Captain Xavier, Your Wife Has Signed the Divorce Papers

"Yes." Wren pointed to the data and conclusion on the report. "This is the DNA analysis report from the police. It confirms that the female body recovered from Westerloch is your daughter, Tina Wallace."

"Nonsense!" Mrs. Wallace shot to her feet, snatched the report, and threw it on the ground. "My daughter is alive and well, right upstairs! What do you think you’re doing, coming here to trick us with this?"

Wren didn’t get angry. She just looked at them calmly. "Mrs. Wallace, I know this is difficult to accept, but it’s the truth. The ’Tina Wallace’ you have upstairs is not your daughter."

Mr. Wallace’s expression darkened. "Wren, what exactly are you trying to say?"

Wren looked him directly in the eye. "I suspect the ’Tina Wallace’ upstairs is Seraphina Sutton in disguise. She killed your daughter, assumed her identity, and is now hiding in your home."

"Ridiculous!" Mrs. Wallace shrieked. "That’s utterly ridiculous! You think I wouldn’t recognize my own daughter? Seraphina and our Tina are two completely different people. How could she possibly be an imposter?"

Wren had anticipated this. She calmly took out her phone and pulled up a surveillance video. "Take a look. This is security footage from the detention center a few days ago. Your daughter went to bail out Seraphina Sutton, and they left together. But after that day, the real Tina Wallace went missing. And the ’Tina Wallace’ in your home—has there been anything unusual about her?"

Mr. and Mrs. Wallace watched the video, their expressions growing complicated.

Wren continued, "Seraphina Sutton and Tina Wallace have similar builds. If she made a deliberate effort to imitate her, it would be difficult to tell them apart at first. And think carefully—over the past few days, has the ’Tina Wallace’ upstairs behaved any differently than before? Her mannerisms, her tone of voice, her habits... has anything changed?"

The color drained from Mrs. Wallace’s face. She opened her mouth, seeming to want to say something, but no words came out.

Mr. Wallace was silent for a long time before finally speaking. "Even if what you say is true, we can’t just believe you based on a single report. There are plenty of people with the same name in this world. Who’s to say that body is our Tina?"

Wren knew they would say that. She was prepared. "You can do a parental DNA test. Just compare your DNA with the ’Tina Wallace’ upstairs, and the truth will come out."

"We don’t need to!" Mrs. Wallace suddenly shrieked. "I don’t believe you! My daughter is alive and well, upstairs! Get out!"

She rushed forward and began shoving Wren. The force of the pushes sent Wren stumbling back a few steps, nearly making her fall.

"Mrs. Wallace, please calm down!" Wren steadied herself. "I know this is difficult to accept, but running from it won’t solve anything. If the person upstairs really is Seraphina Sutton, it means your daughter’s death will go unexplained. Don’t you want to get justice for her?"

"Shut up!" Mrs. Wallace screamed, a crazed look in her eyes. "Get out! Get out now!"

A servant heard the commotion and ran over, but upon seeing the scene, froze, unsure of what to do.

Wren looked at Mrs. Wallace’s frenzied state and knew there was no point in saying anything more today. She took a deep breath and turned to Mr. Wallace. "Mr. Wallace, I’ve said my piece. I’ll leave the report here. You can think it over. If you change your minds, you can contact me anytime."

With that, she turned and left the Wallace home.

As she walked out the gate of the villa, Wren glanced back at the beautiful house. She knew that sometimes the truth is harder to accept than a lie. Mr. and Mrs. Wallace needed time to process this. All she could do was wait.

Finn Wynter’s car was parked at the curb. Seeing her emerge, he immediately got out to meet her.

"How did it go?" he asked.

Wren shook her head. "They don’t believe me. They threw me out."

Finn frowned. "So, what’s next?"

Wren thought for a moment. "I want to go find Asher Lynch’s parents. Seraphina Sutton and Asher Lynch used to be involved, so his parents might know some of her distinguishing physical features. If we can find definitive proof that the ’Tina Wallace’ at the Wallace home has features belonging to Seraphina, she’ll have nowhere left to hide."

Finn nodded. "I’ll go with you."

The two got into the car. Finn started the engine and drove toward Asher Lynch’s home.

Asher Lynch’s parents lived in an old residential complex in the north of the city. After Asher died, the elderly couple moved away from their old place and settled here. Wren had found their address through police records.

When Mrs. Lynch opened the door, she froze for a moment upon seeing Wren. Wren quickly explained why they were there. After a long silence, Mrs. Lynch finally let them in.

The apartment was spartan, filled with old furniture, but meticulously clean. Mr. Lynch sat in a wheelchair, and as Wren and Finn entered, a complicated glint flashed in his cloudy eyes.

"You want to ask about Seraphina?" Mrs. Lynch’s voice was raspy. "Why are you asking about the woman who caused my son’s death?"

Wren spoke gently. "Ma’am, I know this is difficult for you, but we need your help with something very important. Seraphina Sutton may be impersonating someone else. We need to know if she has any distinguishing features, like a birthmark or a scar." 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

Mrs. Lynch fell silent for a moment, looking to her husband. Mr. Lynch sighed and spoke slowly. "She has a mole on her right wrist. It’s not large, but it’s noticeable."

Wren’s heart leaped. "Are you certain?"

"I’m certain," Mr. Lynch said. "The girl used to visit us often. I saw it myself one time when she was helping us cook. It was right on the inside of her right wrist, about here." He pointed to his own wrist.

Wren and Finn exchanged a look, their eyes flashing with excitement.

"Thank you." Wren stood and bowed deeply. "Thank you for this lead."

Just as they left the Lynches’ home, Wren’s phone suddenly rang. It was Leif Shaw.

"Hello, Leif?"

"Wren, you need to get to the station, fast." Leif’s voice sounded strange. "Something’s happened."

Wren’s heart clenched. "What happened?"

"Mr. and Mrs. Wallace are here to turn themselves in," Leif said. "They’re confessing to killing their own daughter."

Wren froze.

Seeing the look on her face, Finn quickly asked, "What is it?"

Wren hung up and looked at Finn. "Mr. and Mrs. Wallace went to the police station to turn themselves in. They said they killed their daughter."

Finn was stunned too.

They exchanged a look, seeing the same shock and confusion mirrored in each other’s eyes.

"Come on," Wren said. "To the station."