The Captain I Married by Chance novel Chapter 411

Valerie looked at the data, her face lighting up with excitement. "Hawthorne County... that's it! What case are you investigating to look into this place?"

Nora exchanged a look with Nathan, her mind racing.

The Special Task Force had compiled this information on Lawrence Gunn today.

Nora recognized Hawthorne County because she had seen it mentioned during their briefing.

Lawrence's hometown was Hawthorne County.

Because they couldn't find any trace of Lawrence, the Special Task Force had reached out to the local authorities in Hawthorne County. However, the locals were completely clueless about Lawrence, let alone his current whereabouts.

"This guy is involved in a case we're investigating. He disappeared a long time ago."

Nora gave Valerie a brief explanation before turning to Nathan. "Do you think these events are connected?"

"Definitely," Nathan replied.

"There are no coincidences in this world, only inevitabilities."

They had just uncovered information on Lawrence, and immediately after, an elderly woman from his hometown was found dead at the police station. Nora refused to believe they weren't connected.

She even harbored a bolder, darker theory. "Could it be..."

Nora and Nathan exchanged a knowing look.

Seeing the certainty in each other's eyes, they instantly knew they were on the exact same page.

"I'll have someone run a comparison right away."

Nathan grabbed his phone and strode purposefully toward the study.

Nora's heart raced.

Her intuition screamed that her guess was spot on.

But solving one mystery only spawned another.

If their theory was right, why would someone dump the body of Lawrence's deceased mother at the police station just when they hit a dead end finding him?

Unable to piece the puzzle together, Nora noticed Valerie rubbing her arms continuously and remembered her friend was still in the room.

"Are you cold?"

"Oh, I wasn't really scared at first, it was just a delayed reaction... you know what I mean? Sometimes you don't feel anything in the moment, but the more you think about it, the more messed up it feels. It was just a creepy realization."

Nora understood that feeling perfectly. She patted the blanket comfortingly. "If you're scared, scroll through some funny videos."

"Or watch a food vlog."

Valerie rolled over, propping her head up. "Is that how you used to handle being scared?"

"Yeah."

"When I used to live near the morgue, I would watch old comedy specials."

Valerie let out a sharp breath.

"The old ones are fine, but the recent ones aren't that great, right? Wouldn't watching those make you feel even colder?"

Catching the sarcasm in Valerie's voice, Nora shrugged. "It's alright. If it's bad, I just switch to something else."

"Sometimes I'd get hungry watching them and go grab a snack."