Chapter 15 There's Always Something_1

Shifty eyes, rigid facial expressions, somewhat stumbling speech, and the occasional scratching and wiping of sweat... Based on his own subjective judgment, Aiden could assert with certainty that the young man before him was lying.

Prison guards are not entirely alien to investigation; crimes committed within the prison are mostly left to the prison itself to investigate. After encountering all manners of criminals, Aiden had honed a certain level of professional intuition.

Adding to that, he retained the knowledge and experience of his predecessor as a Senior Investigator. Although he had not yet mastered these skills to the point of being second nature, he believed he had inherited at least sixty to seventy percent of their capability.

Therefore, he felt quite confident in his own judgment.

Moreover, the raw recruit from the police force before him lacked the counter-investigation skills to deceive him.

To Aiden, Bruce felt much like the first-timers in the prison.

Of course, he was fully aware that his subjective judgment was meaningless.

If he intended to overturn Veronica's conviction, he had to refute the evidence that had convicted her—Bruce's testimony, and the service pistol missing a bullet. Both pieces of evidence could have been fabricated by Bruce alone.

But conversely, if Bruce recanted, the chain of evidence against Veronica would be incomplete.

In other words, the young man before him was the key to whether Veronica could have her case overturned or not.

This time, his specific purpose in visiting Bruce was to ascertain what kind of person he was.

Bruce's first impression on Aiden was that of a fairly simple character. He was clearly uneasy about having given perjured testimony that put Veronica behind bars. Besides feeling guilty about Veronica, he was also afraid that his perjury would ruin his reputation and even land him in prison.

This kind of minor character's perjury should have a chance to present a loophole that could be exploited.

Just then, the door of the meeting room was suddenly pushed open, and a portly man barged in, staring breathlessly at the two of them.

Aiden looked at the newcomer with surprise, aware that, due to the nature of their work, the Mounted Police had certain physical requirements for their members. The man before him looked to be in his prime but already sported a noticeable beer belly. If he hadn't been wearing the uniform, Aiden would never have guessed he was a mounted officer.

"Mr. Jaron!" Bruce seemed startled.

"What are you doing here?" Jaron glanced at Bruce, then eyed Aiden warily, "Which department are you from?"

"Hello, I am Aiden, the warden of Rose Iron Prison. I needed to consult with Officer Bruce today on some work-related matters," Aiden casually exchanged pleasantries with the man.

"What work-related matters? What business could a prison guard have with us?" Jaron pressed aggressively, "Don't distract our people with idle chatter, you'll disrupt our work!"

"Rest assured, I've already asked all the questions I needed to, and it's about time for me to take my leave."

Aiden sensed the man's unfriendly demeanor and decided it would be best not to entangle himself further, so he got up to leave.

"Officer Bruce, thank you very much for your cooperation. I'll be sure to treat you to a meal sometime," Aiden offered his hand to Bruce before striding out of the meeting room, with the officer named Jaron following him out silently.

From the meeting room to the station's entrance, Aiden could feel the man's gaze pinned to his back every time he looked back.

Once out of the police station, Aiden veered into an alleyway.

After making sure there was no one around, he touched the cat's eye ring on his hand. A black cat emerged from the depths of the alley and sidled up to Aiden, rubbing against his leg.

"Did you get a clear view of the target, Daili?" he asked, looking down at the black cat while his lips barely moved.

"The kid who was talking to the warden, right? Understood," Daili's voice rang in his ear as if the bewitching witch were standing right beside him, her breath as fragrant as orchid.

The witch Daili knew many secretive arts; besides summoning demons, she also could control black cats and crows as her familiars, sharing her senses with them. Furthermore, she was able to use cat's eye stones and the Crystal Ball as mediums to spy on distant scenes.

Even while in prison, she managed to perform tracking and surveillance tasks on behalf of Aiden.

"Good, just keep a close eye on him after he leaves the police station after work, and report his movements to me tonight," Aiden said, squatting down to stroke the black cat's head.

"It would be my honor to serve you," the witch cooed playfully, "Of course, if I happen to get a chance to eat some freshly baked butter berry pie from Seventh Street in the lower district today, I might be even more motivated." With a cunning smile, she continued, "Helping a warden as clear on rewards and punishments as you must come with perks, right? Thanks in advance, Warden—though you haven't yet said so, there surely must be something, right?"

Aiden raised his eyebrows and stared at the black cat for a long time before laughing. "You've grown bold, haven't you, bargaining with me? Alright then," he agreed.

In the afternoon, Aiden returned to the Rose Iron Prison, heading first to the core area.

"Room twelve, Daili, for a meeting." Aiden arrived at the door of room twelve and gestured for Flandre, who stood nearby, to bring her to the meeting room.

"Hee hee, I simply adore you, Warden!" Daili pressed herself against the door, casting a flirty look toward Aiden.

"Alright then, just remember to do your task properly," Aiden waved his hand dismissively and turned to walk toward room thirteen opposite.

Through the bars, he witnessed a scene he could not have imagined until yesterday.

Veronica was sitting on the bed, absentmindedly flipping through a novel—a rare entertainment allowed in the prison to pass the time—while Fille was kneeling behind her, diligently massaging her shoulders.

Observing this, it was hard to believe that just two days ago, Fille had been crying out for a room change to be away from this death row inmate.

"Hey, when did you two get so close?" Aiden teased as he spoke to them.

"Lord Aiden, you're here!" Fille greeted Aiden eagerly, as she always did.

"Warden..." Veronica also lifted her face, nodding at Aiden with a hint of restraint.

Following their heart-to-heart talk the previous day, her attitude toward Aiden had clearly softened.

"What, you've picked up a little minion already? Settled in quite quickly, haven't you?" Aiden joked, nodding at Fille behind Veronica.

"She insisted on sticking close to me," Veronica appeared somewhat helpless. "I've told her to leave me alone and mind her own business."

"Oh come on, since we're cellmates by fate, we should foster good relations. The moment I saw you, sister, I felt a special connection!" Fille said sweetly, wrapping her arms playfully around Veronica's neck.

"Let go!" Veronica brushed off her arm without ceremony.

"Your ability to lie through your teeth is getting stronger by the day," Aiden said, shaking his head at Fille. He knew that after Fille was certain that Veronica was not a true murderer, she would cling to her voluntarily, hoping to be under her protection and treating Veronica as a free bodyguard.

"Enough, room thirteen, Veronica, a meeting with the warden," he turned to Veronica, ready to address the matters at hand.

"A meeting with the warden?" Veronica didn't understand at first.

"It means you will have a meeting with me; I have some questions for you," explained Aiden, signaling Flandre to open the cell door. "Come on out."

"What about me?" Fille looked as though she wanted to tag along.

"Stay put!" Aiden glared at her.