Chapter 239 - 156: The Murderer

When Paige Summers heard that Marcus Monroe’s men had actually brought Ryan Faraday back, she immediately went to fetch Erin Quinn. She figured he wouldn’t willingly tell her what she wanted to know, and this was the quickest way to find out.

To her surprise, the moment Ryan Faraday saw her, he froze.

He remained motionless for a long time, his expression complex, as if lost in a memory of some event or person.

Erin Quinn hadn’t brought her writing tablet this time; she was using her head to record everything.

She hid behind Paige Summers as if she were shy, but she was actually prying into Ryan Faraday’s mind.

Paige Summers felt her hand suddenly clutched tight. In that instant, it was as if Erin Quinn had received a tremendous shock!

She frowned slightly.

Ryan Faraday staggered back two steps and collapsed into a chair.

After a long moment, he suddenly asked, "Can I be alone for a while?"

"...Of course."

Paige Summers pulled Erin Quinn into the adjoining room and immediately asked, "What was he thinking? He was looking at me so strangely."

After sorting through the thoughts she had just heard from Ryan Faraday’s mind, Erin Quinn’s head snapped up.

"Sis, you have to promise me you’ll stay calm!"

Paige Summers immediately had a bad feeling, but still said, "Go on."

Erin Quinn gritted her teeth. "He wasn’t thinking about Nadia. He was thinking about you and your parents... You look so much like Aunt Lowell when she was young, he recognized you as the daughter of Aunt Lowell and Uncle Dylan Summers. He’s thinking about the biggest regret of his life—being Commandant Reid’s accomplice all those years ago."

Paige Summers’s face fell. "What does that mean?"

"His thoughts are a total mess, so I could only get the gist of it. He said that because Commandant Reid had fallen for Aunt Lowell back then, he ordered him to do something that would destroy the Summers Family. Even though Commandant Reid finally got Aunt Lowell in the end, this man, Ryan Faraday, feels incredibly guilty about the deaths of The Summers. He believes it was a grave violation of his conscience and has been tormented by it ever since. He said that’s why he retired from the army so early—he couldn’t face Aunt Lowell. Now that he’s seen you, he feels like he’s looking at Aunt Lowell and Uncle Dylan Summers standing right in front of him. He’s devastated..."

Unsurprisingly, this revelation left Paige Summers utterly stunned.

’So it was him!’

’No wonder Grandfather Summers was so insistent on leaving Kingsgate back then, claiming a massive earthquake was imminent. He believed it without a doubt! It was a time of complete chaos; who wouldn’t believe inside information that came in the Commandant’s name?!’

’No wonder they were ambushed by such powerful "bandits" after leaving Kingsgate, and so many of The Summers were slaughtered! They weren’t bandits at all. Whether it was regular soldiers or the Reid Family’s private army, their strength would have been far beyond what The Summers could handle!’

’No wonder no one was waiting for them when they reached the coast. The people they had sent ahead must have been discovered. They were either killed or bribed!’

’So that’s how it was... That’s how it all happened...’

’It was all the work of Commandant Owen Reid!’

’The entire thing was a conspiracy from start to finish!’

They weren’t her grandfather, her father, or her people, but in this moment, Paige Summers felt a crushing weight on her chest that made it hard to breathe.

She slowly, slowly sank onto the bed, as if she had just suffered a devastating blow.

’They... didn’t deserve to die...’

’Those innocent lives... It would have been better if they had been killed by Zombies or Mutant Beasts! Anything would be better than dying because of Owen Reid’s selfish desires!’

Paige Summers covered her eyes with her hands.

Hot, wet tears welled up and spilled from her eyes.

In her memories, the image of the dignified but kind old man who had doted on the original Paige, and the gentle, scholarly man who would fight others for food for his daughter—their faces were so vivid, so deeply etched into her mind.

’For all these years, they lived shouldering an immense burden of guilt.’

’And yet, even under those circumstances, they had done everything they could to give the other Paige the best life possible. Their methods may have been wrong, but their guilt and their love were completely genuine!’

’But in the end? One died from overusing his superpower on a mission, and the other was beaten to death fighting for food.’

’Such a tragic end!’

’And the descendant they loved with all their hearts, the last of The Summers, was murdered out in the wilds!’

’How could this happen!’

’How could I possibly accept this!’

"Sis! Sis, what’s wrong?!" came Erin Quinn’s frantic cry.

Paige Summers gradually returned to her senses. She wiped her face, scrubbing away the tears but not the redness in her eyes.

They were filled with nothing but hatred.

"Owen Reid is already dead? That’s letting him off way too easy!"

Seeing that she was more or less coherent, Erin Quinn breathed a quiet sigh of relief, but then her gaze fell, and her expression dimmed. The truth had come so suddenly, and it was so hard to fathom. Her own mother, Aunt Lowell, had even married the main culprit behind it all... It was no wonder Sis Paige couldn’t accept it. Still...

"The mastermind may be dead, but we still have his accomplice in there," Erin Quinn said coldly. "Kill him. I’m sure Uncle Summers’s spirit would be pleased."

Paige Summers’s lips twisted into a snarl. "It won’t be that easy for him. I’m going to find out everyone who was involved. Every last person who laid a hand on The Summers is going to die! A blood debt must be paid in blood!"

If it weren’t for them, how could The Summers have been so tragically wiped out? How could the old and young alike have been forced into The Dead City?! They should have been safe in Kingsgate, or living peacefully on their island. A family of several hundred would never have been reduced to just one survivor!

Yes, if that had happened, she might never have entered this body.

But now that she was here, now that she knew, she would be the one to claim vengeance for them! Twenty years had passed, but a blood feud this great could not simply be forgotten!

Erin Quinn nodded. "Sis, you stay here. I’ll handle it myself. It’s the perfect chance to test my new Enchanting Talisman. I guarantee he’ll tell us everything, down to the last detail!"

Paige Summers took a deep breath. "All right." In her current volatile state, she was afraid she’d kill Ryan Faraday before he could talk.

It wasn’t just the original Paige’s memories affecting her; the residual emotions were also taking their toll.

She needed some time to cool down.

Erin Quinn left the room alone to find Ryan Faraday.

Paige Summers sat cross-legged on the bed and closed her eyes. She would avenge The Summers, that was certain, but she refused to be dominated by the original owner’s will.

What she needed to do now was regain complete control of her own thoughts.

As Erin Quinn walked toward the living room, she took out a Taoist Talisman, but it wasn’t the Enchanting Talisman she had mentioned before.

A cold smile touched her lips.

’How dare he make Sis Paige suffer so much. I can’t let him get off easy.’

’No, no, I won’t kill him. That’s for Sis Paige to decide.’

’But I have to make him reflect on the terrible things he’s done!’

’This Illusion Talisman was a parting gift from my senior brother. It’s supposed to trap someone in their most terrifying memory, forcing them to relive it over and over.’

’After I get the answers I need, let’s just see how well this thing works!’