His Regret Can’t Bring Us Back Chapter 07
For several days straight, Sebastian stayed in the neighboring city tracking down a suspect.
The moment the operation ended, he rushed back to New York without stopping to rest. As soon as he stepped off the train, the police chief, Dominic Ortega, sent word.
During the Catskills raid, the gang members who had escaped had resurfaced. A few fishermen had seen their faces.
Sebastian didn’t even stop to clean up. He went straight to Dominic’s office.
But just before he pushed the door open, his steps suddenly stopped.
If they caught those gang members and the interrogation proved what he had suspected, that Nicole really had worked with them and helped them harm civilians, what was he supposed to do then?
Would he really arrest her and send her to prison?
A trace of hesitation flashed through Sebastian’s eyes.
Soon, he clenched his fist and pushed open the office door.
If Nicole had truly betrayed the police department and the public, he wouldn’t cover for her.
Even if she dragged him down with her, he would have nothing to say.
“Sebby, you’re here.” Dominic pulled out a file and set it in front of him. “These are the arrest sketches drawn from civilian descriptions. Take a look.”
Sebastian took the file, but his fingers were stiff as he turned the pages.
“Chief Ortega,” he said, his voice a little hoarse. “If someone colluded with the gang, is there any chance of leniency?”
Dominic frowned. “Of course not. That’s a serious felony. Why are you asking?”
Sebastian closed his eyes briefly, then opened the folder.
But in the next second, his pupils widened.
The gang members in those sketches looked almost exactly like the ones Nicole had described.
“That’s impossible!”
He slammed the folder shut and stood up.
Seeing Dominic’s surprised look and deepening frown, Sebastian quickly explained, “Chief Ortega, I already checked. These sketches are wrong. If we rely on this information, we won’t catch anyone!”
“Wrong?” Dominic pointed to a photo beside him, showing a gang member who had just been arrested, and his expression darkened. “Explain this then.”
Sebastian froze, then hurriedly compared the photo with the sketch.
They were almost identical, which meant Nicole’s sketch had been accurate.
The thought hit him so hard that his whole body trembled.
Sebastian accepted Dominic’s emergency arrest assignment and walked out in a daze.
His mind was a mess.
What was going on?
If Nicole had worked with the gang, why would she give the police an accurate description?
He thought of her clenched fists in the interrogation room and the way she had defended herself again and again in despair.
Sebastian’s brows slowly drew together.
Had he really wronged her?
The moment that possibility appeared, he crushed it at once.
Impossible.
He had seen Nicole working with those gang members with his own eyes. He had seen her trying to hurt Anastasia.
Seeing was believing. How could that have been fake?
Soon, he returned to the criminal investigation unit.
He pushed open the interrogation room door.
“Nicole!”
The room was empty.
Sebastian paused. Only then did he realize that while he had been away, the case must have been handed over to the new reviewing officer. Nicole should have been temporarily detained somewhere else by now.
He found the new officer, Rebecca Robertson, and asked where Nicole was being held.
There were things he needed to ask Nicole face-to-face.
To Sebastian’s surprise, Rebecca looked up at him in shock. “Captain Crawford, Ms. Bradford has already been released. She was cleared of all charges.”
The words hit him like a thunderclap.
Sebastian shot to his feet and grabbed her by the collar. “Released? Who told you to release her?
“There were still so many unanswered questions! Several gang members are still on the run!”
He kicked a chair aside in fury. “Do you have any idea how much trouble you’ve caused?”
If Nicole had truly lost her judgment and leaked information about the police search, it would seriously obstruct the investigation.
Rebecca looked hurt and confused. “But Captain Crawford, while you were away on assignment, the case was already closed!
“Ms. Bradford really was framed!”
Sebastian stared at her and slowly exhaled. “Where’s the case file?”
Rebecca quickly pulled out the file on Nicole’s investigation.
He took it and scanned through it line by line.
