Ryou's office was a mess, but it wasn't without order. Malik suspected that it was because he had grown used to Ryou's method of organization. As he started to sort through the papers, he could see the flow of logic, how the information was gathered. Despite his exhaustion, Malik could view the larger picture of the case as a whole.

Malik searched through the details, desperate for something that they had missed. Some missing piece to the puzzle that would finally wrap this case up perfectly with a bow on top. It was stupid and unreasonable for him to expect to solve a case that Ryou spent months working on, but he didn't have time to consider any other options. It was sink or swim, and Malik struggled to keep afloat.

Malik studied a variety of potential escape routes, trying to piece together how Jack the Ripper escaped that night. What had they missed? Where had they gone wrong? These questions swam in his mind, a constant swirl like waves washing over him.

Malik hadn't realized he had fallen asleep until he felt a hand shaking him awake.

Malik snapped his head up, panic and shame flooding him. It took him a moment to recognize the office around him. He brushed his hair back, desperately grabbing at the papers. How could he fall asleep like that when Ryou and Isis were counting on him?

He heard a low chuckle. "Don't worry. I won't tell the commissioner."

Malik turned his head, remembering what initially woke him up. Standing next to him, Namu held out the last autopsy report. Malik sighed, relaxing a bit. He didn't give a shit if Kaiba found out he fell asleep – it was Ryou he didn't want to disappoint. Too much was at stake – Ryou's life remained in peril

"Sorry. I haven't gotten much sleep," Malik muttered, not sure why he was explaining. He knew Namu didn't care. He was probably there just to get a paycheck like most of the other officers.

"Sounds about right. This case has been hell." Namu snorted, leaning against the desk.

Malik leaned back, taking the file from Namu and read over it. "Makes me long for the days back in Egypt, eh?"

Namu shook his head. "Not me. I never liked home. England's been a lot more interesting."

Malik sighed, the file falling from his hand. He and Namu had been pretty close when they were younger. After Namu's parents died, he moved to England with his aunt and uncle, who were medical doctors. Namu picked up the trade after them and had stayed in the country since. Malik supposed if he had lived in this country for as long as Namu did, he wouldn't long for his homeland as much either.

Then again, Malik didn't really want to go back to Egypt. Not really.

He just wanted to find Ryou. That was home for him.

Malik felt a hand on his shoulder, tensing at the touch. Even though it wasn't threatening, it was too close to his scars and he wasn't comfortable with just anyone touching him. Even if Namu was an old acquaintance.

"It'll be alright. Just keep calm and pick up where he left off," Namu spoke softly, a small smile on his face. The encouragement felt almost mocking given the circumstances.

Malik pulled away, standing as he paced, mind still racing. "I'm trying. But I'm not Ryou. I'm not a detective. I can't-" Malik cut himself off. It didn't matter if he couldn't. He had to.

Namu watched him for a long second before sighing. He left the file on the desk as he made for the door. "Fine. Then backtrack and see what he missed. I don't know. I'm just trying to be helpful."

Malik let out a breath, looking up at the map spread across the wall. On it displayed the various murder locations as well as information regarding the name of each tenant Jack the Ripper used as an alias. "I know. I'm sorry. I'm just on edge."

"Everybody is. Just keep at it. If Ryou thinks you were helpful on the case, then that has to show for something," Namu offered, pausing at the open door for a moment.

Malik glanced back to meet his gaze before tearing his eyes away. He looked back at the wall, studying the map for something, though not sure exactly what. "Yeah, maybe," he muttered, still not convinced.

Namu didn't say anything else, but Malik heard the door close behind him. He knew he should scour the new autopsy report for any details, but Malik held off. He stared at the map, still irritated. The clues were hidden here.

Malik knew that the true identity of Jack the Ripper and their failed attempt at capturing him were somehow tied together. Ryou was right on the money in terms of where he would target his victims as well as the housing switch-a-roo. How did he escape with Ryou out from underneath their eyes?

Malik stared, feeling the minutes tick by while he looked at the map for some alleyway, road, street, garden, anything the serial killer could have used to make a getaway. Time dragged on, each second a reminder of what was at stake. His eyes glossed over the notes made at each murder site, the details of each murder blurring into the next.

Dealing with death, it became easy to just see each victim as another statistic, another number to the equation. Malik felt so familiar to and distant from these individuals that nothing seemed to click.

Victim #1: Mary Ann Nichols – August 31st, 1888 on Buck's Row

Approximate time of death: 3:30 am

Flat rented under Jack Dowry on August 22nd, 1888.

Obituary listing Jack Dowry posted on August 15th, 1888, natural causes

Victim #2: Annie Chapman – September 9th, 1888 on Hanbury Street.

Approximate time of death: 5:30 am

Flat rented under Richard Bennett on September 1st, 1888.

