New beginning: Billionaire love story (Claire and Alex) novel Chapter 383

Claire had been stuck in the police station for what felt like an eternity. She hadn't eaten, hadn't slept, and the thought of a shower felt like a distant dream. Her brain had been running on fumes for over 24 hours. Between finding Bruno’s body and the police dragging her and Matthew in for questioning, she was completely worn out.

It didn’t help that the cops kept circling back to the same questions. Claire sighed internally as the officer across from her asked once again, “So, Ms. Peterson, you’re sure you didn’t see anyone else around the scene?”

“For the fifth time,” Claire said, keeping her voice steady, “no. It was just Matthew and me when we found the body.”

The officer scribbled something on his notepad, but Claire knew it was all just a formality. They weren’t getting anything new out of her, and they both knew it.

“And what about Adrian Saint Laurent?” the officer added, leaning forward. “You were with him the night of the car explosion. Anything you can tell us about that?”

Claire fought the urge to roll her eyes. Of course, Adrian came up. He seemed to come up in every conversation now. "Nothing that I haven't already told you. We were in the wrong place at the wrong time. We don't know anything about the explosion, I don't know anything about it and I was heading inside to retrieve my phone.”

The officer nodded slowly, jotting down another note. Claire could feel her patience fraying at the edges, but she kept her cool. It was all too much—this whole situation was spiraling. She felt like she was juggling a dozen things at once, and any second now, she was going to drop them all.

Finally, after what felt like a marathon of the same questions over and over, the officer glanced at the clock. “Alright, Ms. Peterson, that’ll be all for now.”

Claire sighed, pushing her chair back and standing up. It was around 2 PM when she stepped out of the interrogation room, and the moment she left, she could feel the exhaustion crashing down on her like a wave. Her legs felt heavy as she headed to the waiting room, where Matthew was lounging on one of the uncomfortable chairs, his eyes glued to his phone.

“Matthew,” Claire called softly, rubbing her temples.

He looked up immediately and stood, slipping his phone into his pocket. “How’d it go?”

Claire let out a long, tired breath. “I feel like shit.”

Matthew chuckled, though it was clear he felt the same. “Same. They ask you the same questions a hundred times, too?”

“Yup,” Claire nodded, leaning against the wall for support. “I swear if I have to explain Bruno’s body one more time, I might scream.”

“Bruno. What a name for a guy found in a trunk, right?” Matthew tried to lighten the mood, giving her a half-hearted grin.

Claire didn’t have the energy to laugh, though she appreciated the effort. “Should we head home? I can’t even think straight right now.” But the second the words were out, Claire’s mind started racing again. Should she go see Adrian? Should she get back to work? Rest seemed like the last thing she could afford right now.

Matthew noticed her hesitation. “Hey, let’s just go home. You need to rest. You look like you’re about to collapse.”

Claire pressed her hand to her forehead, groaning softly. “I don’t know, Matthew. I feel like if I stop now, if I rest, we’ll lose the momentum. The hacker’s still out there. Eligos is still out there. If I sleep, I let them win.”

Matthew’s expression softened. “Claire, I get it. I do. But you can’t do this on fumes. If you don’t rest, you’re gonna crash, and then you’ll be useless. Have you even eaten? Or had a drink of water, for that matter?”