Chapter 280 Clumps of Fur
The party continued to explore the other areas, using the map and the locations they had marked to determine their next steps. After visiting each site, they uncovered several clues that strengthened their belief about how the cat got lost. With each clue they discovered, the evidence increasingly suggested that a thief was involved.
Their next destination was the bushes that Aleshia had first mentioned. Although the area was different from what they had expected, they were surprised by how accurately Aleshia had predicted the cutout in the hedge. One of them joked, "Hey, maybe you really do have a connection to this after all!" However, someone reasoned, "She has been in camp for the past month, so there's no way she could be responsible for this little problem cropping up."
After exhausting their banter, they began to examine the hedge. They noticed that the cutout was human-shaped, but something peculiar stood out: there were indentations for ears, but not just any ears. It seemed the thief who stole the cat might be a beastkin.
The party discussed and concluded that they were likely a beastkin. Cecelia shared her thoughts on the matter, saying, "I wonder what type of beastkin they are. But it won't matter as long as we have Liam here." She leaned into the hedge to examine the surface more closely, running her fingers along the groove to get a feeling of the thief's ear.
While searching through the hedges, Cecelia noticed some fur that was different from what they had already collected. This clump was larger than any of the furs they had gathered. "Hey, I think I've found some fur that is different from the ones we have," she said, returning to the group.
Liam took the fur she found and checked it. After a brief inspection, he concluded, "This fur might belong to a felid species." He then used his tracking skills to track where the felid might have gone.
"Follow me," he said, then began to move ahead, picking up on a trail that only he seemed to notice. The group followed him, winding through the walkways of various properties and maintained paths. After walking for a while, they stumbled upon a peculiar property located in a dingier part of town. However, Liam didn't pass the property; he stopped in his tracks and said, "This is where the scent becomes much stronger. It seems this is the place where the thief went and is now staying."
The building was dilapidated and worn with age, its wooden panels covering cracks in the walls. It reminded Aleshia of the camp she had first glimpsed upon arriving at Daniel's camp. They searched for a door, and when they finally found one, Kelly volunteered to knock.