"Mr. Alex, you've told many people about your visions. Do you still stand by what you said?"
"Yes, sir."
"Mr. Alex, several passengers reported that you were shouting to get off the plane shortly after boarding. Why did you do that? Who instructed you? Have you ever received any military training abroad?"
The skinny male student Alex turned red with anger, veins bulging on his neck. He shouted, "No! None of that happened! Are you satisfied now, you idiot?!"
"Miss Swan, many people are grateful for what you did. They believe your initial warning was key to saving their lives. Could you describe your thoughts at the time in more detail?"
"It was purely to save people. Nothing more."
The FBI supervisor had a pile of documents on his desk, which he quickly skimmed through. "Your former teachers noted that you struggled to fit into a normal school environment. Several classmates said you exhibited signs of antisocial personality traits. What do you think caused that?"
Bella answered with a straight face: "Their hostility is understandable—because I'm just too beautiful!"
Pfft! The FBI supervisor spit his coffee all over the report. That answer caught him completely off guard.
Beauty is subjective, but as a high-level professional, the FBI supervisor had a refined eye. It was clear Bella was more attractive than the average person.
While most girls currently followed hip-hop trends with baggy jeans that covered their shoes, Bella refused to wear such things. She preferred well-fitted jeans—against current fashion trends. That's partly why she was mocked at the airport as "tacky."
Her minimalist style, pale complexion, and aloof demeanor gave the impression she looked down on ordinary people—a trait understandable in psychology. People like her often displayed arrogance, and were generally too proud to lie.
The FBI supervisor crumpled the coffee-stained report and tossed it into the bin. "Alright, I'll forgive you. Just... try to keep up that confidence."
Bella's questioning only lasted five minutes—not because they were letting her go, but because there were simply too many survivors to question.
There were 60 to 70 survivors. And to the FBI, everyone had a motive: Why did you survive? Who let you survive? Why did others die while you lived? Suspicious! Every airport worker was a suspect. If they widened the net, they'd need to investigate every person who passed through the airport in the past week. If you were breathing and alive, you were suspicious.
Bella bought a sandwich for lunch. As she ate, her phone rang. She looked at the female agent "assigned" to her—who was clearly more guard than protector. "Can I answer this?"
"Put it on speaker."
Fine, speaker it is—no big deal.
She didn't recognize the number, but once connected, she heard the voice of Miss Natasha—the woman she had met earlier that morning.
Though they'd only met hours ago, it already felt like a distant memory.
"What's up, Natasha?"
"I'm really sorry, Bella. We're dealing with some trouble here. When are you coming back to Phoenix? The police here want to ask you some questions."
Bella laughed into the phone. "Phoenix? Haha—Something big just happened at the airport this morning. Haven't you heard?"
"No, what happened? We've been stuck at the station all day."
Natasha's phone call unexpectedly linked the Flight 180 crash to a completely separate case—the toy car robbery. Both incidents were now combined into one investigation under the jurisdiction of the FBI's C1-level supervisor.
Fifteen minutes later, after finishing a soda, Bella saw a stunned Natasha and her entire family—as well as the three robbers from earlier.
One of the robbers had been on the run for almost half a day, but the FBI agents remained confident. Half a day? A whole day? As long as the guy was still on Earth, they'd find him eventually.
Natasha's entire family of five was interrogated like suspects.
The FBI had truly achieved "equality for all." From 60-year-old Professor John Gray to the baby in a woman's arms—everyone was questioned. What if the old man sympathized with terrorists? What if the baby was a powerful mutant? Everyone was a potential suspect.
Among all these people, beautiful women were top targets. Why? Because in the FBI handbook, beauty equals danger. A beautiful woman could easily manipulate others to act on her behalf—even complete strangers.
After Bella had been personally questioned by the intelligence supervisor, the lovely Natasha received the same treatment.
"Miss Romanoff, I heard your surname comes from your mother. What are your views on Russia?"
"No opinion."
"Miss Romanoff, I reviewed your academic record. You score highly in all subjects. But why do you deliberately make mistakes during exams? What are you trying to hide?"
"I just hate those teachers! Their IQs are too low."
"Miss Romanoff, I read your PE teacher's recommendations. You're in excellent physical shape. Why don't you participate in any extracurricular activities? Don't you find them interesting?"
Natasha rolled her eyes. These questions were so incredibly dumb!
Due to her uncooperative attitude and her Russian heritage, Natasha—still unaware of the full extent of the situation—was now officially listed as a key surveillance target, on par with Bella.
By 2 p.m., the FBI had only completed the initial round of background screenings, and still hadn't found a clear suspect responsible for the explosion.
No one knew exactly what had caused the crash. So the FBI considered a fallback plan: blame Magneto.
Planes? Trains? Missiles? If it involved metal and no clear cause could be found—blame Magneto.
That tactic had never failed before. They claimed it was yet another attack on democratic society by Magneto.
But this time, they were disappointed.
Before the FBI could even release their report, the Brotherhood of Mutants leaked a statement via secret channels: "It wasn't us. Don't make things up!"
With no scapegoat, the investigation continued.
Over 100 people died in the crash. The story had already spread across the globe. The FBI was under immense pressure. They even planned to confine all survivors in hotels for 48 hours and investigate everyone who had been through the airport in the last three days.
This decision angered survivors and the public alike.
But angry or not—the rules would still be enforced.
Bella and Natasha, as the two key suspects, were placed together in one room under surveillance, with female agents guarding the door.
(End of Chapter 6)