Chapter 168: Lucas Grant Is Convinced That Asher Is the Killer

Chapter 168: Chapter 168: Lucas Grant Is Convinced That Asher Is the Killer

Zane went to make a call and returned quickly. "After Sebastian Lancaster was taken in for questioning, he was sent to the mental hospital. It’s confirmed he hasn’t left. He has an alibi."

Lucas Grant frowned. "Heh, that guy wouldn’t kill someone with his own hands. He just needs to lift a finger."

I rolled my eyes at Lucas Grant. "Are you telling some kind of myth? Why don’t you just say Sebastian Lancaster is a god? ’Lifting a finger’..."

Lucas Grant shot me a disdainful look. "What do you know? Have you ever seen murder cases disguised as accidental deaths?"

I shook my head very seriously.

"If we were enemies and I wanted you dead, there are plenty of ways to do it without breaking the law," Lucas Grant said coolly.

I pursed my lips, looking unconvinced.

Lucas Grant grew a little agitated. "It seems you’re really not Cecilia Caldwell."

I rolled my eyes. "My name is Silvia Lynch. And another thing, what makes you so sure Asher is the killer? Didn’t you say the serial killer case was about to be closed?"

"Things aren’t as simple as they seem. It’s perfectly normal for an ordinary mind like yours to not get it." Lucas Grant was brutally direct. He had someone take me to an interrogation room while he prepared to head to the crime scene. "Take a guess. The killer was supposed to be following a plan. If Erin Whittaker didn’t die, logically, the people after her should have been safe. So why is it that the moment Sebastian Lancaster enters a mental hospital, the killer starts murdering people again?"

I frowned, not understanding Lucas Grant’s logic.

"That killer is provoking the police! From start to finish, every single person he’s killed, he’s killed for Sebastian Lancaster. Can you still say this serial murder case has nothing to do with Sebastian Lancaster?" Lucas Grant’s eyes burned with anger, as if he was certain Asher was the mastermind behind it all.

"He’s putting pressure on the police. The police send him to a mental hospital, so he makes trouble for them. Because he helped Zeke Shaw solve a case and find Erin Whittaker, he’s considered an outside consultant. As long as we run into trouble here and can’t deduce the next victim, we’ll have to beg for his help," Lucas Grant said through gritted teeth.

The fury radiating from Lucas Grant was so intense it forced me to back away step by step, until my back was against a car door.

Lucas Grant sneered. "Sebastian Lancaster wants to compete with me? Fine, let’s compete. We’ll see if I can figure out who the next victim is and where they are before they get hurt."

I took a deep breath and looked at the man before me. ’He’s become completely obsessed, almost crazed, in his desire to outdo Asher.’

"The person who died this time... are they from the orphanage?" I asked in a low voice.

Only then did Lucas Grant snap out of it. He turned to look at Zane. "Has the victim’s identity been confirmed?"

"Quinn’s already on his way. No confirmation yet. The scene is sealed off, but there were a lot of stray dogs in the alley last night..." Zane said quietly. "The scene is... pretty messed up. Do you want to go see?"

Lucas Grant rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I’m heading over now."

I spoke up instinctively. "Can you take me with you?"

’I don’t know why, but something feels off about this murder.’

Street Alley...

’This is different from the previous murders.’

’In this serial murder case, the disposal site for every victim has been near a body of water, whether it was a reservoir, a river, or a lake. But this one was just dumped in Street Alley... Is this really because Asher went to the mental hospital? Is someone trying to pressure the police and make the case harder to solve?’

’Dumping a body in water destroys most of the evidence, but in an alley...’

’The stray dogs.’

I sucked in a sharp breath, clenching my hands nervously.

’Could it be... the stray dogs gnawed on the body?’

Lucas Grant glanced at me. "No."

I didn’t press the issue and followed a female officer into the interrogation room.

’It was self-defense. There was video footage and a witness at the scene.’

I heard the Lancaster family’s old matriarch was clamoring for me to be sentenced, refusing any settlement and demanding blood for blood. Fortunately, Owen Foster had also called a lawyer. Since the other party wasn’t seriously injured, and I was a mother protecting herself and her child, my actions were aimed at stopping a crime. There was nothing to dispute.

Owen Foster posted bail, and I was released.

As I was leaving, the female officer asked me in surprise, "You’re pretty skilled. Ever studied anatomy? None of the stabs were fatal. The wounds didn’t even reach the superficial fascia. Just enough to make a point."

I was a bit baffled. To be honest, I didn’t really understand... "Maybe I’m just weak, so I could only stab that deep?"

The female officer looked at me suspiciously. After all, when I snatched the knife from the man’s hand, I hadn’t looked weak at all.

Besides, to be able to snatch a knife from a grown man’s grasp...

I didn’t say anything more. I was relieved he wasn’t badly hurt; after all, I hadn’t reached the point where I wanted to kill someone.

"Asher... what’s the situation with him?" I asked impatiently as soon as I got in the car.

Owen Foster nodded. "Everything’s fine. We have our own people in the mental hospital. They’ve been briefed and will notify us immediately if there are any problems."

I nodded, but my thoughts began to drift.

"Let’s go by Street Alley. I heard there was another murder there." The moment I thought about the serial killer case, my palms started to sweat. I was one of the victims, after all.

’Who was that person with the red birthmark on their inner arm...?’

’I’m sure of it. Right before I died, I vaguely saw their arm. It was definitely a birthmark.’

’In my memory, that arm was very slender... pale. It definitely wasn’t Asher.’

’Ash is ridiculously thin, but he doesn’t have a birthmark on his inner arm.’

I rubbed my temples. My head was starting to ache badly.

"Ma’am, Street Alley is sealed off. The car can’t get through." Owen Foster parked the car at the entrance to Nocturne, explaining that the police had cordoned off Street Alley.

I got out of the car and glanced over, spotting Lucas Grant in the distance.

He seemed to be talking to the medical examiner.

A few onlookers had gathered, but they ran off in fear after getting a closer look. Others were vomiting nearby, a testament to how gruesome the scene was.

"Does the killer think that smearing spices on the body to attract stray dogs to devour it would destroy all the evidence?" Lucas Grant sneered. "Why are these stray dogs gathered in Street Alley? Who’s been feeding them? Investigate."

Lucas Grant shifted the focus of the investigation onto the stray dogs.

’If the stray dogs devoured the evidence, then the stray dogs *are* the evidence.’

"This victim isn’t from the orphanage. He’s from that shut-down mental hospital. The man was one of the psychiatrists back in the day, but he left the hospital many years ago. He was never involved in Sebastian Lancaster’s treatment and had no interaction with him whatsoever." Zane, having found something, ran over to report to Lucas Grant.

’Lucas Grant must have assumed the victim had some kind of conflict with Asher.’

’But they didn’t.’

I stood at the police cordon, watching Lucas Grant.

Lucas Grant faltered for a split second, but after seeing me, he suddenly seemed to understand something. "Cecilia Caldwell! Was Cecilia Caldwell ever sent to a mental hospital as a child? Investigate! Investigate the connection between the victim and Cecilia Caldwell!"

I stared blankly at Lucas Grant.

’Me?’

Ha...

Suddenly, my head felt like it was about to split open, and a strange voice echoed in my mind.

"You really love your dog?"

"This dog is so obedient..."

"How dare it bite me? I’ll beat it to death!"

"AH!"

A bloodcurdling scream, the barking of a dog.

Suddenly, a stray dog brushed past me, startling me. When I came to my senses, Lucas Grant was already standing in front of me, his eyes filled with scrutiny.