Beta Morgan’s words made everyone in the room hold their breath.
They exchanged glances, their expressions equally bewildered.
Beta Morgan continued:
"How would a young lady from a Great Family know how to arrange a kidnapping, set an ambush, dispose of a phone, and cover her own tracks? Especially back when she hired people to kidnap her cousin—she was only a teenager. Who was this professional who taught her how to handle a body? Could she have known a Shadow Killer even back then?"
A Level One agent frowned and replied:
"I had my doubts about this before, too. But after we started investigating The Shadow Organization, I just naturally assud they were behind everything, including Aurora Sinclair’s kidnapping."
Beta Morgan glanced at the agent and clicked the mouse. Kevin Whitlock’s na appeared on the screen.
"Joyce Guthrie used to be the madam’s goddaughter, so she naturally would have been acquainted with Kevin Whitlock. It’s perfectly normal that she could have learned so... specialized knowledge from him. Then, considering the facts of the case at the ti—Joyce Guthrie was dead set on ruining Aurora Sinclair’s reputation, while Kevin Whitlock, for his own reasons, despised her. It’s not impossible that the two of them collaborated to plan that kidnapping..."
"Ahem..." Alvin Morgan coughed lightly.
Beta Morgan chuckled sheepishly. "My apologies, I got carried away. Back to the matter at hand. If Kevin Whitlock wanted to use the Spider Woman to destroy Aurora Sinclair, why would he kill the Spider Woman afterward? That makes Alden, the one in the surveillance room who pressed the detonator, highly suspicious..."
Marshall Shaw’s brow furrowed instantly. "We already gave Alden a lie detector test. His statent checked out."
"But don’t forget what he said. He thought the collar contained an ordinary knockout drug. And Kevin Whitlock has always maintained that he wasn’t the one who installed the collar. Assuming they’re both telling the truth, then who put the bomb in the collar? And who led them both to believe it was just a knockout drug?"
Beta Morgan paused, glanced around at everyone in the room, and said regretfully, "Since Kevin Whitlock is currently refusing to speak with our boss, we haven’t been able to question him about this."
Then, Beta Morgan turned to Marshall Shaw. "Captain Shaw," he said, "it would be best if your team handles the follow-up on this."
Marshall Shaw’s expression shifted. "I’ll get to the bottom of the collar incident..."
***
「Late at night.」
Marshall Shaw walked up to the door of the special ward, looking exhausted.
The Level Five agent on guard duty snapped to attention and saluted when he saw him.
"Captain..."
"What about his statent?"
As the agent led him inside, he reported, "Captain Whitlock is sticking to his original statent. He denies any involvent in the attack on Zhang from the cafeteria and the collar explosion. He also said..."
At this, the Level Five agent glanced at him, hesitating.
Marshall Shaw stopped short. His expression shifted as he looked at the agent. "What did he say?"
"He said that you were the one who told him the collar was filled with a powerful sedative. That’s why he felt safe handing the remote to Alden. He’s saying you’re indirectly responsible for the Spider Woman’s death..."
Marshall Shaw’s face darkened. He stared intently at the agent and asked in a grave voice, "And you? Do you believe that?"
"Of course not! Captain Whitlock has always been at odds with you, constantly gunning for your position. He’s probably just trying to sling mud..."
Marshall Shaw’s expression relaxed. "Who else knows about this statent?"
"Don’t worry, Captain. I’m the only one who knows," the Level Five agent replied, scratching his head as if expecting praise.
Pulling on his gloves, Marshall Shaw said approvingly, "Well done. I won’t forget you when it’s ti for promotions."
The Level Five agent’s eyes lit up, and he snapped to an even straighter posture. "Thank you for your support, Captain."
"Danny, go buy a pack of cigarettes from the front gate."
"You got it..."
But as soon as he turned, a sharp blow struck the back of his neck. His vision went black, and he lost consciousness.
Behind him, Marshall Shaw gave the unconscious agent a blank look, then walked toward a specific hospital room.
In the hospital room, Kevin Whitlock’s breathing was very steady.
A silver light flashed in Marshall Shaw’s hand as he stabbed swiftly toward Kevin Whitlock’s chest, only to hit a thick, heavy plate.
His heart clenched, and he leaped back to a safe distance.
The room’s lights flickered on.
The room was plunged into daylight brightness, forcing him to squint and quickly shield his eyes.
"So it really was you... Marshall Shaw..."
Alvin Morgan’s voice drifted from the window, just as a crowd of people who had been lying in wait burst through the door.
A vicious light flared in Marshall Shaw’s eyes. ’I’m finished,’ he thought. He spun around to grab the person on the bed as a hostage, but a wave of Power shattered his entire arm. The person in the bed was Aurora Sinclair.
