Chapter 4

The entire block went dead silent.

Seeing me stay quiet, Officer Martinez pressed on. "What happened here?"

I glanced at Mason, who looked slightly uneasy, and a subtle smirk touched my lips.

"Officer Martinez, you have to help me!"

"I just walked out of the station gates, and they jumped me, accusing me of murder and stealing a body! When would I have had the time?!"

Martinez frowned and addressed the mob. "That's impossible. He's been locked inside our detention center for the past five days."

I nodded quickly, leading him along. "Right? I followed every rule and never stepped a foot outside my cell!"

Martinez stepped in front of me, shielding me. "You folks must have made a mistake. I booked him myself. We have armed guards monitoring the cells twenty-four hours a day. It's impossible for him to sneak out and commit crimes."

The crowd refused to back down.

"We have video evidence! Officer, look at the footage yourself if you don't believe us!"

Martinez took the phone and scrubbed through the clips. His brow furrowed instantly.

He, too, could clearly see my face committing every crime.

"Alright. To be fair to everyone, I'll take this footage inside and have our digital forensics team verify it."

The crowd nodded. "Fine! But we want to watch!"

"Who knows if you'll tamper with it behind closed doors!"

To de-escalate the situation, Martinez agreed.

Inside the patrol cruiser, under everyone's watchful eyes, the technician confirmed the footage was genuine.

Not a single frame had been digitally edited.

Martinez's face paled visibly.

He stepped aside and made a hurried phone call.

When he hung up, his expression hardened. He spun around, drew his cuffs, and snapped them onto my wrists.

"Don't worry, everyone. I just called the detention facility."

"There is a hollowed-out crawlspace behind the panel in his cell, and that tunnel leads straight into the municipal drainage behind our station!"

"Evan Hayes, I actually thought you were remorseful and willing to cooperate!"

"Turns out you were using the detention center as an alibi while sneaking out to kill!"

Hearing Martinez's declaration, Mason could barely contain his triumphant grin.

He pointed at me and shouted, "Lock him up! A murderer deserves no mercy! Justice for the victims!"

The crowd behind him cheered in agreement.

Watching them point fingers and pile on accusations, I didn't feel fear. In fact, I felt deeply amused.

Since I had been given a second chance at life, I was never going to be as naive as before.

I quietly tapped my phone and sent a pre-typed text.

Once it went through, I leaned back against the patrol car seat and said calmly, "Don't be in such a rush. Let's wait a minute. You might just see a plot twist."

Someone in the crowd scoffed. "A plot twist? Please!"

"I'd love to see who could possibly save your ass now!"

Ten minutes later, a young man shoved his way through the circle.

"Evan Hayes is not a killer!"

"I can prove it!"