Chapter 251
If her suspicion was correct, and it almost always was, Joana Mercadante was the murderer. Poor Fabio was the key witness, the only piece that could bring her down. Without him, the woman was clean, untouchable.
“Someone helped you, Joana,” Lilian thought, her mind cold and analytical. That woman wasn't smart enough to orchestrate such a perfect crime, to cover her tracks so precisely.
Dinho's face darkened. He sighed, the sound of defeat filling the room.
“Boss, unfortunately, there's nothing. We searched the crime scene, Fabio's house, Joana's empty apartment... nothing. Too clean.”
Disappointment was a bitter taste in Lilian's mouth. So that was it? The bitch would get away with it? The urge to punch something, to break the facade of calm, was almost unbearable.
“Officially, everything points to an accident,” Dinho continued, the frustration evident in his voice. “Fabio was drunk behind the wheel.”
He ended his explanation, the bitterness of his first major failure weighing heavily on him. He knew it wasn't an accident. But he couldn't prove it.
“Boss, I'm sorry, I let you down...”
Lilian didn't respond right away. A crease formed on her forehead, her mind working a mile a minute. The official story was a sham, she could feel it in her bones.
Something didn't add up.
The crime scene, remote and without cameras, was understandable. But his house? How was it possible that there wasn't a single loose end?
Her eyes fixed on Dinho again.
“The security cameras at Fabio's house. What did they show? Did you find anything out of place? Think, Dinho. Anything suspicious.”
“No...” Dinho's voice faltered, a forgotten memory coming to the surface.
“What? Speak,” Lilian ordered, her voice sharp.
“I don't know if it's a coincidence, but... on the day he died, almost all the security cameras in the neighborhood were malfunctioning.” Blank images. One of them, the closest one, had the recording from that night... gone.
He took a deep breath, the pieces beginning to connect.
“Hours before the accident, everything was working perfectly. The police blamed lightning for the electrical failure, but didn't mention the missing recording.”
Dinho's voice was confused, uncertain.
“Boss, I'm sorry, my people couldn't recover the data. If you could ask Benjamin...”
Lilian frowned. It was no coincidence. It was a clean-up. Someone, with surgical precision, had erased the evidence.
“Okay, Dinho. I'll put Benjamin on it,” she replied, determination hardening her voice.
“I hope he can,” said Dinho, a glimmer of hope in his voice. His team didn't have Benjamin's talent. If anyone could bring a ghost back from the digital dead, it was him.
“Hmm, I hope so,” Lilian smiled at Dinho, a gesture to try to dispel the cloud of defeat that hung over him.
“Okay, keep investigating Joana and keep me informed. I'll get in touch if Benjamin finds anything.”
“Okay, boss. Thanks...”
“Wait, Dinho!” Matthew's voice cut through the hallway before Dinho could get up. “I need to update you on something...” he said, sitting down next to Dinho.
“What's new?” Dinho asked, his curiosity rekindled.
Matthew wasted no time. The lawyer had just called. Joana Mercadante's interrogation. The result.
The tension in the room was palpable. Lilian and Dinho leaned in, hungry for information.
“Well, it's outrageous!” Matthew began. “There's not a single piece of evidence to change her status from witness to suspect. After seven hours of questioning, the police released her.”
Lilian shrugged, her disappointment a bitter but expected note. She said nothing, her mind already charting new routes, new traps to capture her prey.
“Damn it! That woman is a snake! How did she get away?” Matthew cursed, his frustration evident. He had counted on the change in status, on the pressure of the law. But she had slipped through their fingers with frightening ease.
“Maybe it's luck! And against luck, my friend, it's hard to fight,” said Dinho, his irritation mirroring Matthew's. “If Fabio weren't dead, that bitch wouldn't be so calm.”
Matthew turned to Dinho, a new question forming.
“By the way, Dinho... what about your investigation? Any progress?”
“Nothing, man! And it's driving me crazy...” Dinho took a deep breath, frustration suffocating him. “The crime scene is clean. Whoever cleaned it up was a professional. A ghost.”
“Shit! So Joana Mercadante has hired killers on her payroll...” Mattew muttered, shaking his head in disbelief. His eyes met Lilian's. She was distant, lost in thought, the gears of her mind turning at high speed.
Just before he could ask, her head lifted, and a dangerous, almost imperceptible smile touched her lips.
“Well... Joana Mercadante is out of luck, boys...” Lilian said, her voice calm and lethal, watching the confusion spread across Matthew and Dinho's faces.
"It's exactly as you said, Matthew. Joana isn't alone in this. I'm sure there's a puppet master behind the scenes. Someone with power, experience, and no fear of getting their hands dirty," she continued, her voice sharp.
The conviction in Lilian's voice was an undeniable force. Mattew and Dinho's mere speculation solidified into an alarming truth. Joana Mercadante's luck was not luck; it was sponsorship.
“Someone is protecting her... Are you sure it's just one person, boss? Do you have a name?” Matthew asked, his eyes fixed on Lilian.
“Man, is it Suelen Legrand?” Dinho interrupted, the idea arising and dying in the same instant. “No... wait... impossible.”
“Of course it's impossible, Dinho!” Matthew retorted impatiently. “The Legrand Group sued her!” His eyes returned to Lilian. “Boss, who is it?”
“Oh, that's right... I had forgotten!” Dinho admitted, joining Matthew in waiting for Lilian's answer.
Lilian smiled bitterly. The hunt wasn't just for Joana; it was for a shadow. The realization hit her with clarity: Joana's circle needed to be dissected, piece by piece.
“I'm sure it's just one person. But a person with resources and an army of henchmen. And no, I don't have a name yet.”
But that's exactly what I intend to find out,“ she replied, determination hardening her voice.
Seeing the hint of disappointment on their faces, she became the commander again.
”All right, get back to work. I need to talk to Benjamin. I hope he can give us a ghost to hunt.
With that, Lilian stood up and walked decisively toward Benjamin's computer room.