The Daily Mystery
Every day, a 70-year-old pensioner visited the same butcher. Small and hunched, she wore a threadbare coat and pulled a squeaky, worn-out trolley.
“As usual, forty kilograms of beef,” she murmured, handing over neatly folded bills.
The young butcher was astonished. 88 pounds! Almost half a carcass. At first, he assumed she had a large family. But week after week, it kept happening.
The woman spoke little, avoided eye contact, and carried her meat quietly. She had a strange, pungent smell — a mix of iron, rotting meat, and something else he couldn’t identify.
Curiosity Turns Into Action
Rumors spread across the market. Vendors whispered:
“She’s feeding her son’s family.”
“Maybe her dogs.”
“Or running a secret restaurant?”
The butcher didn’t believe the gossip, but curiosity gnawed at him. One snowy evening, he decided to follow her.
She walked slowly but steadily, trolley in tow. She passed the edge of town, abandoned garages, and headed straight for an old factory, empty for over ten years.
He stopped at the entrance. She disappeared inside with the meat. Twenty minutes later, she emerged empty-handed.
The Secret Revealed
The next day, the same routine repeated. On the third day, the butcher could no longer resist. He waited until she entered, then quietly followed.
Inside, a strange, pungent smell hit him. He heard eerie, dull noises. Peeking through a crack, his heart nearly stopped.
Behind large cages sat four enormous lions. Their eyes glowed in the dim light of a hanging lamp. Bones and chunks of beef littered the floor.
In the corner, the old woman sat in an armchair, whispering gently:
“Easy, my darlings… soon you’ll have your fight… people will come to watch you…”
Shock and Escape
The butcher stepped back in horror. Suddenly, one lion roared, echoing through the hall. The woman turned and hissed,
“What are you doing here?!”
He bolted outside and immediately called the police.
A Dark Secret Uncovered
The officers were stunned. The old woman was a former zoologist. After the local zoo closed, she had rescued several animals. But soon, she realized she could profit.
In the back of the factory, police found a secret arena. Claw marks streaked the walls. The woman had been organizing illegal lion fights, secretly attended by wealthy spectators.
