Justin's dark, gloomy pupils constricted. Underneath his sickly pale skin, the veins on the back of his hand twisted and bulged like gnarly tree roots.
He stared fixedly at the blade. Once his chosen murder weapon, it now sat before him as cold, hard evidence. That fruit knife had once served his malice; now, it was bloodstained with history. It betrayed him, testifying to his guilt.
At first, his mind was a chaotic blur. Then the present dissolved, and his thoughts flashed back nearly 20 years.
Back then, he was just a teenager. His clean, youthful face had been splattered with Mildred's fresh blood. He remembered standing in the small living room, his hand white-knuckled around that very fruit knife. Soaked from head to toe in warm blood, the frail, pale teenager had looked utterly terrifying-like a demon crawling its way out of hell.
Yet, he hadn't felt a shred of terror. Instead, a laugh had bubbled up from his chest, shaking his entire body in pure, ecstatic madness. The warmth of Mildred's blood felt right; its clammy texture against his skin brought an indescribable rush of comfort.
"Justin! W-What have you done?"
Hearing the enraged, horrified shout, the young Justin had looked back in a daze, the maniacal smile still lingering on his lips.
Newton paled instantly, staring at his blood-drenched grandson. Driven by an instinctive parental love, his voice trembled as he asked, "Justin, a-are you hurt? How bad is it?"
"Grandpa..."
The bloodied fruit knife slipped from Justin's fingers, hitting the floor with a loud, metallic clank. The smile vanished instantly. In a heartbeat, he masterfully slipped into the persona of a helpless, pitiful boy gripped by terror and panic.
"I'm sorry... Grandpa... I think I made a terrible mistake..."
Shocked to his core, Newton stared at Mildred lying in a widening pool of blood, his mind going completely blank. Ben rushed forward frantically to check her pulse, only to realize her body was heavily mutilated, riddled with a horrific number of stab wounds.
She had already breathed her last.
"Grandpa... She... She refused to do what she was told," Justin whimpered, spinning his lie. "I only meant to scare her... I didn't expect her to lunge right into the knife. I-I..."
But Justin's excuses fell flat. No lie could justify the sheer cruelty of stabbing Mildred 18 times.
"Mr. Beckett Senior, she's already..." Ben looked up, terror weaponizing his gaze as he studied Justin's blood-splattered, innocent-looking face. His voice shook violently. "Should we... call the cops?"
Should they call the cops?
Newton's eyes widened as he reeled backward, his weak heart seizing with a fierce, agonizing pain.
"No, Grandpa! Please don't call the cops!"
Justin dropped to his knees with a heavy thud, throwing himself before Newton. Lifting his tear-stained, pale face, he rubbed his hands together in a desperate plea. "I didn't mean to do it really didn't want her to die! Grandpa don't put me in jal
life will be over. I don't want to go to prison!"
"Mr. Justin, you are still a minor, so you won't be sent to prison," Ben interjected. "Mr. Javier and Mr. Beckett Senior will hire the nation's best attorney for you. At most, you'll be sent to a juvenile detention center—"
Suddenly, Justin whipped his head around, shooting Ben a glare so sharp and venomous that the older man froze mid-sentence.
A violent shudder ran down Ben's spine. For the first time, he witnessed a gaze so ferocious, brutal, and sinister lurking in the eyes of a 13-year-old. It felt as though Justin might snatch that knife off the floor and drive it through his chest at any second.
"Justin is right..."
Newton closed his eyes and inhaled sharply, forcing himself to ignore the metallic stench of blood heavy in the air When he opened them again; he had made a decision one that would fundamentally reshape Beckett Group and alter the fates of countless lives. It was a choice akin to opening Pandora's box.
"Dispose of the body immediately and clean this place up," Newton commanded, his voice hardening. "Ensure that not a single trace is left behind! Justin is the eldest grandson of the Beckett family. I watched him grow up. I will absolutely not sit by and watch his life be ruined!"
The flashback snapped shut, cutting off abruptly. But the fury in Justin's eyes burned
on.
Back then, Newton had claimed he was his favorite. He had said he could never bear to watch him go to prison or have his life ruined.
Yet, what was Newton doing now? Was he really about to betray him after all these years?
"Even if that story is true, what does it actually prove?"
Theron gathered his composure and let out a dismissive scoff. "Over 20 years have passed since that alleged incident. The statute of limitations has long since expired. Furthermore, Mr. Justin was only 13 at the time.
Under our country's jurisdiction.....
minor would face virtually no real punishment for an event that far back.
"Moreover, do you have any actual evidence besides a blade and unreliable witnesses? Do you have surveillance footage or forensic reports? On what grounds are you alleging that Mr. Justin murdered Mildred Hayes with his own two hands?
"Who's to say she didn't attack Mr. Justin first, and he was simply acting in self- defense?"
The other interrogating police officer slammed his hand on the table, having heard enough. "We have credible witnesses and the murder weapon! Why are you still trying to deny it?"
"My attorney is right. The chain of custody was broken. You can't touch me," Justin said, casually curling the corners of his lips into a playful, mocking smirk.
In that moment, it was as though he had completely merged with the monstrous teenager he had once been 20 years ago.