Chapter 89: Julian Fletcher is Still a Scumbag

Chapter 89: Chapter 89: Julian Fletcher is Still a Scumbag

My gaze fell on Sebastian Lancaster. ’To be honest, I didn’t have much hope.’

’He’d always lived in his own fantasy world, slapping the "Cecilia Caldwell" label on me.’

’Now that he knows I might have been deliberately imitating Cecilia to trick him, he’ll probably be even more furious than Julian Fletcher.’

"That woman is lying." Sebastian Lancaster walked to my side, gripping my hand tightly. "She’s the one who got Cece killed. She deliberately tricked Cece into going out. There’s proof."

Sebastian Lancaster looked at Officer Lowell. The call recording said it all.

I glanced up at Sebastian Lancaster, wondering why he was still protecting me.

’If seeing me as Cecilia was just his fantasy, he should have woken up by now.’

"She was the one who told me to trick Cecilia out! You lunatic, it’s very likely the two of you conspired to have Cecilia killed! How was I supposed to know Cecilia would die if she went out on the 15th?" Erin Whittaker cried, looking utterly pitiful.

She looked at Julian Fletcher, choking back sobs. "Julian, you have to believe me. I really didn’t know she would die when I asked her out that day."

When Julian Fletcher remained silent, Erin Whittaker spoke again. "Julian, I thought she would tell you. I thought everyone was still waiting nearby, I thought nothing would happen to Cecilia. It was Jake Abbott who heard her cries for help but didn’t save her."

’They’d already started turning on each other.’

I glanced at Officer Lowell. "Can you prove that the email address she mentioned is mine?"

’If they can prove that email belongs to Silvia Lynch, then I’ll have to find another way to save myself.’

’But if Erin Whittaker can’t prove it... then she can’t blame me for what comes next.’

Officer Lowell glanced at the colleague beside him. "Did you find the IP?"

"The IP login is in Meridia, but the email wasn’t registered to Silvia Lynch."

I breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Erin Whittaker with a cold smirk. "So, why exactly were you monitoring Cecilia Caldwell’s every move, and who were you sending that information to? Don’t tell me you were sending it to the murderer?"

Erin Whittaker’s face changed, as if she couldn’t believe it. "Impossible... It was her! The person who contacted me was her!"

She insisted that I was the one who had contacted her.

"Where’s the proof? Besides this email, is there anything else?" I tilted my head. "If you don’t have any other evidence, I might have to sue you for slander and for misleading the police."

Erin Whittaker panicked for a moment, pinning all her hopes on Julian Fletcher. "Julian, you have to believe me. I didn’t lie to you, I really didn’t. It’s all a misunderstanding. It’s her... She’s taking advantage of her resemblance to Cecilia to deliberately imitate her. Her goal is to get close to you."

’I raised an eyebrow. Looks like I overestimated Erin Whittaker. Her real goal in all this was just to stop Julian Fletcher from getting interested in me because of my looks.’

Julian Fletcher gave me a complicated look and said coldly, "Even if the email isn’t registered to her, that doesn’t mean she wasn’t using it. Didn’t Madeline Quinn also see the surveillance footage? Before Cecilia went missing, this woman was already stalking her and secretly entered her house multiple times."

"Right! There’s surveillance footage. She can’t deny that!" Erin Whittaker seemed to have found her backbone, now that Julian Fletcher was at least believing her.

"Why would I know where Cecilia’s spare key is? Because we were good friends. Cecilia would only tell the people she cared about most where to find her key," I said calmly, appearing unfazed.

’None of this evidence can prove I have any connection to the murderer.’

Madeline Quinn watched me, her gaze deep and probing.

After a long moment, she finally spoke. "Then where is Cecilia’s diary?"

"Cecilia and I met while doing charity work. We quickly became good friends, so it’s not strange that I know where her spare key is." I looked at Madeline Quinn, knowing I had revealed my identity too soon. ’By occupying Silvia Lynch’s body and claiming to be Cecilia, any normal person would suspect my motives.’

"As for Cecilia’s diary, I’ve honestly never seen it, and I don’t know where it is. I’m definitely not the only one who could get into her house. When you reviewed the surveillance footage, didn’t you see a very tall man? I suspect he might have taken it."

