Inside the interrogation room at the police station.


    With her arms folded, Sia leaned back in her chair, fixing the chief police officer with a cold stare. "Why did you kill him?" she demanded.


    "What do you mean, ''I killed him''? Look, officer, I was just there to interrogate the criminal. I didn''t kill him," the chief officer retorted defensively.


    "So, ording to you, ''interrogation'' means silencing the criminal?" she replied sharply.


    "You…" Before the chief officer could argue further, Sia suddenly mmed her fist on the table and stood up. Looking down at him icily, she said, "Look, you may be the chief officer, but that means nothing to me. You better hope I don''t find evidence against you, because if I do, what awaits you will be far worse than death."


    With a scoff, Sia turned on her heel and left the room.


    Just a few minutes earlier, Sia had received a call from HK. "Something''s happened—the chief researcher is dead. He was found this morning, and it seems…the chief officer may be involved."


    Back to the present…


    As Sia exited the room, she noticed her five team members standing nearby, heads bowed in dejection.


    Raising her eyebrows, she asked, "What''s with all of you?"


    "We…we''re sorry," one of them mumbled.


    "Why are you apologizing to me?" she asked, surprised.


    "Because it was our negligence that allowed us to lose a very important suspect," HK exined, clearly guilty.


    "Yes," Stephen added. "Even though we knew he was a critical suspect, we didn''t keep an eye on him, and now he''s dead—right under our noses."


    "You don''t need to apologize. This wasn''t your fault," Sia replied indifferently.


    "No, but—" HK paused, studying her carefully, then frowned. "Wait a minute! Why are you so calm? Given how important this clue was, you should be the most upset. Yet here you are, calm and evenforting us?"


    Leaning against the wall, Sia shrugged. "Is there any point in crying over spilled milk? Rather than wasting energy on something we can''t change, I''d rather focus on our next steps."


    "Ohh…looks like you had a good night''s sleep," HKmented with a hint of amusement.


    Sia smiled to herself, recalling herforting time with Mu Jun. "Hmm…maybe I did."


    "Alright then, let''s head to the meeting room. We still have a lot to discuss," she said, turning toward the hallway.


    "But what about him? Are we just going to let him go like that?" Daniel asked, referring to the chief officer.


    "Just keep him under surveince. We''ll deal with himter," Sia ordered, striding out.


    In the meeting room…


    As she read through thetest reports, Sia turned to her team and asked, "Any updates on those missing doctors?"


    "None so far. Although we managed to stop some kidnapped individuals from being transferred out of here, we still haven''t tracked down the main culprit behind these kidnappings," Rishi replied.


    "Hmm. Keep a lookout for any information. See if any of the rescued victims can help us sketch the doctors and their aplices. That could speed things up."


    "Understood. But how are we going to find the mastermind behind all this?" Robert asked. "We lost our only solid lead because of the chief officer''s interference, and because of protocol, we can''t even press him too hard."


    "Calm down. It''s not over yet," Sia replied coolly.


    "What do you mean?" HK asked, curious.


    "We seem to have gotten sidetracked by the research base chaos. Don''t forget, this all started with a hijacking—the minister''s daughter being abducted. And it was that vi connected to her case that led us to this discovery." Turning to HK, she continued, "Have you looked into who owns that vi?"


    "Yes, I checked. ording to the registration documents, the vi belongs to a Ms. Reena. I investigated her background, and it turns out she''s the deputy minister''s daughter. Interesting, isn''t it?" HK responded.


    "Invite Ms. Reena in for questioning. And how is the minister''s daughter?"


    "She''s undergoing counseling and is currently resting at the hospital under tight security," HK replied.


    "Good. Stephen, visit the hospital tomorrow and get a formal statement from her."


    "Will do," Stephen nodded.


    "Robert, look into the chief officer''s recent activity. Go through his emails and phone records if needed," Sia instructed.


    "Understood."


    "David, contact all our informants in the city. Find out if there''s been any unusual activity, especially rted to human trafficking or organized crime rings. Arrest anyone involved if necessary."


    "Got it," David affirmed.


    "What about Liam and Nick?"


    "They''re dealing with the captives we found at the XX hospital. Since most of them are either children or infants, it''s going to take some time to verify their identities," HK exined.


    "Let Liam handle that. Assign Nick to the case of the missing doctors. We can''t let them roam freely—especially that doctor from the XX clinic, who dared to exploit children," Sia said coldly.


    "Understood."


    "Alright, get to work."


    With that, everyone dispersed, leaving Sia alone in the room. Gazing at the whiteboard filled with notes and clues, Sia muttered under her breath, "I''ll find whoever''s responsible for this. Whoever you are, don''t think you''ll escape justice. I''ll make sure you face the consequences—no matter your position or influence."


    Later, Ms. Reena, one of the suspects, arrived at the station.


    Inside the interrogation room, Sia studied the woman carefully. Ms. Reena wasposed, with a calm, almost diplomatic demeanor, as she met Sia''s gaze. Beside her sat a middle-aged man, herwyer.


    "Ms. Reena, may I ask what your rtionship with Ms. Karen is?" Sia began.


    "We were friends," Reena replied smoothly. "My father is the deputy minister, so naturally, I have some contact with the minister. Ms. Karen and I are close in age, so we got along well. That''s all."


    "Was there ever any conflict between you two?" Sia asked, pressing gently.


    Before Reena could respond, herwyer interjected, his tone stern. "Officer Shien, you can''t question my client like this. Remember, she is a prominent member of the XX political party. It would be wise to conclude this interrogation promptly."


    Sia didn''t lose herposure. She fixed thewyer with a cold stare and replied, "I don''t need awyer telling me how to do my job. And let me remind you, this is not an ordinary case, and I am not amon officer. Refusing to cooperate will not benefit either of you. So, if you choose to cooperate, great. If not…" She leaned forward, her gaze hardening. "You''ll lose the right to exin or reason. Understood?"


    Thewyer looked as if he wanted to protest, but a warning look from Reena silenced him.


    Sia continued, her tone unwavering. "Now, Ms. Reena, we have reason to believe that the vi where Ms. Karen was held is directly connected to these recent kidnappings. I''d advise you to cooperate fully with this investigation."


    Reena''s calm expression faltered slightly, but she maintained herposure. "I have nothing to hide, Officer. I''ll answer your questions as truthfully as I can."


    Sia leaned back, observing her carefully. Despite herposed appearance, she could tell that Reena was hiding something, and Sia intended to uncover exactly what that was.