“How’s it going, Hans? Any progress on the investigation into Nathalie’s case?”
Early in the morning, Hans was already seen visiting Edward’s office. He intentionally brought numerous investigation files to hand over to the man.
For Hans, whether he had a lot or little information, Edward needed to be updated on the progress. So that they could later discuss and decide the next steps to uncover the mysteries that remained unsolved until now.
“I have searched Nathalie’s apartment, checked the CCTV, and gathered data samples from the neighbors. I summarized everything in the turquoise-colored folder.”
Edward reached for the folder that Hans mentioned, carefully reading its contents and drawing a conclusion.
“Does that mean she had only recently moved into that apartment?”
Hans nodded.
“According to the testimony of long-time residents, Nathalie had been living in that apartment for about eight months before her death. The rumors about her being close to a man were also confirmed by one of the neighbors.”
Edward leaned back in his chair, taking a relaxed position to listen to all the explanations Hans provided.
“So, do you know who this man is? Somehow, I can’t help but think that the man who was close to Nathalie might be the one responsible for her death.”
Hans winced slightly, feeling guilty that he appeared slow in providing results for this case.
“I’m sorry, I haven’t been able to identify the culprit conclusively. However, on the last page of the document you’re holding, I summarized some testimonies from other residents who had glimpsed this man. I described all the details there.”
Edward read the sheet of paper he was holding again.
“Goodness, it’s really challenging to imagine someone’s features based on these descriptions.”
Hans nodded. Edward’s complaint was reasonable.
“That’s why I also asked my trusted person to visualize the man’s features and create a composite image. I’ll give you the result the day after tomorrow. Who knows, you might recognize this man.”
“Seriously, this case is incredibly complicated but quite intriguing. I never expected to get involved and even become the main suspect in an incident I never committed. It’s just crazy!”
Laughter erupted from Hans’s lips. In his experience handling tough cases, this was the first time he felt perplexed due to the lack of evidence. Moreover, he had to race against time to untangle the mess that Edward was currently facing.
“By the way…” Hans spoke again. “Regarding Chloe’s mother, have you found her?”
“Several days ago. I’ve even arranged to meet both of them next week. I hope everything goes smoothly.”
Before Hans could respond, a knock on the door diverted their attention. Shortly after, Arianna entered to inform them about something.
“Mister, there’s a visitor named Samuel who wants to meet with you.”
Edward nodded and replied, “Let him in; I’ve been waiting for him.”
Quickly, Arianna turned around and ushered Samuel, who was standing right behind the door, into the room.
“I apologize, Mister, for being a little late.” Samuel entered the room and nodded politely, apologizing for his tardiness.
“No problem. I just arrived at the office a few minutes ago myself,” Edward replied as he extended his right hand, gesturing for Samuel to sit beside Hans. “But, isn’t Chloe looking for you?”
Samuel shook his head. “Don’t worry. I got permission to come in late since I wanted to take my car to the workshop first.”
“Alright,” Edward said again. He reached for a stack of files from the brown-colored folder and handed it to Samuel. “These are the pieces of evidence that prove I was not in London at the time of Nathalie’s incident.”
Samuel accepted the folder from Edward, opened the fastener, and began to check each piece of evidence enclosed inside.
For a while, Samuel read through each sheet of paper in the folder. His eyes also studied various pictures that were deliberately printed to strengthen the argument.
“Is this your girlfriend, Mister?”
Edward shifted his gaze to look at the picture pointed out by Samuel.
“Yeah…” Edward nodded. “Her name is Fela Smith. She was my girlfriend at that time. Chloe even met her a while ago.”
“What about this?” Samuel pointed to a square-shaped mini object.
“That’s a flash drive. It contains some documentation, both videos, and CCTV recordings. Luckily, I was staying at Kaivan’s hotel, my friend’s place, so it was easy to get the CCTV footage from the party I had there.”
“So, you mean, besides the video footage, you also inserted the CCTV recordings?” Samuel repeated.
Edward nodded. “Of course. If Chloe doubts my whereabouts or doesn’t believe that I wasn’t involved in Nathalie’s death, she can watch the CCTV footage I included. There, it shows all the details, from the date to the time of the party. I believe that evidence is strong enough to refute her accusations all this time.”
Samuel smiled slightly. At least, there was some clarity that Edward wasn’t the culprit Chloe had accused him of being.
“So, when do we tell Mrs. Chloe the truth? She needs to know as soon as possible.”
Edward rotated his eyes, weighing the decision he should make.
“Not now. I have to wait for Hans to confirm the whereabouts of the diary you’ve been looking for. If we don’t have a definite answer by the end of this week, you can tell Chloe about all the evidence I provided.”
“Why don’t you tell Mrs. Chloe yourself?”
Edward chuckled softly. “No, Sam. I believe Chloe will trust your words more than mine, a man she has recently known. So, I entrust this matter to you.”
Samuel neatly organized the documents he read into the folder and put them into the bag he brought earlier. He seemed ready to leave.
“Before I go, once again, I want to remind you to be careful, Mister.”
“Careful?” Edward repeated.
Samuel took a deep breath and exhaled slowly as he nodded.
“Yes, a few days ago, Mr. Damian visited Mrs. Chloe again. It seems they were discussing a big plan to bring you down.”
“Argh!” Edward clenched his fists. Somehow, every time he heard Damian’s name mentioned, his emotions were always triggered. “That man needs to be taught a lesson. He has always been fond of disturbing my peace. But this time, I swear I’ll retaliate if he dares to do anything.”
Samuel also nodded. “I will try to give your wife an understanding so that she doesn’t get entangled in Mr. Damian’s game. I really hope nothing bad happens between the two of you.”