Chapter 105
Back at his house, the police searched for more clues, including the clothes and accessories of the previously missing children.
John's criminal identity was essentially confirmed. Not only for the kidnapping of the little girl, Vicky, but also for several previous disappearance cases, all of which were pinned on him by the police.
Psychologists and child experts soon approached Vicky, asking her about her experience the day she went missing and what she had gone through in the following days.
"I saw a firefly, and I followed it under a metal frame. I crawled in after it, and then I found a clown..."
As for the clown's name, the consecutive days of fear had caused her to completely forget.
The police showed her the clown mask and asked, "Was it this clown?"
This triggered a strong reaction from Vicky, confirming that John had dressed up as the clown.
When Vicky regained consciousness, she found herself in a storage room at a supermarket.
At first, John treated her relatively well, only watching her drool. He would come by at night to deliver food, but in the last couple of days, he had begun abusing her.
Fortunately, Vicky was not sexually assaulted, but her body was covered in countless wounds.
"This indicates that John was not interested in little girls; he was interested in little boys. The boy in that video he released, Carl, was about fourteen years old, right? He was assaulted."
The criminal psychologist made this judgment.
Shortly afterward, the results from testing the crumpled papers came back.
They contained John's DNA. He didn't assault the little girl, but in the video...
This confirms that he was only attracted to boys, and he abused girls purely out of cruelty.
The police then summoned John's only relative, Casey, but unfortunately, she refused to speak. She simply lifted her clothes, revealing old scars and fresh wounds treated with ointment.
This was enough to prove that she was also one of the victims. Whether or not she participated in the crimes was unclear, and further investigation was required.
Psychologist Karen had a brief conversation with Casey, gaining some insight into her childhood experiences.
"When Casey was very young, her father fell off a cliff while hunting, and since then, her uncle John raised her. She had sought help from the police before, but John easily brushed it off, and what awaited her was even more brutal abuse.
As for the fresh burn scar on her body? It's laughable! On the second day after Vicky went missing, she reported hearing cries for help in the supermarket. But the police just made a brief visit and left, not taking it seriously at all. Her attempt to call for help resulted in a scalding cigarette burn."
Dr. Karen had many complaints about this.
When this incident came to light, the streets of Derry would likely become much cleaner, as the police in Derry were once again being shamed!
The police tried to suppress this information, but by noon, it had already leaked out.
Rumors started spreading like wildfire—not just about police negligence, but even more outlandish claims suggesting that John was protected by the police. Some said that many of the missing children were hidden by the police, with boys sent to churches and girls to the White House.
The mayor was so alarmed by these rumors that he personally called the chief of police for a friendly chat, hoping he could quickly stop the spread of these rumors.
But before the chief could act, by evening, protestors had already arrived at the police station, holding hastily made signs.
Most of these people were from families who had lost children, along with their friends.
The deep-seated pain and terror suddenly flooded back to these victims' hearts after John's death and the police's announcement of the case's closure, as if long-buried memories had suddenly resurfaced!
Little Vicky had been found, but their children might remain missing forever!
If the police had done their best in investigating these disappearance cases, that would have been one thing, but they hadn't—they had been completely ineffective. In fact, John had committed these crimes right under the police's noses!
Regarding the riots in town, Derry's police chief, Wilson, was especially furious and lost control during a meeting.
"Why was the final culprit John, just an ordinary middle-aged man? Even a devil would've been better! I've already called for backup!"
The others exchanged glances, unsure how to respond.
In the end, Wilson decided to find someone else to deflect the crowd's anger.
"What about that Casey? I don't believe she's completely innocent!"
The psychologist frowned and said, "Even if she has issues, it doesn't absolve her from guilt; that girl has dissociative identity disorder."
Karen was very concerned about Casey's mental state and had great sympathy for her situation. As a psychologist, she understood all too well the consequences of a traumatic childhood.
So she tried to delve into Casey's mind and guide her psychologically. However, as their conversations deepened, Karen discovered that Casey had a hidden personality—one that was unusual and of significant research value.
Dr. Karen wasn't just a psychologist; she was also an honorary professor at Columbia University and a board member of the local college, holding a high status in the town.
So when she spoke, Chief Wilson couldn't be too forceful and cautiously expressed his doubts: "Dissociative identity disorder? Mental illness? She seems perfectly normal."
"In fact, they are entirely different. Dissociative identity disorder means two completely different people. The personalities can even have distinct physiological differences. I once had a patient whose one personality was allergic to honey, while the other had no such reaction at all. You can think of it as two souls in one body."
The chief wasn't pleased with Karen's response—he was just making a casual remark, and here she was giving him a lecture.
And it all sounded so far-fetched. Is dissociative identity disorder some kind of superpower?
Chief Wilson wasn't willing to let go of his need for a scapegoat:
"Fine, then let's tell the public the child has dissociative identity disorder. She might not even know if her other personality assisted in the crimes. I still don't believe John could've committed so many disappearances alone!"
"You'd better not do that."
Dr. Karen disapproved of the police's approach. "Ms. Beverly seems to have a close relationship with her. She was standing outside the door the whole time I was talking to Casey."
Beverly was a key figure in solving the case; with her support, any accusations against Casey would likely go nowhere.
"Damn it!"
Wilson cursed. He had no fondness for Beverly and thought she had sparked the explosion. But in a country that glorifies individual heroism, he couldn't afford to go head-to-head with Beverly.
The protestors outside the station showed no signs of leaving; in fact, even animal rights and environmental groups had joined in the protest.
"Disperse! And get rid of those troublemakers at the entrance too!"
If they didn't put an end to these protests soon, once nightfall arrived, opportunists would take advantage of the chaos for looting!
Everyone knew the chief was still furious, so they left the meeting room one by one, heads hanging low.
Sheriff Brook, an African American, was also eager to leave, but as soon as he stepped out of the meeting room, he was stopped by Jackson.
This guy was all hyped up and immediately pulled him aside: "Sheriff, I've got a great plan to solve the current dilemma!"