North America Gunman Detective

Chapter 1252 686: The Woman in the Lake (Part 2)

Nia and her team were at a considerable distance, but it was enough to witness the battle just now. When these ordinary police officers saw the water figure on the lake and the corpses and skeletons emerging from the water, their worldview was completely altered, leaving them wide-mouthed in shock. When they saw the team collecting and purifying bodies and then burning them, it dawned on Nia that her target might be here.

Nia raised her hand and waved, "Jimmy, my target might be inside..." Before she finished, Sergeant Potter directly covered her mouth with his hand, "Don't interfere with them!"

Nia struggled for a second before stopping. She nodded, and only then did Sergeant Potter release his hand. Although he was older, the events unfolding had deeply shocked his senses, but he understood that what the people ahead were doing was extremely dangerous and important. In such circumstances, everything else could wait, could be abandoned, but they must not be disturbed.

Nia was young and impulsive, and when her mouth was covered, she struggled initially but soon thought it through and stopped struggling altogether, just standing there watching them handle the paranormal incident.

Jimmy heard Nia and turned his head to see Potter's action. Nia quickly regained her composure. He nodded at her, then shook his head, continuing to watch the burning bodies, and glanced at the lake, wondering what the creature inside would do next now that its minions were all dispatched?

The bodies burned far faster than Jimmy had imagined. The church indeed had some good stuff. In just over ten minutes, the flames gradually receded, and the corpses and skeletons on the ground were completely incinerated, with overlapped grayish-red bones not yet cooled down. The rotten flesh and remaining clothing on the corpses had turned to ash.

After waiting a while, the grayish-red cooled down, leaving stacks of gray-white skeletal remains. Father Rodney picked up a small stick from the side, tapped and stirred it lightly, and the interlaced skeletons shattered into ashes, resembling a pile of cremated remains. This effect was even more extreme than crematorium furnaces, which are semi-sealed, whereas this was completely open-air burning.

Noticing the time was nearing noon, Jimmy approached Rodney: "What about the Resentful Spirit in the lake? If it doesn't come out, we can't do anything to it."

Father Rodney nodded, "Nothing much we can do; there's too much water in this lake for us to clear it all out. Let's wait and see. It's noontime now, and the sun is at its strongest, so it probably won't come out."

Jimmy: "Should we head back first? And return in the afternoon or evening?"

Father Rodney shook his head: "Let's wait nearby."

Jimmy nodded. "I'm going to arrange for some food to be brought here."

Father Rodney and the others remained by the lakeside but moved back a little to a shaded area to wait. Jimmy approached Sergeant Potter, asking him to help get some food and water, as they would be there for a while.

Sergeant Potter wanted to inquire about the previous events, but Jimmy brushed him off, prompting him to leave with two officers.

Only then did Nia come to Jimmy's side. Unlike with Sergeant Potter, he shared some previous details with Nia.

As for the person Nia was trying to find, they were likely burned to ashes, making retrieval impossible, nor could the ashes be DNA verified. This missing person case was destined to be a cold case, but their personal belongings and tent left behind could serve as evidence of their death, leading to a tentative closure.

Now that Nia and her team's case was effectively over, the only remaining task was for Father Rodney and his team to handle the Resentful Spirit in the lake. Whether or not to deal with it was ultimately up to them; even if they left now, it would mainly lead to complaints or protests from Newport City against the church, causing them some loss in followers.

However, Father Rodney apparently decided within the church to handle the Resentful Spirit here, unwilling to leave the task unfinished. At noon, everyone split into two groups for food, then rested under nearby trees for the afternoon.

Jimmy had already told Sergeant Potter and the others that they were free to leave since they were no longer needed here. Yet, the three officers had no intention of leaving; they preferred to keep some distance but still wanted to witness the conclusion. Such opportunities for excitement were rare, possibly occurring just a few times in a lifetime. Jimmy couldn't forcefully expel them—after all, this wasn't New York.

As sunset approached in the evening, and lake activity resumed, Rodney and his team stood a bit away from the lakeside, waiting for the Resentful Spirit to appear.

Once the sun set fully, the headlights of several cars illuminated a section of the lakeside, and Sergeant Potter's group prepared some flashlights and headlamps, successfully preventing anyone from facing potential supernatural occurrences in darkness.

Still, these tools might fail. After the afternoon rest, Rodney's team gathered some dry branches to form a woodpile, though it remained unlit for now.

Finally, an eerie wind swept through, sending shivers down spines. The lake's light ripples became violent, and a woman in a dress emerged from the water, stepping towards the shore. Father Rodney and his team stood in a semicircle, with Jimmy and Father Rodney at the center facing the woman, ready with guns.

"Give me back my necklace!"

When the woman reached the shore, almost stepping onto land, she halted as a shrill voice pierced the air, unlike any normal human speech, yet clearly conveying her demand.

Jimmy raised his headlamp towards the woman, revealing her face's two contrasting sides. The left side appeared human and normal, while the right side was decayed and terrifying. Similarly, her right side's clothing was dirty and spoiled, but the left preserved its original color, making her look like she was made of two fused parts.

Father Rodney didn't remove the necklace and ring from his pocket, as he had purified them with Holy Water earlier and sealed them after the morning battle.

The woman, receiving no desired response, suddenly opened her mouth, emitting a piercing sound. Most priests groaned, and two even covered their ears. Jimmy didn't cover his ears but felt uncomfortable, grimacing slightly before opening his mouth and firing a shot at the woman's gaping mouth, effectively stopping her scream.

Multiple white spots appeared on her body and head; seen through Heart Eye Vision, these were Jimmy's targets. However, the spots were large and many, making Jimmy unsure of a swift kill, so his shot merely aimed to stop her screams.

The bullet penetrated her mouth, blasting a hole through to the back of her head, scattering some flesh, but the wound quickly healed, and the opening vanished.

The woman, inexplicably getting shot, seemed enraged. She bent slightly before charging forward, not running but flying upright, extending her hands towards Jimmy.

Father Rodney, standing beside Jimmy, didn't leave the woman to him alone. He sidestepped two steps, raising his Short Sword and Bible in defense, using the Bible to block one of her arms, then thrust the Short Sword aiming for her neck.

The woman appeared quite adept at combat, her arm deflected by the Bible, causing her body to tilt slightly, head dodging the sword. Her other hand reached for Father Rodney as Jimmy seized the opportunity to retreat a bit.