Chapter 198
Chapter 198
Michael's POV
I entered the office and immediately felt something was off. Charles sat behind his desk, his expression grim. He motioned for me to sit down.
"Take a look," he pushed a folder across to me. "Evidence from Emily's computer. Caitlin definitely had issues, but I never imagined they were this severe!"
I quickly scanned the contents, and everything started making sense. Megan and Simon's revenge motive—they were likely victims of the S Plan. Was Emily one too?
Charles took a deep breath, his expression complicated. "The problem is, this evidence isn't enough to convict Lewis. The Powell family has too much influence. We need more direct proof."
Aaron's face was livid. "What's that look for? You're not planning to bury this, are you?"
Charles stood up, glaring at Aaron. "You don't understand politics, young man. We need to be strategic. If we handle this poorly, the entire case will fall apart."
"Emily is missing! This is life or death!" I said urgently.
Charles waved his hand, signaling me to calm down. "I'm not saying we'll ignore it. I'm saying we might need to leak this information to Lewis's political rivals to put pressure on him."
I watched them argue, but my thoughts drifted to Megan and Simon. Their true purpose might be more complex than we imagined. If they really were victims of the S Plan, maybe they weren't just seeking revenge—they wanted to charge Lewis and Caitlin. They must have prepared evidence of their crimes.
What would that evidence be?
"We need to get valid information from Lewis," I suggested.
"Leave it to me," Charles sighed.
---
Lewis Powell sat in the office, his suit immaculate, expression arrogant. He glanced around, sneering: "You're all useless. You can't even find one person. Time for new blood."
Charles remained calm, sitting across from him. "Mr. Powell, we'd like to ask you about Caitlin Weber and the S Plan."
Lewis tensed immediately but quickly regained composure. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Strange," Charles opened a folder. "How did so many serial killers appear in Riverstone back then? Now I understand, it was your plan all along."
"Charles, what nonsense are you talking about? You worked under me back then. If something was fishy, wouldn't you have known?"
"I was only responsible for executing tasks. Solving cases was your and Caitlin's job," Charles stared at him. "The cases you solved with Caitlin—your profiles were suspiciously accurate, almost as if you knew the answers in advance."
"That's slander!" Lewis slammed his fist on the table. "I obtained information through legal channels, using my professional expertise!"
"Where is Emily Grey?" Aaron interjected.
"Why would I take her?" Lewis raised an eyebrow.
"Because she's Caitlin's student and has evidence of your crimes," Charles said.
Lewis smirked. "Evidence? Not all evidence holds up in court. You better think carefully about whether you really want to get involved in this!"
Lewis glared at Charles and angrily left the meeting room.
---
Dennis led the team searching Lewis's residence but found nothing—no trace of Emily, no suspicious clues.
Back at the station, I anxiously drummed my fingers on the desk. "Megan and her group will make their next move soon. We need to move faster."
Thomas suddenly suggested: "Powell might have properties under relatives' names."
This gave me an idea. "Daniel, check if his son or nephew owns any properties. Especially look for houses near the river, preferably with an attic."
Daniel quickly typed on his computer. "Got one! Lewis's son owns a riverside villa near the stadium."
As I prepared to lead the team out, everyone noticed Nolan was missing.
My phone rang—an unknown number.
"Detective Stone," the caller said urgently, "I found a voice recorder on the road with a distress message on it."
Emily's weak voice came through the speaker: "Help... call Detective Stone..." followed by a phone number.
I gripped the phone tightly. "Where did you find this recorder?"
"I was jogging near the stadium this morning when I found it."
I made a quick decision. "We're on our way."
"Daniel, stay here and track Nolan's phone."
After giving these instructions, we immediately departed for our destination.
---
Emily's POV
The cold woke me from unconsciousness. Darkness surrounded me. I tried to move, my entire body aching like it had been run over.
As I felt around, my hand touched something sticky—a spiderweb. Suddenly, a childhood memory flashed through my mind: a damp, dark attic; my emotionally unstable mother; and countless spiderwebs in the corners...
Being imprisoned here, no one talked to me, there wasn't even life here until I discovered the spiders in the corner.
"Emily, kill it." Caitlin's voice echoed in my memory.
"No! They're just like me." My younger self screamed.
The realization hit me—it wasn't my mother who imprisoned me, but Caitlin. I remembered my mother's last words before suicide: "Emily, Mom's sorry. This is the only way you can be free."
"Mom loves you."
I just stared coldly and blankly as my mom swallowed that entire bottle of pills. Then coldly watched as the corpse slowly decayed.
The truth stabbed my heart like a dull knife—in a way, I really did cause my mother's death.
---
Blinding light suddenly flooded in. I squinted, seeing Emma standing in the doorway with a syringe and food.
"You're so fragile," she mocked. "Only locked up for a day and look at the pathetic state of you."
"Emma, why are you here?" I stared at her in shock. "Why betray me?"
Emma set down the tray, her expression twisted. "If you hadn't abandoned me, I would've betrayed Megan today."
"Abandoned?"
"We were so alike, both without parents, so close in college. But then more friends appeared around you. You were supposed to be mine alone! You found your happiness and abandoned me."
I looked at her, disappointment welling up inside me. I never abandoned her—I just wasn't good at giving emotions to people, keeping a boundary with all my friends. But her mind had been warped by her own pathological desires, manipulated and amplified by Megan.
Emma pulled out a recording device and played it: "Don't mention her to me again!" Michael's voice was filled with anger. "After she deceived me like that, why should I trust her?"
"Hear that?" Emma smiled triumphantly. "I forged your diary, and he lost all faith in you."
Her words stabbed into my heart like a sharp knife. It was Michael's voice.
The constant blows have made me physically and mentally numb. I stare ahead as my vision begins to blur, feeling as if I'm nothing but an empty shell.
She keeps talking about how Michael abandoned me, while I remain like a soulless puppet, unable to sense anything.
"Are you still Emily?" Emma asks, seemingly frightened by my state. "They say you have another personality. Is that true?"
She places the recording by my ear again, and this time I finally regain my awareness.
Noticing my reaction to the recording device, she smiled maliciously. "I'll just leave it playing then, so you can listen to it over and over until you break."
Emma injected me with a sedative to prevent escape or suicide, then left, the device continuously playing.
After Emma left, I lay in the darkness, feeling a numb calmness. Those voices were painful, but they couldn't break me yet. I believed in him.
I clenched my fists until my nails dug into my palms, using pain to stay alert. I couldn't give up.
Painfully crawling to the recording device, I clutched it. I recorded a message for help, then crawled to the window and with all my strength threw the recorder outside.
"Stay alive," I told myself. "I must stay alive! No matter how painful, I have to survive! I will not give up!"