The Lab Bench

The academy lab hums with the soft glow of microscope lamps. You lay out your evidence carefully: the lifted fingerprint, the red fiber from the greenhouse pane, the plaster cast of the worn heel. Under magnification, the fiber blooms into twisted strands of dyed wool — the same kind used in groundskeeper jackets.

Your heart races. The print's loop pattern looks like a match, and a name is already forming on your lips. But your instructor's voice echoes in your head: let the science speak. Do you check every detail, or trust the hunch burning in your chest?