Chapter 249: They’re the Ones Who Did Something Shameful

Chapter 249: Chapter 249: They’re the Ones Who Did Something Shameful

Hazel Hogan tensed up, her body curling into a ball. Her expression was wary, but she didn’t dare make another move, terrified the people below would hear her.

Heath Hale entered the room and gave Sean Hughes a look.

Sean Hughes got the message. He grabbed a nearby stool, stepped onto it, and shined a high-powered flashlight up at the ceiling.

Hazel Hogan’s form, curled up inside the drop ceiling, was completely exposed in the flashlight beam.

The moment the light hit her, Hazel Hogan’s hand instinctively went to her pocket. She wanted to throw the fruit knife inside at the people below.

In the end, however, she let go, suppressing the urge.

’I can’t throw the knife. That would be assaulting an officer!’

"I’m warning you one last time. Get down from there, now!" Sean Hughes’s expression was grim as he repeated his warning to the motionless Hazel Hogan.

Knowing she was exposed and could no longer hide, Hazel Hogan slowly began to climb out from the drop ceiling.

Even though she was prepared for it, Ria couldn’t help but grab her boyfriend’s arm when a person actually climbed down from the ceiling.

Hayden Shaw moved decisively, restraining Hazel Hogan. A search revealed a sharp fruit knife.

This had to be the weapon Zoe Sawyer had seen through the door.

Following Zoe Sawyer’s tip, Sean Hughes and Heath Hale quickly located and dismantled the pinhole cameras Hazel Hogan had hidden in various corners of the room.

Seeing at least ten cameras, Mr. Armstrong was overcome with rage. He rushed up to Hazel Hogan, his face ashen. "You installed these in my room?" he demanded, his voice filled with fury.

Hazel Hogan looked up at Mr. Armstrong, her eyes filled with a chilling obsession, her tone matter-of-fact. "You’re the one I hand-picked. Of course I have to watch your every move until you’re mine.

"If you were about to do something... inappropriate, I had to be there to stop you, didn’t I? For example, calling you right when you two were about to get intimate.

"I couldn’t do it too often, though. If I stopped you with perfect timing every single time, you’d get suspicious."

As Hazel Hogan finished speaking, the look on Mr. Armstrong’s face grew even darker.

It was true. Several times, just as he and Ria were about to get romantic, a call from an unknown number would interrupt them at the crucial moment.

And when he answered, there was only silence on the other end.

After being interrupted like that every few days, their passion quickly faded.

He had thought it was just a coincidence, but it turned out to be Hazel Hogan’s deliberate sabotage.

Mr. Armstrong’s fists clenched so tightly his knuckles cracked. He desperately wanted to punch her smug face. But when he caught Ria’s worried expression out of the corner of his eye, he forced himself to abandon the thought.

’No. I can’t ruin my life over Hazel Hogan. She’s not worth it!’

Heath Hale glanced between Mr. Armstrong and Hazel Hogan. "Save it for the station," he said.

Hazel Hogan didn’t have a choice in the matter, and the young couple didn’t object.

Heath Hale and Sean Hughes swept the room one more time to make sure nothing was missed before escorting the three of them back to the police station.

"All right, start talking. Why did you do it?" In the interrogation room, Heath Hale tapped the table in front of him, his eyes fixed on Hazel Hogan, who sat opposite.

Having been asked this five times before, Hazel Hogan was familiar with the routine. She fiddled with her fingers and replied nonchalantly, "It’s nothing, really. I just like him so much that I lost control for a moment and acted irresponsibly.

"Officer, I have truly learned my lesson. I promise it will never happen again."

Heath Hale almost laughed out of sheer frustration.

The little speech sounded painfully familiar—it was identical to her five previous statements.

’This is the sixth time, and she’s still using the same line? She can’t even be bothered to come up with a new excuse. This is completely half-assed!’

’Was she that certain she’d never be truly held accountable?’

’If Zoe Sawyer hadn’t seen what was going to happen, I might have actually fallen for this half-assed apology.’

Besides, Hazel Hogan seemed to be forgetting one crucial detail: she had installed pinhole cameras in the couple’s room.

That was something she hadn’t done in the previous five incidents, and it changed the entire nature of this case.

But Heath Hale had no intention of letting Hazel Hogan off the hook this time.

"Ms. Hogan, I suggest you adjust your attitude. You committed breaking and entering, illegally filmed others, and carried a weapon, posing a threat to the homeowner’s safety. This constitutes the crime of unlawful home invasion.

"Just that alone is enough to get you up to three years in prison or short-term detention." Heath Hale didn’t mince words, laying out the most severe consequences for her.

A flash of panic crossed Hazel Hogan’s face when she heard she could be sentenced to prison.

’No, I can’t go to prison!’

"You’re just trying to scare me! I’ve looked it up. Even though I broke in, I didn’t cause any financial damages, so I can’t be sentenced to prison," Hazel Hogan retorted, remembering something she had researched.

This was exactly what Heath Hale had been waiting for. His tone was measured, but to Hazel Hogan, every word carried a new weight. "That’s true. But this wasn’t a simple case of breaking and entering. As I said, you also installed pinhole cameras. And you were carrying a weapon.

"We also have records of you being summoned for similar behavior five times before this. This is the sixth time. We have every reason to believe you are knowingly and repeatedly breaking the law."

Hazel Hogan instinctively reached for her pocket, but her phone had been confiscated the moment she was arrested. It was already with the tech department, being decrypted.

They needed to check if Hazel Hogan had uploaded the illicit videos to any online platforms.

Hazel Hogan swallowed hard. She wanted to use the same tactics that got her off the hook the last five times, but she quickly realized she had no dirt on Mr. Armstrong or Ria to use as leverage.

"How did you know I was in the ceiling?" Hazel Hogan asked after a long silence.

"That’s classified," Heath Hale replied curtly.

Just then, a knock came at the door. Sean Hughes entered and handed a file to Heath Hale.

After reviewing the file, Heath Hale held it up and stared into Hazel Hogan’s eyes. "Guess what this is? Your five previous victims have all given new statements. They say you secretly took their private photos and used them as blackmail, threatening to release them publicly and ruin their lives if they didn’t drop the charges."

Hazel Hogan, who had been curious about the file, suddenly became agitated upon hearing Heath Hale’s words.

"That’s a load of crap! They’re the ones who were doing shady things behind closed doors, and I caught them! Now they’re trying to use this to frame me!"