Chapter 3

Watching my husband's agonized state on screen, my mother-in-law, who had been silent until now, suddenly rushed in front of me.

"Sarah! Just choose! Do you want to watch him get electrocuted to death?"

I looked at her calmly and spoke softly.

"Laura, instead of begging me here, why don't you make a phone call and ask?"

As I spoke, I slowly raised both hands in a phone gesture.

"Ask if your son is really in that much pain right now."

My mother-in-law froze, clearly not understanding what I meant.

"You... what do you mean? Are you cursing your husband to death?"

I smiled.

"My husband studied finance. He couldn't hurt a fly. But look at that man on screen—he's been electrocuted for so long and can still scream with such vigor. Don't you find that strange?"

"Also, on the back of his neck—there doesn't seem to be that mole we're all familiar with."

My words stunned everyone.

Even my mother-in-law, who had just regained consciousness, stopped crying and stared fixedly at the screen.

Some of the younger officers were already breaking into cold sweats. My father-in-law stood frozen in place, not daring to move.

Seeing this, one of the officers left behind snatched the tablet from my hands, trying to zoom in on the image.

"Captain Sarah, this is a matter of life and death. How can you be so reckless?"

I looked at my husband still "wailing in agony" on screen, the corner of my mouth involuntarily curving upward.

"Reckless?"

"Either way, one of them has to die. Does it really matter to me which one?"

The officer was speechless on the spot, his brow furrowed.

"Captain Sarah, but they're your family. Don't you care at all?"

I grinned and smiled at him slightly.

"Why should I care?"

"If my husband dies, I can claim half the assets. If my child dies, I can have another one. But if I actually speak those words, wouldn't I become an accessory to murder?"

The tech department called in. Lieutenant Davis's voice was extremely anxious.

"Sarah! The hospital network was tampered with. The signal source is fake! We can't find them!"

Everyone's last shred of hope was extinguished.

The clown woman on screen, seeing I remained unmoved, flew into a complete rage.

She threw down the stun baton and grabbed a metal bucket from behind, pouring the yellow liquid all over my husband.

The strong smell of gasoline seemed to seep through the screen, permeating the entire living room.

"Sarah! I'm giving you one last minute! If you still don't choose, I'll light him up like a torch!"

The clown woman pulled out a lighter. The pale blue flame danced in front of the camera.

The number of viewers in the live stream reached an unprecedented peak at that moment.

The flood of comments nearly caused the video to lag.

"This is insane! This kidnapper has completely lost it!"

"What is Captain Sarah waiting for? If she doesn't choose, everyone will die!"

"You don't understand—there's no way to choose! Choosing makes her a murderer! Captain Sarah is in an impossible position!"

The clown woman also screamed at the screen.

"Sarah, I'm counting to three. If you don't speak up, prepare to collect his body!"

"Three!"

"Two!"

I took a deep breath and, under everyone's shocked gazes, picked up my phone.

The call was answered almost instantly.

My voice, through the speakerphone, clearly carried throughout the entire room and through the broadcast to the whole city.

"Captain Sarah, say your choice loudly! Let everyone see who you love most!"

On the other end, the clown woman's voice was filled with perverse excitement.

"No, no, no. I think you've misunderstood."

I chuckled softly and said slowly, word by word.

"I'm calling to tell you something."

"Those two people you kidnapped have nothing to do with me. If you want to burn them, burn them. If you want to blow them up, go ahead. Be my guest."

The clown woman completely froze. She hadn't expected this answer from me.

A moment later, she let out a shrill shriek, lit the lighter, and threw it viciously toward my husband.

With a thunderous "boom," the screen was instantly engulfed in flames.

The entire room fell deathly silent.

"Ahhhhh—!"

My mother-in-law let out a heart-wrenching scream and fainted on the spot.

"Sarah!"

"You murderer! You killed my son! I'll have your life!"

My father-in-law grabbed the ashtray from the coffee table, his face contorted, and charged at me.

The scene instantly spiraled out of control.

And I, as the instigator of all this, sat calmly on the sofa.

"Richard, the dead can't come back to life. Please accept my condolences."

The first to react were the officers present. They quickly rushed forward and pinned my raging father-in-law to the ground.

"Sarah, you refused to save them! Why did you deliberately provoke the kidnapper! You killed my son!"

My father-in-law, his eyes bloodshot, roared at me.

I dusted off my clothes and stood up.

"At least I didn't kill him. The law can't touch me."

"This is already the best outcome!"

Perhaps my cold-blooded attitude completely enraged everyone.

Even the officers who had just been restraining my father-in-law now looked at me with eyes full of anger and contempt.

"What kind of bomb disposal expert are you? You're just a cold-blooded murderer!"

"Captain Sarah, we really misjudged you! You don't deserve to be a cop!"

In an instant, I became the target of everyone's criticism.

I looked up at the clock on the wall and slowly spoke.

"Alright, enough. Stop arguing. You can all do whatever you want."

"I'm taking my son to dinner at Hot Pot Palace."