Chapter 101

"Nancy, what are you doing here?"

"Could it be that you like Latin dance? Am I that famous in Silverlight City? You're my classmate, and your apprentice is here too, so I'll give you a 20% discount. You don't look a day over thirty, really. Skincare products must be expensive, right? Alan is such a great guy, always taking care of his wife."

Bob beamed, sniffed, and made an exaggerated Latin dance move, cheerfully saying,

"Latin dance isn't that hard, it's just physical work."

I instinctively felt that Bob and Howard had a habit of talking to themselves. The two of them could chat all night without taking a break.

Bob was the most lively and talkative among us. Talking to him was exhausting because he never stayed on one topic for long. I remember when voice messaging first became popular in college, each voice message could be up to sixty seconds long. Bob could send over a dozen sixty-second messages in a row, and none of them were on point.

"On the night of November 10, 2024, what were you doing at the True Love Entertainment Club in Silverlight City? What happened after you went upstairs with Alan? Is Douglas's death related to you? Where is Alan now? Tell me."

I interrupted his endless chatter and got straight to the point.

"What's this, a detective game or something?"

Bob was stunned as if he didn't understand what I was saying at all.

"The old steel mill, child trafficking, the hellish days, Frank, Lally, Laura, Mike, Tom, do you remember? Don't you want to say something?"

Zoey couldn't stand Bob's feigned ignorance any longer and started naming names, using past pain to provoke him, almost like a harsh interrogation.

"What old steel mill? I know Frank, Laura, and Mike, and with Alan and me, we were the five closest friends in college. But who are Lally and Tom? I really don't know them."

Bob looked innocent.

What did this mean?

Was he still pretending to be ignorant at this point?

Or did I make a wrong judgment? Maybe Bob wasn't one of the kids from the old steel mill. After all, most of it was speculation so far. Tom, Lally, Frank, and Joseph's identities were confirmed.

No, I had seen the group photo of the kids from the old steel mill. The kids' appearances might change a bit after ten or twenty years, but their basic looks wouldn't change.

Ronald also mentioned that he recognized Bob and Mike waiting for Alan downstairs, which proved my guess about Bob's identity was correct.

Zoey walked over, took out a photo on her phone, and almost shoved it in his face, sternly asking,

"Don't you recognize these people? When you were in hell, someone was willing to abandon his family and status just to seek justice for you. You were pitiful, your fate was tragic, but what about him? He was not only a police officer but also a father and husband. Have you ever thought about his feelings? Should the harm the world caused you be returned in full?"

Bob's eyes flickered with doubt. He stared at the photo for a long time and slowly said, "He must have been an extraordinary police officer, but I'm sorry, I really don't know him."

"You don't recognize anyone in this photo?"

Bob nodded seriously and said, "No need to joke around. I only recognize Alan, Laura, Frank, and Mike."

He pointed them out but didn't know Lally and the others.

Looking at Bob's dazed expression, it didn't seem fake, but I had a bad feeling and asked, "Do you remember where you're from?"

"I don't remember. I don't know why I forgot or when I forgot. I can't remember things from my childhood. Alan knows about this too."

Bob, who had been full of energy just now, looked downcast and continued, "It's like a dream. I only remember my college life, which was very happy. Knowing you all was great."

I felt a stir in my heart and asked, "What did Alan say at the time?"

"Alan said if I don't remember, then I don't remember. Remembering too much wasn't good. He told me not to be nervous and to relax. He said it was a gift from fate."

Bob laughed self-deprecatingly, "What kind of gift is this? Is amnesia supposed to be happiness?"

"Maybe."

Every time we got close to the truth, the person who could reveal it would disappear. This time we finally found Bob, but he couldn't remember the past.

"On November 10, were you in Silverlight City or Shadow City?"

He might not remember his childhood, but he should remember what happened on the day of the True Love Entertainment Club murder case.

"I was at the company. That night, I drank a lot with some friends and went to bed early."

This matched up. When I called Bob, his girlfriend answered.

But what did his girlfriend mean by saying a man's words can't be fully trusted?

"I called you that day, and your girlfriend answered. Didn't she tell you?"

"Girlfriend?"

Bob responded loudly, his expression exaggerated. He blinked, and seemed particularly energized by this topic,

"Nancy, you know me. My longest relationship record is less than two months. How could I bring a girl to my house? If you don't believe me, come home with me and see. We can have dinner together, I'll cook."

Zoey snorted and looked at Bob with disdain. Just now, he was deep and thoughtful, but as soon as women were mentioned, he turned into this.

Bob was strange. Even though I had enough evidence to prove he was there that day, and possibly involved, his expression just now didn't seem fake.

He couldn't remember his childhood and seemed unaware of what happened on November 10, clearly stating what he did.

When I asked about his girlfriend, his reaction was even more exaggerated. He never had a relationship longer than two months. I almost forgot that Bob was a notorious playboy in college, famous for changing girlfriends quickly. He wouldn't bring a girl home or introduce her to friends.

So who was the woman who answered the phone?

Could Bob's memory issues be related to his experiences at the old steel mill?

If his memories of the old steel mill were completely gone, the incident must have happened after the big fire. Who was he with then? Were Frank, Laura, and Mike all together?