Chapter 187 - 186: Analyzing the Hidden Truth of the Past

Chapter 187: Chapter 186: Analyzing the Hidden Truth of the Past

"You... gave them to me." Asher’s finger touched the bottom right corner of the specimen, where a black signature, "CC"—Cecilia Caldwell’s initials—was visible.

I stared at Asher in shock, my breath catching. "Me? I gave them to you?"

’All of these specimens?’

"You said the beauty of a shooting star lies in its fleeting moment. That the brief bloom of an epiphyllum is what makes it so stunning..." Asher turned to look at me, his voice as hoarse as ever.

Yet it seemed to carry a story of endless loneliness, grievance, and self-blame. "Life is short. If you want to keep them forever, this is the only way..."

I stared in shock at the wall full of butterfly specimens. For a moment, it was as if they had all come to life, beating their wings in flight...

"I can’t believe I... would like something like this..." I said in astonishment.

Asher took my hand and led me into a room in the basement.

The door to the room had a keypad lock. It looked sturdy, like the vault of a bank.

The door opened, and I followed Asher inside.

When the lights came on, I was so stunned my entire body went numb.

’Asher... has he finally decided to open up to me?’

In other words, he was finally willing to trust me completely, to take out all his hidden secrets, all his scars, and show them to me.

An entire wall of the basement was covered with Asher’s investigations into Victor Quinn, me, my parents, the people from the orphanage, and... some people I didn’t recognize.

And... this current serial murder case.

It was as if he were monitoring everyone, like the hand of God, manipulating everything.

I looked at Asher, a sense of panicked fear rising in me.

’He... couldn’t actually be the killer, could he?’

Asher led me to the photo wall and pointed to the bottom-left section. "This isn’t the first serial murder case. Three years ago, after I left the mental hospital, a series of deaths occurred among the hospital’s doctors."

Several psychiatrists died by slipping and falling, accidents, drowning, fires... In short, their deaths seemed completely unrelated, yet at the same time, they felt intricately connected.

"You suspect that the person who orchestrated those ’accidental’ deaths is the real killer in this serial murder case?" I asked in a low voice.

Asher nodded. "There’s one thing in common. They don’t kill the innocent."

Asher pointed to a doctor who had reported the mental hospital for malpractice back then. "This man, Kyle Morgan, was one of the few doctors at the hospital who had a conscience. He was the one who exposed the corruption and saved me from that place."

He was also the doctor Julian Fletcher had brought to provoke Asher that day.

"All of these people’s deaths... they all revolve around me..." Asher murmured.

The doctors who died were all people who had hurt, bullied, and tormented Asher.

"So, more attention is focused on me, and the real killer is often overlooked," Asher said quietly.

"You knew something was wrong back then, you had this chain of evidence... Why didn’t you go to the police...?" I looked at Asher anxiously.

Asher’s eyes reddened as he looked at me, his Adam’s apple bobbing. He looked like he wanted to say something but held back.

"Asher... you’re going to tell me everything, right?" I watched him, my heart pounding with anxiety. ’What is he still hiding?’

Asher averted his gaze. "Everything I’ve investigated is here... Victor Quinn is definitely a dangerous man. I suspect... that your parents’ deaths, and Marcus Lancaster’s death... are also connected to Victor Quinn."

Marcus was Asher’s father.

My breath grew hot as I stared at the wall covered in clues.

When did the Lancaster Family get entangled with Victor Quinn? It started with a "God Creation Plan" that Victor Quinn proposed after winning an award in the medical field.

"My dad... biology, genetic research... gene-edited babies? What does this mean..." My breathing was heavy and hot. My fingers trembled as I reached out to touch the documents.

’Gene editing? The so-called God Creation Plan was meant to let the children of the wealthy be fundamentally superior to everyone else.’

’If a plan like this, one that violates humanity and morality, were to be widely accepted by society, it would upend the current social order. The outstanding would become even more so, and the keys to wealth would remain firmly in the hands of a select few.’

’From birth, these people would be immune to many diseases. They would be born as... the so-called ’left hand of God’—geniuses.’

