Chapter 83

In the early morning, in the Upper Town area.

David stood at the door, his gaze somewhat unfocused.

He glanced again at the pond in the yard, remembering the expression on his daughter Emma's face when she saw the dead cat a few days ago.

Indifferent, calm, and cold.

While reminding himself with a detached tone that a cat had drowned in the pond, he continued to eat breakfast with considerable appetite.

And then there was his discovery from last night.

In the photos from the award ceremony, Emma stood out as being different from all the other students, with a sinister gaze fixed on the medal. The way she looked at Milo was filled with malice.

This was not the behavior of a normal child.

David also recalled his police friend's response.

He had adamantly stated that the case of the missing children in Delly Town was caused by a figure known as the Swirling Prophet, with no connection to the Clown whatsoever.

So... what did Emma see that day?

Upon closer reflection, David remembered that Randy had also claimed not to have seen the Clown, only Emma being in danger alone by the cliff.

Now that the school's teachers were aware of the situation and had expressed doubts about Emma seeing the Clown, David had refused to let them speak with Emma yesterday.

He worried that if the situation were to turn out to be the worst...

As a father, he felt he didn't understand his daughter and could only see her abnormal behavior...

"David?"

"Hmm?"

David turned to look at his sister, Angela.

"You seem to be a bit off."

"I'm fine. It's time to go. I need to discuss the project with a client at noon."

David, wanting to avoid further questioning from the school teachers, decided to dive into work. He was supposed to go on a business trip today and had planned to bring Emma along, but unfortunately, Emma had firmly refused.

"Okay, take care of yourself."

Angela gave him a hug and then asked about the nanny, "When will that nanny be arriving?"

"She should be here by nine in the morning. Let her stay at the house this time."

David was quite pleased with the nanny.

The originally agreed-upon nanny suddenly had to help another family for a week, so David had to find a replacement on short notice.

The new nanny was a very cheerful and optimistic person.

David hoped her positivity would affect Emma, at least making her less withdrawn.

In the past couple of days, David was satisfied with the nanny's performance. She seemed to have a good rapport with Emma and often shared little secrets with her, creating a warm atmosphere.

"That's good. By the way, David, I might need to go home around noon."

"What? Didn't we agree that you'd stay a few more days to take care of Emma?"

David looked surprised. He was very concerned about his daughter. After learning that there might be danger in the town, the school had barred Emma from attending, hired a nanny, and even called in her aunt.

They were essentially ensuring that at least two or more adults were always around Emma.

"Come on, Emma is very sensible. With the nanny taking care of her, they get along well."

Angela was unaware of the strange events in Delly Town. Since she arrived, she had stayed in the Upper Town, essentially enjoying a vacation.

David remained frowning; he was more concerned about his daughter than his career.

He even considered canceling his meeting with the client, but then hesitated, thinking about how many people in the company depended on the project for their livelihood.

"David, what are you worried about? This is the safest community in Delly. The security company responsible here can call in two helicopters within an hour. Plus, there are patrol cars and security checks around the clock."

"Yes."

David nodded. At least so far, the Upper Town hadn't experienced any problems, except for Milo's disappearance by the cliff, which was not considered part of the Upper Town area.

"Alright, but it might be best to have someone else come help. I know a kid who can help look after Emma. His name is Randy Shaw, and he's about six or seven years older than Emma. You can have Emma contact him. They have a good relationship. I had planned to invite him over, but unfortunately, didn't get the chance."

David thought Randy, who liked fishing all the time, surely had plenty of free time, and there were plenty of fishing spots in the Upper Town.

"I'll make sure Randy is registered at the gate when I leave."

"Okay."

Angela nodded, then mentioned the nanny, "The nanny's name is Bee, right? I called her by the wrong name yesterday."

"That's right. You can also call her Little Bee."

David nodded and glanced secretly at Emma, who was having breakfast by the floor-to-ceiling window.

She seemed to be in good spirits, sitting on the chair, her little feet swinging continuously.

Yet that was the most troubling part.

Emma had lost a good friend a few days ago and had lost a caring neighbor the day before!

David found it hard to face the neighbor's family, especially since it was his suggestion to go fishing, and the neighbor ended up having an accident.

"I'm leaving now!"

After David drove away, Angela muttered Randy's name and then went back to her room.

"Hey, little angel, do you want some ice cream?"

"Of course!"

Emma's face lit up with surprise as she put down her spoon and ran over.

She liked this aunt more than her father because her father never allowed her to have snacks, believing they were unhealthy. But Aunt Angela always brought her plenty of treats.

"Emma, your dad just left. I have to leave at noon too, but don't worry. Your nanny, Little Bee, will stay to take care of you. Also, your dad asked me to tell you that you can invite your good friend Randy Shaw to come over. You…"

Emma's expression darkened when she heard the nanny was staying, but her face brightened when she heard she could invite someone over.

"Randy! Of course, I already memorized his number. I'll call him right now."

Seeing Emma forget to eat her ice cream, Angela smiled warmly.

Not long after, Randy's phone rang in the South District of Mid-City.

He looked at the caller ID and saw it was an unfamiliar landline.

"Hello?"

Randy had just parked his car and was about to enter Mike's house.

After a long silence on the other end, Emma's voice finally came through.

"It's Emma."

Randy stopped being overly friendly, "What's up?"

"My dad wanted to check on you and invite you over."

"No time, just tell him to push it."

Emma frowned and turned away, hiding her expression from Aunt Angela.

She couldn't accept being rejected.

"Actually, I'm inviting you. It's just me at home now."

Randy was taken aback, "Did you kill David? Do you want me to help you deal with the body?"

"…How could I kill my dad?"

Emma was also speechless.

"I just wanted to let you know that you'd better come over. My medal has been found, and a really bad woman has come to our house. She's even threatening me."

"Oh?"

"Who is she? Your sister?"

Randy didn't know the bad woman, but he knew the bad girl, Emma.

"No, she's just the nanny we interviewed. Her name is Bee, but I prefer to call her the Killer Bee."

Emma whispered, "And she looks a lot like you. There's something indescribable about her. I even saw her with a very strange book. It had a weird ghost face on it, and she was reciting spells from it."

"Alright, but I don't have time right now. I'll call you this afternoon when I'm free."

Randy agreed to the request. He was not interested in being a nanny, but he was quite intrigued by Bee.

Evil tends to attract more evil.

A strange book? It might be another form of dark magic.

Either subdue it or use it as material.