As soon as Micah and Ivan arrived at Chiwood, Tobias received news that he had to quickly figure out a way to have them take Elisa’s body away.
Tonight, Hamish went to the cold storage room again, guarding Elisa inside the crystal coffin. The indoor temperature was minus 20 degrees, and if he continued like this, he would soon follow Elisa.
Tobias sighed, knowing that persuasion was useless and decided to coldly watch and let him be, as long as he didn’t commit suicide.
The next day, before dawn, Tobias was worrying about how to get rid of Hamish when there was trouble from the company’s side. The batch of private mines that had originally been transferred from South Water Island to Chiwood had been robbed. This batch of mines was extremely important, as it was the cornerstone for Hamish to establish himself in Chiwood. The recent negligence had unexpectedly been taken advantage of.
Anyone with such influential information in Chiwood wouldn’t need to think twice to know who was behind it.
Tobias sent someone to investigate, and it turned out to be related to Finn. However, the news about the private mines on South Water Island had never been leaked. How did Finn know?
Suddenly, Tobias remembered an incident. Once, when he and Hamish privately discussed the private mines on South Water Island, Elisa had been in the rest area behind him.
Tobias was momentarily stunned. He had feared what eventually transpired.
The cause of Elisa’s death was also discovered. She didn’t die in an accident, but was murdered. She had conspired with someone to kill herself.
Tobias organized the information he had found and went to the cold storage room. As soon as he entered, the biting cold hit him. He endured the chill and handed the documents to Hamish. “Mr. Burns, this is information about Mrs. Burns’s death…”
Hamish seemed frozen all over, as if every part of his body had been numbed by the cold. Slowly, he turned his head and looked at Tobias, who had handed him the information.
He hesitated for a long time, like a malfunctioning machine, and then slowly took the documents. His fingers, perhaps due to the cold, trembled.
He flipped through the pages one by one. “You said Elisa committed suicide?”
Tobias nodded. “Mr. Burns, do you remember what your wife said to you on the phone? In addition, I investigated Finn. The villa fire incident is related to him. His methods are too clean, and it’s a bit difficult to obtain evidence. Why don’t you try to get some information out of him personally? After all, he is your…” Tobias didn’t need to finish the sentence for Hamish to understand.
The emanating malice from Hamish was even more chilling than the cold air.
Tobias glanced at the documents and changed the subject. “The batch of mines on South Water Island has also been taken by the Burns family. The Burns family is currently suppressing our group. Additionally, Lila is preparing to go abroad, but I have already had someone intercept her.”
When Hamish heard about the stolen mines, he had no reaction as if the loss was not worth more than a few cents. However, when he heard the name “Lila,” he had a clear reaction, with a glint of coldness in his dark eyes.
“Close the basement,” Hamish said, tossing the documents aside, before sitting back down next to the crystal coffin, reaching out to hold Elisa’s hand. The temperature was too cold; his hand couldn’t warm hers.
Tobias murmured, then lowered his head to organize the documents, taking in everything before leaving.
Hamish stayed inside for the entire morning. His body was already numb from the low temperature, and his face was as lifeless as death.
When the Burns family called, Hamish had just left the room, his fingers almost too frozen to hold the phone.
Tobias was heavily burdened. If he wanted Ivan and the others to take Elisa away smoothly, he first had to get rid of Hamish. Otherwise, with him guarding here, they wouldn’t be able to take her away no matter what.
The police station called again, and Tobias could only say to wait a little longer. Hamish wouldn’t be able to hold on forever. If he fell ill and was hospitalized, that would be the best time to take Elisa’s body away.
However, he wouldn’t have to wait for Hamish to fall ill.
Tobias watched him grab his coat, looking as if he was about to leave, and hurried to catch up. “Mr. Burns, where are you going?”
Hamish’s fingertips trembled slightly. He didn’t reply but asked Tobias to stay here. “Keep an eye on Elisa. I’ll be right back”Hamish.”
He took a few steps, then suddenly turned back to look at the cold storage room, where Elisa lay peacefully in the crystal coffin, her face as serene as ever. She was still there, waiting for him, an ever-present figure he could see with just a glance.
Worried about Hamish’s condition and his inability to drive, Tobias quickly arranged for a driver to come over.
Hamish didn’t insist. His body had already surpassed its limits during this past week. Now, he was like a wisp of wind, ready to scatter at the slightest breeze.
After watching Hamish leave, Tobias discreetly contacted the driver to inquire about Hamish’s destination, asking to be informed of the situation. The driver didn’t think much of it-Tobias was Hamish’s assistant and had been by his side for almost ten years, so it was normal for him to want to know about his whereabouts.
Tobias waited for ten minutes, then from the driver’s navigation update, he learned that Hamish had gone to the old Burns family mansion.
Was it Old Burns who wanted to see him, or was it because of Finn? Regardless of the reason, Hamish would be detained for a while.
Tobias immediately contacted the police station, asking them to come and take away Elisa’s body. He also urged them to quickly have Ivan and the others sign the death certificate and make arrangements for Elisa as soon as possible.
