Chapter 400: Finding an Excuse

Chapter 400: Chapter 400: Finding an Excuse

Elara Morgan abruptly turned off her phone and tossed it aside, her mind racing as she tried to recall if anyone around her had been acting strangely.

As she thought, her gaze fell on the shoulder bag in front of her. Inside was a lottery ticket.

She had bought it a few days ago. The drawing was today, and she had won the grand prize!

Elara had calculated that after taxes, she would pocket at least five million.

It was enough to pay off the family debt from her father’s medical treatments and to take Rina to a good hospital for a check-up.

Getting Rina treated as soon as possible, while she was still young, was the most important thing.

The anticipation of sharing the good news with her family overshadowed her fear that a murderer might be nearby. If not for Evan Keller’s timely call, Elara would have likely already called home to share her joy.

Now, with Evan Keller’s warning, she had managed to suppress the urge to call.

’It’s fine, it’s fine. I can tell my family after this is all resolved. It’ll be the same.’

Elara took a deep breath, comforting herself with the thought.

Meanwhile, Officer Lee’s investigation results came in quickly.

"Julian Morgan’s bank records look normal," Officer Lee reported to the group. "There was a large payment to the hospital a week ago, which must have been for Rina’s treatment."

Using his credentials, Officer Lee had printed out the bank statements for the members of the Morgan family.

"There’s nothing unusual here," Evan Keller said, frowning in confusion as he looked over the documents. "So why would he suddenly target the child? Don’t tell me he found out about Rina’s critical illness policy?"

Heath Hale walked over and said, "Let’s go see Elara Morgan. The breakthrough might be with her."

The information they had wasn’t enough to draw any conclusions. They needed more intel.

"That’s true. Let’s go take a look.

Luckily, we’re only a three-hour high-speed train ride from her location." Evan Keller stood up, shrugging with a hint of resignation.

Before leaving, Sean Hughes contacted the local police department to explain the situation.

Zoe Sawyer would remain at the station this time to provide timely support if needed.

Nearly four hours had passed by the time Evan Keller and his team reached Elara Morgan.

After they identified themselves, Elara couldn’t help but ask, "What is this case? Why do you need my help, and will this affect my life for the next few days?"

’With the family’s debt, I can’t rest easy for a single day until it’s paid off.’

’And that’s not even mentioning Rina’s illness.’

Elara just wanted this matter to be resolved quickly so she could take her winning lottery ticket home and celebrate with her family.

Evan Keller didn’t answer her questions. Instead, he stared at Elara and asked one of his own. "Has anything major happened to you recently? In any aspect of your life?"

Elara’s heart sank. ’Why would the police ask a question like that?’

"Don’t worry. This case is just very important, so we need to understand everything that has happened to you recently.

If you’re uneasy, we can go to the police station to talk instead. They have surveillance cameras, so you should feel more comfortable there." Noticing the wary look on Elara’s face, Sean Hughes stepped forward and spoke in a gentle, reassuring tone.

At this point, Elara knew something was up. She wasn’t an idiot.

’If someone I know really committed a crime, why would they come straight to me with these questions?’

’Something must have happened on my end. Or... am I being targeted?’

Thinking of her lottery ticket, Elara’s face turned deathly pale. ’Don’t tell me someone found out I won the grand prize and is planning to come after me!’

’Or maybe... it’s these people right here?’

’Forging credentials is easy these days. What if they’re fakes, just trying to trick me into talking?’

’After all, the prize money is a fortune. It’s definitely enough to make people take risks!’

Seeing Elara’s face suddenly turn pale, Evan Keller and Sean Hughes knew she must have thought of something. They pressed on, "Did you just remember something?"

Elara stared at them warily, her lips pressed tight, and said nothing.

Sean Hughes quickly figured it out. "Why don’t you pick a police station?" he suggested. "How about we talk there?"

Elara looked at the group before her, then nodded in agreement with Sean’s suggestion.

Soon, the group arrived at a nearby police station. Only after an officer inside confirmed their identities was Elara finally convinced that the group with her were actual police officers.

"If you’re asking if anything major has happened to me... well, there is this." Elara carefully took the lottery ticket from her bag and handed it to Evan Keller.

Evan Keller took the ticket. A flash of surprise crossed his face as he saw the prize amount, and suddenly, everything clicked into place.

Now he truly understood.

Evan Keller handed the lottery ticket back to Elara. After watching her carefully place it back in her bag, he asked, "Did you know that before your father passed away, he bought a critical illness insurance policy for your niece?"

Elara looked up at Evan Keller, her voice tinged with surprise. "How did you know that?

Our family only found out last week while we were cleaning. We saw the policy and realized Dad had bought one for Rina."

’Okay,’ he thought. ’Now everything else makes sense.’

Evan Keller chose his words carefully. "Were you planning on going home to tell your family the good news about your win?"

When Elara nodded, Evan Keller took a deep breath, momentarily unsure how to phrase what he had to say next.

’Can I really just come out and say it? That your nephew, Julian Morgan, has his eyes on your lottery winnings and is planning to use this situation to kill your young niece, commit insurance fraud, and extort the ticket from you?’

’For one, Julian might not have even thought of it yet. And even if he has, we can’t do anything without concrete evidence.’

’Or should we let Elara go ahead with her plan, tell her family everything, and let Rina be put in danger again just so the police can swoop in for a rescue?’

’But we can prevent this whole situation from the start. Why use a child’s life as bait?’

Elara’s relationship with her family was good right now. If possible, Evan wanted to protect both her assets and Rina’s safety while also preserving the family’s bond.

Perhaps sensing the conflict on Evan Keller’s face, Elara felt a growing sense of foreboding.

Elara asked tentatively, "Is it... a bad thing that I won?"

"No, no, not at all," Evan Keller said, quickly waving his hands in denial. But just as quickly, the perfect cover story came to him.

Evan Keller’s expression turned serious. "We’ve been handling a number of cases recently," he began, "and we’ve identified a criminal gang that specifically targets lottery winners.

They’re ruthless, often leaving their victims completely ruined. It’s not just the prize money they’re after; they even con the families out of their entire life savings.

"And we suspect they’ve set their sights on you."