CHAPTER 151
"But Amanda..." Noel hesitated, remembering the unresolved thread in their theory.
"Amanda's disappearance complicates things," Nicholas admitted. "Her past story with Alicia might make her a potential player in this mess. But Amanda is long gone, let's leave her behind for a moment. She'll be seen if she's really involved."
As the pieces of the puzzle began to fit, Nicholas stood up, a flash of determination visible in his eyes. "We're going to track down Ace and uncover the truth behind these interconnected tragedies. That's the only way to end this sinister tale."
Noel and Hendrick exchanged determined glances, ready to dive into the web of events that had unfolded over the years, all connected by a common thread that led to Alicia.
"Speaking of which... I got some news, Chief," Hendrick said, cutting in hesitantly. "I heard that... Wilson Blake has recovered from his coma. I heard the news yesterday from an informant. And my informant linked it to the capture of the CCTV footage of Ace visiting the hospital."
"Damn, that old bastard's come back from the dead, huh?"
Noel pointed at Nicholas. "Your mouth is too rough, Nick. That's not good for a Chief's image, you know."
Nicholas immediately retorted. He shrugged his shoulders and shook his hands in the air. "Okay, I was wrong. Forget about it. But why are all these events connected so coincidentally? Then, what is Wilson Blake's condition now, he came back to life like a zombie?"
"Nick...,"
"Alright, alright. I just couldn't resist insulting him. He's so annoying," Nicholas said, then chuckled. He recalled the old days, of how Wilson bossed around him who was just an ordinary detective. "A bossy old man. He actually got sick and went into a coma before seeing me become a leader in the police force. Now, he's alive again. I don't know if I should be grateful or not."
Noel then said, "Should we check at the hospital? Maybe Ace said something that could be used as a clue."
"Ace paralyzed the policeman we assigned to guard Wilson Blake, do you think that annoying old man will easily reveal information to us? Ace must have told us something very secret. It'll be hard for us to find out. Maybe we should just watch him from afar, Ace could come to visit again."
Nicholas looked at his cell phone that he had just taken out of his pants pocket. The clock on the screen showed ten, which meant that the meeting had been going on for more than two hours. He then lifted his face and sighed. Looking at Nicholas and Hendrick, he said, "I'm going home today, and so are you. Tell Peter to resume the search tomorrow morning. We're already too tired from the past few days, we should take a break for tomorrow."
"Yes, Chief," Hendrick replied.
"You can go out now," Nicholas ordered.
As Hendrick walked out of the room, Noel walked over to Nicholas and sat next to him. "Are you going home?"
"No, I'm going to stay at Alicia's to make sure. She's alone and I think Ace is really after her. He wants to take Alicia, but I think... Ace tried to say something about Alicia. It's like he's worried about Alicia. But... what is he worried about?"
Noel thought. She frowned, then held her face in one hand. "Is he trying to protect Alicia?"
"Protect, hm? Are you kidding me?" Nicholas patted Noel's forehead. "We're trying to protect people from Ace. Ace is a killer, he wants to take Alicia. Doesn't that mean Alicia will be killed?"
Without waiting for a response from Noel, Nicholas got up from his seat. He tapped his partner lightly on the shoulder. "Are you leaving now?"
"Yes, I told you I was going to check on Alicia, didn't I? You might as well go home and rest, Noel. We're going to be very busy and tired tomorrow."
Nicholas walked down the dimmed street, his mind filled with the pieces of an enigmatic puzzle. The night cast elongated shadows, whispering secrets as the city slumbered. His footsteps echoed between the silent buildings, each step echoing a strong determination.
Arriving at Alicia's residence, he felt an unusual silence, the absence of the city's distracting hustle and bustle. He carefully climbed the stairs, his senses on alert. The door was slightly open, a sign. Nicholas carefully pushed it open, the creak magnifying his fear.
"Alicia?" he called softly, scanning the dimly lit interior. There was no answer, only an ominous silence greeted him. He took a cautious step, his heart racing, and realized something was wrong there.
Nicholas prepared to pull out a gun from his waist belt as he walked into the house. He was worried about Ace's presence. What if Ace broke in and managed to take Alicia with him?
Until then, Alicia appeared and made Nicholas brandish the end of his gun. "Nick?"
"Oh my God, Alicia! You scared me," said Nicholas, still with his panicked voice. Nicholas then lowered his gun, putting it back in its place. "You didn't lock the door, what are you doing at this time of night?"
"I'm making a pie. Want some?"
Nicholas' eyebrows furrowed. "Pie? You're making pie at night and forgot to lock the door?"
"Well, that's..." Alicia shrugged her shoulders with a reluctant smile. "I just finished throwing out the leftover eggs, I forgot to close it."
Nicholas breathed a sigh of relief, his tension easing at the sight of Alicia's familiar face. "You scared me to death," he admitted, a wry smile gracing his lips. He couldn't help but feel worried and amused at Alicia's explanation.
As she entered the kitchen, the scent of freshly baked cookies enveloped her, calming her nerves. "It smells wonderful," Nicholas said as he pulled out a chair. "Can I sit down while you work your magic with those pies?"
Alicia chuckled, rolling out the dough. "Of course not. This is my midnight therapy, you know that. But, you can take one to fill your stomach."
Leaning back, Nicholas observed her graceful movements and the ease with which she handled her ingredients. "You always find solace in baking. It's like your secret superpower."
