Chapter 728
She saw the scenery whizzing by backwards through the window and realized they were headed to Crystalbrook Valley.
Surprised, she heard the man ask, “Ms. Pennyfeather, I hope you can take me to where your mother used to live.”
Glancing at the man’s hands gripping the steering wheel, they looked like they’d seen their fair share of fights. He was probably pretty skilled. But there was a small tattoo on his arm.
Her mother, Lillian, used to live in Crystalbrook Valley. Were these people after Lillian?
But Lillian had been dead for years.
The tattoo looked familiar. Suddenly, she remembered Lillian seemed to have a similar mark on her foot.
But it was in such a hidden place, and she had only caught a glimpse of it when she was very young and wasn’t even sure if it was real.
After all, Crystalbrook Valley was dirt–poor back then. Their family could barely scrape by, let alone afford tattoos.
She kept her mouth shut, but she could see in the rearview mirror a car was hot on their tail.
It was lan’s car.
“My mother’s dead,” she finally said.
“Ms. Pennyfeather, as long as you cooperate, I won’t hurt you.”.
Maja went silent.
2
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By the time they reached Crystalbrook Valley, it was almost.dawn.
The man floored it and forced several cars to stop. The cars flipped over immediately, blocking lan’s path.
lan’s face darkened, and he slammed on the steering wheel.
“Ms. Pennyfeather, take me to where your mother grew up.”
Maja didn’t dare resist.
Her maternal grandparents had died young, and now her uncle lived there. That was where Lillian had grown up.
But when she got to Pinecrest Grove and was about to knock on the door, she realized the yard was incredibly quiet. Usually, there would be kids playing in the square, but today, there was only an old man sunbathing.
Seeing Maja, the old man was visibly excited.
“Ah, it’s you!”
Maja knocked on the door of Daly Elston’s house. The old man shuffled over, his steps shaky.
“The Daly family was murdered, a month before Christmas. Leo Elston has disappeared. Everyone thinks he did it. Olivia has lost her mind.”
The old man seemed scared as he told the story, glancing around nervously.
“There’s been a murder here. The police have been by several times. Everyone thinks Leo killed his parents, drove his wife mad, and then ran off.”
No way!
Maja refused to believe it.
After all, Leo was a coward. He couldn’t possibly be a killer.
And the man behind her just kicked open the sealed door.
Seeing this, the old man scurried back into his house.
Maja’s mind was a mess. Ever since she’d cut ties with her uncle’s family, she hadn’t contacted them.
She never thought Daly and Susan Elston would die.
The scene inside the house was still as it had been when the crime happened, and dried blood had turned black.
The house had obviously been searched, and someone had been looking for something.
Maja sat numbly on the couch, the stale smell of the room making her feel sick.
The man cuffed her to a nearby shelf and searched the room but found nothing.
“Ms. Pennyfeather, is there any other hidden place here?”
Maja didn’t say anything; She just stared at him quietly.
The man realized she had misunderstood. “We didn’t do this. Lillian was a key member of our organization, but we lost contact. Our intention was to protect her.”
“Why should I believe you?”
She didn’t trust anyone now and felt her life was in chaos. She didn’t have any family left.
The man pulled out a picture of a baby with a tiny tattoo on the sole of its foot.
It was the same as the tattoo on his hand.
“Lillian wasn’t from here. She was left here by accident and adopted by your grandmother. We’ve been looking for her for years, but the relationships in the organization are complex, and we don’t know how she ended up here. Obviously, there’s a mole in our organization, so we only recently found out about her. We didn’t expect that she would be dead.”
Maja stayed silent.
She knew there was a secret place in the room, a place her mother had once told her about.
Whenever Maja thought of Lillian, she felt a pang of sadness.
“Maja, my secret is hidden here. Promise me you won’t tell anyone about this place. If one day you need protection, dig it out. Maja, I love you. Remember my words.”
Back then, she was too young and thought her mother was playing hide–and–seek with her.
