Chapter 244: This Woman Killed My Younger Brother
Chapter 244: Chapter 244: This Woman Killed My Younger Brother
DING—
The elevator doors slowly slid open.
Renee Jennings lifted her foot to step out of the car, but she paused when she saw the person standing at the entrance. A flicker of surprise crossed her eyes.
Jaden Forrest hadn’t expected to see her here either.
Michelle Fuller looked at her best friend, then at him, and blinked in surprise.
Renee Jennings averted her gaze, planning to walk past him like a stranger, but Jaden Forrest suddenly spoke.
"Are you here to see my grandmother?"
"No," Renee Jennings said coolly. "I’m here for someone else."
Jaden Forrest gave a slight nod. "Take care."
Renee Jennings walked out of the elevator with a composed stride.
A few steps later, Zachary Conway sidled up to her and asked curiously, "Who was that handsome guy just now?"
Renee Jennings: "Handsome?"
Zachary Conway: "Yeah, he is."
Renee Jennings: "My fake ex-boyfriend."
"That sounds strangely complicated," Zachary Conway said, confused. "So who’s this man we’re going to see now?"
Renee Jennings pursed her lips and didn’t answer.
Since she was silent, Zachary Conway guessed on his own, "Your real ex-boyfriend?"
Michelle Fuller smacked him on the arm. "What nonsense are you spouting? He’s just a dog Renee keeps."
Zachary Conway’s face showed he understood. He said one word: "Simp."
Renee Jennings: "..."
Michelle Fuller: "..."
But the truth was a cruel thing. Just over six months ago, Renee Jennings had been the simp.
DING-DONG—
Renee Jennings rang the doorbell several times, but no one came to the door.
She took out her phone and dialed Evan Shepherd’s number. Since she was already here blocking his door, she wasn’t afraid of him making a run for it.
But the call wouldn’t go through.
Evan Shepherd had blocked her number again.
Renee Jennings rang the doorbell a few more times, growing impatient. She looked at the digital lock on the door, thought for a moment, and entered a few numbers.
"Incorrect password, please try again—"
"Incorrect password..."
"..."
Renee Jennings tried four times in a row. She only had one chance left before the lock would be disabled.
"Incorrect password, please try again—"
The lock has been disabled for 90 seconds.
At the same time, a system notification sounded in Renee Jennings’s mind.
[System 009: New Level 3 mission triggered: Decryption. Mission rewards: Earthworm Dictionary, 100 points, 1 million in Cash. Failure penalty: Random Teleportation. Time limit: 72 hours.]
’Decryption?’
’Could it be to crack the password for this door?’
Renee Jennings’s eyes lit up. ’There’s a silver lining to this after all?’
"Why don’t you two head back first?" She turned to Henry Stark and Zachary Conway. "Michelle and I will keep waiting here."
Zachary Conway looked at Henry Stark. Seeing that he didn’t say anything, Zachary replied, "We can’t just leave the two of you here. We’d be worried."
"But we don’t know how long we’ll have to wait," Renee Jennings said, not wanting them to waste their time waiting with her.
Henry Stark said calmly, "Ninety seconds will pass quickly. Try again."
"How much money did he scam you out of?" Zachary Conway got gossipy again.
Renee Jennings: "Three million."
Zachary Conway’s eyes lit up as he looked at her. "Rich Lady, is that offer still open?"
Renee Jennings: "..."
Henry Stark regretted bringing him along. The guy was so unreliable.
The 90 seconds passed quickly. Renee Jennings tried five more times, and this time the lock was disabled for five minutes.
She pursed her lips, looking a little embarrassed. "Why don’t you guys..."
Henry Stark: "Five minutes will pass quickly. Try again."
Five minutes later, Renee Jennings started trying again. On the second attempt— "Door unlocked. Welcome home."
Michelle Fuller exclaimed excitedly, "Renee, you’re amazing!"