Micah and Ivan had proactively called the police station in the morning, but they were told to wait for further instructions.
They expected a long wait, but to their surprise, at 11 o’clock in the morning, they received a call from the police station asking them to come in urgently to process the paperwork for Elisa’s death certificate.
When Ivan heard that they had to go to claim Elisa’s body, he froze. He seemed like a wooden figure, needing assistance with every movement.
Although they had come to Chiwood specifically to see Elisa, when the moment actually arrived, Ivan hesitated and was afraid to go.
The two of them went to the police station. Micah stood by as Ivan, with red-rimmed eyes, struggled to sign the documents with great difficulty, his left hand gripping the pen. It was the first time he had written his name with such pain and difficulty, as if a blade were held against his neck.
Staring at the forms through blurry eyes, Ivan silently cried, and the small room became increasingly filled with deep sorrow, becoming more and more oppressive.
Tears fell directly from his reddened eyes, smudging the name he had just signed.
The staff member nearby conscientiously reminded him, “The handwriting is blurred. Let me get you another form to sign.”
Ivan wiped away his tears, choking out, “I’m… I’m sorry…”
Micah clenched his teeth, his hands hanging by his side balled into fists, suppressing the bitter ache in his chest.
After the staff member brought another form, Ivan signed it more quickly this time. After leaving his fingerprints, the staff member took them to the morgue.
Elisa was still in the exquisite crystal coffin, the cold air inside still lingering. She lay there, peaceful as if asleep.
Although her burns had been treated, as a deceased person, the wounds couldn’t heal. Once out of the cold storage, the gruesome wounds would be exposed, with large patches of decaying flesh.
Micah closed his eyes, choking back sobs. Elisa, such a wonderful Elisa, had departed from this world in the most excruciating way.
He couldn’t fathom how Elisa, who had been afraid to undergo chemotherapy, had endured those two hours in the fire.
He felt that he was not a competent friend. He couldn’t even save her life.
He used to say that Elisa was like the sun, not needing anyone, capable of shining and dispelling the world’s darkness alone. Yet in the end, he realized that she was just a speck of dust in the universe, fragile and easily dispersed by the slightest breeze.
Elisa was always optimistic, always looking ahead with hope, no matter what happened. Why then did hope never seem to favor her?
Such a wonderful Elisa, at the age of 27, was engulfed by the flames on Christmas of that year.
What was the meaning of the three years he had spent abroad, laboring over his research?
“He did it to save more people, to save Elisa’s life, but now Elisa has become an empty shell, a lonely soul. He couldn’t even save the person he loved the most.
Micah leaned forward, slowly approaching the crystal coffin, and lifted the half mask from Elisa’s face. What met his eyes were the decaying wounds, a terribly gruesome sight.
“Is this her?” Ivan was instantly speechless, his tongue as if carried away by an eagle.
In his memory, Elisa had always been radiant, exuding a proud and unyielding spirit.
But now she was covered in burns, her bones exposed, exuding fragility and decay. That beautiful face, now corroded.
She was so thin, much thinner than he had imagined. In just over a year, she had become this emaciated, as though only her skeleton remained, her internal organs vanished.
The always beautiful Elisa, she was no longer beautiful.
Ivan stood there, his mind filled for a moment with various fragments of memories, different versions of Elisa swaying before his eyes.
There was the little Elisa with her two short legs, stumbling towards him, the Elisa with a pacifier in her mouth reaching out to be picked up, the one who cried so hard she couldn’t catch her breath, and the sudden transformation into a mature, stubborn Elisa.
They were all lively, none of them should be lying in this narrow coffin, burnt to a crisp, wearing the face of death.
He had watched Elisa grow up, knew everything about her, knew she was afraid of pain and suffering.
She wrinkled her nose at medicine, cried loudly when she fell as a child even if she hadn’t scraped her skin, hoping to attract attention and be comforted, but all she received was cold, indifferent stares.
She learned from a young age that when you fall, you have to pick yourself up from where you fell.
Gradually, Elisa stopped expecting anything from anyone. When things got tough, she couldn’t help but hide in the bathroom to cry.
Later, someone asked her why she cried in the bathroom.
She said, “The TV said the only places you can cry are in the bathroom and in your dad’s arms.”
Her dad didn’t like her, so she could only quietly hide in the bathroom, occasionally catching a glimpse of her dad holding her brother, which gave her a small glimmer of hope.
Children who cry get candy, but after that, Elisa rarely cried in front of her family. She was as stubborn as a stone, easy to comfort, just needed a piece of candy, but no one ever gave her one.
During the time when she quietly grew up, she not only learned to be strong, but also learned how to genuinely treat others well.
But what she didn’t expect was that she would mistake her older brother who carried her home and would give a lifetime’s worth of love and mistakes to Hamish.
You see, a string of candied haws could bring forth genuine people, but now they have exhausted all their strength and can no longer hold on…”