"Not all forms of abuse make bruises."
—
Eduard's POV
"All well, then."
I turned my gaze back to Zero and the woman. Medics used a stretcher to move the woman to the ambulance. After she told what had happened, she lost consciousness. At first, I didn't believe her story because she had no facial expression and just stared into space like a robot. She cries and smiles without showing any feelings. When Zero confirmed this, I didn't ask any more questions. I recorded what she said, and she should be okay before the investigation ends.
My team had a look at her too. They have known Zero for a long time and have worked together on these investigations. Zero, in particular, discovers evidence in complex murder cases that they believe are impossible to solve. Zero is a valuable asset, but they have no idea who Zero is. Zero is unknown to everyone except me.
"Floyd is the culprit," Zero said. "Even though she sounded like a robot when talking, I can say that everything she said was true, and that's what happened. I saw in my vision that Floyd is a student here, too." Zero explained.
"Benedict!" I turned to face the cop next to me.
"Look for a man named Floyd," I told him.
"Floyd has left the building," Zero said.
"It's okay," I reassured Zero. "We'll find him," I said, approaching the police. "You're not letting anyone out, are you?" I asked.
Benedict replied, "Not yet, sir."
"Ask everyone on the soccer field whether they know who the suspect is. I'm sure one of them knows Floyd. We need to know what he has to do with the victim," I said.
"Yes, sir," Benedict said. He went straight up to one of the officers, and the two left together.
Zero said, "Floyd is a teenager."
I didn't answer. Instead, I looked at Naomi inside the ambulance. They are preparing to leave.
"I would like to go home. Are you still going to need me?" Zero asked me.
Zero was staring straight at Naomi. I quickly looked at Zero and saw how she looked at the girl.
"Not anymore. Thanks for helping out." I said.
Zero walks away. After a while, I stared after Zero and took a deep breath.
'Zero!'
--
Evo's POV
"Hey, where have you been?" Andrew asked me as he turned around and saw me sitting beside him again.
I said, "To the men's room."
"You have blood," he said, pointing at my nose.
"Oh," I said, and he immediately handed me his handkerchief.
"Use this," Andrew said.
"Thank you."
"Listen first!" We turned around when we heard a police officer's voice. "Which of you knows, Floyd?"
My friends exchanged glances. Andrew was silent while looking at the police. Another student from the back of my group raised his hand and stood up.
"Is he the murderer?" the man asked.
After the police confirmed that Floyd was the suspect, they immediately searched and asked the students who knew him. They asked everyone on the soccer field, along with another police officer. Everyone fell silent until they finally got close to those there. Everyone was looking at them, and everyone was asking questions.
"He is our prime suspect," the police said, and he looked at me. "Lucky for you, bro. Zero finds out who the culprit is. Otherwise, you and Naomi are the prime suspects in the case."
I smirked. The police found out who the suspect was because of me. I used my abilities well and was able to help them, but who is this Zero who did nothing and took the credit that should have been mine?
"W-what?" Zoey asked in shock. "Why would he be the person of interest, huh? He's a witness, for Pete's sake, don't you know him?"
I grabbed Zoey's hand to stop her from speaking further. "Enough, Zoey," I whispered.
Zoey turned toward me. "What are you saying? You almost became a suspect."
"That's their protocol. Naomi and I saw the corpse first, but I'm confident I won't be the main suspect since I could testify that I saw Naomi running down from the building. And the victim's body..." I swallowed as I remembered the corpse. "It looks like he fell off the building."
Zoey said nothing more. They looked at the two police officers and one of the students with them. I listened to the conversation between the policeman and the student. The policeman asks him. I discovered that Floyd was one of the victims of Joel's bullying. Students and faculty are familiar with Joel as a notorious bully on campus. All the students, except my inner circle, fear Joel. People who know Floyd say he didn't dare to stand up to Joel's harassment, but the police are sure Floyd is the culprit because of Zero.
'Zero? Why are they so obsessed with this Zero that he didn't do anything?' I thought.
I looked at a hooded man walking down the walkway toward the main gate. I smirked. The two police officers heard from other students that Floyd feared Joel and could not retaliate against him. After questioning everyone, the police released us. The ambulance siren echoed throughout the entire campus and left.
While everyone was walking out of the campus, I heard the police talking. "Do you think Zero is sure that this person is the criminal? Those who know the suspect say otherwise." The two police officers stood outside the campus, watching the exiting students.
"Zero was never wrong." the female cop said. The policeman didn't respond, but he started walking towards his car.
I got into my car and watched the two police officers. I heard the police officers approach the others and inform them that they would go straight to the morgue.
"Who is this "Zero" that the police keep mentioning? What does he have that makes them so obsessed with him? He didn't do anything; he just sat there and held the..." I was speechless for a few seconds. I thought deeply about what had happened earlier, and then I smiled. "Hmm, it looks like there's something about that, Zero. I've got to find out who he is."
—-
Eduard's POV
"Sir, there is a man in front of the station."
I looked outside the police station, and the young man stood there. He is probably between 17 and 18. He's tall but skinny for his height. He had broken down in tears and looked blankly at the police station. I immediately get out of the car. The young man was about to leave, but I grabbed his arm. The man turned around and then suddenly sat down and began to weep.
When he calmed down, he introduced himself as Floyd. He is the suspect we sought at the university a while ago.
"Why did you kill him? What drove you to take his life, and why did you do it?"
"I didn't intend to kill him, but I did want vengeance," Floyd sobbed. "I pleaded with him, but he wouldn't listen. "I desperately need this scholarship and can't even remember how I got it."
"Okay. Please give me the details. Could you tell me everything? How did it start, and why did you end Joel Espana's life?" I said.
Everyone looked at Floyd, who seemed confused and scared.