Chapter 80: Nothing…was the motive.

All the eyes in the room turned to Nu Ying. The evidence against her had piled higher.

“Get up.” Linlin pulled her up and marched the girl out of the office.

Weijun helped Liwu up as well. She made a call, sharing their findings with the chief as she limped out of the office all the way to the locker. She took pictures with her phone and transferred everything in the locker into evidence bags. The whole time, Weijun was by her side like a firm supportive tree. He finally helped her back to the car and they drove to the precinct.

Knowing that the culprit was being brought in, officers had already created a path through the protestors. When the girl was brought out of the vehicle, her head was covered with Linlin’s coat. Still, everyone could tell that this was a young girl!

And so, the questions began.

“Detective Liwu, what is funny about nine dead kids?”

“What did you eat at the beach?”

“Is this suspect related to the crime?”

“What bad luck did you meet on duty today?”

“Is it true you slapped the gorgeous Manman in the face out of jealousy?”

The questions from the reporters covered everything. They overwhelmed the screams of the parents that were seeking justice. Liwu did not respond to a single one. She followed Linlin to the general interrogation room which could fit ten officers at the same time.

It was covered by six cameras that recorded every angle. Every precinct had one interrogation room for unique cases like these. The lights in the room were dimmed, one flickered above Nu Ying. Other detectives and officers found places around while Liwu sat down directly across from the girl. She folded her hands neatly on the table.

Nu Ying looked back at her, eyes sharp as a blade.

Liwu placed a single lily on the table, its white petals luminous against the gray steel and walls. She placed it there as a reminder of the nine children who would never speak again.

“State for the record if your name is Nu Ying.” She said calmly.

Nu Ying rolled her eyes. She leaned forward, looking directly into the camera. “The one and only.”

An officer behind the observation glass guffawed. After glaring at him, Chief Abby cleared his throat. “I expect professionalism here.” he said sternly.

Weijun gestured to the mirror, “I thought you could not interrogate her without her parents?”

Chief Abby pointed to the woman that had just arrived. She was huffing, her heels clicking with urgency. She burst into the interrogation room and started yelling at Liwu. “You better not be interrogating my daughter without me.”

Liwu replied with calm, “All I asked was her name. We notified you before arriving here. All proper procedures have been followed.”

The woman huffed. “Whatever you are saying she did, she did not do it.”

“That is not what the evidence says.” Liwu replied. “Besides, she admitted to the crime herself in front of her school guidance counselor. The interrogation must be carried out. Of course, she can refuse to answer my questions because that is her right.

I would advise you however to cooperate. Understanding what led to the crime can sometimes be the difference between a death sentence, a life sentence and the chance to join the free world after twenty years.”

Nu Ying smirked. “I am a minor, I will be out by eighteen.”

Liwu smiled. She did not want to be the one to burst the girls bubble. Besides, as long as she thought her crimes were minor, she would be happy to open up. She leaned forward and asked in a measured voice, “Do you know why you are here Nu Ying?”

The girl tilted her head, a faint smile tugging at her lips. “Because of the note book and the lilies,” she said softly. “The ordinary police can be fooled, but not you. I am sure you have already matched my handwriting and your people are confirming details. You got me, we both know this.”

“You don’t have anything.” Nu Ying’s mother shouted.

Liwu pushed the the lily forward. “Nine of your friends. You killed none of your friends and left these in their mouths. Why?”

“What?” Nu Ying’s mother exploded. “How dare you…”

“Mrs. Nu, if you cannot remain calm, this interrogation will last us all day. I advise you to wait until the very end and then express what you are feeling.” Liwu warned solemnly.

The woman clenched her fists, and she resorted to whispering to her daughter. But the girl did not care. She focused her eyes on Liwu, tracing invisible patterns on the table.

“They tried to change their futures,” she murmured. “At first, when we left Madam Meng’s for the first time, everyone was laughing. But then, Chen Rong talked about her plans to spend her cousin’s birthday on a yacht. Suddenly, she was freaking out. Then, someone asked how Madam Meng had known about a ball or a skate board. Someone got tested and discovered that they were indeed terminally ill. Small details started to scare them and suddenly they were talking about changing their fate.” Her voice faltered, then hardened. “But what about mine? It was blank. No destiny.”

Liwu studied her carefully. “And that made you bitter.”

“We were supposed to die, all of us,” Nu Ying snapped. “Then Chen Rong changed her fate. She didn’t go to the sea so she did not drown on the day that had been predicted. Instead, some other unknown girl drowned in her place.” She laughed. “Chen Rong threw a party to celebrate her new lease on life. I went back to Madam Meng and she told me lies. I visited others like her and they told me the same thing over and over. A void. Nothing. Do you know what it feels like to know that you are nothing while everyone else is something?”

Liwu let the silence stretch, watching the girl’s breathing steady again. “So you decided to make their futures nothing, just like yours.”

Nu Ying’s eyes gleamed. “I simply did what nature intended. We were all meant to die. Madam Meng said that the scales of life and death had to be balanced. Just like someone else died in Chen Rong’s place so she could live. Tell me, was it fair to the one that died before her time?”

Liwu tapped her pen against the table. “You are thirteen, you should be thinking about school, not balancing the scales of life and death.”

Nu Ying screamed like she was frustrated because her message was not being received the way she wanted, “Fate is written before we are even born. I was just the messenger of death.” She whispered, “Besides, blame the prediction system. If none of us had known our future, then we would not have made the choices we did.” She nodded firmly, “Yes, blame the system and its host.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep