Chapter 294 Suspicion
Charles was on a rampage, tearing through the villagers of Cox Town like a madman.
He'd lost it completely, and the only way to calm the storm inside him was through bloodshed.
By the time he started to feel a bit better, the ground was already covered in bodies.
Holding two halves of a corpse, drenched in blood, he looked like a demon straight out of hell.
Meanwhile, the other special forces were keeping the villagers from running away.
Charles glanced at the terrified villagers and suddenly thought he might've gone a bit overboard.
He quickly tried to explain, "Look, I just wanted to know if you'd seen the killer. Why didn't you tell me earlier? I've lost so many friends, I'm in a really bad mood right now!"
He added, "It's okay, it's okay, no need to be scared."
Even though he felt a bit guilty for killing so many villagers, he justified it by blaming his grief over his fallen comrades.
Then he barked at the villagers, "Now, tell me the truth! You must've seen the fight. Who's the killer?"
The villagers, seeing Charles's sudden shift to a stern demeanor, were too scared to answer.
Charles snapped, "If you don't talk, it means you did it! And then everyone in your town will die!"
At that, someone finally broke down and said, "I saw them killing each other!"
Charles's eyebrows shot up. "You're lying!"
He stormed over, grabbed the person by the neck, and lifted him off the ground.
"Our people would never fight among themselves! Are you hiding something? Do you think I won't kill you?" Charles demanded.
The old man's legs flailed, his face turning red as he struggled to breathe.
His daughter couldn't take it anymore and cried out, "My father's telling the truth! The killer was dressed like you, but he killed everyone else by himself. He had a weird cat that could grow bigger than a house!"
Charles's eyes widened, "Psychic?"
He tossed the old man aside and pulled the woman over, pointing at her. "I'm a fair man. Just tell me everything you saw, and I won't kill the innocent!"
His words dripped with irony.
So, his earlier killings were justified?
The woman trembled as she recounted what she'd seen.
The villagers had been too scared to see much, but others chimed in, piecing together the whole story.
After hearing it all, Charles was stunned, taking a couple of steps back in disbelief. "A spatial Supernatural ability, it's Steven! Wasn't he in the shelter? How did he get out?"
Shawn walked over and reminded him, "Captain Reed, could there be another passage?"
Charles's eyes lit up. "Yeah, that must be it! A proper shelter can't have just one way in and out."
Their shelter had at least two escape routes, not counting Peter's private one.
"If we find that passage, we can break into the shelter!" Shawn said.
"Damn Steven, you took my friends, my brothers! You slaughtered the people of Cox Town. I swear, I'll make you pay for what you've done."
He then told the villagers, "Remember, it wasn't me who killed your loved ones today. It was Steven! He caused all of this."
"I will avenge you!"
The villagers hung their heads, too scared to speak, but in their hearts, they saw Charles as an even bigger monster than Steven.
At least Steven only fought back after being provoked.
But Charles and his special forces from West Mountain Base?
They'd served them loyally, yet Charles and his men still treated them like dirt.
They regretted it deeply, but it was too late now.
They simply didn't have the strength to fight back.
Charles immediately ordered his soldiers to search for any signs of Steven's departure.
There was snow everywhere outside, and if someone had passed through, there'd be tracks.
By following them, they could find the secret passage Steven had used.
By this time, Steven had already taken Earl far away from Cox Town.
But before taking him back, Steven wanted to make sure Earl was truly done with the people and matters of Cox Town.
"Earl, think carefully. Once you enter the shelter, you must follow my orders unconditionally!"
"Can you really give up your beloved Julia?" Hearing Julia's name, Earl clenched his fists, tears streaming down his face. He shouted, "Of course I can! Real-life women are just not trustworthy. I'll never believe in love again!"
"That's the spirit," Steven replied.
He started the snowmobile and headed back to the entrance of the back mountain passage.
Opening the door, he led Earl and Fluffy inside.
Earl looked nervously behind him and asked, "Captain Rogers, the tire tracks are pretty obvious. Won't they find this passage?"
Steven glanced at him. "Unless they're complete idiots, they'll definitely find it."
Earl got even more nervous. "That's bad! If they attack from here, we're screwed!"
Steven's lips curled into a sly smile. "I’m counting on it."
Earl blinked, then it clicked. "Captain Rogers, you've set traps here, haven't you?"
"I never go into a fight unprepared."
Steven led Earl to the alloy door, and after a complex unlocking procedure, they both entered the shelter.
Meanwhile, Charles and his team quickly found the snowmobile tracks.
Shawn, eager for revenge, gritted his teeth. "Captain Reed, let's chase them down and kill that damn Steven!"
Charles, however, stayed calm. "We've fought that guy so many times. Have you ever seen him slip up?"
"He's a dangerous opponent; he wouldn't leave such an obvious trail unless he had a plan."
Shawn nodded. "But we can't miss this chance. In half a day, these tracks will be covered by snow, and we'll never find that passage again!"
Charles thought for a moment, then said coldly, "Of course, we have to chase, but we can't be reckless."
He took a deep breath, his voice filled with sorrow. "We can't afford more casualties!"
Out of a team of over sixty elite soldiers, more than fifty were already dead.
The remaining dozen were either Psychics, cyborgs, or engineers overseeing the project.
Losing any of them would be worse than losing thirty regular soldiers!
Charles stood up and said, "Gather everyone back!"
Shawn was stunned. "But our tunnel is still being dug. Can we just stop the project?"
Charles gave Shawn a deep look. "Think carefully. Why would Steven dare to come out and attack our base?"
Shawn frowned, pondering Charles's words.
A moment later, he looked up, eyes wide with shock. "Captain Reed, you mean there's a traitor among us!"
"They must have passed our info to Steven, so he took advantage of our empty rear to launch a surprise attack!"
Charles's eyes were cold and sinister. "Exactly. Otherwise, with Steven's cautious nature, he wouldn't have left the shelter so recklessly."
"If our info has been leaked, do you think digging the tunnel still makes sense?"
Shawn's breathing became rapid.
So, their half-month of work had been for nothing?
The only consolation was that the work was done by the villagers of Cox Town.
Wait, hold on!
Shawn suddenly realized something and blurted out, "But then, who among us is the traitor?"
They had searched all the villagers, confiscating any communication devices.
Even if someone tried to hide one, the special forces had used instruments to detect them.
Moreover, Cox Town had a deep grudge against Steven; they had neither the means nor the reason to inform him.
So, the traitor was among the special forces?
But most of the special forces were already dead, or was it one of the remaining dozen?
A figure immediately popped into Shawn's mind.
Among them, the most suspicious was undoubtedly Lily, who had joined the special forces not long ago.
After all, Lily had openly opposed Charles's plan and wasn't close to anyone in the special forces. That made her the most likely suspect.
Shawn whispered to Charles, "Could it be Lily?"
Charles squinted his eyes. "We'll know once we call them back!"
As long as they took Lily's phone and had the tech team examine it, they'd find the answer.
Even if she had deleted the communication records, they could recover all the data.
It's impossible to hide anything.
So, Charles ordered everyone across the river to return to Cox Town immediately.
The people across the river, hearing the gunshots, knew something was up and hurried back.
Lily was puzzled but sensed something was off. She knew nothing about Steven's plan, but on the way back, she quietly hid the phone she used to contact Steven in the hollow of a dead tree.
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