Chapter 257

Chapter 257

White Dove quickly sent over Geraldo's complete file.

She read through the entire dossier. The next morning, Audrey slipped out without telling anyone and drove south to the coastal town alone.

She arrived in the afternoon. Following the address White Dove had provided, she wound through several old streets before stopping in front of an aging apartment building.

She climbed to the third floor and stood before a dark wooden door, knocking twice.

The door cracked open. A wrinkled face peered through the gap. "Who are you looking for?"

"You're Mr. Geraldo Loomis, aren't you? I'm Audrey Clark, from Imperial City. I'd like to talk to you about something."

"You've got the wrong person. I don't know anyone from Imperial City." He started to close the door.

Audrey didn't try to stop him. She simply said calmly, "The fire at the Turner family mansion—do you remember it?"

Geraldo froze. After a long moment, he said, "Come in."

The apartment was sparsely furnished, the light dim.

"Back then, you went by Delbert Loomis," Audrey said evenly. "You worked as a carpenter, took on a lot of mansion repair jobs. The Turner family hired you. Then the fire burned down their mansion, and you left Suncrest City."

"You did a lot of work for the Turner family. You knew that mansion inside and out. The side door in the back courtyard—hardly anyone used it. The lock was old. Opening it wouldn't have been hard for you."

Geraldo kept his head down. It was a long time before he spoke. "That night, someone came to me. He said all I had to do was open the back door, and the Turner family's hold over me would be finished. No one from the Turner family would ever look down on me again."

His voice began to shake. "He said no one would get hurt. He just wanted to teach the Turner family a lesson. He made it sound so simple. I believed him."

"Then the fire started. I never thought it would burn like that."

"You're actually one of the Turners yourself, aren't you?"

After Audrey's words fell, the room was silent for a long time.

"Who are you really? How do you know so much about the Turner family?" Geraldo asked.

"My mother was the only survivor that night."

"What!" Geraldo's face registered shock.

After a moment to collect himself, Geraldo continued, "You're right. I am a Turner."

"My name is Zander Turner. A collateral branch of the family. My parents died when I was young, and the Turners took me in. They gave me food and clothes and work to do."

"By the time I was twelve, I could do finer work than the old craftsmen in the family. But they never once treated me like one of their own. I lived in the back courtyard, in a side room. I ate leftovers."

"I always thought if I just worked hard enough, did well enough, someday the Turners would accept me. But eventually I realized—in their eyes, I'd always be an outsider."

"Then one day, someone found me. He said his name was Wheeler. He was with Eagle Eye. He said they'd noticed my skills, and they wanted to help me get even. He said once the Turner family fell into chaos, the people who looked down on me would get what they deserved."

"He said no one would get hurt. Just that the Turner family would suffer a little."

"But after that fire started, I realized I'd been lied to. They didn't want to teach the Turner family a lesson—they wanted to wipe the Turners off the map completely."

"I regretted it. But it was too late."

Audrey looked into his eyes. "You're a Turner yourself. What really happened back then? Why did the family treat you that way?"

Geraldo was silent for a long time before finally speaking slowly. "My father was direct lineage, but the family didn't approve of my mother. They tried to stop my parents from marrying."

"My father insisted on marrying her, so they expelled him from the clan. After my father died, my mother got sick and couldn't care for me. She brought me to the family's door and knelt there, begging them to take me in. That's the only reason the Turners agreed."

Audrey pulled a small voice recorder from her bag and set it on the table, pressing record.

"Mr. Loomis, would you be willing to repeat what you just told me? I'd like to record it as evidence. It's important for the Turner family."

"Go ahead and record. I've kept this bottled up inside for decades. It's time for some closure."

After the recording was complete, Audrey handed him a phone. "Mr. Loomis, this phone is encrypted. It has my contact information stored in it."

"Over the next few days, some people might come looking for you. Don't open the door. Don't go anywhere with anyone. If I need to reach you, I'll call from this number. I'm the only person who knows it. If anyone else calls claiming to be me, don't believe them."

"You're going to hide me."

"I'm going to keep you safe. What you said today is the most direct evidence we have to take down Eagle Eye."

Zander nodded. "All right. I trust you."

Audrey stood. "My people will arrive tonight. They'll take you away from here. You don't need to bring anything—they'll provide everything you need. You'll stay somewhere else for a while, until things settle down."

Zander nodded.

Audrey didn't linger. She turned and headed for the door.

At eleven that night, the transport vehicle White Dove had arranged pulled up in front of the old apartment building right on schedule. Two operatives brought Zander down from the third floor in a wheelchair.

Audrey sat in her hotel room. Only after she received confirmation that the transfer was successful did she submit the complete evidence package through White Dove's highest-level encrypted channel to the police department in Sunrise City.