Chapter 1189: The Lamb's Cry (Part 1) _1

As Shiller finished speaking, the room fell into silence.

Officer Angela was the first to stand up from the semi-circular table and walked up to Shiller. Looking him in his eyes, she said, "Professor, even though this is not a public inquiry for the media and public, every word you utter will be recorded and you will have to bear the legal responsibility for it."

"I understand," Shiller looked back into her eyes, "I know better than all of you what I am saying. What you need to do now is to handcuff me and then find the body."

"Where is the body?" Angela squinted her eyes and asked.

"On the third floor."

"Specific location."

"That's the job of the Federal Bureau of Investigation agent," said Shiller as he looked around. "I murdered someone on your turf; surely, you wouldn't need me to tell you the exact location of the body?"

The officer who had replaced Jimmy earlier approached. He signaled Angela with his eyes and she reluctantly stepped back with a hint of frustration.

The male agent in white pushed his glasses up and said to Shiller, "Hello, you can call me Davis, Professor Rodriguez. I hope you understand that there is a significant difference between dereliction of duty and murder. You might be facing severe imprisonment of 40 years or more."

Shiller looked at him in silence, prompting Davis to nod, then turn to his subordinates and say, "Commence the search. Report back immediately upon finding the body."

Soon, teams of agents departed the assembly hall. The clock above the hall wall ticked away, its minute hand rotating forward steadily. As time passed, expressions on everyone in the assembly changed.

Davis's expression grew grimmer, Talia and William, who sat in the middle, squinted their eyes; Angela's face was heavy with tension, and Bruce remained expressionless. Clearly, the turn of events had taken everyone by surprise.

After an entire 43 minutes, an agent finally walked in. The moment he pushed open the door, everyone's eyes focused on him.

"We found the body of Jimmy Andres in a cupboard in a storage room on the third floor. He died from a puncture to the heart, about 1 hour and 30 minutes ago. We are yet to ascertain if the storage room was the initial crime scene."

"What about the murder weapon?" Davis inquired.

"Not found, but upon observation of the wound, Andres' heart was pierced by a pen. The murderer had stabbed through his heart from the back in a very skilled and decisive manner."

In an instant, everyone's gaze shifted back onto Shiller. One agent approached him, gun in hand.

Shiller raised his hands while another agent searched his body and found a steel pen in his pocket.

Davis put on gloves, took the pen, and inspected it closely in his line of sight. He didn't discover any leftover blood or other traces on it.

"Did you kill Jimmy in the storage room?" Davis asked.

"The storage room couldn't possibly be the original crime scene." A voice rang out, but it wasn't from Davis' suspect, Shiller, but came from behind in the hall.

Bruce rose from his seat, walked down the steps and said, "Jimmy last met me before his death, apart from the murderer. Knowing him as well as you all did, would you believe he would sit in the storage room, holding such important documents?"

"Mr. Wayne, we should hear the murderer's testimony first," Davis said, staring at the approaching Bruce.

"But murderers can lie," unyielding, Bruce gave a sidelong glance at Rhomann and Thomas who were standing dumbfounded. He stepped forward looking Davis in the eyes and said,

"I don't care about any supposed mental control and abuse, as I believe only the weak-willed would be whining and complaining about it."

"But Rhomann and Thomas are my friends. Wayne Enterprises is in business with the Xienis and the Elliot family. If both of them are rolled into a murder case, I think it's necessary for me to ensure justice is served, not letting any sinner off."

Davis detected Bruce's intention. He was well aware that Bruce Wayne would, of course, side with Shiller before this because of the professor's reputation intertwined with his own. He would certainly lend a hand if he could.

But it was predicated on Shiller being merely accused of dereliction of duty by his students, something Wayne Enterprises could reverse.

But if Shiller committed a murder at the Federal Bureau of Investigation's headquarters, it would be irreparable. Being a businessman, Bruce Wayne really ought to clear any relationship with Shiller, writing him off, ensuring the culprit never sees the light of day.

Davis thought to himself that he really was facing a sharp businessman; rapid shift in his stance, seamless transition.

"Mr. Wayne, I never thought that you have a knack for criminal investigation as well?" William Dennys Jetter emerged to stand by Davis' side, looking at Bruce.

"I'm not a detective," Bruce replied shaking his head, "But anyone with normal intelligence would understand that Jimmy, holding such vital documents, would not go to the storage room as his first stop on the third floor."