Leaving the archive, Anna cast a final glance at the photograph of young Rogov. The man who had transformed an innocent legend about seven elephants into a terrible tale of shattered lives.

And the rain kept pouring down, washing away traces of the past, but not the memory of it.

Mikhail Stepanovich's apartment was in an old building on the outskirts of town. Anna climbed the creaking staircase, feeling each step echo through the hollow stairwell. Somewhere above, a dim light bulb flickered, casting uneven shadows on the walls.

"Come in," Granin opened the massive door. "Just be careful—I haven't cleaned in here for a long time."

Anna looked around. The small apartment was crowded with bookshelves. Photographs of various people hung on the walls, along with newspaper clippings and maps covered with notations. The typical dwelling of an old-school investigator who had never been able to leave his work in the past.

"They're here," Granin approached an old secretary desk and took a key from his pocket. "I haven't opened this drawer in twenty years."

The lock clicked reluctantly, as if resisting the intrusion into the past. On a velvet lining, faded with time, stood six porcelain elephants. White, with gold detailing.

"My God," Anna exhaled, taking out her phone. "They're identical."

"What?"

"The elephants in Elena Andreevna's apartment. The same series, the same manufacturer. Only a different color—blue."

Granin sank heavily into an armchair: "So it really is him. The same signature, the same game."

Anna carefully picked up one of the elephants. On the bottom was a barely visible inscription: "Imperial Porcelain Factory, 1994."

"Did you track his whereabouts after his release?" she asked, her gaze fixed on the figurine.

"I tried. He disappeared. Vanished. Now it's clear why—he was creating a new identity."

Anna's phone vibrated. A message from Dorokhov: "Come urgently."

"I need to go," she carefully placed the elephant back in its spot. "May I come back later…"

"Come anytime," Granin interrupted her. "And be careful. He doesn't like when someone gets too close to his secrets."

The rain had stopped, but the streets still glistened with water. Anna got into her car and turned on the navigation system. It would take about twenty minutes to reach headquarters.

Her memory helpfully conjured an image from the past. Ten years ago. Her first case of a missing child. They hadn't made it in time then. That's when she had sworn to herself that never again…

The ringing phone pulled her from her memories.

"Anna Vitalyevna?" Elena Andreevna's voice trembled. "There's… there's some package that arrived. From him."

"Don't touch it! Don't touch anything, I'm coming right now."

"It's too late. I already opened it. There's an elephant inside. The seventh elephant, Anna Vitalyevna. And a note…"

"What note? What does it say?"

"Now the collection is complete. It's a shame there's no one left to make a wish."

Anna sharply turned the car around.

"Don't go anywhere. I'm on my way to you."

She called headquarters while driving.

"Dorokhov? Send a team to Elena Andreevna's house. And find out how the hell he's managing to send packages from the detention center!"

The navigation showed eleven minutes to her destination. Anna turned on the siren. Every second counted now.

From the corner of her eye, she noticed some movement in the rearview mirror. A gray Toyota Camry. The same one.

"Dorokhov," she grabbed her phone again. "We have a problem. I think there were multiple perpetrators."