Chapter 58

Before he could finish his sentence, Dennis shot him a look and said, "Shut up, will you!"

If he kept talking, Zoey would be scared off, let alone agree.

Zoey slowly chewed and swallowed the beef in her mouth, looking relaxed and casual. "I'm fine with it. I can work anywhere." As long as she could earn money, it was the same for her to work anywhere.

Alexander glanced at Zoey and then turned to Robert. "Zoey agrees it."

Robert's expectant look turned into joy. "Great, I really like this answer. Zoey, you can stay at my place. Tenley likes you a lot. You won't have to pay for food or lodging, and you can enjoy Tenley's cooking every day. We can go to work together."

Zoey felt this arrangement would leave her with no personal space.

Although she missed Tenley's cooking, being together every day seemed unnecessary.

She politely declined, "Officer Davis, there's no need for that. The dorms at the criminal investigation department are similar to school dorms, and I'm used to it. Staying at your place all the time isn't right, and it would affect your private time with your wife."

But Robert was insistent. "Stay! I know the conditions of the dorms in the criminal investigation department. As a captain, I know how important good sleep is for detectives. Only with good sleep can we outsmart criminals and predict their next move! Besides, I have been old, so there is no need to spend the romantic private time with my wife."

"But..." Zoye wanted to say something more.

"That's settled."

Alexander, knowing Zoey well, mediated, "Officer Davis, you might scare Zoey away with this. How about you rent the room to her? That way, Zoey would feel more comfortable staying. Otherwise, anyone would feel awkward staying for free."

Robert thought Alexander had a point and realized he hadn't considered it thoroughly.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Alright, how about this: $300 a month, no need to worry about utilities, free breakfast, and late-night snacks. Don't think it's too cheap. If you're home resting, just accompany Tenley shopping and chatting. How about it?"

Hearing that, Zoey suddenly thought of the $450 she earned today.

Robert had made it clear, and not accepting seemed disrespectful.

"Thank you, Officer Davis. I'll stay for now."

"No need to be polite!" Robert was overjoyed to have Zoey stay at his place.

Zoey suddenly thought of Robert's son, Kelvin, who was away at college, and asked, "Officer Davis, does your son know you're renting out his room?"

Robert looked puzzled. "What son?"

Zoey fell silent, thinking, 'He forgets his own son, Kelvin?'

Alexander was also curious about Robert's son, Kelvin, who was away at college. "Officer Davis, how old is Kelvin? This is the first time I've heard about him during my internship."

"He's a senior in college, studying medicine. He's probably interning now." Robert looked a bit helpless when thinking about Kelvin. "Kelvin was obedient when he was young, but as he grew up, he became very independent. He chose his college major without discussing it with me or Tenley. Before we could ask, he had already filled out the application."

"Officer Davis, what did you want him to study?" Dennis asked curiously.

Robert casually took a bite of food. "I don't know. I don't even know what he likes."

Everyone exchanged glances, feeling speechless.

But they had to admit, the celebration dinner was very enjoyable.

After dinner, everyone went home. Zoey got into Robert's car and went home with him.

The car started and drove for about ten minutes when Zoey noticed they weren't taking the usual route home.

Robert drove that route every day, so he wouldn't have made a mistake.

She didn't mention it, thinking he must have something to do.

Sure enough, Robert stopped the car at a place resembling a farmer's market. "Wait here, I'm going to buy some food. Tenley loves the food from this place."

"Okay."

After Robert got out, Zoey made herself comfortable, leaning sideways on the passenger seat.

She took out her phone to play for a while.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a familiar figure through the car window.

Although she had only seen her once, Ruby's beaten appearance was still vivid in her mind, and she recognized her easily.

She saw Ruby holding a child, walking hurriedly through the crowd, as if avoiding something.

Ruby was holding a girl about seven or eight years old. Given her age and thin frame, she soon put the child down.

Ruby looked anxious, constantly making phone calls, but it seemed no one was answering.

She must have made at least seven or eight calls.

Zoey was intently watching Ruby when the car door clicked open.

Robert put the food in the trunk and noticed Zoey looking outside. He curiously asked, "What are you looking at?"

"Officer Davis, wait a moment!" Before Robert could finish, she got out of the car.

She quickly walked through the crowd, crossed the street, and approached Ruby.

Ruby, still making calls, didn't notice her and was startled when Zoey spoke. "Ms. Moore."

Fear spread across Ruby's face, a real reaction, not faked.

If she hadn't seen it was Zoey, she might have fainted from fright.

Seeing it was Zoey, Ruby visibly relaxed, her fear gradually fading until she was calm.

Ruby looked at Zoey, thinking for a moment. "You're the officer from Riverside Police Department today, right?"

"Yes, I'm Zoey Brown."

"Officer Brown, what a coincidence to meet you here."

Zoey also found it quite coincidental. "Yes, I came to buy food and saw you with a child." She glanced at the child Ruby was holding and asked, "It's getting dark. Why are you wandering the streets with a child instead of going home?"

Before she could finish, Ruby's eyes reddened, and she carefully wiped away her tears. "My husband hit me again, worse than last time. I really don't want to stay at home anymore, so I took the child and left. I wanted to stay with a friend, but somehow, my friend isn't answering the phone."