The combined forces of Sheffield and Carlos were able to gather evidence incriminating every nefarious activity Penley Tao had committed.
When Napier turned to face Sheffield's cold and mirthless eyes, he stood there frozen from the neck up, blood drained from his face. Even words struggled to come out of his mouth as he stammered, "What...what else do you know?"
"I also know that you purchased the weapon from the black market. The only reason why Gillian is aiding you and still hasn't reported your crimes to the police is because she is suffering from Stockholm syndrome." Needless to say, it was all over for Napier and Gillian because the police had found their hideout. Sheffield reckoned that Gillian might have already been taken away while they were chatting here.
Stockholm syndrome is a condition in which hostages will develop feelings of trust or affection for their captors during captivity. In such circumstances, the victims, despite the danger and risk endured, will tend to foster sympathy for their captors. This attraction is not to be taken lightly, as hostages would even find themselves aiding and abetting their captors. On the contrary, some cases have shown that the victims might even start to see their rescuers as enemies.
Such was the case with Gillian. When the rescuers came to free her, Gillian went berserk, absolutely reluctant to leave the basement where Napier had held her captive. The police had no choice in the end but to take her away by force.
Now that all of Napier's secrets were exposed, he felt completely vulnerable in front of Sheffield. Much like a man who had nothing else to lose, Napier took the safety off his gun, ready to shoot Evelyn.
Sheffield's heart skipped a beat. He stealthily sent a signal to his men when Napier wasn't looking.
"I have something important to tell you. Melody is still alive..." he said confidently, trying to distract Napier.
Just as Sheffield had intended, the last sentence succeeded in drawing Napier's attention as the kidnapper took the bait like a hungry trout. As he shook his head in disbelief, Napier's voice trembled with each word. "You are talking nonsense! Ahh!"
Bang! Bang!
Napier's ear-piercing shriek was followed by two consecutive gunshots, before it faded and the weapon in his hand fell to the ground.
This was the only chance Sheffield was going to get and he knew that all too well. Without any hesitation, he rushed over and held Evelyn in his arms, kicking the injured kidnapper as far as he could.
Napier crashed into Melody's tombstone and spat out a mouthful of blood, writhing in excruciating pain.
Before long, more and more people swarmed in from all directions.
Safely nestling her head in Sheffield's arms, Evelyn shut her eyes tight and cherished the unique scent that belonged to him. This hug was all she needed at this moment.
"It's okay! Don't be afraid, honey! I'm here now," Sheffield comforted her.
"Hmm..."
In a last ditch attempt to reverse the circumstances, Napier pulled out a dagger from his pocket. He bit off the scabbard, exposing the sharp blade and hurled it straight towards Sheffield.
The dagger flew fast in the air, but Sheffield reacted even faster.
The moment Sheffield's eyes caught the dagger in Napier's hand, he pushed Evelyn away and jumped up to kick the dagger back, parrying it and stabbing Napier on the leg. "Ahh!"
As Napier screamed in agony, the police caught him and subdued him.
Napier was shamefully dragged out of there right before Melody's tombstone.
Carlos, Debbie and Matthew arrived shortly after, while Terilynn and Joshua stayed back at home to look after Gwyn.
The Huo family came in and circled around Evelyn in the middle to ensure her safety.
The evidence gathered against Napier's crimes was irrefutable. They had recorded everything, including Evelyn's telephone conversations, and the conversation between Sheffield and Napier just now.
At the very least, Napier could be sentenced to death for each crime he had committed.
Carlos had positioned long-range snipers on rooftops at that time, ready to take Napier out with just one signal. Evelyn's father was not going to take any risks while Sheffield dealt with Napier.
Unfortunately, the distance between Napier and the snipers had put them at a disadvantage as any attack on their target could also put Evelyn's life at risk. The only viable option was to take the shot from an angle which could potentially reduce the damage to Evelyn.
However, luckily Sheffield was able to divert Napier's attention, cleverly talking him into moving to a spot where the snipers would have a better shot to take him down.
As soon as they received Sheffield's signal, the snipers launched an attack, hitting Napier on the wrist and then his arm. When Napier's gun fell to the ground, Sheffield acted nimbly and saved Evelyn as quickly as he could.
Fortunately for them, everything went smoothly.
After a few days had passed, Evelyn finally went to see Evander in the hospital. She waited patiently in the waiting area while he was having a dialysis.
The large glass windows separating the waiting room from the hemodialysis room showed almost a dozen patients inside, men and women of all ages.
After the patient's blood got drained through the tubes, the harmful waste inside the body would then filter out into the waste bag.
Almost two hours later, when he was wheeled out of the room, Evander saw Evelyn. With a pleasant smile on his face, he inarticulately uttered a few words, but Evelyn couldn't catch what he had said.
As she followed Evander out of the hospital, Evelyn asked, "Uncle Evander, how are you feeling now?"
Evander took out his phone, tapped on the screen slowly and handed it to her to read. "Thank you, Miss Huo. My health is stable now. I'll be fine as long as I come to the hospital for a dialysis regularly."
"That's good to hear. There's one more thing I wanted to ask you, Uncle. Do you know someone called Napier Tao?" Evelyn stopped after she noticed the smile on his face fade away. He seemed frightened by the mentioning of that name.
Evelyn comforted him at once, "Don't be afraid. He's already in jail. I just wanted to ask you if he had hurt you in any way."
Evander heaved a deep sigh of relief, gradually relaxing the tensed muscles on his face. He tapped on the screen of his phone again. "I'm sorry for not telling you the truth earlier, Miss Huo. When I saw him kill Mr. Guan, he threatened me with the life of my wife and child. I had no choice..."
Evelyn guessed what he wanted to say. She took his phone and deleted his words before returning it to him. "Uncle Evander, it's okay. I understand. You don't need to be afraid anymore. He won't be able to hurt anyone from jail." 'Perhaps he'll even get sentenced to death very soon.'
Tears welled up in Evander's eyes and he nodded his head.
Before Evelyn and Evander parted, she gave him a large sum of money again. The old man didn't want to accept it, but she insisted on giving it to him for his treatment.
Shortly after, Evander saw Evelyn off with a tearful face.
Before long, Calvert was arrested in M Country on charges of aiding and abetting another criminal. Suffice it to say, he was going to be locked up for at least a few years. The former police chief, Penley, was also caught and was given a suspended death sentence.
The Huo, Tang, Qi, Li and Guan families all filed a lawsuit against Napier at the same time. Due to the severity of his crimes, he was given the death sentence.
The day before Calvert was put into jail, Napier was executed.
The mystery surrounding the deaths of Evelyn's ex-boyfriends had finally come to an end. The people who had previously said that Evelyn was a jinx all shut their mouths.
Meanwhile, the situation at the Tang family was in a mess.
At first, Sheffield didn't want to bother himself with the affairs of his own family, but when the Tang family came to him, disrupting Evelyn and his peaceful life, he decided to settle everything, once and for all.
The first member Sheffield had to deal with was Sandra. She was forced to go back to live with her husband's family and she could only come back to visit Peterson during the festivals.