back.

"In that case I don't see why not."

The girl with the glasses in the cafe was a good choice, but too many people saw him there and he couldn't take the risk. Although he didn't think they could really put the pieces together, his caution and patience had kept him unpunished up until now, and he wasn't gonna change the course of things at this point.

After grocery shopping, he went back to his apartment. It was dark now and he had no plans until later, so he relaxed and went back to the task he left unfinished.

He took a beer out of the fridge and leaned on the couch to read the newspaper. He liked this specific version of media because they rarely made up the news. Censorship was almost null and on the cover was a picture of Rukia Kuchiki with her neck sliced from ear to ear.

"The Panther attacks again."

Yes, that was exactly what happened. It didn't say "kills", but "attacks". They treated him like what he was: a predator.

Grimmjow didn't consider himself a common killer. He was special. His motive? Pure pleasure. He didn't kill because of hate, or because of some disorder he had. He killed because he liked to and there was no need to deny it. Knowing someone else's life depended completely on your next move was real power. That was nature in its highest expression.

He read the newspaper twice to make sure everything was in order. He was a little surprised that it didn't say anything about the FBI, apparently the authorities were handling it alone, but that was no problem. Even if they bring the whole National Guard, it was useless. The results would be the same. He wasn't willing to let them hide a single detail either. He wanted them to see his signature and never forget him. He wanted them to tremble at the mention of his name, or his nickname, in this case.

"I suppose someone will say you were at the wrong place at the wrong time," he softly stroked the picture and splayed his fingertips over the area where his marks decorated her throat, "but you weren't. You were chosen, and you should be thankful. Now you're special and someone will notice your existence. Your rotten and defaced existence. At least until someone else finds my next victim."

Grimmjow sharply remembered his quality time with the dead girl. From the beginning when he first saw her leaving her university in her short skirt, to the end as he witnessed her drown in her own blood.

It was exciting, and he had front row seats to the show.

Isshin was on the phone for a long time, organizing his agents and instructing them on what to do. When he hung up, he thought they would make a lot of progress considering they would start that same night.

"That's twenty agents, plus Ichigo, on patrol undercover."

Orihime nodded and picked up her notes.

"Then I'll go back home," she stood up and headed to the door "I'll keep in touch."

Ichigo closed the door after her and discretely observed her through the window until she got into her car and turned on the next street.

"What was that?" Isshin asked as he packed up the table.

"What was what?"

"Suddenly you're done with paperwork and wanna do fieldwork?"

Ichigo slightly blushed and helped him with the rest.

"I don't get your point. I'm a trained agent, I can handle a simple patrol."

"No, I know you can. It's just that I was surprised that you volunteered. Does it have anything to do with detective Inoue?"

"Dad, it's just a patrol," he replied uncomfortably.

Isshin knew he was hiding something and smiled at him in accomplice.

"You can tell me, son. I don't blame you. She's amazing."

"You know perfectly well I'm dating Riruka."

Why did his dad have to act this way? It was true he felt attracted to the detective, but he wanted to convince himself it was more about his laboral pride.

"Ok, I get it."

Ichigo went upstairs to his room and took a quick shower before getting out. He was going on patrol with Renji, and they were meeting at the train station.

"I'll come later and keep you informed," he said to Isshin as a farewell.

"Alright, be careful."

The night was dark and cold. It would probably rain later and Ichigo regretted that he had not brought something warmer, but he didn't want to attract attention.

Deep in thought he walked to the station, stopping occasionally to look at his surroundings and make sure no one was following him. Even if they didn't know the killer's identity, it didn't mean the killer didn't know his own and the rest of the police force. He had to be careful.

Grimmjow cut out a section of the newspaper and added it to the album he made about each one of his cases. It had started as one more murder, nothing special due to the area, but after the third one, media had realized it was something else. It was then when he acquired the fame of The Panther.

Women of all ages began being more aware. Some even remained in their houses out of fear of being the next one. Grimmjow smiled at this. He had infused fear into each one of the citizens of Karakura, and didn't plan to stop until he was satisfied.

He picked up an album on his bookshelf that he kept behind some exemplars he had gathered for years. Despite everything, he enjoyed simple activities like reading or swimming. He didn't hide his trophy out of fear of being discovered, but out of dislike of exposure. He wouldn't want any part of the world looking at such an important piece of himself without his permission.

He thought a little in regards to his next move. Would he wait a week or would he try to disconcert the authorities by attacking sooner than expected? He laughed out loud imagining them checking every file for clues that might lead them to his capture. It was a waste of time, his attacks were random. He killed when he wanted to, not when everyone else was expecting it. If they thought they would catch him trying to discern a pattern, they were mistaken.

Grimmjow grabbed his leather jacket and a beanie and went out for a walk. There were still people walking the streets and probably on their way home.

He bought a coffee and sat on a bench to people watch. It wasn't the most amusing activity, but it would help him to clear his mind even for a while.

He saw many girls coming back from a date or a meeting with friends.

Idiots, you don't understand you're risking your necks by coming out this late, he thought.

But really, why did he even care if they took precautions? It would be better for him if they didn't. It would be easier.

A girl with magenta hair walked in front of him grabbing another one with green short hair by her hand and sat on the front bench. They both were attractive and Grimmjow got excited by imagining them subdued under him. He mentally smiled.

The girl with magenta hair quickly texted on her cellphone while the other constantly glanced at her watch.

"It's late, we better go back. My father will get mad if I'm not home the moment he comes back from work."

"You're overreacting, Nozomi. We still have time. Besides, weren't you the one that wanted to come to this park to see the guy you like?"

Grimmjow was paying attention to everything they said, but discreetly looking to the other side as if he was waiting for someone. Two girls, probably college girls, walking through the park at night. It was perfect, but he decided to watch them a little bit more.

"Well, yeah, but we don't even know if he's coming today."

"He comes here every day. He won't take long."

"Riruka, we better go now."

"He's here!" The girl with magenta hair shouted with a big smile.

The other one looked in the same direction and blushed. She was shy.

"It can't be. Do I look good?" She asked nervous.

You'd look better with a smile on your neck, Grimmjow thought looking at her sideways.

"You're perfect. Smile at him." The other one replied.

A black haired guy with the number 69 tattooed on his face walked by with another blonde guy not looking at the two girls. The green haired girl looked disappointed and a slight blush appeared in her face. The other one was furious.

"He's a moron! How dare he not spare us a glance?!"

"Just leave it. Let's go."

They both stood up and Grimmjow waited a few moments before following some steps behind them. He walked slowly so he wouldn't look suspicious, but close enough to keep them in his view.

Between the two girls, the green haired one caught his attention, but he decided it wasn't her time yet. On the other hand, the other one was a diva and so sure of herself. Scum, in fewer words. She deserved to be punished.

The two girls walked down the street and headed to the train station.

If they get in, I'll lose the track of them, Grimmjow thought.

Just in the entrance they met with two guys. Grimmjow remained behind a phone cabin and watched the group. Apparently they knew each other.

They traded a few words and then the girl with magenta hair kissed the orange haired guy. They knew each other very well apparently. The orange haired guy looked familiar, but he couldn't remember from where.

The two girls parted and entered the station. The two men passed by the two girls and began walking in Grimmjow's direction. He quickly took the phone from its place in the cabin and pretended he was talking to someone.

"Yes, I told you. I'll come back soon. I'm on my way…"

The two young men walked past Grimmjow without a glance in his direction. Once they were well beyond his hearing range, he replaced the phone back on its stand.

He definitely knew that orange haired guy.

To be continued…

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