Chapter 421: Probably a Psychopath
Chapter 421: Chapter 421: Probably a Psychopath
Renee listened to the man’s voice and asked hesitantly, "Are... are you Brother Shawn?"
"It’s me." The man chuckled. "Stella, I love your voice. It’s so beautiful, so lovely to hear."
Renee: "..."
She fought the urge to roll her eyes, struggling to stay in character. "Brother Shawn, where are you?"
"Stella, do you really want to see your Brother Shawn?"
"I do." Renee’s voice trembled slightly. "I want to see you. Didn’t you say you would help ease my pain? I’m in so much pain right now..."
"Heh heh." The man chuckled again. "Stella, are you in a lot of pain right now? Don’t worry. I said I would help you, and I never go back on my word."
He sat on a plush leather sofa, his legs crossed. In one hand he held his phone, and with the other, he toyed with a paring knife he’d bought from the supermarket, admiring its sharp glint.
Renee took a deep breath. "When?"
"Stella, do you want to see the ocean?"
"Can you really help me?" Renee feigned a breakdown, her voice growing faint. "I really can’t take this anymore..."
Teacher Quinn gripped the paring knife and suddenly slashed it through the air. He sighed softly. "Stella, you’re not behaving. You’re making your Brother Shawn very sad."
"I... How am I not behaving?"
"You didn’t answer my question."
"What question?"
"Do you want to see the ocean?"
Renee was silent for two seconds before asking, "Brother Shawn, will you come see the ocean with me?"
"As long as you want me to, your Brother Shawn will be right there with you."
"I want to see the ocean, Brother Shawn. I want to see the ocean with you."
"Good. Then you wait for my message like a good girl. Stella has to listen, that’s the only way your Brother Shawn will love you forever."
Renee said nothing. The BEEP-BEEP-BEEP of a disconnected line sounded from the receiver. He had hung up.
She handed the phone to Henry Stark, her brow furrowed. "He’s so disgusting. We have to keep waiting."
Henry Stark nodded in agreement. "Disgusting, indeed. Let’s go inside."
The two of them returned to the surveillance room, where Levi Hollis immediately said, "Kai already sent his file to the group chat."
"Alright, we’ll head out then." Henry Stark’s gaze fell on the bald manager, his expression turning cold and stern. "Manager Lawson, we need you to keep our visit here today confidential."
The bald manager nodded emphatically. "I understand, I get it. It’ll be kept absolutely confidential. You can count on it, Officer!"
"Thank you for your cooperation." Henry Stark raised a hand and patted his shoulder.
After leaving the surveillance room, the group returned to Unit 6.
Renee gripped her phone, her delicate brows knitted together as she reviewed Sean’s file.
Sean Quinn. Thirty-seven years old. Divorced. Parents deceased. Works in the Computer Science department at Virtuecrest University...
"He lives on the seventh floor." Levi Hollis tilted his head back to look at the building and asked hesitantly, "Renee, do you think we could have Inky fly up there and see what that guy is doing?"
Sending a drone up would be too conspicuous.
"I think so. I’ll give it a try." Renee turned to ask Inky, "Can you do it?"
"Of course I can!" Inky agreed readily. "Robin will fly up and take a look right now."
It flapped its wings with all its might, shooting toward the heavens like a black bolt of lightning.
Renee watched its figure shrink into a tiny dot before finally vanishing from sight.
Inky didn’t know which apartment was Sean Quinn’s, so it circled the entire building once, finally spotting his figure through a balcony.
It landed silently on the balcony railing, taking in the man’s every move.
Sean Quinn sat on the sofa in a white bathrobe, his short, choppy hair still damp. He held a wine glass, nonchalantly swirling the blood-red liquid inside.
He tilted his head back and drained the wine, then set down the glass and picked up the sharp paring knife again.
The pad of his finger gently caressed the blade, the corner of his mouth hooking into a smirk. "So sharp."
The words had barely left his lips when Sean Quinn’s expression turned fierce and vicious. He raised his hand high and plunged the knife into the throw pillow beside him, his face a mask of savagery.
"Stella, Brother Shawn is coming to save you. You’ll never be in pain again..."
Inky was startled by his sudden movement, its feathers trembling.
’What a terrifying human!’
Sean Quinn seemed to have gone berserk, stabbing the pillow again and again with the paring knife. Down feathers floated haphazardly through the air, and the sight made Inky tremble with fear.
It quickly checked its own feathers and breathed a small sigh of relief before spreading its wings and flying back to Renee.
"Renee, that human is terrifying!"
Inky told Renee everything it had seen.
Renee relayed the information, her expression grave. "He’s planning to kill Stella that way."
"That’s outrageous!" Sawyer’s hands, hanging at his sides, clenched into tight fists. "They’re complete strangers, with no history or deep-seated hatred. Why does he want to kill her?"
"He must be a psychopath," Levi Hollis said.
Henry Stark’s dark brows furrowed. In a low voice, he said, "Levi and Sawyer, you two stay here and keep an eye on him. I’ll have Kai and Kian Cole come relieve you later. I’m taking Renee home to rest first."
"Roger that!" Levi Hollis and Sawyer said in unison.
Renee went to take a shower as soon as she got home.
After blow-drying her hair, she lay down on her bed but didn’t feel the least bit sleepy.
’Probably because I drank too much coffee today.’
She was debating whether to take some melatonin, but worried she wouldn’t be alert enough if something suddenly came up. Just then, her phone went DING.
She thought it was a message from Sean Quinn, but when she picked up her phone, she saw it was from Diana Jennings.
Diana: "Renee, are you asleep?"
Thinking of her sister’s recent troubles, Renee quickly replied, "I’m still awake, sis. Want to come over?"
Diana: "Okay."
Renee got out of bed, opened her door, and waited.
About thirty seconds later, Diana arrived at the doorway in her nightgown. "Renee."
"Come on in, sis." Renee took her hand.
The two sisters lay on the bed, Diana staring blankly at the ceiling. Renee lay on her side, watching her, her bright eyes filled with curiosity. "Sis, how did it go with Jaden Forrest today?"
"We didn’t really spend any time together, to be honest." Diana sighed softly and said slowly, "He didn’t show up until the afternoon. He had me make a cup of coffee and bring it to his office, and then he left as soon as he finished it."
Renee blinked. "And that’s it?"
"Yep." Diana couldn’t help but frown. "I really don’t understand what he’s trying to do."
’That is a little strange,’ Renee thought. ’Did Jaden Forrest really go there just to drink a cup of coffee made by my sister?’
"Forget it, I’m not going to worry about him." Diana didn’t want to add to her sister’s troubles, especially seeing how she’d been coming home late the past few days. "Renee, has work been busy lately?"
Renee nodded. "Yeah, I was drinking coffee all day just to stay awake, and now I’m not tired at all."
"Are you exhausted?" Diana turned her head to look at her. "Want me to give you a head massage to help you relax?"
"It’s okay." Renee’s lips curved into a smile. "You must be tired from your own work too, sis."
"I’m not tired," Diana said. "I don’t really have any work right now. My entire workload for the day was making one cup of coffee for President Forrest."