Steven stood there helplessly while suppressing himself. He wanted to take action yet. was afraid I might get hurt. My misunderstanding from earlier today when he hurt that pervert on the train mustâve frightened him, making him think I might get upset again if he acted too drastically.
Steven seemed really, really afraid that I might choose Michael over him.
âStephieâ¦â Steven called out nervously, wanting me to choose him.
I gazed at him, feeling overwhelmed.
When Michael saw how I didnât struggle, he said coldly, âYouâre lucky you resemble Stephanie Carlson.â
I gritted my teeth, wanting to punch him in the face.
Raising my head, I headbutted Michael in the face before turning around and hitting him. I had really wanted to punch him for a long time, It wasnât that I didnât want to in my previous life; it was just that I didnât dare to. Michael often threatened the lives of those around me. That was what he did best.
I couldnât cross Michael then. And with the addition of the debt I owed him, I had no choice but to swallow it all down.
But now⦠Iâd already died because of him, so screw that debt.
Steven was stunned. He swallowed nervously as he looked at me.
âWhat are you standing there for?â I called out to Steven. âCome over here and beat him up with me!â
Steven ran over excitedly and was about to toss a punch at Michael when Zion grabbed. him by his shirt collar. âCome with me for a bit, Steven.â
Steven glared at Zion and turned back to me.
âLetâs go together,â I said, ignoring Michael who was still clasping his injured nose. I then went up to hold Stevenâs hand.
Steven was shocked. âDonât⦠choose him⦠Stephieâ¦
âHeâs not even a choice for me,â I consoled Steven, though I still felt confused inside.
Stevenâs emotional state was unstable, so I had to continuously console him. But this was just pity on my end, I had to leave the Lincoln family sooner or later.
I couldnât stay by Stevenâs side for the rest of my life, after allâ¦
What should I do if he was too dependent on me?
Steven seemed to be in a really good mood. He was eagerly helping Zion analyze the case. âSerial number. Every child in the orphanage had a serial number. It was a⦠sequence of who would die first. But the directorâs family wasnât in the sequence.â
It was clear that Steven hadnât expected the murderer to suddenly stop killing the people from the orphanage and turn to the directorâs family members instead.
I gazed at Steven. He seemed to really understand the murdererâ¦
âWhen I asked you to cooperate in the investigation previously, you always refused to say a word.
Whatâs gotten into you today?â Zion asked Steven curiously.
Steven lowered his head and looked at me for a long time. âStephieâ¦.
âHm?â I didnât know why he was looking at me all of a sudden.
âI only listen to Stephie,â Steven said. He meant that heâd only come along and cooperate because I asked him to.
If I hadnât asked Steven to come along and left him back at the Lincoln residence, he wouldnât have cooperated.
I didnât know what to say.
âIs the next victim the director?â I asked. Would it be that woman?
âNoâ¦â Steven shook his head. âAlive. Worse than death.â
My heart sank.
Her husband and daughter had died. Coupled with all the orphanage children who died one after another, that kind of fear arising from all those deaths would drive one mad.
Leaving her alive was the best punishment for her.
What did the director actually do to the murderer all those years ago?
âDid Simeon⦠really die all those years ago in the orphanage fire?â I had already suspected Simeon didnât actually die during that fire, âThe face of the man I saw at home was so badly burned I couldnât tell what he looked like before. If Simeonâs still alive, heâd have a motive to kill, wouldnât he?â
The police would surely face difficultles trying to look into someone who had faked their own death.
âWeâve long suspected this.â Zion lit a cigarette. He seemed exhausted.
âWeâve considered every single possibility you could think of and looked into each one. Simeon Kent is really deceased. My mentor was the one who investigated the fire all those years ago.
âSteven was the only person left alive. There was only one other body found at the scene, and it was burned to a crisp.â