Obituary listing Richard Bennet posted on August 28th, 1888, traffic incident

Victim #5: Abigail Richards – January 17th, 1889 on Osborn Street.

Approximate time of death: 1:15 am

Flat rented under Andrew Sims on January 9th, 1889, postdated to January 12th, 1889.

Obituary listing Andrew Sims posted on January 10th, 1889, homicide.

Malik blinked, snapping his head back. He had run these notes a dozen times over, but for the first time, he found an error. He looked back at the fifth victim, noticing the invalid postdate. He frowned, thinking Ryou had been trying to correct an error, but there was no question about what was written.

He turned back to the desk, searching for the file containing Abigail Richards. He brushed past the photos and paintings, pausing when he saw the note, marking the lease that "Andrew Sims" had signed. It was at that point that Malik noticed that though it was signed on the 9th, it was postdated to the 12th, after the weekend had passed.

Malik frowned, trying to make sense of this. By that date, Jack the Ripper should not have had any knowledge of Mr. Sims's death. That information wasn't made public until the 10th, the day after the lease was signed.

Had Jack the Ripper known that the man had already died?

Malik remained frozen at his desk, tapping his finger. He was probably overthinking it and Ryou had already looked into this lead. But the numbers and dates all blended together so that it was possible that both Ryou and the killer had overlooked this error. This one potential mistake that could lead them to the truth.

Malik left the office, leaving the door open behind him as he made his way towards records. Something was off and he intended to get to the bottom of this. He pushed past the officers, who didn't question his presence. The records room had been left unlocked, Malik skimming through the files. If Andrew Sims was a homicide victim, then he likely would have passed through here, or Namu's office at least.

It took Malik a while to find it, but he snagged the file, which was fairly light and thin. The statement was brief – two gentlemen had gotten into a scuffle down in Whitechapel. One of them had a pistol and shot his friend in anger. Two officers arrived on scene, arresting the assailant and rushing an injured Andrew Sims to the hospital.

Or at least, he should have gone to the hospital. Malik blinked, seeing a note about the damages done to the state hospital building. Yugi had mentioned that the building had been deemed structurally unsound after the recent fires. Near the beginning of the month, the hospital had been shut down as Yugi's department moved to make plans for renovations. Needless to say, the process had been very slow.

So Andrew Sims ended up being rushed to the police station, since Namu technically was a doctor. Despite his efforts, Mr. Sims died from his gunshot wound, Namu's signature certifying the place and time of his death.

Malik frowned, something clicking in his mind. Only a handful of people would have known about Mr. Sims death. His friend was in jail on manslaughter charges. That meant there were two officers, Commissioner Kaiba, and Namu who were all involved in this case. Could it be that one of them was also…

Malik closed the file, bringing his thumb up to his mouth to bite at his nail. It was a longshot and very risky to accuse someone without the police task force, but Malik was running out of options. He had a hunch to go off of. Perhaps one of the officers had seen where Mr. Sims lived and thought it might be a good place for their next murder. Perhaps this was the perfect cover for Kaiba to commit crime in a position that left him untouchable. Perhaps-

Malik flinched, his heart pounding. He dropped the file, racing back to Ryou's office. He was stupid. Ryou was stupid. They were both stupid. They were looking at the wrong clues. They had investigated it right from the beginning and they were too stupid to realize the answer before them. Because the idea that the killer would so carelessly give away his craft and skill was ridiculous to them.

They had gotten to the heart of the case from the start but failed to see it.

Malik struggled to catch his breath when he arrived in Ryou's office. The door remained wide open as he fumbled through the files. He pulled out the photos of each victim, the bloody massacre to behold in each image. Before, it made Malik queasy, finding it hard to look at it directly. Now, Malik looked unflinchingly, looking at the opened cavities where organs had been harvested.

The sight was gruesome, but Malik noticed it immediately. The hearts had been removed, with cuts made precisely severing the organ from the body. Skilled, precise incisions that were made by a steady hand, familiar with this practice. One skilled with taking corpses apart.

By a surgeon or a coroner.

Malik stumbled back, his heart jumping into his throat. Panic and a sharp awareness of the truth paralyzed him, staring down at the photos. In that moment, it no longer felt like these women were numbers. They fought and struggled for their lives. Did Namu just laugh at their resistance? Was he laughing from the shadows now?

Malik tore away from the office, his mind racing faster than his body could keep up. He couldn't get to Kaiba's office soon enough. Before he could even arrive there, the door swung open. Malik skidded to a halt, shocked that Kaiba opened the door before he could get there. He knew it was incidental, but it still caught him off guard.

He seemed to have caught Kaiba off guard as well, the commissioner looking more frazzled and alarmed than he had previously. Malik didn't have time to think, the words leaving his mouth before he could provide an explanation; "It's Namu. He's Jack the Ripper!"

