Chapter 529: On the Birth of Rumors

Chapter 529: Chapter 529: On the Birth of Rumors

A neighbor who had come over to check on the situation frowned. "Can’t you disclose anything at all? You’ve suddenly made such a huge scene. As residents living here, we have the right to know what’s going on. Otherwise, you’re just going to cause panic among everyone." After speaking, she pointed around.

The officer followed the direction of her finger and sure enough, saw several onlookers standing by the stairwell or in the hallway. Everyone’s face was filled with curiosity and worry. They wanted to know what exactly had happened, yet feared that a real incident had occurred here. They worried about what would happen to the property values if there really was a vicious crime. And if they continued living here, would there be any strange phenomena?

Older residents couldn’t help but let their imaginations run wild. While agonizing over the possibilities themselves, they didn’t forget to whisper with the people next to them.

"From this angle, I can see a bit of what’s going on inside. There are a lot of cops in there! If it were just an ordinary burglary, there’s no way they’d need to mobilize this many people! Something has definitely happened, and it’s the serious kind! Could someone be dead?" Neighbor A stood on his tiptoes, craning his neck to look inside, narrating what he saw as he did.

"Could it be haunted now? My little grandson was just born not too long ago. It’d be terrible if he was affected by that sort of thing," Neighbor B said with some concern. "Should I take the child back to my hometown for a bit?"

"I just bought this house! If a murder really happened, the housing prices will definitely plummet!" Neighbor C’s tone was full of despair. He had borrowed a lot of money from the bank; if this place became a murder house, it would be hard to sell, and the property value would drop. Just thinking about it was utterly hopeless.

"I haven’t seen Cameron come out, nor her mother-in-law. It’s likely something really did happen. Could it be that both mother-in-law and daughter-in-law are gone?" Dean guessed.

The crowd chimed in one after another, exhausting all possibilities. In the end, the rumor had morphed into a fugitive breaking into the household and murdering both the mother and daughter-in-law right in front of the police. They even described the details vividly, going as far as to fill in the supposed grudges and romantic entanglements between the killer and the victims. Someone got so caught up in the drama that, completely ignoring the reality of the situation, they took out their phone and called their friends so they could listen in together.

The officer guarding the door witnessed the rumor materialize out of thin air. Looking at the crowd still gossiping endlessly not far away, and then at the neighbor standing in front of him waiting for an answer, he pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "I need to request permission for that. The specifics depend on my captain’s reply. But no matter what the result is, you’ll have to leave here later. You can’t hinder our operation."

The neighbor who had come to ask nodded. "We know our limits!"

The officer took a step back and waved at a colleague not far away. After explaining the situation outside, he asked the colleague to go ask Captain Keller how to handle it.

The commotion outside had long since attracted the attention of Evan Keller and the others. Upon hearing the relayed message, Evan put away his badge, thought for a moment, and looked at Zoe Sawyer and Sean Hughes beside him. "You two go out and take a look. See if you can ask around and get anything useful."

"No problem, leave it to us," Zoe accepted the assignment.

Once Zoe and the others went out, Evan looked at the officer who had come to pass the message and asked, "Where is the ambulance?"

After all, they weren’t professional medical personnel. Although they had simply treated the victim’s wounds and stopped the bleeding, she needed more professional treatment, which could only be provided at a hospital.

The officer checked his phone and his eyes lit up. "They’ve already arrived downstairs, and our people are bringing them up! This neighborhood is old, and a lot of cars or junk are piled up on the streets, blocking the way. The ambulance couldn’t drive in, so they were delayed a bit."

Hearing that the medical personnel had already arrived downstairs, Evan breathed a sigh of relief. It was good that they were here. Given the victim’s condition, she wouldn’t be able to hold on much longer relying solely on their crude first-aid methods.

"Alright, go assist Captain Sawyer and the others in evacuating the onlookers outside to make way for the paramedics. As for the rest, once the victim is sent to the hospital, we’ll lock down the scene, take photos, and escort the culprit back to the police station," Evan quickly arranged.

"Copy that!" The team members nodded one after another, speeding up their work.

Upon hearing Evan’s words, the old woman who had still been struggling seemed to deflate, lying quietly on the ground. Her expression became unusually calm as if she had accepted her fate; the furious and vicious look from before seemed as if it had never existed.

Evan noticed several toddler toys scattered next to the sofa and coffee table. He wondered if this household had a child, and if so, where the child was now. However, after subduing the old woman, they had searched the remaining rooms, the kitchen, and the bathroom, but had not found anyone else.

"Where is the child?" Evan stood next to the old lady and asked.

Hearing this question, the previously calm old woman looked up at Evan, then turned her head toward the unconscious victim not far away. "She sent him back to her parents’ house. I’m not stupid enough to make a move in front of my grandson. Wouldn’t that make him hold a grudge against me?"

"But you’ve already attacked his mother! Why aren’t you worried about that now?" Evan slammed his hand on the table in anger, his tone stern.

"He’s still young. As long as I succeeded, I have plenty of ways to make him forget about this wretched woman," the old woman said with a mocking tone.

"What do you mean by that?" Evan frowned, continuing to press her.

But this time, the old woman averted her gaze and stopped answering his questions, as if their conversation just now had been nothing more than an illusion. The atmosphere inside the room grew heavy.

Compared to the tense atmosphere on Evan’s side, Zoe and the others outside seemed much more at ease. The crowd, who had been letting their imaginations run wild guessing what had happened inside, saw several police officers walking toward them and knew they could get some answers. One by one, they hurriedly gathered around and fired off their questions.

"Officer, was someone killed inside? Did you catch the killer?"

"Was it really done by a fugitive?"

"When did you guys get here? Why didn’t we hear any commotion?"

"Can we still live in these apartments? If it really becomes a murder house, can I demand the culprit compensate me for the drop in property value?"

Questions were hurled at them one after another. A couple of older ladies even reached out to tug on Zoe and Sean’s sleeves, but they were stopped by Heath Hale and the arriving officers. Remembering the task Evan had just given him, an officer blocked the neighbors while shouting at the top of his lungs.

"Make way! Everyone, make way! Don’t block the area! Leave a path for the paramedics to get the injured!"