Chapter 9

Mason was baffled by Liam's request. "You want us to bring Hunter in for questioning? He might have been blackmailed, but he was definitely helping that woman of his own free will toward the end. I doubt we'd get any straight answers out of him. "Besides, I heard Hunter can be stubbornly tight-lipped. No one can make him talk if he doesn't want to. And it's not like we can torture the information out of him, either." "It doesn't matter if he won't talk," Liam said, taking off his mask now that Ruby had left. He had resumed his usual indifference and aloofness, his jaw hard-set. Mason understood him right away. "Got it. I'll make the arrangements." Half an hour later, Hunter was escorted to the police station. He cursed inwardly as he wondered who Ella had gotten into trouble with. They certainly weren't friendly people, given how they had blocked all the hotel entrances at two in the morning and cut him off within 20 minutes of leaving the hotel. And now, they had escorted him to the police station! Judging by their cutthroat operation, these people were as ruthless as they were persistent. But Hunter also knew that Ella had yet to be caught if they had to bring him in. He would be damned if he became the weak link. "Mr. Quinn, we brought you in to help us with our investigation. We just have a few questions for you," Lucas Garcia, the officer in charge of interrogating Hunter, said politely. "Alright, then. I'll tell you what I know and spare no details," Hunter drawled insouciantly as he flashed Lucas a smile, unruffled. He sat down without being asked to, seemingly making himself comfortable. "Do you know the woman you left the hotel with half an hour ago?" Lucas asked. "No," Hunter replied without hesitation as if the answer was obvious. Liam was watching the interrogation from a screen, and his eyes narrowed. "I knew Hunter wouldn't speak the truth." Mason scoffed. "Why would he help her so willingly and with such dedication if he didn't know her?" They heard Lucas ask, "And yet, you helped her escape from the hotel, Mr. Quinn." "Escape?" Hunter repeated incredulously, barking a harsh laugh. "What, did she kill someone? Shouldn't you be issuing an arrest warrant by now if she did? And wouldn't I be considered an accomplice to murder?" "It's nothing that serious." Lucas let out a furtive sigh. He had expected this interrogation to be tricky. "Oh, good to know. She asked me for a lift and got out of the car right after we exited the hotel. That's all I know," Hunter said. "You truly have no idea who she is, Mr. Quinn?" "No. We met at the costume party. Everyone had masks on, so it wasn't like we could tell each other apart," Hunter explained nonchalantly. "But I heard you were blackmailed into helping her," Lucas pressed "If that's what you heard, I can't do anything about it. Any more questions?" Hunter asked in a bored voice as he lifted a shoulder in a half-hearted shrug. In just a few words, he had rendered Lucas speechless. "Sly fox," Mason cursed at the screen. Liam gave him a questioning look. "Sly he may be, but he's no match for you, Liam!" Mason's eyes glittered with excitement as he fished out his phone to make a call. Liam had already told him it wouldn't matter whether Hunter talked, for they had a backup plan. Inside the interrogation room, Lucas' phone suddenly rang. He glanced at Hunter before picking up the call. Throughout the call, he listened to the person on the other line and offered no response. Meanwhile, Hunter looked perfectly at ease, as if he couldn't care less about being interrogated. Just then, Lucas demanded incredulously, "You mean Ella Grant, the eldest daughter of the Grant family?" At that moment, Liam did not take his eyes off the screen as he scrutinized Hunter's expression, waiting to catch the slightest shift. He had been baiting Hunter all this while. If Hunter's unfazed expression so much as cracked, however slight, Liam would know. But Hunter's phone rang at the most crucial moment. He froze and blinked as if coming out of a trance, the emotions that might have shown on his face fading. "Hello?" Hunter secretly let out a sigh of relief when he answered the call. Had his phone not rung, he might have blown his cover. He cursed the person who baited him for nearly succeeding. For all his preparation, some emotion might have slipped when the interrogating officer suddenly picked up a call and mentioned Ella's name. Hunter was certain the person pursuing this case was watching him from somewhere, and he would have noticed the slightest crack in Hunter's pretense. That was a close call. "Fuck, of all the times he could get a call!" Mason couldn't help swearing as he stared at the screen. "Our plan is screwed!" Liam knew the call had ruined his plans, and from the looks of it, he wouldn't be able to get any answers from Hunter. "Look into Ella Grant. I want to know everything there is to know about her." "Alright," Mason said, resigned. The chances of Ella being the culprit were slim to none, but he would do as Liam asked. Jasper was highly efficient at his job, and it wasn't long before Liam got his call. "Mr. Jones, we've checked the gas station, and one of the staffers told us he helped the woman hire a cab. We've found the driver and brought him in for questioning." Liam hummed in response. The driver in question took one look at the auxiliary police surrounding the hotel, and his knees weakened. He also recognized Mason and hurriedly said, "Captain Xander, I'm just an honest civilian. I didn't do anything wrong." "I didn't say you did," Mason said, taking over the interrogation while Liam sat on one side of the room. "We got word that you picked up a passenger in the gas station across the road half an hour ago. Is that true?" "Yes, that's right. I got a call for a cab hire, and I happened to be in the area, so I picked up the passenger from the gas station," the driver replied, relieved to hear Mason's question. "What was the passenger like?" Mason pressed. "A woman wearing a fox mask and a ridiculous headdress. She also wore strange clothes, but I could tell she had a good figure. She got into my car when I pulled up at the gas station and told me to drive into the city. "She said nothing else for the rest of the ride. Kind of a mysterious lady, if you ask me," the driver elaborated. The woman had left a strong impression on him, and he spared no details. Mason looked at Liam. "Sounds like the woman from the costume party, alright." Liam pursed his lips and made no reply. The time and location matched perfectly, which meant the driver had picked up the same woman they were looking for. She had worn a white robe during the costume party that concealed her figure, but she later gave Ruby that "blood-soaked" robe. Mason considered the mysterious woman's agility and wit, which allowed her to escape even Liam's traps. He figured he couldn't pry any more information from the driver, so he didn't get his hopes up. "I don't suppose you saw her face, did you?" he asked the driver. To their surprise, the driver answered, "I did! She didn't pay the cab fare when she got out and promised to pay me back. I told her to take her mask off, and she did, albeit reluctantly. So I got a good look at her face." "You did? Could you describe her looks?" Mason straightened up in his seat as his eyes gleamed. Finally, they had a substantial lead! Tracking down the woman would be a breeze if they knew what she looked like. Liam raised a brow and suddenly broke his silence. "Show him a picture of Ella."