Married by Accident Taming the Billionaire (Cecilia) novel Chapter 304

Chapter 304 Her Younger Brother Finally Awakens
The reed beds where the body was found were near a reservoir on the outskirts of Center City. It was discovered by a villager who was fishing with an electric fishing device and had reported it to the police.
Cecelia and Remington hurried to the scene. The police and forensic team were already at the site, and the area was cordoned off with yellow police tape.
"Captain Shawn!"
Remington called out to Roger Shawn when he spotted him.
Captain Shawn hurried over and signaled to his team to let Cecelia and Remington through the yellow tape.
"How's the situation? Has her identity been confirmed?" Remington asked.
"It's mostly confirmed. Take a look."
Captain Shawn led them to the vicinity of the body, where forensic expert Kody Cooper was conducting an on-site autopsy.
At a glance, they could see that the victim was indeed Esmee Nelson, but both Cecelia and Remington noticed that the body was not intact, missing one of the hands.
"Her hand..."
Cecelia began, but Kody Cooper interrupted her, "There are clear signs of strangulation at the victim's neck. We suspect she was strangled with thin steel wire or a similar material, leading to death by asphyxiation. The time of death is estimated to be around 10 hours ago. There are no signs of sexual assault on the body. The left hand is missing, and there are blunt force injuries on the wrist. Based on the wounds, it's likely that the murder weapon was an axe or a cleaver."
Other investigators were searching the reed beds near the reservoir for the murder weapon and additional clues.
Cecelia, shocked by the brutality of the murder, asked, "Who could be so cruel to kill her, transport her here, and cut off her hand? What could be the motive?"
Captain Shawn analyzed, "The victim was strangled first, then transported here, and only then was her hand severed. Based on our experience, we suspect the perpetrator may have taken parts of the body to send a message or as a means of intimidation."
Cecelia and Remington exchanged a glance, both thinking that Esmee's death was exceptionally brutal. They couldn't fathom who would commit such an act and why.
Captain Shawn then added, "This reminds me of two cases from five years ago. In one case, the victim's hand was severed, and in the other, both ears were cut off. Both victims died from strangulation."
"Were those cases ever solved?"
"No, they are still cold cases."
"If the modus operandi is similar, could it be the same perpetrator? Are they resuming their crimes after five years?"
"It's possible."
If, as Captain Shawn suggested, the perpetrator was a serial offender, failing to apprehend them meant they might continue their spree.
Next, Captain Shawn documented the clues provided by Cecelia and Reminton, and he might lead a team to investigate Esmee's residence.
"Captain Shawn, we've secured the crime scene. I have a suspicion," Cecelia began.
"What's your suspicion?" Captain Shawn inquired.
Cecelia shared her suspicion, "I kept Esmee Nelson under my custody to exert control over Roger Shawn. Could it be possible that she was silenced to eliminate potential evidence?"
Captain Shawn noted her theory and nodded, "I'll record this lead and have my team investigate further. Thank you for your cooperation."
"That's what we should do."
With a lot of work ahead, Captain Shawn had to continue managing the investigation. Cecelia and Remington left the crime scene.
On their way back, both of them were overwhelmed by the gravity of the situation. They couldn't believe that Esmee Nelson had met such a gruesome end.
Who could commit such a heinous crime, transport her to this location, and mutilate her body like that?
*
In the artistically designed underground chamber:
Jessica and Kara, the sisters, returned and placed a box containing Esmee Nelson's severed hand in front of Jersey Bowman.
Jersey opened the box and examined the hand with a hint of excitement behind his mask.
"Well done."
After closing the box, he asked the sisters, "Did you visit Cecelia as instructed?"
"Yes, Young Master. We went to see her, but she's keeping us at arm's length now."
Jersey nodded. He could understand that Cecelia's recent suspicion was likely due to the child.
"Never mind then. Continue to monitor her discreetly."
"Understood."
After the sisters left, Jersey took the box containing the severed hand to a special processing room.
The room resembled a chemical laboratory, stocked with various chemicals and equipment.
He changed into a lab coat and began to process the severed hand.
After meticulous work, the hand was almost transformed into a beautifully detailed sculpted model.
The final step was to photograph the hand model and put it up for auction on his Bidder-Spidernet.
The bidding began!
Numerous anonymous users on the platform started bidding fervently, and in the end, the hand model's value settled at one billion.
Jersey closed Bidder-Spidernet, highly satisfied with the artwork he had created today.
*
More than ten hours had passed since the explosion at the Christie's Auction House. Lucas and Leo, having completed their mission, safely returned to the Revenant Sect.
"Master, we're back!"
Leo reported.
Jed Landis, with a mask on his face, turned around. "Where are the others? Where's Louis and Liam?"
"They were tasked with executing Leo, but the mission failed. Liam was captured, and Louis is injured and unable to leave the country at the moment. We've returned with the secret collection."
"If that's the case, then Adam is still alive?"
"Yes."
"That means, he'll expose us."
Jed Landis contemplated for a moment, took a deep breath, and ordered, "Inform everyone to evacuate from this place."
"Yes!"
"Bring me the secret collection!"
Leo handed over the mask to him, who carefully placed it on the table, put on gloves, and opened it.
The title, the Collection of Fragrant Clothes, was taken into his sight, and there was a hint of joy in his eyes.
He then used professional identification equipment to examine the ancient manuscript. However, after the examination, his face froze.
"This is not the original document!"
Jed Landis slammed the table in frustration and angrily swept the manuscript off the table.
Leo and Lucas were taken aback. They picked up the manuscript from the floor and opened it for inspection, but it was impossible for them to distinguish between a genuine and fake copy with their naked eyes.
"Master, this isn't the real one?"
"That's right. You were deceived. This so-called secret collection is a fake, and it's highly likely that the entire auction was a trap set by someone else. We've all been played!"
Who could be behind this elaborate scheme?
Jed Landis squinted his eyes and finally gave the order, "Contact Louis. He should stay in Cathail Republic and monitor Cecelia closely. As for Liam... once there's an opportunity..."
He made a motion of eliminating.
"Yes."
*
In Center Hospital in Jed Landis, there was good news.
Cecelia heard that her brother, Adam, had awakened and immediately rushed to the hospital.
Remington also received the news and hurried over. Together, they arrived at the special observation ward where Adam was recovering.
Doctors had already examined Adam's injuries, which were mostly caused by stab wounds and lacked fatal damage, giving him a good chance of recovery.
Under the doctor's arrangement, Cecelia put on a sterile suit and was allowed to enter the room.
When she stood by her brother's bedside, looking at the figure lying in the ward bed, tears welled up in Cecelia's eyes even before she could say anything.