Chapter 277: Chapter 277: Suspicion
Just like that, everyone knew Zoe Pierce had skipped the interrogation room on Colonel Hanson’s authority.
It was a trivial matter, but it was enough to make people remember his goodwill.
Colonel Hanson’s adjutant had already pulled out a chair for him to sit.
They were all familiar with each other now. Compared to their initial wariness, the atmosphere was now almost relaxed.
"That group used their old tricks and committed suicide again," Colonel Hanson said, clasping his hands. "All their smart devices self-destructed the moment they detected a non-owner."
It was almost the same trick as last time.
These people had no fear of death.
Zoe Pierce pursed her lips. "The leader, too?"
"He must have known a lot," Zoe Pierce continued. "I heard him contact his superior to ask for weak points in the lockdown zone."
Colonel Hanson nodded, his gaze calm. "He’s dead."
Zoe Pierce’s expression immediately grew complicated.
"They’ve all undergone body modification. There’s a neurotoxin in their mouths," Colonel Hanson said. "Once they realize they’ve been captured, it only takes a minute for them to end their own lives. Next time, remember to restrain their mouths."
Colonel Hanson even sounded a little regretful as he said it. This was an oversight from last time.
He’d only mentioned suicide, without explaining to Zoe Pierce and the others how it was done.
Zoe Pierce: "..."
"Alright," she said.
’It seems Colonel Hanson thinks there’ll be a next time, too.’
"Tell me what happened."
The impromptu plan had been so sudden, and the events of the past few hours—unfolding amidst both a geomagnetic storm and a hurricane—had been breathtakingly intense.
Zoe Pierce started from when she first noticed the suspicious individuals, then recounted being injected with something that kept her unconscious for a long time.
She hadn’t overheard much, and most of it wasn’t even useful information.
She mainly emphasized that the group had an inside man.
Everything was more or less as Colonel Hanson had predicted. Only after Zoe Pierce finished her account did the colonel and his adjutant leave.
After the men left, only the four of them remained in the room.
Zoe Pierce lay down.
"Nathan Lockwood, there’s something I didn’t mention earlier. I think I’ve heard the voice of the person that leader was contacting." Zoe hadn’t said anything because it was just a suspicion, something she wasn’t sure of.
But with them, she had no secrets she couldn’t share.
Hearing this, Nathan Lockwood sat down beside Zoe Pierce. "You’ve heard that person’s voice?"
Zoe Pierce nodded. "I’m sure I have. But I can’t place it."
The thought had been nagging at her.
Nathan Lockwood activated his Intelligent Brain, and a diagram instantly appeared before Zoe Pierce.
It consisted of several circles, each containing a label. Zoe Pierce studied the words.
The Military, The Academy, Government Officials.
"You haven’t met that many people, Zoe." In a way, Zoe Pierce was a classic homebody.
"Starting from the joint exams, the people you’ve met can be divided into these groups."
And the only people with the power to control an organization would come from these groups.
The people in each circle would have connections to those in the others.
The names Nathan Lockwood wrote down off the top of his head were all people Zoe could easily eliminate.
"It’s not someone I see often, but I’ve heard the voice."
"Beta."
Zoe Pierce said softly, "I’m not sure if the person was a Beta."
But Nathan Lockwood wasn’t concerned about that. "The test subjects are Betas. The ones who committed suicide are Betas. History is full of cases like this."
"Extremist factions, radical ideologies."
So, that already said a lot.
They’re uniting people based on one thing: being a Beta.
Only a Beta could lead them.
Otherwise, how could you get people to lay down their lives for the cause?
"At the Academy... there are almost no Betas," Zoe Pierce said after a pause.
Nathan Lockwood nodded. Even Miles Sherman and the others stared at the diagram floating in mid-air.
So, the Academy could be almost entirely ruled out.
"The Military will surely notice these connections as well."
"Of course, it’s also possible some fool was just used as a messenger," Nathan Lockwood conceded.
That left only The Military and Government Officials.
"Anyone from these groups is a possibility," Nathan Lockwood said, gesturing to the two remaining circles.
For some reason, Zoe Pierce thought of Quentin Ford. "Councilor Ford... he helped us before..."
’If you were talking about the highest-ranking Beta, Quentin Ford would have to be at the top of the list.’
But Zoe was certain it wasn’t his voice.
But now, through the process of elimination, the first person she could think of with the capability to orchestrate all this was, surprisingly, Quentin Ford.
Nathan Lockwood knew, of course. Back when the joint exams ended, Councilor Ford, who they barely knew, had done them a favor out of an appreciation for their talent.
"Mm, I know. That’s why this is all just speculation."
Nathan Lockwood was just mapping out the possibilities to eliminate them one by one.
It was mainly because Zoe’s social circle was so limited. She wasn’t a social butterfly. On the contrary, she was the type who’d rather curl up at home and be happy on her own.
Especially after they’d defined their relationship, her circle had become even smaller.
She had only opened up to them.
She trusted them completely.
’He’d wondered before if this was bad for her, having no other social life. But seeing her thrive in her military training like a fish in water, seemingly unconcerned with interacting with anyone else, he had held his tongue for the time being.’
She didn’t really care about other people.
She only cared about them.
An affection she treasured, reserved only for them.
’He selfishly wished she would stay just like this.’
’A selfish, greedy thought.’
Pulling his thoughts back, Nathan Lockwood pointed from The Military circle to the one for Government Officials. "Betas don’t have much status in the army."
It was an objective, realistic assessment.
Most military officers are Alphas, and Comfort Officers hold a special position because their role is to soothe Alphas.
Only a small fraction of Betas can make a career in the military.
"You’ve hardly seen any Betas in the army, either."
Zoe rarely saw the base’s regular doctor, since she was usually in good health.
Which leaves government officials.
"Betas are the most populous group in society," he continued. "And they make up the largest number of government officials, too."
Zoe Pierce let out a long sigh.
"Be careful."
Zoe Pierce nodded.
The scope had narrowed so much that her heart began to pound with anxiety.
It felt as if a madman who lived next door had suddenly shown up on her doorstep.
A sense of imminent danger washed over her.
"I didn’t get a chance to ask earlier, what happened on the ship?" Knowing Zoe’s personality, it was unlikely she would have backed out of being the bait so easily.
She told Colonel Hanson that they’d discovered she was awake, but Nathan didn’t think that was the whole story.
When it came to Nathan and the others, Zoe rarely lied when they asked her something directly.
’Are they too perceptive? How could they even notice something like that?’
She hesitated. "They got suspicious about how you kept finding them. They wondered if there was a tracker on my clothes or something... they wanted to throw away my training uniform and make me change into theirs."
The men’s throats suddenly went tight.
