Chapter 128
In the break room, the deeply asleep Briar was abruptly awakened by a phone call.
Being woken up mid–nap made her expression rather unpleasant. When she saw it was Georgiana calling, her irritation only intensified.
“You better have a good reason,” Briar snapped.
She was supposed to be on vacation right now.
Georgiana shivered at Briar’s icy tone. “Briar, I really didn’t want to call at this time, but something happened on your end.”
All of them had location access to Briar’s phone, so they knew exactly where she was, and it was currently her nap time. Briar’s notorious post–nap temper wasn’t something to take lightly.
“What happened?” Briar sat up and rubbed her throbbing temples.
Georgiana hesitated, then blurted, “Last night, two female students from Shoneport University disappeared after going out. This morning, their bodies were found with their organs cut open and dumped in a park near campus. And… there’s evidence pointing to you.”
Briar’s eyes narrowed. “What kind of evidence?”
Georgiana answered cautiously, “There’s surveillance footage showing you near the park… and your fingerprints were found on the bodies…”
Briar’s brows furrowed. “My fingerprints? Under which identity?”
Georgiana replied, “Just your plain, unimpressive Briar student identity.”
Briar’s voice turned glacial. “Looks like the rats from back then are finally poking their heads out again.”
Georgiana trembled on the other end. “Briar, are you okay? What are you going to do? When we got word, the evidence was already in the police’s hands. Do you have a way out? Should we…”
“No need. If this is the best trick they’ve got, they’re not even close to touching me,” Briar cut Georgiana off. “That’s it. I’m hanging up.”
Georgiana rushed to say, “Briar, take it easy, okay? Don’t go overboard out there…”
Briar had already hung up.
There were still forty minutes before afternoon classes began, but she was fully awake now. She stood up, folded the thin blanket neatly, placed it at the head of the bed, and walked out of the room.
At the front desk, Ashton and Hamish were chatting. Hearing the door, Ashton turned his head. “You’re awake?”
“Got woken by a call.” Briar’s lips were pressed tight, and the sleepiness hadn’t fully faded from her cold expression.
Ashton poured her a cup of water. “Want to sit for a bit? Or heading back to the lab building?”
“I’ll sit for a while.” Briar took the cup and drank slowly.
If what Georgiana said was true, then it was only a matter of time before the police came looking for her.
What she hadn’t expected, though, was that instead of coming straight to her, the police first called Edgar. Which meant Briar got his furious phone call before anything else.
He snapped, “Briar, just what the hell have you been doing out there? Why are the police saying you need to assist in a murder investigation? Do you have any idea what this could do to our family’s reputation? If you’re involved in a murder case. How could you do that?”
1/3
14.15 Sat, 16 Aug. 71)
Chapter 128
“Shut up. My business is none of your concern,” Briar said flatly, her face expressionless, as if Edgar’s angry ranting on the other end of the line wash i even directed at her.
Edgar choked. “None of my business? I’d love to not care, the place! You…”
but the police just called the house! And now the news about the bodies in the park all over
Briar ended the call without hesitation, and when she looked up, she met Ashton’s gaze,
who
had risen to his feet with a furrowed brow.
At that moment, Ashton also received a message from Brandon on his phone. [Mr. Wade, the police found Miss Jennings’s fingerprints on the two bodies. They’re requesting her presence at the station for questioning.]
Though Briar hadn’t put her call on speaker, Edgar had been yelling so loudly that even Hamish sitting nearby couldn’t pretend he hadn’t heard it. He also caught a glimpse of the message on Ashton’s phone. Hamish, who had been smiling moments ago, now stared in disbelief.
‘Holy shit! So this whole thing is really targeting Ashton’s girl? Shoneport’s about to get real interesting!‘ Hamish thought.
If someone were targeting Ashton directly, those people might still survive.
But if they were going after Briar? With Ashton’s infamous protectiveness and cunning, blood would definitely be spilled.
“Mr. Wade, I need to go to the station.” Briar shook the phone in her hand. She was calm, like she was just heading out to run an errand.
Ashton grabbed his coat from the back of the chair. As he followed her out, he typed a reply to Brandon. “I’m taking her there myself.”
Hamish watched Ashton’s cold, blank expression and couldn’t help but feel uneasy/ Grabbing his car keys, he ran after them. “Wait, I’ll drive you two. And I’ll pick up Marvin while I’m at it.”
Since this was targeted at Ashton and Briar, there was no way the matter would be resolved quickly at the police station. And Marvin, being an aging man, shouldn’t be kept running around like this. It was better to pull him out early so Ashton had the room to fully respond.
Ashton didn’t refuse and pulled Briar into Hamish’s car.
They sped all the way to the district police station. Hamish parked right at the station entrance, the blindingly flashy 00003 license plate making the guards too intimidated to chase them off.
Hamish played the role of the arrogant heir to perfection. Spinning the keys, he grinned. “Ashton, Briar, let’s go.”
The guards were furious but didn’t dare speak up.
At the police station entrance, even from a distance, they could hear Marvin yelling angrily, “Ronan! If you dare brush me off on this matter, I swear I’ll have you removed from that chief position the same way I helped you up there! The Haynes family might be powerful, but they’re nothing compared to
us!”
“Looks like Marvin is really pissed. He’s even pulling the power card,” Hamish muttered.
The Goodwin family usually didn’t flaunt their influence, since their reach extended deep into the military. When they did throw their weight around, it meant things had gotten very serious. One wrong move from anyone else could mean collapse.
And with Reece alone being a major deterrent, few in Shoneport would dare cross the Goodwin family.
But Marvin throwing down the gauntlet like this meant the conversation before they arrived hadn’t gone well at all.
Brandon spotted them first and hurried over. “Mr. Wade, Miss Jennings, Mr. Parkinson. You’re here?”
Hamish looked as nonchalant as ever. “We heard there’s crucial evidence implicating Briar, so we brought her over. Where’s the person in charge? Get them here. Let’s get this over with. Our car’s still blocking the gate, and we’re in a rush.”
Chapter 128
Hearing Hamish’s laid back tone, Marvin turned at once. His face changed the moment he saw Briar standing beside Ashton. “Ashton! Why that et you bring this girl here?”
