Chapter 384: Don’t Go Too Far

Chapter 384: Chapter 384: Don’t Go Too Far

Zoe Sawyer wasn’t in the mood to keep him in suspense. She quickly and quietly relayed to Heath Hale what Wendy Dawson had told her.

After hearing the whole story, Heath Hale’s fingers tapped unconsciously on his knee as his mind raced, trying to recall if he had ever encountered a case like this before.

Zoe Sawyer remained silent. When it came to this sort of thing, her knowledge base couldn’t compare to Heath’s. It was better to stay quiet and give him the space to think.

But unfortunately, Heath racked his brain, going through every case he’d ever heard of, seen, or even personally handled, but still came up empty.

But Zoe Sawyer had been right about one thing: something was definitely going to happen tonight!

"That Aunt Crowe’s expression was strange, too. Stay on high alert from now on. When the time comes, we’ll go out and see for ourselves what’s happening," Heath Hale advised.

As Zoe Sawyer and Heath Hale were pondering how the Crowes planned to drug and knock them out, a family servant brought up two dinners.

The servant said they could just leave the dishes on the table when they were finished, as someone would come to collect them tomorrow.

As for why tomorrow, it was because, by Crowe family custom, all the servants had the night off and were required to stay in their rooms.

Zoe Sawyer and Heath Hale packed up a small portion of the food and sent it through the door to the police station for Evan Keller and his team to analyze.

Because it was an expedited request, the results came back quickly.

"The food was laced with a heavy dose of sedatives. At that dosage, eating just half of it would knock you out for the whole night." While handing the report to Zoe Sawyer, Evan Keller also passed two weapons over to them, adding, "Remember, your own safety comes first."

Now aware of the drug’s effects, Zoe Sawyer and Heath Hale quickly staged the scene, then found a clear spot on a table to slump over and feign unconsciousness.

Since they had been drugged, someone would most likely come to check if they were really unconscious.

Sure enough, half an hour later, the room door was pushed open.

Someone tiptoed inside. A shadow fell over Zoe Sawyer.

Even with her eyes closed, she could sense someone standing in front of her, leaning down to stare. They were extremely close.

The person’s warm breath washed over her face!

’I can’t move. I can’t let them find out I’m still awake.’

After what felt like an eternity, a man’s voice spoke from overhead. "Alright, they ate half of it, and we’ve been watching them for a good ten minutes. They’re really out."

"Let’s go set up the venue. This is the first purification ritual our family has held in twenty years!"

At this, Zoe Sawyer heard the man above her gulp. "But I gotta say, Clark Crowe’s woman is seriously hot. That figure, that skin..."

"Tonight, I’m definitely going to get a good feel, then take some pictures. Who knows, maybe I can even use them to blackmail them later."

"I’ve wanted to try this for ages. I’ve only ever heard my dad talk about it, but now I finally get to do it myself! I heard Clark Crowe’s mom had a great feel to her back in the day. My dad still goes on and on about it!"

The more the man spoke, the more excited his tone became.

"You’d better take it easy. Clark Crowe isn’t a pushover. If you go too far, First Uncle won’t be able to protect you."

"And you can’t touch these two, either. They’re the offerings for tomorrow’s ritual." The man who had been in front of Zoe stood up straight, staring at his brother’s raised palm, his tone flat.

Zoe Sawyer quickly matched the voice to a face.

It was one of Clark Crowe’s cousins. He had been silent for most of the journey, barely saying a word.

’If I remember correctly, his name is Evan Crowe.’

And the one clamoring to grope Wendy Dawson was First Uncle Crowe’s son, Aaron Crowe.

"Tch. If he wants to inherit that money peacefully, he’ll just have to let us grope her. Otherwise, my dad has plenty of ways to stop him."

"Besides, it’s not like it’s a one-way street. When I get married, he can grope my wife, too," Aaron Crowe said with a sneer, though he did, in the end, lower his hand.

After confirming that the two were unconscious, Evan Crowe headed for the door. He’d only taken a few steps when he seemed to remember something and asked, "Where’s First Uncle? He’s supposed to be presiding over the ceremony today, right?"

"My dad said today’s an auspicious day, so he went to the wine cellar to grab a good bottle of wine."

"He should be just about back by now. Let’s go, it’s almost time. I can’t wait!" Aaron Crowe rubbed his hands together excitedly. He’d been waiting for this day for a very long time!

Evan Crowe said nothing more. The two of them closed the door and quickly headed for their destination.

Another ten minutes passed. Only after confirming that the men were truly gone did Zoe Sawyer and Heath Hale open their eyes.

They both got up, their faces grim.

From what they’d just overheard, they could guess exactly what this "purification ritual" entailed.

"No, we can’t let Wendy go through that. If she knew what was happening, she’d have a complete breakdown! She might even do something drastic!" Zoe Sawyer said, her voice filled with anxiety.

Wendy Dawson had a fiery temper; if she found out a group of Clark’s relatives were going to grope her, she would absolutely lose it.

She might even attack them viciously.

Besides, Zoe Sawyer highly doubted this would be a simple pat on the shoulder over her clothes. Judging from Aaron Crowe’s excited tone and his earlier words, she knew better.

Best-case scenario, Wendy Dawson would be half-naked. Worst-case, completely nude.

"We can’t wait. Zoe, use your ability with the door. Let’s go see what those people are really planning to do!" Heath Hale’s face was also incredibly grim. Remembering that Zoe could control the door to keep them hidden, he urged her on.

"Right!"

Without hesitating, Zoe Sawyer’s hand shot out and gripped the bathroom doorknob, her mind focusing on Wendy Dawson’s name and appearance.

Because the distance was short, a familiar sensation quickly washed over her. Zoe Sawyer pulled the door open, and a bright, spacious room appeared before them.

In the very center of the room stood an altar covered with a white cloth. Wendy Dawson was lying on top of it, her eyes closed, completely still.

"She’s been knocked out, too!" Heath Hale concluded quickly, his eyes fixed on Wendy Dawson in the distance.

Wendy Dawson was dressed in a black outfit, its collar hanging so loosely that it exposed part of her collarbone.

Clark Crowe sat on a nearby sofa, hands folded, his eyes locked on his wife.

Just then, Aunt Crowe walked in, holding a knife in one hand and carrying a small bucket in the other.

"This is honey the butler just harvested this year. We’ll smear it all over this little slut. It’ll be a treat for her," Aunt Crowe said, placing the small bucket on the floor beside the altar. Her gaze toward Wendy Dawson was filled with the same old contempt.

Aaron Crowe and Evan Crowe came in from outside as well, each carrying a video camera, their faces alight with uncontrollable excitement.

"Don’t you go too far!"