Chapter 108

Zoey's mind flashed to the image of a corpse. "Evan said he saw an alien that could fly... so the body he saw was hanging? The body we found was clearly moved and laid on the ground."

Thinking about this, she fell into another puzzling mystery. "What I really want to know is, did the necrophilia happen before or after the body was hung up?"

Charles also found the killer's logic too chaotic. "Now that you mention it, it seems a bit strange. The only thing we can confirm is that all three victims died from mechanical asphyxiation by hanging. But the first person who found the scene saw the body lying on the ground. Could the killer have hanged the victims and then taken them down to commit necrophilia?"

But after saying that, he felt something was off. "Zoey, why hang them up at all? It's too much trouble. Why not just strangle them and leave them on the ground? If the killer is committing necrophilia, he's definitely a man. Almost every man in Willowbrook Village is a farmer and has some strength."

Zoey suddenly remembered what Evan had said earlier. "Do you remember Evan said he defeated the alien? I'm curious about how he did that."

After saying this, she lowered her head and carefully examined the three marks on the body, observing meticulously from top to bottom.

"Evan also said the alien he saw could fly. If he makes a flying alien unable to fly... does that count as defeating it?"

"You mean..." Charles quickly caught on. "It's very likely the killer guided Evan to take the body down?"

"I can't give you a definite answer because it's just a guess." Zoey shrugged and continued her examination.

Charles still couldn't understand the killer's logic and asked, "I still don't get it. Why would the killer hang the body up and then have someone else take it down?"

Killing someone was not something they wanted a second person to know about, especially an idiot. Weren't they afraid of getting caught?

Zoey looked up at the beam where the rope used to hang the body was never found.

She speculated, "Maybe the killer was caught by Evan while dealing with the body. He didn't plan to take the body down, but to delay the discovery, he tricked Evan into thinking it was an alien and had him take the body down to avoid Evan screaming and drawing attention."

"There's another possibility... the person who took the body down isn't the same as the one who hung it up. The first person could hang the body, but the second didn't, so they had to get Evan's help."

Charles looked at Zoey, his mind piecing together the crime scene.

Two figures, their faces unclear, constantly talking and moving the body. Just as he was about to uncover the truth, he found he couldn't see their faces.

The truth was right in front of him, so close.

The church's main hall, long abandoned and unswept, was thick with dust.

Zoey couldn't stand it after a while and walked to the door to breathe some fresh air.

Looking up at the blue sky, Zoey felt a sense of clarity. "I believe we're really close to the truth."

Seeing Zoey's confident look, Charles relaxed a bit. "Yeah, I feel the same way."

Zoey turned back and gave him a forced smile. "What's wrong? You losing confidence?"

Charles sighed. "Honestly, I still haven't found a clear lead. Not much to go on."

Zoey chuckled. "Come on, the villagers here have the intelligence of elementary school kids. You think you're dumber than them?"

Charles was speechless.

Before they knew it, it was mealtime, and they headed down the hill to grab a bite.

They met up with Alexander and Dennis to see if there were any updates from the bar's surveillance.

Alexander couldn't wait to share. "I might have some bad news. The bar's surveillance shows Hugh entered the Starlit Lounge on the night of the 20th and didn't leave until after midnight. Based on the distance, he wouldn't have returned to Willowbrook Village until after 1 AM."

Dennis added, "We also found the woman who served Hugh that night, but she's not working today. We're trying to contact her."

"Trying to contact her?" Zoey asked.

"Yeah, we haven't been able to reach her. Maybe she's catching up on sleep at home."

Robert looked at his team, all dedicated to the case, and felt a bit of pride.

He opened a soda and poured everyone a glass. "I didn't find out much. They only know Hugh had two ex-wives, but they didn't interact much. Apparently, he met them at his factory. No one knows why they divorced. He always kept a low profile. The villagers only found out about the second and third wives after he brought them home."

Dennis asked, "What are their names?"

"One is named Haven. They don't remember the other one; it's been too long. But..." Robert continued, "The villagers said Haven is somehow related to the informant, Rilla. When I asked Rilla, she said she didn't know."

Jordan joined the speculation. "But I find it strange. They had each other's contact info, but one day she just couldn't reach her. She asked Hugh's family and found out they divorced."

Charles said, "So, after the divorce, she just cut off contact with her friends? What's that about?"

Zoey interjected, "Shouldn't we be more concerned about where Hugh's two ex-wives went?"

"Yeah, how can two living people just disappear after a divorce? How can there be no trace of them?" Charles added.

Zoey swallowed a big piece of meat and said calmly, "Just from Hugh's mother, you can see their stinginess. These rural folks are narrow-minded. Neither of the ex-wives had a marriage certificate. Do you know what that means?"

"What does it mean?" Charles asked.

"Abandonment. In all our interviews, the villagers of Willowbrook Village all share the same idea: marry off their daughters to a well-off family. But they overlook the most important question: will the well-off family share their wealth? Similarly, Ava is so stingy, that there's no way she'd give them money. Think about it, a woman who does housework all day with no income, how would she survive after a divorce?" Zoey explained.