Chapter 621: Look Up Her Spouse

Chapter 621: Chapter 621: Look Up Her Spouse

When Renee Jennings heard this, her eyes filled with astonishment. It was utterly absurd.

"He’s not even human!"

Glenn looked completely baffled. "What does that mean? Why would he make Mom go sleep with other people? Are they too scared to sleep by themselves?"

Willow, her eyes glistening with tears, looked at Glenn and complained, "It’s because you don’t study that you don’t even understand this!"

"Then can’t you tell me?" Glenn’s lower lip trembled. "Why are you yelling at me?"

"You wouldn’t get it even if I told you!" Willow retorted angrily.

Renee Jennings analyzed the situation. "So, did your mom choose to run away from home because your stepdad was forcing her to sleep with other people?"

"I don’t know." Willow shook her head blankly and said in a low voice, "That’s just what I guessed. Maybe Mom ran away on her own, or maybe..."

’Perhaps she was just lying to herself.’

’For all she knew, James Yelric had already sent her mother off to sleep with a creditor.’

Willow bit her lip, not daring to think about it any further. She muttered to herself, "I hope Mom is in a safe place right now."

She looked up at Renee Jennings, her tone filled with helplessness. "I just woke up one morning and suddenly found that Mom was gone."

Glenn added, "I asked Dad where Mom went, and he said Mom didn’t want me and my sister anymore. That she went to be someone else’s mom."

"I don’t believe Mom would abandon us!" Willow became agitated. "Your dad is lying!"

"Willow, please calm down. How about this? We’ll help you find your mom," Renee Jennings said, soothing the girl’s emotions. "Actually," she added gently, "this man here is a police officer."

"A police officer?" Glenn stared at Henry Stark, his little face a mask of surprise and adoration. "Mister, you’re really a police officer? That’s so cool!"

Hearing this, Henry Stark reached out and patted the boy’s head. A faint smile touched his thin lips. "Do you like police officers?"

"I love them!" Glenn nodded vigorously. "I want to be a police officer when I grow up!"

"You can’t be a police officer if you don’t study," Willow interjected.

Upon hearing this, Glenn looked as if his world had come crashing down. "Huh? You have to study to be a police officer? For real?"

"You do," Henry Stark said with a faint smile. "You have to go to high school and get into the police academy, so you need to study hard, Glenn."

Glenn frowned, conflicted. "But I don’t like studying..."

Willow said in a resentful tone, "That’s why you don’t have a problem with it when your dad doesn’t let us go to school!"

Glenn looked wronged again. "But I really don’t like doing homework."

’This brother of mine is a lost cause,’ Willow thought, fuming silently.

"Willow, can you tell me your mother’s name?" Renee Jennings asked softly. "That way, we can find her more quickly."

Hope ignited in Willow’s heart. She nodded emphatically. "My mom’s name is Polly Eames."

"Could you spell that for me?"

"It’s P-O-L-L-Y E-A-M-E-S."

"Okay," Renee Jennings acknowledged.

Henry Stark was already texting Kyle Morgan on his phone, telling him to pull up Polly Eames’s file.

"Willow, do you remember when your mother left?" Renee Jennings asked.

"I remember," Willow said. "Counting today, she’s been gone for twenty days. Mom used to sell the fruit, but after she left, Dad made me and Glenn do it."

Hearing this, Henry Stark sent another message to Kyle Morgan, asking him to find out where Polly Eames went when she left home twenty days ago.

Renee Jennings said softly, "If your mom was the one selling the fruit, she would never have sold rotten ones to people, right?"

"Mhm!" Willow nodded solemnly. "My mom is a very good person. She always said that good is rewarded with good."

A smile formed on Renee Jennings’s lips. "We’ll do our best to find your mom quickly."

A brilliant smile finally lit up Willow’s young face. "That’s wonderful!"

After the meal, Renee Jennings suggested taking the siblings to a mall to walk around and browse.

"That’s okay, miss. We’ve already caused you a lot of trouble," Willow said gratefully, sounding like a little adult. "My brother and I have to get home to do our craftwork. Otherwise, he’ll get angry if he sees us taking too long on the handmade flowers."

’Renee Jennings sighed to herself, feeling indignant on the siblings’ behalf.’

’Willow’s stepdad is despicable! To exploit and abuse two children like this!’

When they got back to the area near Willow’s home, Henry Stark received a call from Kyle Morgan just as they were about to get out of the car.

"Chief, we checked Polly Eames’s movements from twenty days ago, that’s August 22nd. After she got home to Steingard Alley from work that evening, it looks like she never came out again," Kyle Morgan said, his tone tinged with suspicion. "But we can’t rule out that she left from a spot with no camera coverage."

Henry Stark’s deep, dark eyes narrowed slightly at his words. "Okay," he said in a low voice. "Check for her spouse."

"Chief, the records show Polly Eames is divorced. No spouse."

"Got it." Henry Stark hung up the phone and looked back at the two siblings in the rear seat. "What’s your father’s name?"

"James Yelric," Glenn rushed to answer.

Willow added, "It’s spelled Y-E-L-R-I-C. James is J-A-M-E-S."

"Okay." Henry Stark sent the name to Kyle Morgan, then opened the car door and stepped out.

He said to Renee Jennings in a low voice, "Something isn’t right. Let’s go up and take another look."

Renee Jennings nodded slightly. "Okay."

Before heading upstairs, Willow dragged two baskets of fruit out from under the stairs. "Miss, it’s still pomegranates today. Does the pig like them?"

"He loves them. Is three hundred enough?" Renee Jennings asked.

Willow quickly waved her hands. "That’s too much. One hundred is fine, miss."

Any extra money would just go into James Yelric’s pocket anyway, to be spent on gambling and drinking.

"Okay." Renee Jennings nodded, then asked Henry Stark, "I don’t have any cash on me. Do you?"

’If she scanned the payment code, the money would definitely go to Willow’s vicious stepfather.’

"I do." Henry Stark took out his wallet, pulled out a hundred, and handed it to her.

Willow took the money and bowed. "Thank you, sir and miss. My brother and I were really happy today. I hope we’ll hear good news about our mom next time. We’re counting on you."

"You’re welcome," Renee Jennings said gently. "We’ll see you upstairs."

Willow didn’t object, and the two adults and two children went up to the third floor together.

Willow used her key to open the door, then turned back to Renee Jennings and Henry Stark. "Miss, sir, be careful on your way home."

"Willow, could we take another look inside your apartment?" Renee Jennings asked.

This time, the little girl nodded without the slightest hesitation. "Of course."

Renee Jennings and Henry Stark stepped into the living room, and both of their gazes landed on another, tightly shut door.

Henry Stark stepped forward and tried the handle, finding the door locked. "Is this your father’s room?"

"Yes," Willow explained. "He’s afraid we’ll steal his money, so he locks his door every time he goes out."

Renee Jennings suddenly remembered something Inky had said the day before. Her gaze sharpened abruptly as she turned to ask, "Willow, where’s your refrigerator?"