Chapter 169: Unless Charlie Is Not Dead

Chapter 169: Chapter 169: Unless Charlie Is Not Dead

"Heh..." Lucas Grant squinted. "You’ve got some nerve. A normal person would have a physical reaction after seeing a corpse gnawed on like that. And you’re pregnant. Don’t you feel like throwing up?"

I swallowed nervously and smiled. "I haven’t dared to look in that direction."

Lucas Grant snorted coldly and said meaningfully, "Silvia Lynch, you’re not so innocent either..."

I drew in a sharp breath. "What do you mean by that?"

"I will catch him with my own two hands," Lucas Grant answered, ignoring my question. His words sounded like a vow.

’He would catch the killer with his own hands.’

’He thinks the killer is Sebastian Lancaster.’

"You think Sebastian Lancaster is the mastermind behind the serial killings, and he’s avenging Cecilia Caldwell? So all the victims are more or less connected to Cecilia Caldwell and Sebastian Lancaster, or they bullied Cecilia Caldwell, or they bullied Sebastian Lancaster and Charlie, right?" I asked, looking at Lucas Grant.

Lucas Grant didn’t say anything, but his silence was a clear admission.

"Then why did Cecilia Caldwell... also die at the hands of the serial killer? Who killed her? Sebastian Lancaster? Why?" ’Lucas Grant’s logic didn’t add up.’

"Because he’s a lunatic, driven mad by unrequited love! Because Cecilia Caldwell stopped loving him!" Lucas Grant gritted his teeth. "He once said that nothing in this world is eternal; even the universe is in constant flux. No one can be another’s eternal one and only, unless... you find another way to preserve their youth, to preserve time, to preserve the one you love."

Lucas Grant believed Asher had killed Cecilia Caldwell and turned her into a specimen just to preserve her love for him.

"If we follow your logic, then the specimen of Cecilia Caldwell should have been kept hidden forever, trapped in a glass display case to be his and his alone. He wouldn’t have deliberately let the police find her so quickly, allowing her body to be revealed to the world," I countered.

My rebuttal clearly provoked Lucas Grant, whose brow furrowed in annoyance. "You’re just quibbling."

"Reasoning needs to be based on logic and evidence. There’s no such thing as a perfect murder, nor a perfect victim, is there?" I took a step back and turned to leave.

Lucas Grant was silent for a long time before he finally spoke. "The mastermind behind the murders is either Sebastian Lancaster or Charlie! Unless Charlie isn’t dead, Sebastian Lancaster is the prime suspect!"

I faltered for a moment. ’Why did it have to be one of them?’

"I know better than anyone how terrifying those two are... Luckily, one of them is dead. If they were both alive and decided to kill someone, the police would never even find the body..." Lucas Grant muttered under his breath.

’I nodded. What Lucas Grant meant was that, other than Asher and Charlie, no one else had the intelligence to pull off such a perfect murder plot...’

"The victim profile has changed, so the orphanage numbering sequence is useless now. Erin Whittaker is under Julian Fletcher’s 24/7 protection, so the killer can’t get to her. He’s switched up his pattern and is starting over..." I walked a few steps, then stopped again and looked back at Lucas Grant. "According to the killer’s MO, by the time he dumps a body, he already has the next victim. You’re running out of time..."

There wasn’t much time for him to figure out the time and location to rescue the next victim before they were killed.

’If Asher were here, there’d be a chance of finding the scene before the next victim died.’

’But Asher had been locked away in a psychiatric hospital.’

"Go find Sebastian Lancaster." Zeke Shaw, dressed in a traffic police uniform, had obviously rushed over anxiously the moment he got off work. He was telling Lucas Grant to find Asher.

"You should stick to directing traffic, Officer Lowell. Just because you need to call for backup doesn’t mean I do," Lucas Grant sneered, his arrogance palpable.

Zeke Shaw was losing his composure. "This is a person’s life! We can’t afford a single mistake, not for a single second!"

Zeke Shaw’s eyes were bloodshot.

"Zeke Shaw, I don’t need a lecture from you," Lucas Grant said coldly.

