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Queenie sat on the couch. The moment the doorbell rang, she could not help but jump in
shock.
The calming doorbell sound sent shivers down her spine.
Queenie looked at the maid who was going to answer the door.
The maid glanced at the people outside the door who were dressed in uniform. She knew
they were the police without needing to ask. She did not immediately open the door.
Instead, she looked at Queenie and said, "Madam, the police are here."
Queenie's heart sank. Her throat went dry, and her voice trembled. "Let them in."
The maid nodded and confirmed the identity of the visitors through the video doorbell
camera before opening the door for the police.
In a span of a mere minute, the police officers walked in. Francis was leading the way. He
should have finished his night shift and gone off duty, but this case was significant, and
the chief instructed him to handle it before getting off work.
“Good morning, Mrs. Norman. I'm Officer Francis Brown. We need Ms. Leia's cooperation to
investigate a case at the station. We've already spoken to Mr. Norman on the phone, and
he told us that Ms. Leia is upstairs. May we take her with us now?" Francis spoke politely.
"She's upstairs." Queenie took a deep breath and looked at the maid. "Take the police
upstairs."
Since they had already informed Jack, she did not need to talk to the police.
The maid nodded and led Francis upstairs.
As Queenie watched the three police officers follow the maid up the stairs, she clenched
her fists tightly.
The maid led the police officers to the door of Leia's bedroom on the upper floor.
Surabaya rose to her feet and nodded at them when she saw the police officers.
Francis asked in confusion, "Who is this?"
It was difficult for the maid to explain that Surabaya was hired by Jack to look after Leia.
Hence, she had no choice but to say, "She’s a guest of the Norman family. Ms. Norman is
inside. I'll open the door for you."
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtThen, she walked to the cabinet, opened a drawer, and took out a bunch of keys.
All the keys to the various locks in Norman Residence were kept here. She needed to find
the key to Leia’s room.
Meanwhile, inside the bedroom, Leia heard a man's voice and realized that it was not Dr.
Cairn's voice.
Overwhelmed with fear, she kicked the door. "Who's out there?"
The noises coming from the bedroom were really loud, and Surabaya scratched her ears.
"Please don't mind her..."
Before Surabaya could finish her sentence, Leia interrupted, "Surabaya, who's out there?!"
Francis frowned. What was going on?
Jack had only told him that Leia was staying at Norman Residence and they could head
there to look for her if they needed her cooperation in the investigation.
Surabaya ignored Leia and explained to the accompanying police officers, "Ms. Norman
has been in poor health lately, and her emotions haven't been stable. She often engages
in dangerous behavior. That's why Mr. Norman locked her inside to prevent her from
affecting others."
Francis nodded in realization. The sounds Leia made just now were hysterical and did not
sound like the voice of a normal person.
"Bitch, what nonsense are you talking about?!" Leia felt both anxious and angry when she
heard what Surabaya said.
She once had a friend who was mentally fine. However, she was a little short-tempered
and disobedient to her parents. In the end, her parents used that as an excuse to send her
to a mental hospital, where she was not allowed any visitors. She could not leave either.
Leia was suddenly worried. Had Jack also grown tired of her? Was he going to treat her the
same way?
She remembered a TV show she had filmed before, which was related to mental illness.
At that time, she had accompanied the production team to a mental hospital for research.
The hospital was relatively standard, but the various treatment methods she saw inside
overwhelmed her. They made her feel oppressed and fearful.
There were even more extreme methods used in many mental hospitals to suppress
patients and gain profit from their families.
Leia was scared. She trembled and pressed her ear against the door, trying to figure out
the identity of the person outside.
Surabaya shrugged her shoulders and made a dismissive gesture, indicating that she was
telling the truth.
Leia's words confirmed what she had just said.
Under tremendous pressure, the maid finally found the key to Leia's bedroom. "Found it!"
Surabaya, who did not want the maid to be seen as the villain, took the key from her and
glanced at the police officers. Then, she opened the door.
The moment the door was almost fully open, Leia rushed out and noticed that the people
standing at the door were dressed in police uniforms.
They were not from the mental hospital but the police!
Francis and another police officer quickly grabbed Leia's arms. "Ms. Norman, we're from
the police station. We need you to come to the police station and cooperate with us in our
investigation regarding a case."
Leia widened her eyes and stared at the officers in front of her. Her heart reverberated
with a rapid, thunderous rhythm. "This is the Norman Residence!"
"We've already informed Mr. Norman. He agreed to let us take you back. Please
cooperate," replied Francis, hoping she would comply while putting handcuffs on her.
The cold sensation on her wrists terrified and frightened Leia. She struggled, but she still
heard the sound of the handcuffs locking.
"I haven't committed any crime. You can't arrest me."
Putting on handcuffs meant that the police had some evidence against her that was not in
her favor.
Since there were outsiders present who did not belong to the Norman family, Francis did
not say much. He exchanged glances with his colleagues and pulled Leia's arm to go
downstairs.
Leia looked back at Surabaya's smiling face in a state of distress and shouted, "I'm calling
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmthe police!"
Francis and the other police officers were taken aback. Call the police?
"Ms. Norman, whatever the issue is, you can discuss it at the police station.”
However, Leia was determined to hold onto Surabaya and said, "I'm calling the police. This
wretched woman, Surabaya, imprisoned me!"
Francis stopped and looked at Surabaya.
Jack did not mention this matter. Hence, he planned to ask about Jack's intentions after
returning to the police station.
Surabaya put on an innocent face and said, "Ms. Norman, how could you say that? This is
the Norman Residence. This has always been your home. How could I imprison you?
"I'm just an outsider and a guest of the Norman family. How could I possibly imprison you?
Mr. Norman wouldn't have agreed to it.”
Leia's face darkened. "You're in cahoots with the Norman family. You're the ones who want
to imprison me!"
Surabaya turned to the police officer. "Sir, if you don't believe me, you may ask Mr.
Norman. I never intended to imprison Ms. Norman. Besides, I'm just a caretaker hired by
the Norman family's old madam to take care of Ms. Norman."
Francis nodded, taking Leia's words as nonsense.
He had dealt with numerous imprisonment cases, but he had never encountered a
situation where a person was held captive in their own home.
"Ms. Norman, please," said Francis while enduring the piercing sound of Leia's voice. He
invited her to come downstairs.
Having dealt with so many cases, Francis had encountered plenty of people pretending to
be insane or playing dumb at the police station. However, Leia's sharp voice was piercing
and made his eardrums ache.
Francis secretly let out a sigh. Ms. Norman was not someone easy to deal with. He felt a
headache coming on and thought about bringing her back to the police station, where the
police chief could personally handle the case while he simply documented the
proceedings.
Despite her strong reluctance, Leia was eventually escorted downstairs by the police
officers.
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