Chapter 130: Erin Whittaker Dies for Love, Julian Fletcher Wakes Up

Chapter 130: Chapter 130: Erin Whittaker Dies for Love, Julian Fletcher Wakes Up

"Silvia Lynch, you’re not Cecilia Caldwell! You’re not, you’re not!"

Erin Whittaker was still screaming.

A nurse rushed over to calm her, but seeing her condition, she called for a doctor.

"Silvia Lynch, I know Cecilia Caldwell’s secret. You don’t believe me, do you? I really do know a secret about Cecilia Caldwell..." She suddenly grabbed me, her voice hoarse and low. "Be careful of Asher. Be careful of that madman."

I took a step back, looking at the desperate Erin Whittaker. "The Lancaster Family won’t protect you. And I don’t need to learn Cecilia Caldwell’s secrets from you. Erin, you reap what you sow. No one can help you now."

Erin Whittaker trembled as she lay on the floor. "Silvia Lynch! You’ll regret this!"

She hated me. Hated me for making her kneel today, yet refusing to step in and protect her.

I ignored her.

She continued to scream hysterically.

Asher took my hand and led me away.

I didn’t look back. ’I’m no saint. The more she suffers, the happier I should be...’

I watched Asher’s back, my vision blurring slightly.

Erin Whittaker said that Cecilia Caldwell and Asher were a couple. That the person Cecilia loved was Asher, and the person Asher loved was Cecilia.

’Why would I have completely forgotten such a soul-deep memory?’

’How could this be...?’

"Cecilia Caldwell! Why did you have to fight me for Julian Fletcher? Why won’t you just disappear? Why are you still fighting me even after you died! You’re a lunatic, a malevolent ghost! You nearly got Julian killed before, it was all your fault! It’s your fault he hates you!" Erin Whittaker was still shouting.

Asher’s pace seemed to quicken. He shot Erin a dark, vicious glance, then pulled me into the elevator and covered my ears. "Don’t believe a single word she says."

I just watched Erin Whittaker cry and scream until the elevator doors closed.

"Cece..." Madeline Quinn, who had been on the phone outside, walked over anxiously when she saw me. "Zeke... something about Zeke suddenly blew up online. The public pressure is too great, and the higher-ups were forced to issue a disciplinary action against him."

I froze for a moment, then pulled out my phone. The hashtag "PoliceBrutality"... was already trending.

Someone was intentionally manipulating public opinion.

"At first, I thought the killer was just one person, a single madman. It seems we’ve all underestimated him..." my voice was hoarse.

The person behind this wasn’t just a lone wolf; they had significant power and financial resources.

Because steering public opinion and manufacturing trending topics isn’t something an ordinary person can do.

’Who on earth is this murderer?’

"Zeke... was transferred. He’s been sent to Traffic Police Unit Three."

Madeline Quinn looked down, her voice choking up. "Zeke was on this case from the very beginning. Now he’s been demoted to a traffic cop... This case is going to be delayed indefinitely."

"Zeke must be in a terrible mood..." I didn’t know what to say.

"Let’s go keep him company," Madeline Quinn asked softly, seeking my opinion.

’It seems she’s starting to trust me now.’

Asher squeezed my hand. "Let’s go."

’I can’t believe Asher would voluntarily show concern for someone else.’

"Okay."

...

「Zeke Shaw’s Residence.」

Madeline Quinn was pounding on the door, but Zeke wouldn’t open it.

Madeline kicked the door. "Zeke Shaw, I know you’re in there! If you don’t open this door, I’m going to make you infamous in this whole residential compound!"

I knew Madeline was just worried something had happened to Zeke.

But Zeke still didn’t open the door.

"Zeke Shaw, get out here! You love-’em-and-leave-’em scumbag! I’m pregnant with your child, and now you’re abandoning me...?" Madeline started her performance, wailing at the top of her lungs.

This was the police residential compound. Zeke’s father had been a police officer who died in the line of duty, and Zeke had taken on his father’s badge number. He thought he could be a good cop fueled by pure passion.

But reality had forced him to bow his head time and time again.

Madeline’s wailing left both Asher and me stunned.

We glanced at each other and, in a moment of silent agreement, each took a step back.

Asher was clearly blown away by Madeline’s acting skills. He whispered, "Cece, your friend is intense."