"Initially, this plan was dedicated to exploring fields like AIDS, rare diseases, genetic disorders, cerebral palsy, and supermale syndrome. When the medical professionals involved lacked sufficient funding, they sought help from the financial sector." Asher pointed to Marcus Lancaster.

"As the Lancaster Family’s most brilliant business prodigy and Master Lancaster’s most favored heir, Marcus Lancaster learned about many children with rare diseases through your father’s introduction. He established a charitable foundation, invested in building medical facilities, and provided ample funds to help them with their exploration and research..."

"As the initiator, Victor Quinn... started out hitting it off with your parents, Marcus Lancaster, and other high-society figures, sharing drinks and good times. But in the end, everything was on the verge of collapse... That car crash back then was deliberate. I suspect that Marcus Lancaster and your parents must have discovered some terrible, hidden secret."

And the people who were dying now were all, to some extent, people who knew some of those secrets.

’Someone is tying up loose ends.’

"Five years ago, a new type of psychoactive drug appeared in Sudesia. No one knew who developed it. Once it hit the market, it shattered countless families. Sickness, fear, violence... it all spread. It was a feast of rapidly spiking dopamine and endorphins..." Asher pointed to the top right corner.

"Cece... what’s terrifying isn’t just the serial murders. It’s the unfathomably deep and boundless spiderweb behind it all. I hid it from you... because I didn’t want you to get tangled up in it again. I wanted you to live like a normal person..."

Asher’s voice trembled uncontrollably.

I looked at the center of the entire wall. There was a photo of ’Cecilia Caldwell’.

Asher had taken so, so many photos of me after the car accident that caused my amnesia. It was as if... he had never left, that he had been protecting me all along.

Hot tears welled up and streamed down my face. My gaze fell on a photo taken at my high school gate.

I vaguely remembered that day... The punks who used to bully me suddenly vanished, and someone in the alley was shouting that there had been a killing...

I heard that a boy had been stabbed in a fight.

’It was Asher, wasn’t it?’

’He’s always been protecting me.’

"After I lost my memory, you never chose to make me remember you... Instead, you silently followed and protected me... You did it so I could live a normal life, so I could escape this web, right?" I asked, my voice choked with emotion.

Asher didn’t answer.

’He had always wanted to protect me... He had tried so many ways.’

’But he was never able to get me out.’

"But we’re both just insects stuck on this web... If we don’t burn the web down, how can we ever escape?" I murmured, my voice gradually growing firm.

’Since Asher chose to tell me all this...’

’Then it’s... time for us to face it together, to investigate it together.’

’We’ll find the real mastermind and uncover the whole truth.’

’And drag all the darkness and filth into the light of day.’

"Cece... you’re right. We’ve tried to escape, but we can’t. Instead of being insects on this web, waiting to be slaughtered, we should fight back..." Asher pulled me into a tight hug, his body trembling.

"This time... I’m going to protect you," Asher whispered. "I swear I will."

"Asher, you’ve already guessed who the mastermind is behind the serial murders and the strange deaths of the mental hospital doctors back then, haven’t you?" I said, looking at him.

’With all his years of observation and investigation, I bet... he’s already guessed who the killer is. He just doesn’t have concrete evidence yet.’

Asher looked away, clearly avoiding my question.

’Who could it be that he finds so hard to name?’

Looking at the wall full of photos and clues, it was hard not to suspect that Asher... was deliberately protecting the mastermind behind the serial murders.

"After Mindy Foster died, you had already figured out who the next victim would be long before the second person was killed, but you didn’t tell the police... Asher, was it because you hated them, or were you trying to protect the killer? What... made you decide to help the police later? Was it my death?"

My emotions were running high.

’Did Asher also not expect that the murderer would even kill Cecilia Caldwell? Is that why he’s so full of self-blame and guilt, why he’s going crazy...?’

Asher was silent, his hands clenched into fists.

After a long moment, he finally spoke. "Cece... that’s not important... Please, don’t ask..."

"Not important?" I frowned at Asher, a sudden chill running through me.

’Who killed me isn’t important? The most important person on Asher’s clue wall is Victor Quinn.’

’The person he wants to drag down from his pedestal is Victor Quinn, and my death was just a minor incident, a small deviation—unimportant?’

*(What do you all think? Has Asher figured out who the killer is?)*