Chapter 96

"It's really okay." Jordan curiously looked at Zoey, "But, Zoey, how did you figure out I was a girl?"

Zoey said expressionlessly, "Because I accidentally saw you changing your sanitary pad."

So that was how it was.

Zoey's answer made Jordan a bit shy, "Zoey, you observe very carefully."

After clearing up this misunderstanding, they took their respective room cards and went to their corresponding rooms.

Since there was no elevator in this small town, they had to climb the stairs together.

Everyone was talking about the deceased Faye and Sadie's names, and suddenly they started talking about their own names.

Their names weren't particularly special, and after everyone had spoken, it was Zoey's turn to explain the meaning of her name.

She remained indifferent, as if she had no interest in anything.

Alexander remembered that she had mentioned growing up in a family that favored males over females and kindly tried to help her out, "I think the name Zoey is quite nice."

Robert also agreed, "I think Zoey's name sounds nice too."

Zoey was silent for a few seconds and then responded lightly, "I chose my name with my teacher in middle school."

"With your middle school teacher?" Everyone stopped in confusion and looked at Zoey, waiting for her next sentence.

Zoey and Jordan were walking at the back. She originally didn't want to bring this up again.

Seeing that they all wanted to know the reason, she said indifferently, "My original name was Pat. I didn't like that name."

Everyone fell silent.

Alexander was also stunned.

They had known each other for years, and Zoey had never mentioned this.

"But when I turned 18, I changed my name," Zoey added.

Robert could almost see from Zoey's description of her tragic childhood and said sympathetically, "You changed it to Zoey? Zoey is a very nice name."

Jordan, standing beside, said, "Zoey, when you changed your name, didn't your parents hit you?"

"They did, so what? I didn't die." Zoey replied.

Charles curiously asked, "Why did you change it to Zoey?"

"Because my teacher told me that if I changed my name, he would take care of my meals."

Robert couldn't help but praise, "What a good teacher."

"Yes, very good."

Alexander couldn't understand. Was this the reason Zoey gave herself? Why would changing her name mean she could get meals from her teacher?

He recalled the days spent with Zoey, and how she ate, completely unlike the image of a typical girl.

Could it be that because her family favored males over females, they didn't give her food?

Alexander didn't dare to think further, hoping it wasn't the case.

No one asked any more questions, afraid of touching on Zoey's sad topics.

They then each went back to their rooms.

Zoey and Jordan entered the same room, took turns washing their faces, and lay down on the bed.

They started chatting, and Jordan said first, "Although my family also favored males over females, luckily they didn't have a third child. Otherwise, my sister and I might have had a harder time. I have a deep understanding of this. If you don't have money, don't have children. That's my plan for the future."

"That's pretty good," Zoey replied.

Jordan asked her, "How many children are in your family?"

"Two."

"That's not bad. Most families can afford two children. They should have bought you similar things."

Zoey said, "They usually prioritize the boy."

"True. How's your relationship with your brother? I get along well with my sister."

Zoey said, "Terrible. I wish he were dead, and he wishes I were dead."

"Oh, you must have had a hard time."

"It was hard, but I made it harder for him."

Jordan asked, "How did you do that?"

"By hitting him, cursing him, and insulting him."

"Wouldn't your parents be angry? They already preferred the son. If you misbehave, wouldn't they dislike you even more?"

"Doesn't matter." After all, she didn't like those people who couldn't even be called her family.

As they chatted, they fell asleep without realizing it.

The next morning, everyone woke up early.

The villagers of Willowbrook Village had to go to the fields at five or six in the morning.

To not delay their progress or their own, Robert had sent a message to the technical department the night before, asking them to send the test report first thing in the morning.

With everyone in the village, if a murderer was hiding among them, they could catch them.

As soon as Robert woke up, the test report was sent over.

He immediately shared it in their criminal investigation team's group chat.

Zoey, used to waking up at the slightest movement in the dormitory, heard her phone vibrate and slowly opened her eyes.

Yawning, she picked up her phone.

The test report appeared before her eyes, and she eagerly clicked on it.

Skipping the professional jargon, she quickly scrolled down to the important conclusion: Numerous fingerprints were found on the three bodies, both male and female, too mixed to serve as direct evidence. The key was the semen test results found in their bodies.

Semen sample A found only in Faye matched a man named Chad Lopez.

Semen sample B found in all three victims matched Hugh.

Zoey had no impression of Chad.

She could remember almost everyone she had interacted with.

Chad's sample should have been collected by Charles and Dennis.

But she remembered Hugh vividly. The face that made her nauseous just thinking about it almost made Zoey retch.

Having gotten the results, she nudged Jordan beside her, "Wake up, Jordan."

She nudged Jordan several times before Jordan groggily opened her eyes, "What time is it?"

"Just past four."

"So early." Hearing the time, Jordan closed her eyes again, "I'll get up later..."

"The test results are out. We need to catch the murderer."

"Catching the murderer?" Hearing this, Jordan instantly became alert, "Who is it?"

She asked while getting dressed.

Zoey was on the phone, "Wait a minute, let me call Officer Davis first."

"Okay."

At 4:10 AM, the criminal investigation team gathered.

They didn't have time for breakfast, bought something quickly, and rushed to Willowbrook Village.

"Thinking about Chad makes me want to hit him! Having three kids served him, and he has a daughter himself, yet he still raped others! I'll definitely sneak a few kicks at him to vent my anger!"