Chapter 54

Chapter 54
“Trust me, I wouldn’t be allowing this if it weren’t for—”

She shut him up immediately with a kiss on the lips.

Ariel smiled widely. “Just trust me.”

Micheal was short of words. He scoffed and turned aside, while Ariel flipped her hair and walked toward the interrogation room.

He touched his lips, smirked, and followed after her.

“I’ll do the interrogation. You just watch from the glass,” she muttered softly, her hand resting on his shoulder.

Micheal glanced down at her hand, then leaned close to her face. “I am the inspector here, and I should be the one making the calls. But—”

“But what?” Ariel leaned in further, her lips almost brushing his again, their gazes locked.

“Hmm.” Someone cleared his throat from behind.

Two cops walked in, escorting Mrs. Jones.

“This had better work. The higher-ups are already tired of the delay,” Micheal whispered.

“Don’t worry, I know it will.” She winked and entered the interrogation room.

The cop who had caught them earlier shot Micheal a look. Micheal ignored him and turned to the glass, watching Ariel and Mrs. Jones inside the room.



Ariel settled into the chair across from Mrs. Jones.
Mrs. Jones checked the watch on her wrist, then looked around with clear irritation. “Why are we here again? I thought you’d asked everything you wanted.”

Ariel pushed a file toward her. “Well, we found Gideon’s fingerprints—your husband’s assistant—on your husband’s body.”

Mrs. Cole opened the envelope and stared at Ariel, confused.

“We also found a new witness.”

“You found my husband’s killer?” She leaned closer, suddenly curious.

“Not yet, ma’am. We’re still investigating,” Ariel replied.

Mrs. Cole nodded, relaxing. “You’re doing great work, detective. Call me when you’ve found the murderer.” She stood to leave.

“The ring—” Ariel paused.

Mrs. Jones tensed and slowly turned back to her.

“The test result came out. We found your husband’s DNA on it.”

“I told you before, my husband always wore his ring. He probably forgot it there during one of his visits to Mr. Gideon’s place,” Mrs. Cole said quickly.

“Yes, I know. But the witness—a worker at your husband’s company—said he stopped wearing it a long time ago.”

She shrugged. “Well, how would I know? We stopped seeing each other a long time ago. And besides, you said you found Gideon’s prints on my husband’s body. Then he’s possibly the killer.”

Ariel stood, meeting her gaze. “Then who murdered Gideon? He died the same night as your husband. You wouldn’t expect me to believe he carried your husband’s body down to the bridge and then returned home, only to be killed afterward.”

Mrs. Cole faltered, blinking rapidly at Ariel in disbelief.

From behind the glass, Micheal watched. The urge to storm in was eating at him, but he forced himself to wait and see what Ariel was up to.

“Are you interrogating me now? I thought Mr. Donovan was caught. So why are you bringing all of this up? He and Gideon could have been in it together. Shouldn’t you be working on that?” Mrs. Cole snapped.

Ariel flipped several photos on the table.

“Mr. Donovan did not kill your husband. Someone had a police officer plant evidence in his home. We got footage of him. So Mr. Donovan isn’t the killer.”

Mrs. Cole laughed dryly and adjusted her hair. “Look, I have somewhere to be. If this isn’t about who killed my husband, then don’t contact me. If you want to question me again, get a warrant first.”

She walked toward the door.

Micheal rushed in just as Mrs. Cole left.

“What happened?” he asked.

Ariel clenched her jaw and dropped into her chair.

“Did she say anything?”

Ariel exhaled. “No. But she’s hiding something. I’ll make her spill it.”

Micheal breathed out loudly. “Yet you assured me.”

Ariel looked up at him. “It’s clear she knows something about her husband’s death. All I need is evidence.”

“And how do we get that?”

Ariel smirked. “She’ll slip. I’m sure I hit a nerve. I just have to wait.”



Mrs. Cole entered her office, dropped her bag onto the couch, and slumped into it.

“That detective!” she groaned. Her assistant hurried in with a glass of water, and she gulped it down immediately.

“Don’t let any detectives in here,” she ordered. The assistant nodded quickly.

“There’s a girl who came looking for you. I chased her away, but she kept returning, saying it’s about your late husband,” the assistant said.

Mrs. Cole’s brows lifted. “Where is she?”

“I sent her away, but she’s still waiting downstairs. She said her name is Dara, and it’s about something like a club.”

Mrs. Cole’s eyes widened. “Send her in. Quickly.”

The assistant rushed out, and moments later, Dara walked in.

“What are you doing here?” Mrs. Cole snapped. “I thought I told you never to show your face around my company.”

“I’m sorry. The cops came to find me.”

“Did you say anything?” Mrs. Cole asked sharply.

Dara shook her head.

Mrs. Cole’s fist clenched. “Lucky you didn’t die that night. If you want to stay alive, keep your mouth shut. I’ll make arrangements to get you out of the country.” She took a deep breath.

“That night… the fire—” Dara began.

Mrs. Cole snapped her gaze to her.

“You didn’t tell me the man was your husband.”

Mrs. Cole walked up to her and slapped her across the face.

Breathing hard, she glared at her.

“He’s not my husband. The bastard was cheating on me.”

Dara held her cheek and looked up slowly.

“Now get out,” Mrs. Cole ordered. “I’ll arrange for you to leave the city.”

Dara walked out quietly. Mrs. Cole turned back to her desk, trying to steady her breathing.

A few seconds later, the door opened again. She spun around angrily.

“I said leave!—”

She froze. Her assistant rushed in behind the intruders.

“I tried to stop them, ma’am!”

Ariel stood there, smirking, holding up a warrant in her face.

“Now, I expect you to behave and follow us quietly to the station.”

“What is this?” Mrs. Cole demanded, her arrogance returning.

“The warrant you asked for. You’re arrested as a suspect in the death of your husband, Mr. Cole.”

Mrs. Cole let out a dry chuckle. “What proof do you have?”

Ariel smiled. “Oh, you’ll find out once we get to the station.” She looked at the officers behind her, and they moved to escort Mrs. Cole out.

Ariel stepped outside and spotted Dara standing there.

Ariel smiled at her.

Mrs. Cole stared, stunned— her mouth wide open, speechless.