Breathing raggedly, Zeke Shaw stepped forward, reaching for Lucas Grant. "Lucas Grant, I know you’re good, but we’re running out of time! It’s never more than twenty-four hours between the discovery of a body and the next death. We don’t have much time!"

"Officer Lowell, don’t interfere with police business." Lucas Grant ignored Zeke Shaw and had Zane block him.

"Whoa, whoa... calm down. Lucas Grant must have a plan; he’s the expert..." Zane said, quickly stopping Zeke Shaw.

"Last time, if it wasn’t for Sebastian Lancaster, we wouldn’t have found Erin Whittaker so quickly! If... if I had just been a little earlier, Cecilia Caldwell wouldn’t have died!" Zeke Shaw was spiraling.

’I knew Cecilia Caldwell’s death had hit Zeke Shaw hard.’

’He could never get over Cecilia Caldwell’s death.’

’The sight of Cecilia Caldwell trapped in that glass case also haunted Zeke Shaw...’

’He didn’t want the tragedy to repeat itself. He wanted to catch the killer and save the victim. He wasn’t wrong for feeling that way.’

Zeke Shaw slammed a fist into the wall, his hands clenched tight.

’I wanted to comfort him.’ Just as I was about to step forward, Zeke Shaw suddenly spun around and grabbed my wrist. "Come on, I’ll take you to see Asher."

I froze for a second before he pulled me into his car.

"Hello, Officer Lowell," Owen Foster greeted Zeke Shaw.

"To Meridia Psychiatric Sanatorium." Zeke Shaw was going to see Asher, to ask for his help in finding the next victim.

I looked at Zeke Shaw. "Will they let us visit?"

"He’s a patient, not a criminal," Zeke Shaw gritted his teeth. "I’d like to see anyone try and stop us."

I nodded, feeling a surge of excitement.

’I was going to see him...’

...

But things didn’t go as smoothly as we’d hoped.

As soon as we arrived at the sanatorium, they refused our request to see Asher, citing him as a level-five high-risk patient.

"I’m sorry, the patient could become violent at any moment, so..."

Zeke Shaw angrily grabbed the man’s collar. "I’ve never seen him hurt anyone! His mind is clear, he listens to reason! How is he anything like a level-five high-risk patient? Who’s his attending doctor? Get him out here now!"

We argued, but they still refused to let us see Asher.

’It was obvious they were all in on it.’

"Shouldn’t you be directing traffic, Officer Lowell? What’s wrong? A little PTSD from your detective work? Our therapeutic services here are quite renowned, you know." Victor Quinn appeared, a smile on his face as he spoke.

He sounded like he was half-joking, but his words were sharp enough to draw blood.

’That was Victor Quinn for you. Always smiling, looking dapper and distinguished—a true wolf in sheep’s clothing.’

’He seemed incapable of anger, always wearing that slight smile. Yet with just a few words, a certain tone, or even a single glance, he could provoke anyone teetering on the edge.’

Zeke Shaw was predictably enraged. I instinctively grabbed his arm, whispering, "He’s baiting you, bringing up your job, your emotions... it’s a trap. If you fall for it, watch out. He’ll have you diagnosed and locked up in here, too."

’This Victor Quinn... he’s truly terrifying.’

’He could spot a person’s weakness in a single glance.’

’I even suspected there were plenty of people locked up in this very hospital, labeled insane simply because they’d crossed him.’

I took a deep breath and spoke with conviction. "We need to see Asher."

"Sebastian Lancaster? I’m so sorry, my patient is currently undergoing treatment. And you know, this type of aggressive patient... requires some rather special methods. Electroshock, hypnosis, even chemical restraints..." Victor Quinn’s voice was gentle, but every word was a barb aimed right at me.

I was trembling.

’I couldn’t even bear to imagine what Asher was going through right now.’

"Victor Quinn..." I gritted out his name. ’I wanted to kill him.’

’I so badly wanted... to rush in there and save Asher.’

But all I could do was swallow my fury and beg him. "Please, try to find a way... It’s an emergency... We have to see him."

Victor Quinn seemed pleased with my capitulation.

’It seemed this was just how he was...’

’...breaking all the ’disobedient’ anomalies.’