’For now, I can only pin everything on the murderer to push the police investigation forward.’

’It seems I really can’t be so eager to prove my identity in the future. I have to hide who I am first and slowly push the investigation forward as Cecilia’s friend.’

’If I had just said I was Cecilia’s friend from the start, maybe Madeline Quinn and Officer Lowell wouldn’t be so wary of me.’

’I was still too careless.’

"She’s lying!" Erin Whittaker tried to argue.

I gave Erin Whittaker a meaningful look. "If you can’t produce any evidence, I’m suing you."

Erin Whittaker faltered. Her goal wasn’t really to get me locked up, but to make Julian Fletcher stay away from me.

’Clearly, she had already achieved her goal.’

"The Lancaster family can afford lawyers." Sebastian Lancaster was still gripping my hand tightly, his eyes fixed on Erin Whittaker with a look of fierce, murderous intent.

I even had a feeling that if there were no one else in the hospital room, Sebastian Lancaster would kill Erin Whittaker.

I looked down at the hand Sebastian Lancaster used to hold mine. The veins on the back of his scarred hand bulged, as if he were restraining himself with great effort.

He squeezed my hand forcefully, as if trying to reassure me.

’It would be a lie to say I wasn’t reassured... but I still couldn’t bring myself to trust him completely.’

’I thought he would suspect I wasn’t Cecilia. I thought he would believe what Erin said—that I was pretending to be Cecilia, deceiving him just to stay with the Lancaster family and produce an heir.’

"I did see a suspicious man entering and exiting Cecilia’s house on the surveillance footage." Madeline Quinn looked up at Officer Lowell.

Officer Lowell frowned. "Why didn’t you tell me before?"

"I thought they were working together. But now, between Erin Whittaker and Silvia Lynch, I’m more inclined to believe Silvia. Because she’s right—Cecilia wouldn’t tell someone she didn’t trust where her key was." Madeline Quinn gave me a complicated look.

’It was as if she were telling me, ’I’m choosing to trust you. Don’t let me down.’’

I smiled at her, then turned back to look at Erin Whittaker. "I will have my lawyer coordinate with the police. Her luring Cecilia Caldwell to the Street Alley wasn’t manslaughter; it was premeditated murder. She had a motive. She wants Julian Fletcher and believed Cecilia would steal him from her. Because Julian and Cecilia’s relationship wasn’t the brother-sister bond it appeared to be to outsiders."

"Silvia Lynch!" Julian Fletcher shouted my name in anger.

’Is he afraid I’ll get Erin sent to prison?’

"You don’t have to shout my name so loudly. I can hear you." I looked at Julian Fletcher and continued, "You told everyone Cecilia was just your sister, but what a shame she was actually the fiancée your mother chose for you. Because of Cecilia’s existence, Mrs. Fletcher wouldn’t acknowledge Erin Whittaker, nor would she easily let her marry into the family. So, if Erin wanted to marry into the Fletcher family, she had to find a way to get rid of Cecilia."

"But as a woman, she didn’t dare to kill someone herself, so she came up with a plan to kill with a borrowed knife. She also came from an orphanage. She, more than anyone, should know why that depraved serial killer specifically targets women from orphanages. She had Cecilia wear her clothes, deliberately using the killer’s hand to murder Cecilia."

I walked to the side of the hospital bed and looked at Erin Whittaker. "Am I wrong, Miss Whittaker?"

"You’re talking nonsense!" Erin Whittaker was losing control. She was scared.

She looked at Julian Fletcher in a panic, reaching out to grab his wrist. "Julian, you have to believe me. She’s slandering me. You know me best. I wasn’t even afraid of death when I saved you back then, so how could I possibly kill someone?"

’She was trying to say that someone as kind as her would never think of killing anyone.’

Julian Fletcher looked at Erin Whittaker and slowly pulled his hand away.

I laughed sardonically.

’This man is so fickle.’

’So now he doesn’t trust Erin Whittaker anymore?’

Seeing that no one believed her, Erin Whittaker suddenly seemed to make a decision. "Officer Lowell! I’m willing to cooperate with the police to help you lure out the killer. I believe that once the murderer is caught, everything will come to light! Then, you’ll all know whether she’s the one lying or if I am!"