Chapter 262 You Are the Murderer

Chapter 262 You Are the Murderer

The older man adjusted his glasses and looked carefully at the photo.

"Isn't this Samara? She's usually pretty friendly. What do you want with her?"

Alice smiled and replied, "She used to take care of my mom, and did a great job. We came specially to thank her in person."

She was carrying two bags of fruit, looking harmless and polite.

Sidney, standing beside her, was completely stunned by this performance.

He'd thought Alice would investigate secretly, but instead she was using warmth and courtesy as her opening move.

The older man, wearing slippers, talked as he led the way.

"Oh, I see. Well, I'll take you there. But you should know, since she came back recently, she's locked herself in her room, talking to herself all day. Her condition isn't quite right."

The two followed him through narrow alleys, deep into the lane.

He lifted his chin to indicate, a shrewd glint in his eyes.

"See that? The dark red door. Go on yourselves, I won't go in. Don't want any bad luck rubbing off on me."

Alice thanked him repeatedly with a smile, which quickly cooled the moment she turned around.

Sidney supported her arm. "Damn, Alice, you switch faces pretty fast."

Her tone was calm. "After dealing with patients long term, you see all kinds of people. This kind of emotional switching is a basic skill."

She hadn't started out as a director. During those years working at the grassroots level, she'd seen all sorts of difficult people.

Sidney's mind flashed to the recent incidents at the research institute. At least Alice had Michael by her side back then, but even so, thinking about those events made his chest tighten.

Alice looked at the door that wasn't completely closed. "We're here. I'll go in first."

She held out her hand to stop him, her gaze sweeping over his plastered hand, then looking down at her own limping leg. She was silent for a few seconds.

"Wait, don't rush in. Get the bodyguards to follow. She can't run away now anyway. With both of us injured like this, we might not win in a direct confrontation."

Sidney protested, "We can still manage in our current state."

Alice looked at the half-open door and lowered her voice. "My leg is injured, your hand is in a cast, and she's watching us from behind the door right now."

Through the gap in the door, a woman was pressed against the inside.

She stared at them with her eyes wide open. The whites of her eyes were yellowed and tinged with green, streaked with blood, and her pupils were almost pressed against the crack in the door.

Sidney followed her gaze and involuntarily shivered.

"What the hell..."

Startled, he instinctively moved in front of Alice. "Get behind me."

Alice looked at his tall figure, remembering the car accident, feeling a mixture of emotions.

"Don't be nervous. We won't force our way in."

The tension in Sidney's shoulders gradually eased.

He took two steps forward and politely knocked on the door.

"Hello, we're here to see you. Could you please open the door?"

The eye at the crack slowly moved away from the door.

Alice stood behind Sidney, her tone calm but leading. "We have news about your daughter. Don't you want to hear it? You've already missed over twenty years of her life. Don't you want to know how she grew up?"

The old wooden door made a harsh sound and slowly opened.

Behind it appeared a middle-aged woman with graying hair, her eyes cloudy, as if life had drained everything from her. She waved them in.

"Come in. I know you're here to settle accounts with me."

The moment she saw these two people, she realized she wouldn't last much longer.

Alice couldn't guess exactly what she was planning, but still followed her inside.

The room had a faint musty smell. Sunlight came in, with dust motes floating in the air. The entire room could be taken in at a glance—just one table, two stools, and an old calendar hanging on the wall. The bed looked quite clean, with two medicine bottles scattered on it.

"Sit down. I'll boil some water and tell you everything slowly."

Samara, hunched over, walked to the small stove in the corner to get water and light the fire.

The moment Alice saw her, she recognized her as the woman who'd appeared in the garden at the banquet that day. So she'd been planning to kill them since then.

Samara's voice was hoarse. "I've been thinking these past few days about whether what I did all these years was right or wrong. I stole you and left you on the street, then arranged for my daughter to become the Hall family's precious daughter. In the end, it seems I got nothing."

Every few words, she had to cough, looking like a patient who could collapse at any moment.

Alice's voice was calm and clear. "You did so much for her, but your daughter only recognizes wealth and status, not you. You risked your life to help her deal with us, but she completely ignored you. That kind of ending really must break your heart."

Samara's movements paused briefly, then she continued searching for tea leaves, muttering under her breath, before turning around.

"Miss, did you come to send me to prison?"

She placed the freshly brewed hot tea on the table. "The tea's ready. Drink."

"No, that would be too easy for you."

Alice glanced at the teacup but didn't touch it.

She looked down at the message from the bodyguard on her phone, then directly tore away the surface calm and pointed at the medicine bottles on the bed.

"Is that anesthetic something you were planning to use on us?"

Samara's body froze.

The numbness she'd been faking in her eyes gradually faded, revealing the ruthlessness hidden beneath.

"When did you figure it out? Alice!"

Her voice suddenly became shrill. Her hands slammed on the table, her eyes wide and round, like a cornered wolf, full of aggression.

"You dare come looking for me? You blocked my daughter's path—your very existence is a mistake! How dare you strip my daughter naked and throw her in the street? How dare you frame her!"

Alice kicked aside the stool next to her. "This is just the beginning. I'll collect everything you owe me, bit by bit!"

Samara's eyes were bloodshot as she gripped the syringe in her hand. It contained the neurotoxin she'd bought at a high price. If she could just inject it into Alice, Alice would surely die!

Alice just glanced at it, a cold smile playing at her lips, not hiding her contempt.

"Using drugs I developed against me? Looks like you didn't bother to find out who I really am."

The moment her words fell, the tension in the air immediately escalated.

Sidney's eyes showed obvious disdain. Even an outsider like him could recognize it.

"SH24 psychotoxin? That's the new version Alice improved a year ago."

The syringe in Samara's hand fell heavily to the ground.

She never imagined Alice had this kind of background.

Since this method wouldn't work on her, then... a murderous intent flashed in her eyes. She suddenly turned, grabbed the cleaver from the cutting board, and swung it at Alice!

At that moment, the dilapidated door was kicked open.

Several professionally trained bodyguards rushed in. One of them kicked Samara's shin, immediately followed by a punch to her face.

With the sound of metal hitting the ground, the cleaver fell.

Alice hadn't even moved a step, coldly watching everything from start to finish.

The distance between them was less than two feet. Samara was pressed to her knees by two bodyguards.

Her hunched body twisted violently, struggling desperately, her hands like claws trying to reach for Alice.

"Alice! If you dare touch Stella, I won't let you go even if I'm dead!"

"Who said I want you dead?" Alice took a step forward, looking down at her on the ground.

She laughed softly, her voice carrying shadows.

"Death would be too easy for you. I want you alive, but with no way out. Don't you care most about Stella? Tonight, I'll have her come see you. What do you think?"

"You... what are you planning to do!" Samara felt a chill crawl up her spine. She shouldn't have been soft-hearted back then! If she'd known it would come to this, she should have just strangled her as a baby!