[Chapter 47: How Could It Be Him?]
The two cars sped off swiftly. With the map in hand, Robert Downey Jr. navigated their route with confidence. After nearly two hours, they finally arrived at Yellow Valley Creek.
The village was indeed rundown, and not a soul had crossed their path on the way there. But a new challenge quickly presented itself.
In the movie, the female lead had almost magically found her husband's farm house without effort. But in reality, although the village was mostly deserted, numerous houses still stood, and there was no clear way to tell which belonged to whom.
The two vehicles came to a stop, and the occupants got out to survey their surroundings.
Sheriff Ford approached Daniel, lowering his voice. "Mr. Cross, I think I'm starting to understand Miranda's case now. From what you've said, you also believe she's not the murderer."
Daniel nodded. "That's right."
Ford scanned him curiously. "But what about the sheriff you mentioned? Do you think the killer could actually be a sheriff?"
Daniel responded grimly, "You'll find out soon enough."
"Alright," Ford said, holding back his curiosity. "So, we need to find Miranda's husband's farm house now? Should I get permission to check the Land Management Bureau's records?"
"No," Daniel replied. "That'll take too long. Just help me find higher ground."
Ford was skeptical about how Daniel planned to pinpoint the exact location but didn't press further. He sent Lara and Kane scouting ahead.
Soon, Daniel stood atop a gentle hill, gazing into the distance. At a thought, he activated the Spiritual Perception Technique.
Immediately, streams of energy flowing through the land became visible in his eyes. After a moment, his gaze locked onto a particular house.
The house emanated a strange aura. Its energy pushed away all the positive energy but seemed to draw in the negative.
Daniel pointed. "There. See that? That's the place. Let's check it out."
No one understood why Daniel singled out that house, but trusting him, they got back into the cars and drove toward it.
...
The two vehicles stopped outside, and six of them stepped out cautiously.
Sheriff Ford eyed Daniel warily. "Mr. Cross, do you think there's any danger inside?"
Daniel shook his head. "Probably not."
Ford relaxed and followed Daniel up to the front door.
The house was locked tightly with a hefty, reinforced lock.
Daniel was about to kick it open but reconsidered -- his body hadn't fully healed yet.
"You guys handle it," he said.
Ford gave a nod, and Kane stepped forward.
"Bang!"
With a precise shot, Kane broke the lock and smashed the door open.
Inside was a small storage room. Everything was visible at a glance.
The floor was strewn with hay, and old tools like lawnmowers cluttered one corner. Beyond that, the room was barren.
Everyone shot Daniel questioning looks, silently asking what made this place so special.
He paid them no mind and dropped his gaze, searching the straw-covered floor.
"There."
Daniel moved forward and grabbed an iron chain, pulling aside the hay to reveal a metal hatch secured with a large lock.
He recalled that in the original movie, this lock wasn't there. Its addition made perfect sense in reality.
"Should we try using a gun or some tools to open this lock?" Daniel asked Ford and the group.
"I'll do it," Lara said confidently, stepping forth with her service pistol.
"Bang!"
The gunshot rang out, shattering the lock.
Daniel lifted the heavy cover plate, revealing an entrance to a basement below.
Ford and the others' eyes lit up as they quickly gathered around.
"There's definitely something down there."
"Let's check it out."
Daniel led the group down the narrow stairs in a single file.
...
The basement was small and Spartan. A bed stood against one wall, beside which hung an array of sinister tools -- knives, axes, saws, spikes, hooks, hammers -- all stained with dried blood.
In front of the bed stood a home DV camera mounted on a tripod.
"What's this?" Ford asked uneasily.
His experience told him exactly what kind of horrors were behind the door. His face darkened as he approached the camera and began reviewing the footage.
His expression grew even more grim.
"Ah!"
Susan leaned in, catching sight of the screen, and stifled a terrified gasp.
The footage showed a man brutally assaulting a young girl tied to the bed.
Susan recognized him immediately -- it was Miranda's husband.
She quickly covered her mouth. "He... he..."
Shock rippled through everyone -- Robert Downey Jr., Sheriff Ford, Lara, Kane -- all wore faces equally haunted.
Lara, a woman herself, felt an intense surge of anger deep beneath her shock.
Daniel merely glanced for a moment, then looked away.
This matched the movie's plot almost exactly. There was no need to watch further.
...
Daniel's gaze shifted to the darkness beneath the stairs. "Come out. I know you're there."
At his words, eyes shifted behind the stairs, and a figure hesitantly stepped forward from the shadow.
It was a young girl, her hair tangled and clothes torn in several places, leaving her vulnerabilities painfully exposed.
Her pale face was streaked with dirt; she crossed her arms over her chest, trembling with a raw, palpable fear.
"That's her," Lara said softly, recognizing the same girl from the video.
The abused girl.
"Don't be afraid. I'm a police officer," Lara reassured gently.
Her uniform was bulky and not easy to remove, so she glanced at Susan.
Understanding without a word, Susan shed her own jacket and draped it over the girl's fragile shoulders.
Daniel didn't stop her -- he sensed no threat from the frightened girl.
In the film, there had been a living person like her, but that figure had attacked the protagonist.
Here, surrounded by a protective group, she seemed too terrified to cause any harm.
As the group's kindness became evident, the girl's tense posture loosened.
Susan crouched slightly. "What's your name?"
"Em... Emily," she whispered.
"You're safe now, Emily," Susan said, wrapping a comforting arm around her.
Daniel turned to Sheriff Ford and the others. "You all understand what's happened here, right?"
Some silently nodded, others voiced quiet agreement.
"Have you finished watching the DV's contents?"
"No," Ford admitted. "But it's all similarly damning. The evidence of the crime is clear enough."
Daniel nodded and pressed play again.
The screen revealed the same tall man sexually abusing Emily.
Afterward, he looked directly at the camera and smirked, "Feels good to be God."
Other clips showed similar scenes with different young women.
Daniel scanned through them individually.
Then, the footage shifted.
The man on camera was no longer Miranda's husband but someone else entirely.
"How could it be him?"
Susan, Robert Downey Jr., and even Sheriff Ford all stared, stunned, as the chilling realization hit them.
*****
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