The Brain Science Case 73

Chapter 73: Another Voice in the Brain – 10

“The alarm clock rang.”

His eyes widened.

“Right after you followed Miller’s instructions and fled the scene, the alarm clock, which had been reset, went off. I, who was anxious to contact you, arrived at the hotel and heard the alarm clock ringing incessantly in the room. I immediately got the hotel staff to help, and Miller and I entered the scene together, and we were lucky enough to find Ms. Müller, who was holding on to her last breath… do you know what she said?”

“What did Meta say?”

“George Miller.” Tang Yingli pointed to her lips and said, word by word, “With her remaining strength, she kept mouthing that name.

“Besides yourself, she was the one who knew your physical condition best. But even as your tinnitus grew worse and your disordered behavior became more frequent, she never thought of leaving your side. Even when you were behind her, cutting her throat, Ms. Müller still tried to protect you. She really loved you.”

His face was twisted, a mixture of sadness and anger. “That bastard George.”

“You must feel guilty for accidentally killing your lover. You’re seeking revenge on him, which also shows your determination.” As for deleting his research data, that was ironclad proof. “But what’s done is done. What you can do now is to stop hurting innocent people.”

His expression showed his inner hesitation.

She then pushed him a little further. “Don’t let yourself become a beast in human skin.”

“Do you know,” Chomsky’s smile was more painful than a cry, “for these three days, there’s been a strong voice in my head.”

“What?”

“Kill George Miller.” His face was ferocious, but then he smiled again. “Unfortunately, in the end, I couldn’t even do that.” He released the hostage with his left hand. Jinglin immediately stepped forward and shielded the girl behind her.

Tang Yingli let out a discreet sigh of relief and turned. Fang Zijun and the other members of the division were already in position outside.

“Charlotte.”

She stared at Chomsky, listening intently to his every word.

“You were wrong about one thing.” He looked up, gripped the gun tightly, and cocked the hammer. “The me who killed Meta… can’t go back.”

“Teacher, be careful.” Jinglin’s eyes widened, and she immediately raised her gun and aimed.

Tang Yingli seemed to have seen something and quickly turned. “Officer Zhou, wait…”

Time seemed to stand still. He held the gun to his own throat. Jinglin, who had raised her gun, now aimed at his right shoulder and pulled the trigger.

The bullet hit its mark, causing the muzzle to shift slightly, but he also fired at the same time, and the bullet shot through his jaw and nose at close range, and blood splattered everywhere.

“Professor, no.” Tang Yingli cried out in pain.

It was too late. The mad genius had taken his own life. Chomsky’s tall body fell backward, and the blood stained the floor-to-ceiling window red. The revolver fell to the ground with a thud, just like her sinking heart.

Everything had happened too quickly, and even the detectives who were prepared to surround him were caught off guard. But to the others, the killer had committed suicide, and no innocent people had been harmed, which was a blessing in disguise.

“Teacher…”

Staring at the unrecognizable corpse, in that instant, as if all her strength had been drained, Tang Yingli slowly took off her glasses. Jinglin held her tight and found that she was trembling all over.

“I should have stopped him…” she said weakly, “I could only watch… watch him…”

“He was determined to die. You couldn’t have done anything.” Even her shot couldn’t make him put down the gun.

“I saw it. His eyes told me… he was so close to me.”

“Don’t blame yourself. At least the hostage wasn’t hurt.” Seeing Tang Yingli’s eyes well up, Jinglin bit her lip and gently stroked her face. “You did a great job. It’s okay. It’s all over…”

Fang Zijun had already begun to seal the scene, dismiss the irrelevant personnel, and deal with the body.

“Teacher,” their eyes met, “you’ve worked hard.”

Tang Yingli ignored him. “No… not yet.” She put her glasses back on, her eyes turning sharp, and looked at Chomsky. “It’s not over yet.”

“Teacher?”

She took Chomsky’s phone and ran out of the coffee shop, gritting her teeth.

**

In the international academic conference hall, a grand academic conference came to a perfect end.

“Although there have been many unexpected situations this week,” George Miller said emotionally to the attendees, “at least the conference has come to a successful conclusion. I would like to thank the university for hosting this conference… the flame of academia will never be extinguished by any obstacle.”

His words received a warm round of applause from the scholars.

After the conference, Miller deliberately stayed in the conference hall. He looked at the dispersing crowd, knowing that his star student was not there.

“Professor Miller, you’ve worked hard. This way, please.”

He smiled and followed the guide to the lounge, where a group of scholars who had also been invited to Taiwan for the conference were waiting.

Amidst the lighthearted conversation, his phone suddenly rang. “…Sorry, I have to take this.” Miller made a gesture, looked at the screen, and answered. “Hello, it’s me.”