I raised a hand to my forehead.

’She really is intense.’

Soon enough, the door flew open. Zeke, his face dark and his chin stubbled, clapped a hand over Madeline’s mouth.

All the neighbors here were his dad’s old colleagues. Madeline was trying to give him a social death.

"What are you shouting about?" Zeke dragged her inside, glanced at Asher and me, and clumsily ran a hand through his hair. "Uh, sorry, the place is a bit of a mess."

Asher and I walked in. Seeing the floor littered with beer bottles and cigarette butts, I thought, ’This is more than "a bit of a mess."’

"This case... are you really content to just give up like this?" Madeline asked.

Zeke lit a cigarette, but after one drag, he remembered I was pregnant and quickly stubbed it out.

Asher frowned and pressed my head into his chest. "Secondhand smoke. It’s poison."

Zeke rolled his eyes.

"You don’t have to be too upset. You’ve got a brain, just not a big one. It’s normal that you can’t handle him. It’s a matter of talent," Asher said, attempting to console him.

"..." I opened my mouth, speechless with embarrassment. ’Was he really trying to comfort him? His words are so blunt!’

I saw the corner of Zeke’s mouth twitch. I suspected he wanted to throw Asher out, but his good manners held him back.

"Even though I’m off the case, it’s not all bad news. The higher-ups are sending down an expert, a genius in criminal investigation. I heard he was in the ’genius class’ too, probably a classmate of your man." Zeke glanced at me. "His name is Lucas Grant. They say he’s a genius with a memory that surpasses ordinary people. Once he sees a crime scene, not a single clue escapes him."

I looked at Asher in surprise. ’Is this guy really that incredible?’

But Asher just sneered and muttered under his breath, "Just a useless piece of trash."

"?" Although Zeke didn’t hear Asher’s muttering, I did. ’It seems he and this Lucas Grant don’t get along.’

"The genius class recruits one in several hundred million, so they’re definitely extraordinary. I just hope he can solve the case quickly," Madeline prayed softly.

"There are many kinds of geniuses," Asher countered.

"Anyone who scores above sixty is a ’genius,’ but there’s a world of difference between a sixty-one and a thousand. There’s no upper limit." Asher clearly didn’t think much of Lucas Grant. "Besides, that guy is just as annoying as Julian Fletcher."

I felt helpless. Asher had now made "Julian Fletcher" a synonym for "annoying."

Madeline looked at Asher in surprise. "He’s said a lot today."

Indeed. That’s how much Asher must hate this Lucas Grant.

"He’s not even as good as you," Asher said, glancing at Zeke with a hint of resentment.

He was indirectly encouraging Zeke not to give up.

Zeke didn’t say anything, just poured himself a beer.

"Is that beer even drinkable? When did you open it?" Madeline tried to snatch the bottle away.

"Last night," Zeke dodged her. "Don’t waste it."

Not long after drinking it, Zeke’s stomach started hurting and he ran to the bathroom.

Madeline sighed and began to help him clean up the house.

"Erin Whittaker had a breakdown at the hospital today. She knows that with Julian Fletcher out of the picture, no one can protect her," I said to Madeline as we were leaving Zeke’s place.

I wanted to cheer her up a bit. Erin’s current state was her just desserts.

Madeline’s hand, which was gathering trash, paused. She looked at me. "This is nothing. She deserves to feel far more despair."

I smiled and left, holding Asher’s hand.

"Asher, were you and Cecilia Caldwell... boyfriend and girlfriend?" I looked up at him, my expression serious.

’Has he truly recognized me as Cecilia, or is it like they say—is he just treating me as a substitute for her? Will he one day wake up, go mad, lose control, and strangle me?’

Asher stood before me, his gaze burning into mine. "Lover..."

"You are the one I love."

Asher said it with the utmost seriousness.

When he said "lover," a sharp pain shot through my heart.

"Cece!" Upstairs, Madeline and Zeke both ran out. "The hospital just called! They said Erin Whittaker tried to commit suicide for love next to Julian Fletcher’s bed—and Julian woke up!"

(Hey dears, a lot of people are saying the female lead is stupid, but have you ever considered this is written in the first person, from her perspective...? What you’re seeing is what she wants you to see... Don’t trust anyone too easily!)