Renee Jennings had mixed feelings. She never would have guessed that Evan Shepherd’s password was just 123123.
The group entered the apartment and found Evan Shepherd lying on the bed in the bedroom, his eyes tightly shut.
Renee Jennings leaned against the doorframe and called out, "Evan Shepherd, stop pretending to be asleep! The three-day deadline is up. Pay up!"
Evan Shepherd remained motionless on the bed.
"Evan Shepherd!" Renee Jennings shouted again, her tone laced with annoyance. "Keep faking it and see if I don’t beat you up!"
Henry Stark watched her, a faint ripple passing through his deep, bottomless black eyes.
The next second, those bright eyes suddenly looked his way.
Henry Stark didn’t have time to look away and met her gaze, feeling a bit flustered.
Renee Jennings frowned, her tone growing more serious. "Henry, something doesn’t feel right."
"What’s wrong?" Henry Stark strode to her side.
Renee Jennings pointed at Evan Shepherd on the bed. "He looks... off."
Henry Stark followed her finger, his eyes narrowing slightly. He said in a low voice, "Zachary, shoe covers."
"Okay." Zachary Conway quickly pulled out shoe covers and handed them over.
The air in the room instantly froze, and the atmosphere grew heavy with his words.
Zachary Conway also gave shoe covers to Renee Jennings and Michelle Fuller.
"What’s going on?" Michelle Fuller asked as she put on the shoe covers.
Henry Stark walked to the bedside. Looking at Evan Shepherd’s lifeless face, his brow furrowed.
He put on gloves, checked for breath under Evan Shepherd’s nose with his fingers, then felt for a pulse on his neck. "He’s dead!" he said grimly.
"What?" Michelle Fuller couldn’t believe it, her voice trembling. "Evan Shepherd is dead?"
Renee Jennings’s face paled. "How could he be dead?" she mumbled.
**
The scene was cordoned off with police tape. Uniformed personnel methodically carried out their investigation and forensics inside Evan Shepherd’s home.
"How did it come to this?" Michelle Fuller and Renee Jennings stood in the hallway outside, their faces etched with anxiety and unease. "Will the police suspect you?"
Realizing Michelle Fuller’s anxiety was for her sake, Renee Jennings’s heart softened. "Michelle, don’t worry," she said softly. "I have nothing to hide."
Before long, a wail came from the direction of the elevators. "Evan, how could you die... You were so young, you hadn’t even gotten married or had kids, how could you just leave..."
Renee Jennings found the voice somewhat familiar. After a moment’s thought, she said in a low voice, "That must be Evan Shepherd’s sister."
Early last year, Evan Shepherd had made her empty promises, introducing her to his family. The person he introduced was his sister, Michelle Shepherd, a thirty-eight-year-old housewife.
Michelle Shepherd tried to rush into the crime scene but was stopped at the door by Sawyer.
"I want to see my brother!" Michelle Shepherd choked out. "How did my brother die? How could he be dead?"
"Ms. Shepherd, my condolences." Sawyer comforted her gently. "The police are investigating."
Michelle Shepherd was a crying mess. "My brother was such a bright and cheerful boy. He would never commit suicide! Someone must have murdered him!"
Sawyer offered a few more words of comfort and handed her a tissue to wipe her tears.
As Michelle Shepherd cried, she suddenly caught sight of a figure in her peripheral vision that seemed familiar.
She turned her head to look, and the more she looked, the more familiar the person seemed. Her eyes widened, and she shrieked, "Renee Jennings!"
Sawyer looked surprised. "You know Renee Jennings?"
"Of course I know her!" Michelle Shepherd pointed at Renee Jennings and said excitedly to Sawyer, "Officer, this woman must be the one who killed my brother! I heard my brother say that she came to our house and beat him up a couple of days ago!"
"Don’t you talk nonsense!" Michelle Fuller pointed back at her, saying fiercely, "Who are you pointing at? Have you no manners? Put your hand down!"