He walked to a less crowded corner. “Is that so? He committed suicide…” he repeated in a low voice, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.

“Okay, I understand. Thank you.”

Staying in the air-conditioned room was much more comfortable than outside. The winters in Taipei were a wet and cold that Miller was not used to.

He looked up at the thick, dark clouds overhead.

The rain was about to fall.

**

While Miller and his friends were enjoying afternoon tea, the news of Andrew Chomsky’s death gradually reached them.

Many people were saddened by the result, and many more were in disbelief. A scholar who had dedicated his life to studying the criminal brain had become a murderer.

His friends also expressed their condolences to Miller. They all knew that the friendship between Miller and Chomsky was the deepest.

“His example tells us one thing,” Miller said, wiping away his tears, his voice filled with grief, “the line between an ordinary person and a murderer is very thin.”

After saying these thought-provoking words, Miller said he was not in a good mood and did not go for a drink with his friends, but returned to his hotel room.

But before he entered, Miller ran into Tang Yingli in the hallway.

“Charlotte?”

She was kneeling in front of room 613, which was still sealed, and had placed a flower at the door. Next to her, as before, was the young female detective with the long ponytail.

She prayed for a while, knowing that Miller was slowly approaching her. “I can’t do much, but I can at least offer this to Ms. Müller.”

“Your feelings, Meta will hear them.”

“I’m sorry I didn’t attend the seminar you hosted, Teacher.” Tang Yingli let out a breath, her fair face showing a hint of fatigue. “Was the conference a success?”

“It’s fine. I know you have a heavy responsibility on your shoulders.” Miller nodded. “By the way, I heard about Andrew. I didn’t expect you to actually do it.”

“Do what?”

“Solve the case. Although I still find it hard to believe… but you caught the person who killed Meta. What is that if not solving the case?”

“Solving the case?” Tang Yingli said with a half-smile, exchanging a look with the female detective next to her. “There’s still a little bit left.” She said it in Chinese on purpose.

“Huh?”

“I can only say that Chomsky made the most foolish mistake at the critical moment.” Her smile was tinged with a hint of sadness. “I just finished the investigation. Can I talk to you for a bit, Teacher? Although it might not be the right time…”

“How could it not be the right time? I was afraid you wouldn’t come.” Miller was overjoyed. “Here, let’s go to my room. This way.”

But only Tang Yingli followed. “What about the police officer?” Miller noticed that Zhou Jinglin had not followed. “Isn’t she your colleague?”

“We’re work partners, I guess. I’m not actually on the payroll.” She moved closer to Miller and said in a whisper, “But she doesn’t understand English. I don’t want to bother translating for her.”

“Then she can still come for a drink.” Inserting the room card, he invited Tang Yingli in.

She exclaimed, looking at the large window. “The lighting here is so good. And the room is so big…”

“Isn’t it? It’s a bit of a waste for one person to live here.” Miller took off his jacket and took a bottle of red wine from the fridge. “I bought a few bottles on my first day. It’s perfect to drink with you… unfortunately, there are no crystal wine glasses.”

“If it’s good wine, it’s just as good in a regular glass.” She walked to the window. “Ah, it’s raining.”

“It really does rain a lot here.” Expertly pulling out the cork, while Tang Yingli was distracted, Miller put a few pills in the glass before pouring the red wine.

“Drink up, don’t be polite.”

“I’ve never been polite when I drink your wine, Teacher.”

“Is that so?”

They clinked glasses, and the red wine touched her lips. Perhaps it was the alcohol that relaxed her nerves, but Tang Yingli began to talk about the investigation.

“…He was hidden for three days, but he suddenly turned on his phone, which was the key to the police being able to track him down.”

“Andrew must have been trying to contact someone.”

“Did you get a call from him, Teacher?” she asked, tilting her head. “After all, you and the professor were very close.”

Miller smiled faintly. “I did get a call from him, but I didn’t answer. The seminar was about to start at that time.”

“I see.” Tang Yingli covered her mouth. “Huh? But that’s not right…”

“What’s wrong?”

“The chief of the Criminal Investigation Division said they were able to pinpoint the professor’s location because they received a reliable tip. This tip…” she put down her wine glass, “wasn’t it from you?”

He was taken aback. “What nonsense…”

“You calmed him down on the phone, Teacher, and arranged a meeting place, but in reality, you turned around and made a call to the Criminal Investigation Division, anonymously reporting a suspected sighting of Chomsky, and then you hosted the seminar. By the time the conference was over, Chomsky had already committed suicide, and the case was declared solved.” Tang Yingli’s tone turned cold. “This is the perfect script you arranged, am I right?”