Chapter 267: Why Cross Out This Question?

Chapter 267: Chapter 267: Why Cross Out This Question?

First thing in the morning, as soon as Zoe Sawyer and Beau arrived at the office, they saw Evan Keller and the others looking grave.

"What’s wrong?" Zoe asked, her voice tinged with confusion as she led Beau over.

’Is there a case recently that would make them frown like this?’

Zoe thought for a moment. ’No, there wasn’t!’

Arthur Yates’s case was solved a couple of days ago, and the subsequent online discussion was under control. So why the long faces today?

Heath Hale handed Zoe a file. "Take a look at this and you’ll understand."

Zoe took the file from Heath. The very first photograph was a shock.

After reading through the entire file, Zoe understood why everyone was frowning.

"The body is in an advanced state of decomposition. Facial tissues are unrecognizable, and traditional fingerprint comparisons and DNA database searches have come up with nothing."

"The case is at a dead end. The local police can’t even confirm the victim’s identity," Evan Keller said, scratching his head in frustration.

There were no clothes on the body and nothing nearby that could help identify it.

"So, the case has been handed over to us?" Though it was a question, Zoe’s tone was certain.

’Otherwise, Evan and the others wouldn’t look so miserable.’

"You guessed it. We need to head over there now," Evan said, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

Because of Zoe’s abilities, the higher-ups had conferred and decided to hand the case to her to see if she could find any leads to crack it.

That was why the chief had briefed Evan first thing this morning, and the rest of the team had already prepared before she arrived.

As Zoe gathered her things to leave, Beau reached out and tugged on her arm.

"I want to go too. I can help," Beau said, looking Zoe in the eye and speaking word by word.

Everyone’s head snapped in Evan Keller’s direction.

Although Zoe was the lead on their cases, they were still used to having Evan handle the arrangements and make the final call on many day-to-day matters.

So, after Beau spoke, everyone else instinctively looked to Evan.

"If you want to go, go. I’ll just send a text to Beau’s grandparents to let them know," Evan said without hesitation. After looking down to send a message, he gestured for Beau to follow.

Beau gave an excited little hop, clutching his sketchbook to his chest, and fell in step beside Zoe.

Because time was of the essence, Evan had the chief give the other precinct a heads-up.

So, Zoe’s group went through the door and arrived at a house that had been specially prepared for them on the other side.

After leaving the house, they headed straight for the police station where the heavily decomposed body was being held.

When Zoe and her team arrived, they happened to run into the adventure team, who had been called in for questioning yet again.

The members of the adventure team looked haggard. They were partly spooked by the corpse, but also exhausted from being called in for questioning every other day.

Zoe showed her credentials to the local officers, and then the team split into two.

One group, consisting of Zoe, Beau, and Heath Hale, went to examine the body. The other, Evan Keller and Sean Hughes, took over the interrogation of the adventure team.

Evan Keller and Sean Hughes looked at the woman sitting before them. "Name," Evan asked.

"Gia Lowell. Hey, how many times have you asked? We found the body, sure, but we didn’t kill anyone! Why do you keep dragging us in here?!"

The adventure team’s leader, Gia Lowell, answered Evan’s question and then suddenly erupted. She slammed her palm on the table, shot to her feet, and her tone was aggressive. "Since the discovery, we’ve been here five times! It’s the same questions every single time! How many more times do you need us to answer?"

Evan and Sean didn’t say a word. They just watched Gia Lowell quietly. Only after she had vented her frustration and sat back down did Evan speak in a placating tone. "Ms. Lowell, I apologize for our previous lines of questioning."

"This case is a complete dead end. We’ve tried everything, but we still can’t identify the victim. Our only option is to keep asking questions, hoping we can glean more clues from you."

Thinking of the dark circles under the other officers’ eyes, Gia rubbed her own face and softened her tone. "Fine. I know it’s not easy for any of us. Go on, ask."

"Are you a local? According to our investigation, this area is undeveloped. The only people who know about it are the nearby residents. So how did you all find out about this remote, untamed forest to explore?" Evan asked, looking at the notes from previous interviews and posing a different question.

This place isn’t exactly remote, but very few outsiders come here, let alone specifically for an expedition.

So, Evan was very interested in her source of information.

Gia Lowell gave Evan a puzzled look. ’This question is different from the others.’

But, despite her confusion, Gia answered the question honestly. "I’m not a local. I’m not even from this province."

"I found out about this place from a post I came across while browsing online one day. There was a comment under it from someone saying there was an undeveloped mountain in their hometown with a great environment, and they even attached a picture."

"I saw the picture, thought it looked pretty good, asked the commenter a few questions, and then organized a group to come over."

Beside him, Sean Hughes was constantly jotting down important points.

Evan then asked, "Do you still have that chat history? I need to take a look."

Gia wanted to get this over with as quickly as possible, so upon hearing Evan’s request, she immediately pulled out her phone, found the chat log, and handed it to them.

Evan and Sean looked at the record. It was all just normal questions and answers, with no useful clues.

"When you arrived, did you notice anything out of the ordinary, or anyone acting strangely?" Evan asked, handing the phone back to Gia.

Gia took her phone back and replied, "Yes, and you’ve asked this before. When we first got to town, there was a man who had a strange expression when he learned we were coming here."

"Later, he told us this mountain has a Mountain God, and that the Mountain God doesn’t welcome uninvited outsiders like us. He said climbing the mountain without permission would only bring bad luck."

’I didn’t listen to him back then. After restocking our food and water, I just led the team out.’

’If I had known that climbing the mountain would lead to finding a body and being stuck here for days, I would have turned right around, taken my team, and never come back!’

’But it was too late to say any of that now.’

Evan flipped through the notes in his hand. He saw that this answer was indeed in the records from the past two days, but the question itself had been crossed out.

He then asked a few more questions before standing up and signaling that Gia was free to go.

After she left, Evan clutched the record and knocked on the local chief’s office door.

"Why was this question crossed out? Is there something you’re not telling me?"