Chapter 378
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Shaw spotted Caitlin in the crowd and gave her a small nod as a greeting. Then he ordered everyone to move down into the courtyard. Th crime scene needed to be secured for a detailed investigation.
Everyone filed downstairs and gathered in the yard, buzzing with speculation.
Greta kept harping on about punishing the killer, her words laced with insinuation–clearly pointing the finger at Caitlin.
Cynthia snorted. “Big sis–in–law, how are you so sure Caitlin’s the murderer before the police even finish investigating? Maybe someone else
did it and framed her.”
For all her trauma and instability, Cynthia’s thoughts were anything but muddled.
She was the only one who didn’t believe Caitlin was the killer. Just like she had never believed that the fire that killed her husband and con was an accident. Deep down, she’d always suspected the first branch of the family.
“Isn’t it obvious? Everyone saw where the body was. What more do you need?” Greta snapped.
Cynthia scoffed. “If what you see is always the truth, then on the night my husband and son died in that fire, I saw a shadow moving inside. But why didn’t anyone believe me back then?”
“That was different. The fire was an accident. Zahra was murdered. How is that the same?”
“How is it *not* the same? My husband and son were murdered too! Who’s going to give me justice?!”
The more she spoke, the more agitated she became–until she suddenly grabbed Greta by the collar.
“What are you doing? Let go of me, you lunatic!” Greta shrieked.
“My husband and son were murdered! Give them back to me!”
Cynthia always lost control when it came to the fire that took her family.
“Cynthia, calm down!”
Douglas and Randall rushed over to break them apart.
Rachel watched the chaos unfold and barked sharply, “Enough! Get her out of here! Do you want to make this even worse?”
Caitlin stood quietly nearby, watching Cynthia’s fury directed at Greta. She took it all in.
She had always thought Cynthia’s husband and son had died in an accidental fire. But now… could there have been more to it?
Why was Cynthia so hateful toward Greta and Quill? Could they have been involved in that so–called accident?
Caitlin leaned toward Sebastian and whispered something in his ear. He nodded, agreeing that there might be more to uncover about that
old fire.
Once Cynthia had been escorted away, the courtyard finally quieted down.
Upstairs, Shaw and his team completed their initial investigation–collecting fingerprints, footprints, an conducted a preliminary check and had the body transported for further examination.
Coming downstairs, Shaw was immediately approached by Greta.
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“So ? Did you find anything ? ” she asked anxiously,
“ There are still some questions we need to clarify,” Shaw replied, pulling out a notepad. “Who was the first person to discover the boo
“She was!” Several people pointed straight at Caitlin.
Shaw turned to her. “Caitlin, we’ll need you to come with us to assist with the investigation. Besides you, who else entered the room ?
Carmen stepped forward. “Me, and two servants–Philip and Omari. They went in first. I followed after.”
“What exactly happened?” Shaw asked.
“After dinner, Zahra went missing. I needed to speak with her, but I couldn’t find her anywhere and she wasn’t answering her phone. Sol gathered some people to search the house. When we got here, I ran into my cousin Caitlin.
“I asked if she had seen Zahra, but she didn’t tell me anything. Then Philip and Omari went into her room and found Zahra’s body. That’s
when we called the police.”
Shaw jotted everything down. “So the victim was found in Caitlin’s room?”
“That’s right.”
Shaw closed his notebook. “Alright, we’ve got a good grasp of the situation now. It’s confirmed to be a homicide. As for the method and the killer, we’ll continue the investigation and keep you informed. Please preserve the crime scene–no outsiders should enter for now.”
“Understood.”
Then Shaw turned to Caitlin. “Caitlin, please come with us.”
“Alright.”
Caitlin cooperated fully and followed Shaw and his team out. Sebastian went with her.
Watching Caitlin being taken away by the police, many in the Yuncey family were clearly delighted. Carmen exchanged a satisfied look with her mother. It felt like a thorn had finally been pulled from their side.
So satisfying.
With the evidence so clear–how could Caitlin get out of this one?
At the Departure City Police Department, Caitlin was taken in for questioning.
“Caitlin, did you have any conflicts with the victim?” Shaw asked.
“No. There were no issues between us.”
“Can you walk us through your movements that evening, before and after the incident?”
“In the afternoon, I visited Saint Everlight Cathedral. I had dinner later at a hotel–you can check their surveillance footage .
“After dinner, I returned to the Yuncey estate. The gate guards can confirm this.
“I first went to the main house to see my great–aunt and Greta, then visited Timothy and chatted with him for a bit when we finished, it was
around 8:45.
“It takes less than ten minutes to get from there to my room. When I opened the door and turned on the light , I found Zahra’s body .
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“I was so shocked, my first instinct was to call someone. I stepped back to avoid disturbing the scene and that’s when fran into terme was bringing servants to look for Zahra.
“ After that, they called the police. And now here we are.”
Shaw listened closely and nodded. “Got it. We’ll verify everything you said tomorrow. For now, you’re free to go. If you discover anything els contact me immediately.”
“Thank you, Shaw.”
Shaw was fair. He didn’t detain Caitlin just because she was the primary suspect.
Caitlin expressed her thanks and walked out of the station.
Sebastian was waiting outside. When he saw her, he hurried over. “How did it go?”
“I’ve told them everything. Let’s go.”
“Yeah.”
Caitlin got into the passenger seat. Instead of taking her back to the Yuncey estate, Sebastian had already booked a hotel room for the night
She stayed at the hotel and contacted Shaw the next morning after confirming the autopsy results. Then she returned to the Yuncey
residence .
Carmen and Greta were surprised to see her back. They had assumed she’d been detained.
“Oh, Caitlin’s back. So how was the holding cell last night?” Carmen asked with a smug smile.
“Wow, Carmen. Didn’t know you cared so much.”
Caitlin’s voice was cold. “But I do have a question. Zahra died in my room, and *you* just happened to be the one who found the body–with servants in tow. Don’t you think all these coincidences are worth explaining?”
AD