Chapter 215 Eliminate Doubts
Chapter 215 Eliminate Doubts
On the way back to the hotel, I called Howard to check on the progress of sending the photos of the victims from the Emerald City subway kidnapping case.
Howard had seen the photos at a meeting that morning. They were highly confidential, so instead of sending them over the internet, they were being sent via a USB drive internationally, which would take about three days to arrive.
Byron's strange dream was actually quite different from the subway kidnapping case, or rather, they were completely separate stories.
According to Byron, the inspiration came from a homeless man he met today.
The man shared memories from his childhood, where a plague had struck his village, killing many people. Only a few survived, and after getting drunk one night, the homeless man dreamt of his childhood. He heard that some survivors planned to take revenge on the descendants of the officials who had quarantined the village, intending to die together.
Byron used this as inspiration for his story, blending traditional Phoenixia mythology and themes of fate to create eight characters with different destinies.
It made sense, as it was a fictional creation, and some changes were acceptable.
In reality, the subway kidnapping case seemed to be a "perfect crime" aimed at financial gain.
Apart from the train driver who died, the other passengers were still alive, having inhaled a large amount of halothane gas, which caused them to fall unconscious.
When they woke up, they had no idea what had happened.
Based on the information we had, there was no reason to suspect a connection between the two stories.
The scenes in the dream were similar, but the motives and backgrounds were entirely different.
Just to be sure, I called Clifford to request information on infectious diseases in Emerald City over the past few decades.
Zoey helped me check, and indeed, there had been no large-scale deaths caused by infectious diseases in recent years.
So, for now, we could rule out any connection between Byron's work and the subway kidnapping case.
As for Dean's decision to punish Byron and even ban him from the industry, it might be due to other reasons. I had just met them, so I wasn't clear on the specifics.
But after two encounters with Byron today, I found this young man in his twenties to be simple, kind, and somewhat introverted.
Perhaps his family life wasn't very affluent, as he often seemed timid, ordering only cheap dishes and speaking very cautiously, especially around Zoey.
It wasn't just timidity; he seemed genuinely afraid.
I felt there might be some hidden affection, but due to Byron's personality, he probably wasn't aware of it. He was too focused on hiding and apologizing.
After our meeting, Byron jumped up and ran over to pay the bill. Zoey asked, "What are you doing?"
Byron was so scared he almost cried, fumbling and stammering, mixing Phoenixia and Vesperia languages, apologizing for today's trouble and insisting he should pay for the meal.
Zoey thought for a moment and agreed, seeing that the price wasn't too high, and let Byron pay.
His grateful expression made me laugh.
As for the broken phone, Zoey still didn't accept the money. She said Byron was currently unemployed and financially tight, but the real reason for his unemployment was his lack of social experience.
He was just a bookworm, despite being older than her, he was like a teenager. She promised to help him with opportunities for his work's first edition and encouraged him.
Byron naturally refused, insisting on giving the money to Zoey.
Finally, Zoey had an idea and took a few bills, saying, "Let's do installment payments."
"Six months, pay me a portion each month, with interest, of course. From today, I'm your creditor. You must stay motivated and keep creating stories to pay me back!"
Byron agreed, his eyes red with gratitude, thanking her profusely.
In the car, Zoey played with the bills in her hand, looking pleased.
"Ms. Johnson, don't you think I killed two birds with one stone? I didn't embarrass Byron, and I motivated him to keep creating, preventing him from getting discouraged. I've seen too many news stories about comic authors taking their own lives due to life's hardships."
I nodded in agreement, fully appreciating Zoey's kind-heartedness.
As we chatted, I glanced at the time. It was around 7 PM. Byron's meal was at 3 PM, and we hadn't eaten much, mostly talking.
But I wasn't hungry. The hotel restaurant was still open, and Zoey could have whatever she wanted. I'd just have a glass of milk with her.
Speaking of which, I realized I hadn't contacted Ruben. He hadn't messaged me either.
"Where's Ruben? Did he message you on Facebook?" I asked.
We were about twenty minutes from the hotel. We could invite Ruben to dinner and discuss today's events.
"Him?" Zoey exaggeratedly put Byron's money in her bag, snorted, and looked out the window.
"He's probably with someone. The youngest police chief in Emerald City, the future successor of Zaka Tower, the genius girl Clifford. They have plenty to talk about, why would they think of us?"
The taxi was filled with visible jealousy. I smiled and said, "Still, we should check. Ruben doesn't speak Vesperia, and Clifford, as you saw, isn't a good person. She has a special attitude towards Ruben, but we don't know her intentions. Ruben is simple-minded, how can you be so sure about him?"
Zoey muttered a few words, opened her phone, and called Ruben.
After a few rings, Ruben's excited voice came through, "Zoey, I'm so happy! This is the first time you've called me!"
I saw Zoey's stunned expression and couldn't help but laugh.
"Ms. Johnson's here too. When are you coming back? I'm starving!"
"You haven't eaten?" I asked, surprised. I thought Clifford would have found him.
"No, I'm waiting for you," Ruben said.
"Don't pretend. Didn't Clifford come to find you? Your fan asked about you this afternoon. I said you were waiting at the hotel!"