Chapter 118

Robert felt a surge of pride as he patted Alexander on the shoulder. "Nice job, Alex. You deserve to be my student!"

Alexander was speechless.

Zoey wiped the dirt off the metal box and slowly opened it.

Inside, there was nothing but an old smartphone and a thick syringe, the kind used in hospitals, but without a needle.

The phone was definitely Haven's, but what was the syringe for?

Zoey walked over to Robert and whispered a few words. Robert nodded and turned to Olivia, who was still sitting on the floor, dazed. "Olivia, we need you to come with us."

Olivia stiffened and nodded.

She stood up compliantly, mimicking the way criminals surrendered on TV, holding her wrists together as if waiting for handcuffs.

Robert glanced at her awkwardly. "No need for that, at least for now."

As they were about to leave, Evan burst out of the room. "Olivia, I want to watch TV. Can you put on Spider-Man for me?"

Olivia replied, "Ask Mom to put it on for you."

Evan agreed, tilting his head as he looked at Olivia and the cops. He didn't understand why Olivia was with them. Remembering Zoey's earlier talk about catching aliens, he asked curiously, "Olivia, are you going with them to catch aliens? If so, I won't watch cartoons. I'll come too. Wait, I'll turn into Spider-Man now!"

Olivia was speechless.

Zoey and Charles exchanged a glance, both thinking the same thing without saying a word.

Evan was 'transforming,' ready to follow them.

Seeing this, Olivia quickly shouted, "Mom, Evan wants to go out. Keep an eye on him!"

Ava, still crying, had no idea what was happening outside.

It wasn't until she heard Evan's name that she came out.

She acted as if she didn't see Olivia, coaxing Evan back inside and closing the door tightly.

She didn't even ask Olivia a single question.

Robert, having spent the past few days in Willowbrook Village, was used to its 'customs' by now.

He figured Olivia must be used to it too.

Without any further comfort, he said, "Let's go."

Olivia was led out of the house, heading towards the church.

Zoey noticed Alexander's hand awkwardly hanging in the air. She asked, "Is it really that dirty?"

They were at the back of the group, unnoticed by the others.

Alexander, no longer bothering to hide his irritation, replied, "What do you think? If it wasn't, why did you make me go?"

Zoey thought to herself, 'To annoy you, of course.'

But she said, "Because you're a man. You're quicker and can handle tough situations better."

Hearing that, Alexander smiled slightly.

"Are you happy now that I praised you? Smiling so much," Zoey continued, seeing Alexander's face darkened even more. "I remember you didn't resist this much when you went into the sewer to find body parts."

Alexander retorted, "How do you know I didn't?"

"Why be a cop if you're such a neat freak?"

"Why be a cop if you're so broke?"

Their voices might have been a bit loud, catching Charles's attention.

Charles turned around, seeing their tense expressions. "Are you walking so slowly just to argue?"

Alexander instantly put on a natural smile. "Of course not. Zoey and I get along great."

Zoey couldn't stand Alexander's two-faced behavior and sneered, "You're really full of yourself."

Charles raised an eyebrow. "Indeed."

'So, what's their deal?' Charles thought.

At the church, they had Olivia wait in a small room while the detectives examined the metal box in another room.

The box was just a regular tin, usually for storing candy.

Robert separated the syringe and phone, placing them in evidence bags. He handed the bag with the syringe to a colleague heading to the lab for analysis.

Zoey, wearing gloves, turned on the phone. To her surprise, it powered up.

Jordan was astonished. "It turned on!"

The phone's wallpaper was a scenic ocean view. There weren't many apps, all visible on one screen.

Zoey immediately opened the photo gallery, finding many selfies of Haven and some with Rilla.

After viewing the photos, Zoey opened Facebook.

Haven had very few friends, less than ten, with Rilla being the only frequent contact.

She expected many messages between them but found very few.

Zoey scrolled to the beginning and quickly understood why.

This was Rilla's old phone. Haven, an orphan, had been liked by Hugh while working at his factory.

After moving to Willowbrook Village, she led a monotonous life with no social interactions, friends, or relatives.

Hugh had smashed her phone and refused to buy her a new one, saying she didn't need to contact anyone as an orphan.

But Haven, being young, still wanted to use a phone, even if it had nothing on it.

She secretly used the phone without Hugh knowing.

When Haven met Rilla, she had been married to Hugh for several years.

Rilla, home from college during breaks, would chat with Haven, easing her loneliness.

They talked all day, so there were few Facebook records.

But one day, their conversations changed, focusing on Haven's anxiety about having children.

Haven: [Why haven't I gotten pregnant after all these years?]

Haven: [I told Ava I wanted to see a doctor, but she wouldn't let me.]

Haven: [I know Hugh has a woman outside. I don't mind, but if she gets pregnant first, Hugh won't want me anymore. What will I do then? I'll be an orphan again...]

Rilla always cared for Haven, offering comfort and advice.

Their conversations about having children took up about 80% of the Facebook records.

Then one day, Haven stopped caring about having children. When Rilla asked, she would brush it off with a smile.

Rilla, being considerate, stopped asking.

They then talked mostly about the future, with Rilla often mentioning the beautiful ocean and sending Haven many photos.

Haven, after seeing the ocean photos, wanted to go with Rilla.

They promised to visit the beach together someday.

But after that, Haven disappeared. No matter what Rilla sent, she never replied.

Zoey exited Facebook and checked other apps, including notes and social media, but found nothing useful.

Dennis, still confused after reading the Facebook records, asked, "What's worth hiding in a chicken coop? There's nothing here."