At Least I’M Free
IV

That night it rained heavily on the road, parked vehicles and investigators who left after finishing their work. After a busy day of searching and securing evidence, the atmosphere in the investigation unit office became empty.

However, even though the evidence has been collected and the results of the autopsy have come out, Ridwan is still not satisfied. Alone he pondered, still unwilling to leave his place.

        Between the empty desk and office chair Ridwan sat while propping up his chin. With a grim face he continued to think about the flow of the investigation from the beginning of the report until now. To be honest before the forensic results came out, the 32-year-old man felt very optimistic as if he could solve his case quickly. But reality says otherwise, all the clues found do not lead to any settlement. There are dead ends and uncertainties.

        Ridwan observed the evidence lined up on the table. Starting from a bloody hammer, the key to the club room found hanging on the inside of the door, a wallet containing a number of money and the identity card of the victim, a broken mobile phone, and, and 5-liter jerry cans that seem to be used by the perpetrator to carry gasoline. All have been wrapped in sterile plastic in the hope that the trail of the perpetrator is not touched, even though the reality called 'traces' does not really exist. The results of the daltiloscopy even show the victim's fingerprints alone in all evidence.

        Speculation led to the possibility of suicide, but the allegation was immediately refuted because the victim's autopsy showed that he had died 14 hours before the fire incident occurred. Plus the real cause of death was a cerebral hemorrhage near the nape of the back, which would be very difficult for someone to hit his own head from behind until he died.

        Tired Ridwan leaned against the back of the chair and closed his eyes. He tried to recall the state of CTF in case something was missed.

        "Working wholeheartedly is good, but you also have to think about family at home. Your wife's son must be worried." said a voice made Ridwan immediately jumped almost abandoned.

        "P-sir Suga anyway..." Ridwan tried to regulate his abandoned breath while staring at the lean, burly man before him. "Not yet to return sir?"

        "Don't you see I'm soaking wet like this?" Huga took off her black overcoat and sat down in front of Ridwan. "I just came."

        Ridwan sighed, "Don't tell me you're doing your weird hobby again?"

        "The crime is more alive at night, it would be a waste if we missed the opportunity to look for new clues, right?" obviously Huga while hooking her wet overcoat to the back of the chair.

        "Then how? any new leads?" ask Ridwan skeptically.

         "Of course there is. The best, though." Huga smiled knot.

         Ridwan's face immediately turned serious. "What's the lead?"

          "Calm down, I'll tell you later. For sure tomorrow we have to ask the members of the English club one by one without missing anyone" explained Huga calmly.

          "Is he among them?" asked Ridwan in a soft voice. "It's hard to imagine a child their age could do this to his own teacher."

           Suga smiled wryly in response to the undercooked speculation of his junior. "You're too focused on the perpetrator, because that's the important clue missed."

        On the other hand Huga felt there was no need to answer. He casually leaned his body against the back of the chair.

      Seeing that Ridwan let out a long sigh, he felt that his role in the investigation was not so necessary. Drooping down, he stared grimly at the things lined up before him. "Everything is in vain..," he murmured.

        "You're right but you're wrong." Huga re-enforced the body. "The use of this evidence has indirectly provided information about the character of the perpetrator."

        "The character?" Ridwan looked confused but also curious.

        "Yes. Like his character who was very careful and very meticulous in removing traces. The absence of cleaning agents left behind has shown that this perpetrator has a high intellect in the field of chemistry." explained Huga with a flash of eyes that show admiration, "this was a very slick premeditated murder. Therefore, it is likely that the perpetrator has a close relationship with the victim."

        "But it could have been the perpetrator paying a professional to do it." argued Ridwan while folding both hands on the chest.

        "You don't understand this at all?" Huga shook her head in regret. "If there is a possibility, the brain behind this murder is still he who has the intention and emotional bond with the victim. Why was this murder so neat and clean? Because if there's even a hint found, the identity of the culprit will be revealed."

Ridwan was stunned to hear that brilliant explanation. He also just realized the reason why his senior was immediately busy interrogating people without waiting for the results of the CTKP or autopsy. Surely he already knew that it would not be very useful in this case. In other words, from the beginning Huga already knew what exact steps to take without wasting time. Although impressed frivolous and self-absorbed, Ridwan admitted that the ability of his senior was not a figment.

        "Then what about the victim's car that disappeared, if the purpose of the perpetrator is only to end the victim's life why he bother to take the victim's car away? Though if sold will even make it tracked." unknowingly Ridwan raised the sound of being too excited.

        Huga put both elbows on the table and slowly leaned her body forward. He whispered, "because the main show was a fire the next day..."

Ridwan frowned while also lowering his tone. "I don't understand at all."

        "The pointer is at the school guard. The vehicle that remained parked until that afternoon could make the guard suspicious and go around looking for the owner." Huga returned to the back of the chair. "By bringing the victim's car, the perpetrator can delay the discovery of the body. Why did he not want the body found first? it was because he had to clear all traces of her left behind at night in order to be more free."

        "That's it.." despite nodding, the frown on Ridwan's forehead seemed to increase. "Then the main show you call it, what do you mean?"

        "Why do you think the room should be burned early in the morning instead of at night?" Huga tapped her index finger at the table while her eyes showed a prank like the one giving the test.

        "You're right, that's weird. People would do that at night because the possibility of eyewitnesses was very small, but why were they burned when the disciples came..." Ridwan stared at the ceiling of the office while visualizing the events of the morning in the brain.

         Meanwhile, Suga was poking his lips, trying his hardest not to laugh.