The Captain I Married by Chance novel Chapter 400

Nora drew in a sharp breath.

She had a similar sinking feeling in her gut, but without any solid evidence, the eerie calm surrounding them made the threats feel almost surreal.

Her anxiety had nowhere to land.

"We just keep digging."

Seeing the unease in her eyes, Nathan reached out and laced his fingers through hers. "There is no such thing as a perfect crime."

"If we pull enough threads, something will eventually unravel."

"You're right."

Nora steadied herself and looked up at him. "What do you need me to do?"

Nathan didn't hesitate, handing her a stack of case files.

"I need this organized before the afternoon briefing."

"On it."

Nora took the files back to her desk and got to work.

Nathan settled back into his chair, stared at his screen in deep thought for a moment, and then picked up his phone to make a call.

When lunch hour hit, the bullpen slowly emptied out.

Nora had just finished sorting the last of the files. She was about to ask Nathan if he wanted to head back to the estate to have lunch with Mr. Peyton when the detective from earlier rushed back into the room.

"Dr. Hayes!"

Nora blinked, turning in her chair. "What's wrong?"

"Someone is at the front desk asking for you."

"Stunning girl. Is she your sister?"

Nora instantly knew it was Valerie.

She practically sprinted out the door without even giving Nathan a heads-up.

Sure enough, Valerie was waiting in the lobby.

Her arms were loaded with shopping bags.

Since she couldn't exactly explain his brooding without embarrassing herself, she awkwardly changed the subject. "Did you come straight here? Does Mr. Peyton know you left?"

"Yeah, he actually had his driver drop me off."

"Nora, you have no idea. Mr. Peyton prepared an insane amount of gifts for you to give your mom."

"I didn't stay long because the estate had a surprise visitor. Mr. Peyton was originally planning to come with us to the hospital, but that fell through."

"But whatever, you guys are practically married anyway. He'll have plenty of chances to meet your mom."

"A visitor?" Nora asked, genuinely surprised. "Who?"

Mr. Peyton had told her himself that he didn't have many close friends left.

Aside from the deceased man whose autopsy Nora had performed, he kept to himself. Since stepping down from Peyton Pharmaceuticals, he lived a quiet life.

He hated loud gatherings, and the estate rarely hosted guests. Who would be dropping by unannounced?

"A relative, I think."

Valerie frowned, trying to recall the exact title. "I heard the staff call him Arthur Peyton."