Malik was expecting that he would have to explain himself and why he had made such a wild assumption. He probably shouldn't be throwing around accusations like that, but he didn't want to waste time. The conviction was sealed in his heart and he would convince Kaiba his case.

But the words never needed to be spoken. The commissioner glanced back, Malik now noticing Joey and Serenity who had been following him. He didn't know when they had gotten there, but there was a grave look on their faces, a grim air about them. Kaiba just nodded, not surprised by the assertion.

"We don't have any time to waste," Kaiba snapped, sweeping past Malik. He blinked, stunned momentarily, before chasing after the commissioner. Time was of the essence. If Kaiba accepted his deduction, then they needed to use this time to capture Namu before something happened to Ryou or Isis.

Several officers joined them, Kaiba barking orders as they prepared a squad to go fetch Namu from his home. Malik noticed how Kaiba said nothing when he followed him into his cab and decided to not remark on it either. The rain pounded on the hood of the carriage as they raced downtown, after their true killer.


It took them only twenty minutes to arrive at Namu's home, but by then, it was too late. The coroner must have realized he was running short on time and was nowhere to be found.

Malik had been worried, panicked at the thought of chasing another false flag when so much rode on their success. It seemed the Serenity recognized her killer's voice, corroborating his accusation. It surprised him that Kaiba was willing to arrest his own coroner based on such flimsy arguments, but he supposed the commissioner was desperate to get closure on this case.

The flat was relatively small and a bit untidy. Nothing about it showed any indications of a deranged murderer living there. Malik wasn't sure what exactly he had been expecting. He supposed he expected pencil scratching of a madman's nonsense on the walls, photos and pictures of the victims, a profession of guilt. Something that indicated that not everything was as it seemed.

However, five minutes into the search, Duke raced out from one of the back rooms, a sickened look on his face. Malik, despite his better judgment, went back to examine what had shaken up the officer so badly. He blinked, confused as he looked at what resembled a pantry.

Malik felt his stomach lurch when he saw a heart submerged in liquid in one of the jars.

He struggled to keep upright, ignoring his own disgust as he started to make a mental list. A thought crossed his mind and he ran back to snatch a piece of paper. Other officers, including Kaiba, followed him, a stunned silence at the collection of organs and bones laid before them.

Though Malik didn't have any of his notes with him, he remembered how much time he and Ryou spent pouring over the meaning of the missing hearts and what message was being sent. Apparently, it had been Namu's own home experiment, the various organs preserved or decomposing at different rates based on the viscous liquid that surrounded it.

Kaiba quickly located what appeared to be Namu's medical findings.

Malik sighed, checking the numbers once again before looking up at the commissioner. Kaiba watched him patiently, waiting for confirmation. Malik gave him a nod. "These are all the missing organs accounted for in the autopsy reports... and then some."

Kaiba frowned. "It appears we found our killer as well as some new victims to locate."

Malik didn't want to think who these new victims were. Until he found his sister and lover, he refused to accept their deaths. "So where is Ryou then?"

Kaiba sighed. "Not here. We've searched the building and there's nobody hidden or caged or hanging from hooks from the ceiling. Namu had at least an hour head start on us. For all we know, he's already left the city."

Malik shook his head, refusing the option. Not when they had gotten so close, not after everything they had suffered through. "It can't end like this."

"It won't." Kaiba's voice was harsh and angry. "How dare he masquerade about the police force, leading us on a string. I won't rest until I see him hanged for his crimes," Kaiba snapped as if he were giving orders to their elusive killer. As if he had the power and authority by sheer force of will to do so.

Malik bit his lip, trying to think. Jack the Ripper always wanted his victims found, so why hide Ryou and Isis now? If Namu knew they were on to him, he had no reason to keep them prisoner. But if he hadn't killed them yet, where had he kept them? Where was he hiding?

Namu was still somewhere in the city. Malik would find him.

"I'm going back to Whitechapel. I'm going to search for anything we might have missed." Malik started to leave, letting the police take care of business here in the flat. Perhaps Namu left another clue for them to follow, another mistake to exploit.

"When you're done there, meet me at the station." Kaiba didn't bother turning around, surveying the area. "I'm going to reach out to Yugi. It's a long shot, but he might know something about the area that might not be privy to us. He's a city planner so maybe he has access to building permits and floor plans."

Malik nodded, though didn't hold much hope on that. He knew how long it took Yugi to provide Ryou renter records - Kaiba was asking for much more in not enough time. Still, there was no reason not to outsource. They needed every hand on deck.

Malik stepped outside, his drying hair suddenly soaked in the downpour. He frowned, worried that the rain might wash away some evidence. Malik's boots kicked up water as he ran to catch a cab, trying to make up for lost time and close the gap separating him from Jack the Ripper.