Chapter 186 - 185: The Reason Asher Approached Victor Quinn

Chapter 186: Chapter 185: The Reason Asher Approached Victor Quinn

Lucas Grant shot to his feet and looked at Asher. "Our plan was for the police to announce the victim was still fighting for their life. We thought it would make someone antsy. But if the serial killer case and this dismembered body case aren’t related, why did something happen to Erin Whittaker?"

Lucas Grant paced back and forth a few steps. "You said the killer would surface. The serial killer has, and you’re still saying it’s not the same person?"

Asher was silent for a moment before speaking. "No... The timing of Erin Whittaker’s disappearance is wrong. Someone did this on purpose."

It’s misdirection.

Someone is using Erin Whittaker to sow confusion.

"Everyone wants to lump the two dismembered body cases and the serial killer case together. After all, the perpetrators in some of them were victims themselves, and the cases have a lot of similarities. But no matter how you look at it, it feels like a deliberate copycat." Zeke Shaw shook his head, still feeling like something was off. "Erin Whittaker’s disappearance might just be a coincidence, a case of the serial murders and the dismemberment case getting tangled up."

Madeline Quinn also shook her head. "There’s a very important point about the serial killer case. The body disposal sites for those killers from the orphanage are all related to water. Meridia used to have a custom called ’water burial.’ In ancient times, the bodies of the most heinous criminals were thrown into the water to wash away their sins so they could be reborn as good people in their next life."

"Plus, the serial killer didn’t deliberately hide or destroy evidence," I added my own analysis. "But the dismemberment case used stray dogs to mutilate the body and contaminate the scene, leaving the police with no leads. Even if they traced it back, the killer was a victim forced into a corner who would ultimately take their own life, and the trail of evidence would go cold."

’No matter how you look at it, these two cases don’t seem to be the work of the same person.’

"The masterminds of the two cases are secretly competing with each other," Lucas Grant said in a low voice.

’It was like two people playing a game of chess.’

’The mastermind of the dismemberment case wants to sow confusion and pin all the blame on the mastermind behind the serial murders.’

’We’ll just have to see who comes out on top.’

"I’m heading out. I need to find someone." Lucas Grant walked to the door, then looked back at Asher. "Hey... can’t you do your thing? Figure out where Erin Whittaker should be right now."

"The killer always leaves clues for the next victim at the previous crime scene. I already divined Erin Whittaker’s location once. The trail is cold now. If the killer acts again, she can only be considered unlucky," Asher said grimly.

’This time, he wasn’t going to save her.’

’And he really couldn’t figure it out anymore.’

’The killer’s plans had been disrupted, which meant their next move would likely be random. If Asher could predict a random killing, he’d be a truly dangerous person. He’d probably never have to work again; he could just stay home and predict lottery numbers all day.’

Lucas Grant’s mouth fell open, then he gritted his teeth. "Fine! I’ll find her myself!"

Asher said nothing. Once Lucas Grant had left, he turned to Zeke Shaw. "Someone is luring the tiger from the mountain. Erin Whittaker is likely an accomplice or bait, meant to draw the investigation team away. I’m guessing the killer behind the second dismemberment case will use this opportunity to come to the hospital and destroy the evidence."

Zeke Shaw froze for a moment before realization dawned. "Right! I’ll head over now, in case Zane and the others are short-handed."

Zeke Shaw took off running, and Madeline Quinn followed him out.

Asher looked at me, his eyes red-rimmed, and his head drooped again.

He shuffled toward me, looking aggrieved, and gently tugged at my sleeve with his fingertips. "Cece..."

By the time I looked up at him, a tear had already fallen silently, landing right on the back of my hand.

’Is he made of water?’

"So... you suspected the dismemberment case was connected to Master Lancaster. Is that why you agreed to Lucas’s plan to go into the mental hospital and help him lure out the killer?" I was both angry and exasperated.

’Just how many things had he been hiding from me?’