She grinned, the dusting of flour on her cheeks accentuating her excitement. "We all have escapes, don't we?"
CHAPTER 275 Nicholas drove the car as fast as he could. He cut through the streets knowing that Alicia was in danger and needed to be rescued immediately. At this moment, Nicholas deliberately did not turn on the siren in his car to avoid things that threatened Alicia. Arriving at Alicia's house, Nicholas could see a suspicious car near Rick and his mother's house. Nicholas' eyebrows furrowed and he slowed down the car. While looking around, Nicholas tried to think of a plan. Until finally, Nicholas stopped his car right behind the suspicious car. Nicholas got out of the car, but his gaze remained wary. He took out his gun and pointed it downwards as he walked into Alicia's yard. He realized that Alicia's door was unlocked even though the lights were off. Just as Nicholas entered Alicia's house, a punch landed from behind. But Nicholas was strong enough to withstand it, so the man immediately turned around and pointed the gun at Ace. But Ace was also ready to shoot Nicholas in the
CHAPTER 274Nicholas observed the change in Selena's expression from a different room. She stood up and hugged herself while frowning."She keeps bringing up Glen. It's starting to worry me," Nicholas muttered.While on the other side, Noel began to open the folder given by Nicholas. There were several sheets of paper inside. They were reports done by Peter and that surprised Noel. He peered into the folder."I didn't know Nicholas would give me this much work." Noel's complaint was heard by Nicholas in a different room, but Nicholas ignored it and chose to focus on Selena. Noel looked at Selena then smiled and put the papers on the table. "I don't want to read all the writing on this paper. So, what can you give me to get me to get you out of prison?""I... I didn't kill anyone."Noel waved her hands in the air, she seemed to look down on the opponent. "That's a very standard thing. Do you have any evidence? Everyone in that base camp is dead, none of them can give you testimony. So
CHAPTER 273Glen looked up, he hadn't finished his fries yet. "Are you leaving now, Uncle? Are you going to see my mom?"Nicholas mumbled for a while, before finally nodding his head. "I'm going to take care of some work and meet with your mother. Is there anything you want to say to her?"Glen's face grew more enthusiastic as he finished the fries in his mouth and looked thoughtful. He looked around before finally seeing Nicholas again. Raising his index finger in the air, Glen said, "I want you to tell my mom that I miss her a lot. I want some chocolate candy from Uncle Chuck's shop! They have the best chocolate in town and I want to try it."Now, it was Nicholas' turn to raise his eyebrows enthusiastically. "Do you know Uncle Chuck's?""My friends in class talk about it, but I don't know. I just heard about it and wanted to try the chocolate candies they have."Nicholas nodded his head. He smiled widely and rubbed the top of Glen's head in relief. At least, the boy still had some e
CHAPTER 272Nicholas dropped Alicia off in front of Alpha Company's office, while he continued on his way to the daycare. He got out of his car, with a bag of fries from Mcd. Nicholas walked in and was met by Lim Sara.Lim Sara, who was working, greeted Nicholas politely. "Good morning, Detective. Have you come to pick up Glen?"A small mumble was heard from Nicholas. He finally explained the situation to Sara. "Um, well, the police still have to check a few things from Mrs. Selena. It may take some time, can Glen stay here a little longer?"Lim Sara looked worried. The woman with her beautiful hair coils mumbled, before nodding and replying, "Of course, Detective. But it seems like Glen is worried about his mother, he's asked about her several times and I can only say that she's at work." Sara turned around, then showed Glen who was sitting alone in the corner of the study room. "Because he stays here alone, without the other children, he thinks that his mother is angry.""Has Glen e
CHAPTER 271Alicia leaned on Nicholas' shoulder, she let the blanket cover their bodies on the sofa. After a night of sleeping together, Alicia woke up first. She took a deep breath and woke Nicholas up."Nick?"While shaking Nicholas' hand, Alicia tried to get her lover to wake up. And after a while, Nicholas did wake up."Um, good morning, Alicia." Nicholas adjusted his sitting position, he then blinked his eyes and began to speak. "How did you sleep last night?"Alicia mumbled. Letting go of the blanket covering her body, she hugged herself. "I got a good sleep because of you. But can't you just relax like this? You said you were going to check on Selena again today?""Yes, there will be a cross-examination. Noel will try to provoke her with psychological techniques," Nicholas said. He looked ahead, then moistened his dry lips. "I wonder to what extent Selena knows information about Ace. If Selena can tell the police about the steps Ace is taking, it would be great for all of us."
CHAPTER 270Nicholas put on an apron, before grabbing a cutting board and knife. He took out the onions, garlic and chili peppers. Skillfully, Nicholas began to chop the ingredients into small pieces, and then he heated the oil in the wok. He prepared to put in all the ingredients, and after the smell of onions was there, Nicholas put in the minced meat that he took from the refrigerator. His big hands started moving here and there quickly. He was like a professional chef. Sautéing, putting in spices and making everything better.Besides cooking the meat, Nicholas also prepared two loaves of bread on a plate. He placed the meat onto the bread, then garnished it with lettuce, tomato and some sauce on top.Nicholas patted his palms when he was done. He took off the apron, put it back on the table and started to prepare the two plates of food for the dining table. It was raining outside, and Alicia was still covering herself with a blanket on the sofa.It looked like Alicia was completel