Marvel's Princess - Chapter 28
Bella thought that Claire and her brother’s investigation was pointless. After all, she knew the true nature of these events—this was the work of a reaper. If one were familiar with certain religious myths, it would be clear that this reaper was from the Americas, specifically a Mayan deity unrelated to high-tech criminals or Magneto.
However, when a car parked at the roadside suddenly started and charged towards the trio, Bella began to doubt her judgment. The reaper’s presence wasn’t near; she was sure of that, and the car was just an ordinary commuter vehicle, not a phantom car controlled by any supernatural power. Yet, with no one in the driver’s seat, how did it start?
Bella’s psychic powers were focused on defense rather than offense, and she wasn’t firm in her investigative abilities. Claire and her brother’s presence further muddled her limited perception.
Bella leaped aside as the car sped straight toward Claire and her brother, who also managed to dodge.
Suddenly, the car door opened like an invisible giant hand had swung out at Claire. The brunette barely had time to defend herself before she was knocked down, followed by a sharp kitchen knife appearing out of thin air, stabbing towards Claire’s neck.
What was it? Bella still saw no anomalies. Even her psychic sense only caught a blurry figure amid significant interference.
She couldn’t let Claire die. Bella quickly sped to the brunette’s side, pulling her away by the arm while Chris drew his gun and fired repeatedly at the space in front of Claire.
The enemy reacted faster than expected, delivering a harsh slash with the knife across Claire’s shoulder before seemingly attempting to continue the attack. But Bella had already pulled Claire five meters back; the knife seemed to lose control and dropped to the ground. Meanwhile, the unmanned car swerved, hitting Chris with its tail and driving off into the city traffic, disappearing from view.
Bella was baffled. Everything happened so suddenly, and she had no idea what was happening. What kind of enemy was this? Invisible, remotely controlled? Paranormal? Magical? Or some sort of supernatural power?
Chris was only slightly brushed by the car’s tail and wasn’t seriously hurt. He focused on tending to his injured sister without pursuing the vehicle.
Fifteen minutes later, Chris bandaged his sister’s wounds in their temporary residence and shared their recent investigative findings with Bella.
“Two months ago, a middle-aged woman named Cecilia reported to the police that she was a victim of domestic violence by her husband. However, shortly afterward, her husband, Dr. Adrian, an optics expert, allegedly committed suicide at home. Yet, Cecilia still believes her husband is alive and secretly monitoring her using some covert methods,” Chris explained, showing Bella various police reports and photos.
The woman in the photos looked average, with a lean face and a vacant stare, the very image of someone suffering from a delusional type of mental illness.
Bella uncertainly asked, “What do you mean by that?”
Chris pointed at the photo, “The police and many of her relatives believe she’s mentally ill, but I don’t think so. Perhaps her husband is still alive, using some sort of optical invisibility device to stay near her, psychopathically orchestrating the Flight 180 disaster and a series of murders that occurred recently.”
This information was a lot to process, and it took Bella a while before she asked, sounding bewildered, “Do you think the attack just now was caused by some kind of technological device? Was there someone invisible standing right next to us?”
Chris’s gaze was firm: “Yes.”
“I’ve investigated some of Adrian’s records; he’s controlling, and his personality is quite twisted. He even rejected an invitation from the Department of Defense because it required his wife to be out of sight. His obsession with his wife has reached a pathological level.”
Chris then showed another photo in which a middle-aged woman, seemingly in shock, held a sharp knife with a frozen expression. Next to her on the dining table lay a woman, her blood staining the tablecloth and the floor extensively.
“This is a photo of Cecilia at the time of her arrest. Many restaurant patrons reported seeing her kill her sister, but Cecilia insists the knife killed her sister first before ending up in her hand. Doesn’t this sound similar to the attack we just experienced?”
Could technological equipment do this? After awakening her superpowers, Bella felt slightly dismissive of technology.
However, today’s events, from Chris using a handgun to kill a vampire to this bizarre encounter with an invisible person, had taught her a lesson.
Completely invisible, moving freely, and with considerable strength, this equipment was formidable!
Claire and her brother believed the invisible person was the culprit behind the airplane crash. While the suspicion wasn’t strong, the perpetrator certainly had the capability, and they must investigate thoroughly. Feeling exposed by their discovery, the enemy had attacked first, a plausible explanation.
Chris was headed to the Santa Maria Detention and Treatment Center in California to talk to Cecilia, who had been confined there as a psychiatric patient.
Meanwhile, Bella volunteered to take Claire to the hospital. Battlefield first aid, common among mercenaries, was adequate, but a scar on the shoulder was unsightly for a woman. As a straightforward man, Chris thought survival was enough, but Bella believed a doctor should professionally address such injuries.
They parted ways, with Chris driving alone to California while Bella helped Claire into her pickup truck to take the brunette to the hospital.
Bella quietly checked her wallet. Claire and her brother were typical wanderers with no concept of money; it looked like she would have to cover the medical expenses herself.
They had helped her kill a vampire, and she was not one to be ungenerous.
Having lived in Phoenix for over a decade, Bella had her insurance card with her.
Pulling Claire into the hospital, although she knew the emergency costs were incredibly high, Bella still went through the emergency procedures.
Once the doctors reassured her that Claire was out of danger, Bella finally felt relieved.
At that moment, she was eager to develop some healing abilities, and the art of invisibility seemed quite appealing, too!
How exactly the invisible man’s optical invisibility worked was unclear, but she somewhat understood the principle. It was similar to how she used psychological suggestions during the truck skid incident at Fox High School to make people around her ignore her presence. The person hadn’t disappeared; they were just unseen.
“Invisible?” She felt she was onto something.
Become a Patron to read chapters ahead of public release and support me 😉
Read up to 30 chapters ahead on p atreon.