Chapter 622: Polly Eames is Dead
Chapter 622: Chapter 622: Polly Eames is Dead
Inky had said that James Yelric would smash the refrigerator when he got drunk.
He would curse Polly Eames while he did it.
Renee Jennings thought it over. Something felt very wrong.
Although Willow didn’t know why Renee Jennings had suddenly brought it up, she answered helpfully, "It’s in the kitchen, but it’s broken."
Renee Jennings frowned and exchanged a glance with Henry Stark.
They walked to the kitchen together and saw a chest freezer sealed shut with tape. A terrible premonition instantly crept over them.
"Why is the freezer sealed up like this?" Renee Jennings asked.
Willow answered, "Dad said it was broken. He was afraid we’d forget and try to use it, so he sealed it shut."
Renee Jennings gave a slight nod and forced a smile. "Oh, I see. Do you remember when the freezer broke?"
"I think so..." Willow thought for a moment. "The freezer broke the same day Mom disappeared."
When she heard this, Renee Jennings’s lips pressed into a thin line. Her heart sank like a stone.
She looked at Henry Stark, her gaze turning grim.
The fists hanging at Henry Stark’s sides clenched tightly, then relaxed a few seconds later. "I’ll see if I can fix it," he said softly.
Willow’s face lit up with excitement. "Really?" she asked, pleasantly surprised. "You know how to fix freezers?"
Henry Stark met the little girl’s smile, but his own gaze darkened, and his breathing grew heavy. "I’ll give it a try."
"Okay!" Willow chirped, her heart filled with anticipation.
’If the freezer gets fixed, we won’t have to beg the produce and meat vendors to sell us just a little bit at a time anymore!’
Henry Stark said softly, "Could you all go downstairs and buy me a bottle of water? I’m a little thirsty."
"Of course," Renee Jennings played along. "Willow, Glenn, can you take me to the convenience store to buy some water?"
Willow and Glenn nodded in unison. "We can!"
Renee Jennings led the two siblings downstairs.
Henry Stark did a quick check. He followed the freezer’s power cord to the outlet, then placed a hand on its outer wall. He quickly determined that the unit was running normally.
His eyes suddenly turned sharp as his long, slender fingers tore away the layers of tape wound around the freezer.
After ripping off the last layer of tape, Henry Stark closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and lifted open the freezer lid.
A blast of frigid air rushed out to meet him, and his gaze locked onto the woman’s pale, despairing face.
Henry Stark’s dark pupils contracted violently. After a brief, stunned moment, he took out his phone, snapped a photo, and dialed Kyle Morgan’s number.
**
Renee Jennings was buying water at the convenience store with Willow and Glenn when her phone suddenly rang.
The caller ID showed Henry Stark’s name.
Renee Jennings answered the phone. Before she could even speak, the man’s somber voice came through the earpiece.
"We found Polly Eames."
Renee Jennings’s mouth fell open, and she instinctively glanced at Willow and Glenn.
Willow met her gaze and asked curiously, "Miss, did he fix the freezer?"
Renee Jennings’s eyelashes fluttered. She bit her lip and managed to force out two words: "Not yet."
"It must be really difficult," Willow said with a pout.
Glenn’s small face was full of admiration. "He’s so amazing! He catches bad guys like a policeman, and he can even fix freezers."
Renee Jennings reached out and gently stroked his head. Her chest felt tight, as if something were lodged in it, and an overwhelming sadness washed over her in waves.
Henry Stark’s low voice came through the earpiece again. "Renee, take Willow and Glenn somewhere else for now."
"Okay, I will," Renee Jennings replied softly.
After hanging up, she turned to the siblings. "He needs some other tools and asked me to go to my house to get them. Would you two like to come with me?"
"Okay," Willow said. "Should we go back for the pomegranates, then?"
"Let’s not." Renee Jennings shook her head. "We can get them after the freezer is fixed. There’s no rush."
"Okay." Willow nodded obediently.
"Let’s go, then." Renee Jennings led the two siblings to her car and fastened their seatbelts.
Sitting in the back seat, a surprised expression crossed Glenn’s small face. "Miss, how come you have a different car now?"
Willow scolded her brother in a low voice, "Why do you ask so many questions!"
Renee Jennings glanced at him in the rearview mirror and explained, "The SUV from before was his. This sedan is mine."
"Oh, I see." Glenn nodded in understanding. "Wow, Miss, you and him are amazing!"
Renee Jennings said, "That’s why you have to study hard, okay? That’s how you’ll get your chance to become amazing, too."
The corners of Willow’s lips turned up slightly, her tone tinged with happiness. "I love to read and study, Miss."
"That’s wonderful, Willow. That’s the right attitude." Renee Jennings typed a message and sent it to Rhea Dempsey, then placed her phone on the passenger seat. "Alright, let’s get going."
As the car pulled out of Steingard Alley, a police car approached from the opposite direction.
Glenn pressed his face against the window, pointing in amazement as the police car sped by. "A police car! That’s so cool!"
Willow craned her neck for a look, but she wasn’t interested and calmly pulled her head back.
Renee Jennings pressed her lips together, remaining silent.
’She knew that police car was heading for Willow and Glenn’s home.’
As the sedan drove down a familiar street, Glenn said excitedly, "My dad works in that hardware factory up ahead."
"Your dad works at a hardware factory?" Renee Jennings picked up her phone, pinned her current location, and sent it to a group chat.
"Yup." Glenn was clutching a yogurt drink, reluctant to open it. He kept his eyes on it as he spoke. "My dad said when I grow up, he’ll teach me how to do this stuff, so I won’t have to go to school."
When Willow heard that, she frowned and retorted sullenly, "But it would be awful if you grew up to be like Dad."
"Why?" Glenn asked, confused.
Willow said, "Dad’s never serious about his work, he loves to gamble, and he always hits people after he drinks. He’s not good at all."
Glenn frowned and thought about it seriously. "Then never mind. I’m not going to learn the hardware trade from Dad."
"You need to study. You need to read lots and lots of books."
"Lots and lots of books? That’s so many! My eyes would go blind..."
Listening to the siblings’ back-and-forth, Renee Jennings couldn’t manage even a hint of a smile. Her heart felt heavy, and she couldn’t relax in the slightest.
’Polly Eames was dead.’
’Killed by James Yelric.’
’James Yelric was Glenn’s father. If Willow knew the truth, how would she react?’
"I see Dad!" Glenn shouted excitedly. "Look, Miss, the one with the dyed-blond hair, that’s my dad!"
Renee Jennings slowed the car and rolled down her window, looking toward the street-front hardware factory.
It was a row of five storefronts, where several men were working with tools in hand.
Renee Jennings’s gaze locked onto one of the figures—a man with a head of faded blond hair and a prominent scar on the bridge of his nose.
[System 009: Congratulations on completing the Level 4 mission: Find the Murderer and the Body. Reward granted: Squirrel Dictionary, 300 points, 3 million cash.]