The more he read, the tighter his frown became.
The file explained everything in detail.
Nicole had been drugged and taken to the abandoned factory. The men Sebastian had believed were gang members were actually low-level thugs in costume, and the person who had ordered them to do it was Anastasia.
The case had nothing to do with the Catskills raid. It was a personal grudge that had turned into a deliberate frame-up, which was why it had been resolved so quickly.
Perhaps seeing the shock and doubt in Sebastian’s eyes, Rebecca added, “The toxicology report confirmed that Ms. Bradford had a hallucinogenic sedative in her system.
“Those thugs have all been arrested. They confessed in person that Anastasia ordered them to do it.
“Anastasia is now in custody, and Ms. Bradford has been cleared.”
Dead silence fell over the room.
Sebastian stood frozen for a long time.
At that moment, Sebastian felt his entire world tilt.
The truth struck him across the face like a hard slap.
Nicole, the woman he had interrogated over and over, had been innocent.
Meanwhile, Anastasia, the woman he had trusted without question, was the one who had deceived everyone and framed her.
After a long silence, his trembling voice finally sounded in the office. “Where’s Nicole?”
He thought of the interrogation tactics he had used on her. He thought of each time she had been forced to defend herself, only for him to mistake her pain for evasion. He remembered the disappointment and numbness in her eyes.
His heart felt as if a hand had closed around it and squeezed hard.
How hurt and hopeless must she have felt?
“Ms. Bradford hasn’t returned to the criminal investigation unit since that day.”
Sebastian pressed his lips together.
Of course. With her stubborn nature, she must have been devastated after being distrusted like that.
The thought made him unable to waste even another second. He turned and ran home.
But it would be okay. They had been married for years.
She had been with him since she was a teenager, and she had loved him with everything she had. As long as he apologized sincerely, she would forgive him.
On the way, Sebastian rehearsed what he would say, carrying both anxiety and unease as he rushed back home.
The wooden door creaked as he pushed it open.
“Nikki?”
He stepped inside and looked around for her.
But the living room was empty.
Sebastian frowned, and unease suddenly rose in his chest.
He quickened his pace and checked room after room.
Everywhere was the same. No one was there.
Sebastian’s expression darkened. She wasn’t home. Where could she have gone?
Had she found out he was back and decided to hide because she was angry with him?
He was about to leave and ask the neighbors when his steps abruptly stopped.
Where were Nicole’s clothes, journals, and pen?
No wonder the place had felt wrong the second he walked in. All of her things were gone.
Sebastian stood in the empty house, his heartbeat speeding up sharply.
He rushed out the door to look for her, only to run straight into Marianna Schroeder from the neighborhood committee.
“Sebby, you’re home!”
“The clerk from the courthouse has been asking you to come in for days. Where have you been? You’d better go over there now!”
Sebastian stopped. “The courthouse?”
Why would they be asking for him?
“I’m not sure. I think it has something to do with Nikki.”
At the mention of Nicole, Sebastian hesitated no longer and hurried to the courthouse.
When he walked in, the clerk checked his name and pointed toward the divorce counter.
“Sebastian Crawford, right? What took you so long? Go line up over there.”
He shot to his feet.
The chair scraped loudly against the floor, drawing everyone’s attention.
“Sir, is something wrong?” the clerk asked with a frown.
Sebastian froze at his own reaction.
He forced down the emotions surging in his chest and swallowed. “Ma’am, is there some mistake? W-why the divorce counter?”
The clerk looked at him even more strangely. “Where else? You’re already married. You can’t register another marriage. Go on.”
Sebastian didn’t know how he ended up sitting in front of the counter.
“Mr. Crawford, this is your divorce certificate. Please keep it safe.”
The clerk’s voice sounded in front of him.
He slowly lifted his head and stared at the white paper.
“Seven days ago, your marriage to Ms. Nicole Bradford was legally dissolved.”
