Chapter 298: You Are the Murderer?
Chapter 298: Chapter 298: You Are the Murderer?
The moment the suitcase was opened, gasps echoed from all around.
A pungent, foul odor emanated from the suitcase. An indescribable, sour stench of decay filled the air.
"It stinks!"
"Oh my god, that’s horrible..."
"Gag—"
A wave of retching passed through the crowd of onlookers.
Renee Jennings pressed her lips together, steeling herself before slowly opening her eyes to look at the suitcase in front of Henry Stark.
The waterlogged corpse was pale and swollen. Skin that should have been smooth and firm was now covered in wrinkles, and damp hair clung to it, creating a horrifying and grotesque sight.
But the most horrifying part wasn’t just that the corpse had been submerged in water, but that... it wasn’t a complete body!
Her hands and feet had been dismembered.
Renee Jennings’s eyelashes fluttered. Goosebumps broke out across her arms, and her stomach churned. She quickly looked away.
Sawyer looked at her and asked with concern, "Are you okay?"
Renee Jennings nodded. "I’m fine."
"Okay," Sawyer said. "If you need to, just say so. Don’t try to tough it out."
Among the onlookers outside the police tape, Mindy stared at the scene in shock.
’A female corpse...’
’There’s really a body?’
’Does this have something to do with Linus Hollis?’
Her brow furrowed as a strong sense of unease washed over her.
Just then, the police began to disperse the onlookers and transport the body to the medical examiner’s office.
**
The police station.
When Henry Stark and his team returned, Zachary Conway immediately came forward to report. "Chief, Linus Hollis is being completely uncooperative. He won’t say a word, no matter what we ask."
"I know." Henry Stark’s gaze was grim as he spoke in a cold voice, "Let him stew for a while. We’ll wait until we’ve confirmed the victim’s identity before we question him."
Zachary Conway: "Got it."
Half an hour later, Renee Jennings and Sawyer also returned to the station.
The two of them had gone to take Michelle Fuller home.
Some time later, Henry Stark received a notification that the victim’s identity had been confirmed.
The victim’s name was Moira Ford. She was twenty-six, unmarried, and currently unemployed.
Henry Stark’s dark brows furrowed. "Contact Moira Ford’s family. Have them come in to identify the body as soon as possible."
"Roger that," Kyle Morgan immediately replied.
Henry Stark’s gaze fell on the interrogation room. His lips barely moved. "Sawyer, to the interrogation room."
"Got it." Sawyer quickly grabbed her notebook and hurried after him.
Linus Hollis sat with his cuffed hands clasped together, his forehead resting on them. His expression was as dark as a thundercloud.
’He thought he’d been flawless, that his plan was foolproof. He never expected to be found out so quickly...’
The door to the interrogation room was pushed open from the outside.
Linus Hollis glanced up, then lowered his head again.
"What’s your name?" Henry Stark asked calmly.
"Linus Hollis."
"What was your relationship with Moira Ford?"
A flicker of surprise crossed Linus Hollis’s eyes, clearly impressed by the speed of the police investigation.
’They’ve already identified Moira Ford?’
He frowned slightly, then slowly looked up at Henry Stark. "Moira Ford was my ex-girlfriend."
"Ex-girlfriend?" Henry Stark’s eyes narrowed. "When did you two break up?"
Linus Hollis: "A couple of months ago."
"What was the reason for the breakup?"
"We grew apart."
"Why?"
"Is there always a ’why’?" Linus Hollis adjusted his glasses and scoffed. "You fall out of love, you break up. It’s as simple as that."
Henry Stark studied him with a cold glint in his eyes before asking, "When was the last time you were in contact with Moira Ford?"
Linus Hollis: "When we broke up."
"So you two had no contact after the breakup?"
"Well, *I* never contacted *her*," Linus Hollis said. "She texted me a lot, but I never replied."
Henry asked, "I thought you grew apart? Why would she keep texting you after the breakup?"
"I don’t know." Linus Hollis shrugged. "You’d have to ask her. How would I know?"
Then, he sighed with mock regret. "But she’s dead now, so you can’t ask her, can you? A real shame."
Standing behind the one-way mirror, Renee Jennings watched the interrogation. She couldn’t detect a hint of regret in Linus Hollis’s words, only a trace of mockery and disdain.
"How did you know she was dead?" Henry Stark’s voice was grave. "I don’t believe I told you whether Moira Ford was alive or dead."
Linus Hollis’s expression froze for a moment. He forced a smile and explained, "I deduced it, of course. You people show up out of nowhere, accuse me of dumping a body in the lake, and now you’re asking me about my relationship with Moira Ford. If she isn’t the one who’s dead, then who is?"
"Dumping a body in the lake?" Henry Stark’s eyes were piercing, his tone severe. "When did I ever tell you the body was in the lake? By the time the police were recovering the body, you’d already been removed from the scene. How could you possibly know the killer dumped a body in the lake? Unless... you *are* the killer."
Linus Hollis nervously bit his lip. His hands, which were resting on the table, clenched together tightly for a few seconds before he relaxed them to adjust his glasses.
He took a deep breath and said with a smile, "I saw it on my phone. It’s all over the group chats."
"Is that so?" Henry Stark said, a smirk playing on his lips. "Show me. Open the group chat where you saw the message about the body in the lake."
Linus Hollis met his gaze through his lenses and slowly nodded. "Fine."
He picked up his phone, pressed the power button to make the screen go dark, and said with a regretful expression, "Sorry, officer. My phone’s dead."
"Dead?" Henry Stark stood up, walked over to him, and held out his hand. "Give me the phone."
Linus Hollis tapped the dark screen, trying to prove his point. "It’s really dead."
Henry Stark snatched the phone from him and long-pressed the power button. The screen immediately lit up, showing 55% battery remaining.
"Looks like it has a charge to me. Why lie?"
Linus Hollis’s back went rigid. His face was ashen as he remained silent.
Henry Stark tossed the phone back in front of him. "Show me the message about the body in the lake."
Linus Hollis remained silent and didn’t move.
After a few dozen seconds, he picked up the phone, tapped the screen a few times, and said with an apologetic look, "Sorry, officer. I seem to have accidentally deleted the chat history."
Henry Stark planted his hands on the table and leaned in, his deep, dark eyes as sharp and piercing as a hawk’s, radiating an oppressive aura. "Linus Hollis, confessing is your only way out of this."
"What?" Linus Hollis looked bewildered. "Officer, I really don’t understand what you’re talking about. I was minding my own business, eating barbecue, when you suddenly accused me of dumping a body and dragged me in here for questioning. My head is completely spinning."
"Think carefully." Henry Stark straightened up, gave him one last, indifferent glance, and turned to leave the interrogation room.
Sawyer followed, laptop in her arms.
They ran into Renee Jennings coming out of another door. Sawyer whispered, "This guy is a tough nut to crack."
"I know," Renee Jennings said with a frown. "I was watching his expression the whole time. I didn’t see a single trace of fear."
"Exactly," Sawyer nodded. "That’s what’s so terrifying."
The team returned to the conference room to discuss the case when they suddenly heard a piercing shriek, followed by the sounds of anguished sobs.
"What was that?" Renee Jennings jumped, a flash of confusion in her eyes.
Sawyer, sitting beside her, explained softly, "The victim’s family must be here."