Chapter 13

Zoey looked at Robert and said, "Officer Davis, I've almost wrapped up the screening, sticking to Ella's conditions. We're looking for out-of-towners, women who keep to themselves and don't have much of a social life. Right now, I've got two names that fit the bill."

She took a deep breath, glancing at the names she had jotted down. "The key thing is, both of them went through sexual harassment."

Robert, who was yawning, suddenly perked up. "What?"

Alexander, standing nearby, was also caught off guard.

Zoey continued, "The first one is Lily Martin. I checked her file. Her dad went with her to report it. He said she was harassed at work, and it was her first time dealing with something like that."

She went on, "The second one is Aria Clark. She got harassed while hiking. To double-check, I reached out to Ella again."

Robert glanced at his watch. "When did you talk to her?"

"Just now," Zoey replied calmly. "She was awake and got back to me. I asked her about my hunch. She said she had also been sexually harassed. It happened on her way home one day, and it really shook her up, making her super aware of anything weird around her."

Zoey continued, "Officer Davis, I found something else. Lily disappeared four months ago, and Aria nine months ago... this cooling-off period..."

Alexander chimed in, "Based on what Officer Brown found, I have a case that fits your cooling-off period. Mine was six months ago."

Then he went on, "Her name is Stella Hall. She went through the same stuff Zoey mentioned. But she's different; she's disabled. She didn't want to make a scene in a big mall and felt self-conscious, so she kept quiet."

"Which one? I'll check it out right now!" Robert stood up, clearly pissed off.

Alexander stayed calm, "Wait until morning. I'll get in touch with the victims' friends."

"Damn it!" Dennis said, grabbing the investigation results and frowning. "This is really tough! Officer Davis, look at this. We can't solve this just by working hard!"

Robert said, "Each case was reported at different police stations, and the victims can't prove any other suspicions of being harmed... This means it can't be escalated to a criminal case. These scattered cases have been classified as ordinary missing persons cases by various stations... This shows that the suspect is really good at avoiding detection!"

Running around to different police stations wasn't a big deal. But once a case was classified, it couldn't be reopened just because they found traces of a sedative at the suspect's place.

Robert scratched his head in frustration. "That bastard!"

Being a seasoned officer, he quickly calmed down and gave orders, "It's too late today. Everyone go home and get some rest. Tomorrow, contact all the victims' families and see if there's any new info."

Zoey stretched out her arms and legs, feeling sore from sitting too long.

She yawned and followed Alexander to the dorms.

Alexander wasn't surprised by Zoey's performance today. She had been a star at the police academy, and now she was even better.

Out of the blue, Alexander asked, "You must've done pretty well at your last station, huh?"

That's probably why she got transferred to the criminal investigation department.

Zoey wanted to roll her eyes and say it wasn't his business. But she was more curious about his question, so she asked, "Why asking this?"

Alexander's tone got serious. "I think you've got a bright future ahead. Don't let past stuff mess it up, or you'll regret it."

Zoey sneered. If anyone else had said that, she might've been touched. But coming from Alexander, it just made her feel gross.

"Cut the crap, don't act all nice to me," Zoey snapped.

Alexander sighed deeply.

They reached the women's dorm.

He repeated to her the house number that Robert had told him.

Zoey didn't even look at him and walked straight ahead.

Alexander called out, "Wanna grab dinner tomorrow?"

Zoey shouted back, "Get lost!"

Then she slammed the door shut, making it clear how much she disliked him.

Early the next morning, the criminal investigation team was already busy, questioning the victims' families again about the incidents. They got all the locations where the incidents happened from their statements.

Luckily, since these were public areas, it was easy to get the surveillance footage.

Charles stared intently at the footage from the moment it started playing, not wanting to miss anything.

But the screen was filled with a sea of heads; everyone was looking down at their phones, with only a few faces visible.

"God, how are we supposed to find the victim?" Charles sighed in frustration, picking up Lily's photo and trying to match it with the heads on the screen. "She had slightly curly red hair, 5.5 feet tall." He compared the photo while searching the footage.

After a while, he exclaimed, "There she is."

Zoey quickly went over to look, but the sea of heads made her feel a bit claustrophobic. Where was the victim Charles mentioned?

Charles pointed to a spot on the screen. "Right here, see? The one wearing a hat."

In the crowded surveillance footage, Lily's face and features were completely obscured, especially since she was wearing a hat, making it even harder to spot her.

Unexpectedly, Charles found her. It proved the saying that everyone in the criminal investigation department had skills. They might seem ordinary, but they all had unique talents.

Zoey couldn't help but admire. "Charles, you're amazing."

Charles confidently patted his chest, feeling a bit proud. "Of course, I'm not as dumb as Officer Davis says."