The Glass Garden had been Elias Thorne's final masterpiece—a vast, skeletal conservatory of iron and fractured glass, designed to create visual distortion and unbearable heat. It was a cruel environment, perfectly suited for a cruel death. Elias was found seven months ago beneath the Envy mural, the centerpiece of his notorious "Seven Sins" cycle.
Thea visited the scene under the pretense of examining the contract's original environment. The Envy mural was overwhelming: a chaotic mass of shattered glass and aggressive, iridescent pigments. The police had documented the scene with frustrating simplicity.
Thea, however, noticed a recurring residue in the crime scene photos—a translucent, volatile binder used by Elias and known as "Ghost Paint." This wasn't just a medium; it was a chemical sensor. Under specific wavelengths, Thea knew, Ghost Paint chemically absorbed and recorded residual heat, microscopic moisture, and even trace chemical aerosols from close contact. Elias hadn't just painted his final scene; he had ensured the surface itself would capture the crime's invisible data.
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