Rachel watched as the local coroner, accompanied by a few somber-faced deputies, gently moved Jackson's body onto a stretcher.

The air was thick with the scent of pine and tragedy as the coroner began his grim examination.

Abner, his face shadowed by the brim of his baseball cap, spoke up from the sidelines. "Check Phoebe too, will ya? Maybe there's

something fishy about her death as well."

Rachel shot him a glance, her green eyes sharp, but this tshe didn't object.

The results cback faster than anyone expected: both deaths were eerily similar, a fatal puncture to the brain with a sharp

needle.

Tobias, pale as the moon and only eleven years old, suddenly choked on his tears, his voice breaking the heavy silence. "It was

Queena. I saw her touch Phoebe's head, and then she just fell over. Queena's the killer."

His words were met with immediate disbelief. After all, Queena wasn't just anyone; she was the town's sole doctor, a woman of

education who had studied abroad.

Voices rose up in protest.

"Cut the kid sslack, he doesn't know what he's saying. Queena just treated his dad's injury last week!"

"Yeah, and why would she harm your dad, kiddo? They had no beef."

"Tobias, you're heartless! Has Queena ever been anything but kind to you?"

Tobias shrank back, suddenly unsure. It was true, Queena had always been good to him. But ever since Phoebe's incident, he'd

grown afraid of her.

Rachel, sensing the shift in the crowd, raised her hand for silence. Her gaze swept over the townsfolk. "Where's Queena?"

realized Queena was nowhere to be found.

search party quickly made their way to Queena's house, only to find it empty, the doctor

suspect on the run often meant

tcontacting the county police, rallying

uneasy with Queena missing. Could she really

Queena had already boarded the bus heading to the county, taking the unconscious lan with

injections and was oblivious to the world around

had seized the opportunity to escape with

taking the keys.

to her, and no one

search soon led to the discovery of the bus driver's body in a drainage ditch,

was about to pursue by car, Abner

hesitated for just a moment before

a stack of cash amounting to ten thousand dollars and a bank

own crew.

took off, chasing down Queena's

desperate and unsure where to hide lan, drove aimlessly towards the

pushing a pill down his

blood.

at the county's toll station, Queena's

landed close behind, and Rachel prepared to hand Queena over to the county police.

the bus.

intent on hiding. When he saw lan's face,

the man who had

still searching for him in

made the

"Abner?"

"We've found lan."

"Oh, what?"

condition doesn't look good. I've got Queena too; her story seems

was utterly confused, not even sure who Queena was. He was

bring them back,

The Novel will be updated daily. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

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