My family and I were detained in the security office. I was singled out for interrogation.

“Miss Claire White, the surveillance footage showed that you had gone to the washroom twenty-three minutes ago. After you came out of the washroom, the hairpin on your head had disappeared.

“We found the hairpin in a trash can here, in this airport. The lab tests came back with your DNA on it. Besides, the shape of the hairpin is a perfect match to the lethal wound on Joe’s dead body.

“The evidence is apparent. What do you have to say for yourself?”

Of course, I would not admit to things that I had never done.

“Sir, I’ve been framed. Indeed, I saw him in the washroom. He was trying to assault me at that time, and he ran away after I threatened him with my hairpin. However, I did not see him after that.”

The policeman unhappily tapped a finger on the table after hearing my denial.

“Ms. White, if you don’t own up to your crime, your punishment will be even more severe.

“Besides, you bought tickets overseas, but you suddenly refused to check in. We have strong reason to believe this murder was premeditated.”

I shook my head vigorously. Something must have gone wrong somewhere. Someone was pulling strings from behind the scenes.

The motive and time of the crime were aligned with what was shown on the surveillance footage. There was even evidence to prove that I was the murderer. The plan had been well thought out.

Besides, when Joe was running away, it clearly showed that he still had thirty years to live on his head.

If I could not find any evidence to prove my innocence, I would be framed as a murderer.

Wait, evidence! Where did the police get my hairpin?

That was right!

“Sir, after I threatened him with my hairpin, I had placed it back in my bag. How would it appear in a trash can? You can search my bag if you don’t believe me.”

After the police left to check my bag and returned, he shook his head at the policeman who was interrogating me. They exchanged a few words in a low voice.

The police seated in the middle suddenly slammed the table and glared furiously at me.

“You’re still making up excuses! We’ve thoroughly examined your bag, but the hairpin is not there.

“Besides, your act of murder has already been recorded and posted online. Why are you still denying it?”

“Impossible! I really placed the hairpin back into my bag. Before I was captured, I passed my bag to my mother.”

Besides, when Joe tried to assault me, there was certainly no one else around. Otherwise, he would have run away instead of continuing to force himself upon me.

The police passed his phone before me after seeing that I was unwilling to own up to the crime. I could clearly see the video playing on his phone.

In the video, the face of the woman was covered by her hoodie, but from some angles, she did appear to resemble me.

Besides, we were both wearing white hoodies, black pants, and white sneakers. We even wore the same bracelet and earrings.

It showed that the person only had six hours left to live, too.

For a moment, I thought that I might have died in the car accident on the way here.

Was I hallucinating before death when I saw the numbers on everyone’s head? Did I hallucinate killing someone, too?

I sat on the chair, dumbfoundedly, without saying a word.

Just when the police thought that I was about to admit my crime, I suddenly thought of something and said to the police.

“I can admit to the crime, but before this, I want to talk to my parents and my husband separately.”

The number over my head had decreased. I had to try my luck.

Firstly, I met my mother. When I saw her, she advised me to admit to the crime.

“Claire, just admit that you’ve done it. I promise I’ll find the best lawyer to bail you out. I won’t let you stay inside for too long.”

I found her words particularly odd.

She used to be overly protective of me because she had once lost another child.

Why would she ask me to admit to the crime before asking for more details?

Upon seeing my silence, she seemed more anxious. She stared at me in despair.

“Just admit that you did it, for me. Leave with the police and don’t drag us into this!”

The policeman noticed that she seemed too agitated, so he dragged her out of the interrogation room. Even then, she was trying to convince me to give up.

I felt a heavy weight in my chest. A thought formed in my head, but I did not want to believe it.

I met my father after that. Unlike my mother, he was looking at me with a complicated gaze. Finally, but surely, he said, “I believe you won’t kill anyone. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you won’t have to spend your birthday in jail.”

From the moment we entered the airport, my birthday had only been six hours away.

I did not have the usual habit of celebrating my birthday. The sudden accident had also caused me to forget about my birthday. However, I did not expect my father, who usually was not detail-oriented, to remember it.

I looked at my father’s graying hair and finally asked the question that I had long wanted to ask, “Dad, has it really bothered you that I’m not a boy?”

My father froze momentarily after hearing what I said. Very soon, he changed his expression.

“Of course it’s not important. You’re my child, too.”

He still wanted to speak, but I no longer wanted to listen.

Finally, my husband rushed in a little impatiently.

“Claire, you shouldn’t be admitting to the crime. I’ll do anything to prove your innocence. Think about our future. It’ll be all over if you give up.”

His behavior confused me just as much. In my mind, he had always been a self-centered person. Why would he suddenly care about my plight?

I tentatively asked him, “What if I had really killed someone…”

“Impossible! Even if you killed someone, I won’t let anything happen to you.

“We’re still going to live in a mansion and drive luxury cars. We’re going to travel the world. How could I let anything happen to you?”

Before I could finish talking, he immediately denied the possibility of it and started imagining our future lives. He then started talking to himself.

When the police dragged him out, I could even see tears and regret in his gaze.

After I met my family, several of my theories fell apart.

I felt breathless after the string of events. It started with the murder accusation, then the threat of death, and the weird behaviors of my family.

After remaining silent for a while, I decided to admit to the crime and put forth my conditions.

I requested that my family be detained at the police station. After all, they were also possible accomplices to my alleged crime.

I wanted to use this opportunity to prove a theory I had.

The police agreed to my conditions.

A murder case happening in a busy airport that was recorded and posted online had caused a huge commotion.

The higher authorities, netizens, and the airport staff were putting pressure on the police. They could only try their best to find out the truth and work on damage control.

As I predicted, after the police escorted us out of the airport, the numbers on our heads changed drastically.

During the interrogation, my survival time had reduced to three hours.

However, it had changed to seventy years.

Even though the murderer was waiting for me outside the airport, the police were providing me with safe protection.

Just when I thought that I could save my family’s lives by admitting to the crime, I saw my family behind me from my peripheral vision.

The next second, before all the reporters and the police, I retracted my statement.

“I didn’t kill anyone. My mother’s the murderer!”