Her eyes were lethally cold. With a re flick of her hand, an invisible force struck Marshall Shaw like a sledgehamr, sending him flying backward to slam hard against the wall.
To prevent him from taking his own life, Aurora Sinclair quickly pried his jaw open to check for poison hidden in his teeth.
Finding no poison, she released his jaw but stripped him of all his weapons. Then, she used her field of Power to pin him against the wall.
Alvin Morgan found a chair and sat down, asking bluntly, "Start talking. When were you bought off? Or have you always been a mole planted by The Shadow?"
Marshall Shaw had been with the Martial Affairs Bureau for over a decade, rising from a Level Five agent to Level One, eventually becoming a division Captain at headquarters.
When Alvin Morgan had first voiced his suspicions, even Beta Morgan couldn’t bring himself to believe it.
Marshall Shaw’s face was calm. Forcing back the pain wracking his body, he asked, "How did you know... it was ?"
"Your plan was nearly flawless. I was, in fact, suspecting Kevin Whitlock. But the recording threw a wrench in your plans. You were afraid it might contain sothing that incriminated you, so you deliberately lured Aurora out early in the morning to buy breakfast. You made sure she’d witness the car accident involving Mr. Cain from the cafeteria, all to deepen the suspicion on Kevin Whitlock..."
"Then, during the eting, you made nurous statents attacking Kevin Whitlock. It looked like you were standing up for Aurora, but you were actually diverting everyone’s attention to the Whitlock Family and Kevin himself. You were also trying to sow discord between and the Whitlocks. You thought that because of Aurora, I would stop looking for evidence to clear Kevin’s na. I’m sorry to disappoint you, but no matter how furious I was, the truth is still the truth..."
After listening, Marshall Shaw suddenly burst out laughing. "Worthy of the Morgan na..."
"Now, can you tell why you sided with The Shadow?"
"Do you know how long it took to climb to this position?" Marshall Shaw suddenly stopped laughing and asked with a blank expression.
Alvin Morgan’s brows furrowed.
Marshall Shaw’s voice, tinged with mockery, continued:
"Heh... a full fifteen years. But what about Kevin Whitlock? Just because he’s a young master from the Whitlock Family’s Core Lineage, he skipped multiple ranks in just five years to end up only one level below . People from the Great Families can get whatever they want without even trying. I accepted all of that. But then Kevin Whitlock made soone else die in his place—"
At this, veins bulged on Marshall Shaw’s temples. He glared viciously at Aurora Sinclair. "Good, you’re here too. Do you rember what happened two years ago, after you lost control?"
Aurora Sinclair thought for a mont, then shook her head.
Marshall Shaw said, his voice laced with self-derision:
"When you lost control, you destroyed the entire laboratory. We barely escaped with our lives into an isolation room. The lab’s self-destruct sequence had already been initiated, but you were at the door, pounding on it, blocking our way out. We had given up all hope and were just waiting to die..."
"Kevin Whitlock suggested he lure you away so the rest of us could escape. Liam Cheney was his best friend, so he insisted on going with him. But we never expected that while they were distracting you, Kevin Whitlock would actually push him..."
"If the master from Sunstone hadn’t arrived just in ti, you would have killed Liam Cheney. Afterward, the higher-ups classified the incident as S-level top secret. And everyone involved got a promotion... everyone except Liam Cheney."
A watery sheen filled Marshall Shaw’s eyes.
"I was tornted for a long ti after that. I wanted us to refuse the promotions, but the others brushed it off. They even said I must have been seeing things. It went on like that until Kevin Whitlock ca to and told to drop it..."
...
"Marshall Shaw, are you fucking crazy? How long are you going to keep whining about this? The Whitlock Family already compensated Liam Cheney. For the rest of his life, he’ll never have to slave away to support his family like you do..."
"Kevin Whitlock, watch your words."
"Heh... Marshall Shaw, how do you think you beca a division captain? If it weren’t for my father being worried that my rapid promotions would make the other Great Families nervous, do you really think the position would have gone to you? You should learn your place."
"You..."
"Marshall Shaw, you’d be wise to know what’s good for you. Don’t co crying to when you lose your job. Don’t say I didn’t warn you..."
...
Marshall Shaw’s eyes were filled with scorn. "Aurora Sinclair, do you know why he’s always targeted you? It’s not just because he’s afraid of you. He’s terrified you’ll reveal what really happened that day. To people like him, fa and fortune are all that matter. Human lives are less than dirt."
Aurora Sinclair was stunned.
Alvin Morgan walked over and took Aurora Sinclair’s hand. His voice was chillingly calm. "Even if all that is true, it’s no excuse for colluding with The Shadow Organization."
Marshall Shaw laughed again, a bleak and desolate sound. "Of course. I almost forgot... you’re from one of the Great Families, too."
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