"Cece... I don’t just suspect Master Lancaster. People like him and Brandon Lancaster are, at most, a sharp blade..." Asher leaned his head on my shoulder, his voice thick with tears. "The one I suspect is Victor Quinn."

I froze. ’Just as I thought...’

’I’d actually guessed as much.’

’After all, I suspected Victor Quinn, too.’

’Nothing ventured, nothing gained. Asher would never have been comfortable with me getting close to Victor Quinn, so he went into the mental hospital himself, hoping to uncover some clues?’

"Did you find anything?" I whispered.

"His ability to brainwash is incredible. He’s a real prodigy..." Asher murmured. "He excels at psychology, he can use hypnosis, and he knows how to effectively utilize chemical agents."

I sucked in a sharp breath, grabbing Asher’s wrist in a surge of retroactive fear. "You shouldn’t have provoked him..."

"But I found his weakness..." Asher leaned in close to my ear and whispered. "His daughter..."

I glanced sideways at Asher. "His daughter?"

"While I was in the mental hospital, Victor Quinn—a doctor obsessed with studying psychiatric patients—interrupted a consultation to take a phone call on three separate occasions. Every time, he had a smile on his face. The caller ID was ’My Treasure,’ and it sounded like a little girl, no older than thirteen, whose voice hadn’t changed yet. The person on the other end called him ’Daddy’."

Asher’s voice was low, gradually turning cold. "Cece... I’ve investigated Victor Quinn. His eldest daughter, from his ex-wife, was born two years before you. She had a severe genetic defect at birth, a rare disease. A few years later, all news of her vanished. The rumor is that she died."

"His younger daughter, from his current wife, should be thirteen years old now."

Asher straightened up and looked down at me. "Cece, something’s wrong with Victor Quinn."

I looked up at Asher, taking a long moment before I spoke. "Before I lost my memory... did I know something? Did I tell you?"

Asher’s eyes flickered away reflexively, and he lowered his head. "Victor Quinn might be connected to this dismemberment case... I suspect he’s tying up loose ends."

’Killing with a borrowed knife.’

’So that’s why Asher has been following the trail of clues.’

"When did you start suspecting Victor Quinn?" I watched Asher warily.

’His knowledge of Victor Quinn wasn’t something he’d picked up in a day or two. It seemed like he’d been planning to go into that mental hospital to learn more about him for a long time.’

’And Victor Quinn’s excitement about Asher had been even greater, as if that too had been premeditated.’

"I..." Asher looked down, flustered.

’He’s always evading the question.’

’Is he afraid of me finding out, or is he afraid of hurting me?’

"Asher, there are some things I have to get to the bottom of. Forgetting, being ignorant... that’s not necessarily a good thing for me. It could put me in even greater danger." ’I have a right to know the truth.’

’Unless Asher doesn’t truly trust me.’

"After your parents died in the car crash... I’ve been investigating. Investigating Victor Quinn, investigating everyone connected to him..."

’Asher finally admitted it. He’d had his sights set on Victor Quinn for a long time.’

’Under the guise of being a homeless wanderer, he had actually been observing, investigating, and piecing together clues in secret.’

...

「Asher’s Villa.」

After we left the hospital, Owen Foster found a private doctor to handle our daily treatments and IV drips.

Once everyone else had left, Asher took me to the basement.

The motion-sensor light on the basement stairs flicked on. The microcement interior was so clean it seemed as if there wasn’t a single speck of dust.

The walls on either side of the roughly three-foot-wide corridor were like crystal glass display cases. Inside, countless butterfly specimens were mounted in neat square frames.

I stared at the butterflies, my fingers tingling as I reached out to touch the glass.

The specimens... They were so lifelike, it was as if they might come back to life at any second.

"You like... specimens?" I asked cautiously, my mind flashing back to what Lucas Grant had said—that Asher was a lunatic.

’After all, when I died, I was turned into a specimen. The fear came from the very depths of my soul.’