Chapter 575: Zombie

Seeing this, Officer Tristan Tanner stepped forward and said, "When Tanya Archer wakes up, I’ll take her to the medical center for a psychiatric evaluation. We can run some other tests at the same time and see what’s really going on."

He hesitated for a moment, then added, "But I’m guessing she probably really does have some mental issues..."

Recalling the earlier scene, Officer Tristan Tanner was convinced. ’Tanya Archer is definitely not a normal person!’

’After all, what kind of normal person would bite through someone’s neck and chew their face to a pulp?’

’An ordinary person couldn’t even fake that kind of behavior!’

Officer Sean Pierce nodded and said, "Let’s wake Tanya Archer up first."

Standing to the side, Melody Summers stood on her tiptoes and craned her neck to finally get a clear look at Tanya Archer.

Tanya Archer looked to be in her forties, with a neat, short haircut and simple, appropriate clothing. In contrast, the dried blood covering her face made her seem all the more grotesque and terrifying.

Not only that, but her hands were also covered in dark, dried blood, with bits of human tissue stuck between her fingers. These were the very hands that had gouged out someone’s eyeballs just hours before.

As a precaution, Officer Tristan Tanner handcuffed Tanya Archer’s hands before waking her up.

Roused by a splash of cold water, Tanya Archer slowly came to. Her tightly shut eyes gradually opened, and she stared blankly at Officer Tristan Tanner before her.

Officer Tristan Tanner asked tentatively, "Tanya Archer, do you remember what just happened?"

But Tanya Archer remained lying down, motionless and silent. She just stared blankly ahead, her eyes unfocused.

Seeing that she wasn’t responding, Officer Tristan Tanner continued, "Tanya Archer, whether you’re really insane or just pretending, we have to take you to the hospital for an examination. We need you to cooperate."

Tanya Archer still didn’t move or make a sound, her body like an empty shell that had lost its soul.

At this, Officer Tristan Tanner reached out to help Tanya Archer up, but the moment his hand touched her, the unexpected happened—

Tanya Archer’s whole body shuddered. Then her eyes rolled back in her head, and her mouth flew open, baring a set of stark white teeth.

Seeing this, Melody Summers cried out, "Look out!!"

At almost the same instant, Tanya Archer lunged at Officer Tristan Tanner, who was closest to her!

Tanya Archer grabbed Officer Tristan Tanner’s collar with her cuffed hands, yanked him toward her, and then opened her mouth to bite down hard on his neck!

In the nick of time, Officer Tristan Tanner raised a hand, seized Tanya Archer by the neck, and shoved her advancing face away.

The other officers nearby snapped to their senses and immediately swarmed in, trying to pull Tanya Archer off Officer Tristan Tanner.

But to everyone’s surprise, Tanya Archer’s strength was astounding. Several young, able-bodied officers couldn’t hold her down.

Tanya Archer struggled wildly, as if her life depended on it, the veins on her forehead bulging. As she thrashed, she kept her cavernous mouth wide open, trying to bite anyone around her.

Just as her mouth neared an officer’s neck, a gunshot rang out—BANG!

The next second, a flower of blood blossomed on Tanya Archer’s chest.

Officer Sean Pierce, gun raised, fired several more shots into Tanya Archer without hesitation.

Struck by multiple bullets, Tanya Archer went limp and collapsed to the ground, her eyes slowly closing.

The room fell silent. A moment later, an officer patted his chest and muttered, "Holy shit... that was terrifying... She was stronger than a wild boar. We couldn’t hold her down at all..."

Officer Sean Pierce’s expression was grim. In all his years on the force, he had never seen anything like it.

Still shaken, Officer Tristan Tanner said, "Did you see what she was like just now? I don’t think she was even human. She was just like a zombie from the movies!"

At his words, the others fell silent again.

’Thinking back on how Tanya Archer had just been—eyes rolled back, devoid of reason, struggling and biting with no regard for her own life... Wasn’t that exactly like a zombie from the movies?’

’But how could something like zombies possibly exist in real life?!’

Melody Summers thought for a moment before saying hesitantly, "...Could she have been infested by that Tricolor Parasitoid Wasp? I heard that after it infests a human host, it can release toxins to control the brain..."

Melody Summers trailed off, not entirely confident in her own theory.

After all, based on existing cases, most people infested by the Tricolor Parasitoid Wasp chose to commit suicide by jumping into a river. A small number would attack others, but she had never seen a case like Tanya Archer—with immense strength, mindlessly trying to tear people apart. Not in two lifetimes!

Officer Sean Pierce frowned in thought for a moment, then said to Officer Tristan Tanner, "Contact the medical examiner. Let’s send the couple for an autopsy first."

...

******

Meanwhile, after leaving the Emergency Response Office, Dina Lawson made her way back to her employer’s home in the villa district.

Cindy Hughes was sitting in the living room. Seeing Dina Lawson enter, she said with a faint smile, "Miss Lawson, you’re back. How did things go?"

Dina Lawson nervously rubbed her palms together and recounted what had happened at the Emergency Response Office to Cindy Hughes.

After hearing Dina Lawson’s story, Cindy Hughes coughed lightly and asked softly, "Is that all? ...The police didn’t suspect anything else?"

Dina Lawson shook her head. "I don’t think so... They just suspect Tanya Archer had mental problems. They didn’t say anything else."

Cindy Hughes nodded. Then she lifted her slender wrist and pulled Dina Lawson down to sit beside her.

As Dina Lawson watched, both flattered and terrified, Cindy Hughes smiled faintly and said in a gentle voice, "Miss Lawson, how has your son been recently? Has his condition improved at all?"

Hearing Cindy Hughes mention her son, Dina Lawson managed to suppress her unease and force a grateful smile. "He’s much better! It’s all thanks to you and the master!"

Cindy Hughes smiled sweetly and nodded. "That’s good. You don’t have to worry about his future treatments, either. I’ll arrange everything for you."

Dina Lawson was overjoyed. She excitedly grabbed Cindy Hughes’s hand, weeping with gratitude. "Thank you, Ma’am! Thank you so much! I’ll never forget your incredible kindness for the rest of my life!"

Cindy Hughes smiled, pursing her lips. She slipped her hand out of Dina Lawson’s grasp and toyed with the jade pendant on her chest as she said softly, "In that case, starting today, you can take over Tanya Archer’s duties. You’ll be the one delivering meals to the basement."

The moment the words left Cindy Hughes’s mouth, the smile on Dina Lawson’s face froze.

’The basement...’

Just thinking about the basement sent a shiver down Dina Lawson’s spine.

’She knew that several women had been locked up in the villa’s basement a few days ago. Although it disgusted her, she wasn’t particularly surprised. After all, these days, the rich treated human life as worthless and played all sorts of twisted games. Imprisoning young women was hardly anything new.’

’But the problem was...’

’Tanya Archer, who was previously in charge of delivering meals to the basement, had suddenly gone insane. She didn’t know if it had something to do with the women locked down there...’

Dina Lawson didn’t want to get involved. She looked at Cindy Hughes hesitantly, only to find Cindy Hughes already watching her.

Cindy Hughes’s normally gentle gaze had a new, sharp edge to it, carrying an implicit warning.

Meeting Cindy Hughes’s gaze, Dina Lawson shuddered instinctively. A thousand thoughts raced through her mind in that instant, but in the end, her mind settled on her son, who was still in the hospital.

’Her son’s future treatment still depended on her employers’ help, and she couldn’t afford to lose this job...’

So she nodded and replied, "...I understand, Ma’am. You can count on me."