A black Volvo sedan swiftly drove by the roadside.
The window of the driver's seat was open, with Val's left arm resting on the window, occasionally glancing at the street to his left while driving.
Mid-December had arrived, and the Christmas atmosphere was becoming increasingly thick, with shops starting to promote holiday gifts.
The supermarket where Val worked was busier than usual, with many people already preparing for the holiday.
Val drove into the parking lot and happened to come across a coworker with dyed blonde hair. The coworker looked at Val's car and said, "Whoa, you finally decided to ditch that old clunker. This one looks a lot better."
Val laughed, "That's right, it's got a lot of space in the back."
"What does the space in the back have to do with driving? The blonde coworker looked puzzled. The car is meant to be driven; you're not sitting in the back, are you?"
Val got out of the car and patted his shoulder, "I won't be single forever."
The blonde coworker: "..."
Val was very satisfied with his new car, although it was second-hand, there were no issues with its performance, and he felt that he had arrived at least five minutes earlier than usual, putting him in a different mood altogether.
After entering the supermarket, Val changed into his uniform, held a morning meeting, cleaned, adjusted prices, restocked, and after being busy for nearly an hour, they officially opened for business.
After this period of time, Val had gradually adapted to the job, had a stable income, paid off his previous credit card debt, and his living conditions had significantly improved.
He put a big bag of Christmas hats on the shelf, as these days were a good opportunity for sales. Suddenly, he spotted a familiar figure.
"Luke, are you off today?"
"Yes, I'm taking the day off to do some Christmas shopping; there's just no time when it gets busy."
"OK, what are you looking to buy? I'll be your guide."
"Some food, a Christmas tree, decorations, gifts."
"Did you see our 'new' car?"
"I glanced at it when I passed the parking lot, not bad."
After saying that, Luke walked over to the shelf where the Christmas trees were sold. The Christmas trees came boxed and required self-assembly.
Luke placed four boxes of Christmas trees in the shopping cart.
Val asked in confusion, "Why are you buying so many?"
"One for my grandfather's house, one for my mom's, one for my place, and our office needs one too. After all, it's the holiday season; you need such a thing to feel the festive atmosphere."
Luke began shopping and soon realized one shopping cart was not enough. Val pushed another cart to help him with the items.
After checking out, the two loaded the items into the car, filling the trunk to the brim.
After bidding farewell to Val, Luke headed home. As soon as he entered his community, his phone rang.
Luke pressed the answer button, "Chief, what's up?"
"Luke, a homicide was discovered this morning, and I've assigned Squad One to investigate. Can you join the team?"
"No problem, send me the address."
Luke reached home, put the gifts inside, and drove straight to the crime scene.
Downtown Los Angeles.
Several police cars were parked near the apartment, and two officers stood at the entrance.
Luke flashed his badge and asked, "Which floor is the crime scene on?"
"The third floor, sir."
This was an older apartment building, with only three floors and no elevator.
At the moment, the crime scene tape was up around Room 309 on the third floor, the easternmost room, with quite a few officers standing at the door.
"Captain Lee." After seeing Luke, everyone greeted him.
The deputy captain, hands behind his back, was quietly talking to an officer. Upon seeing Luke, he frowned slightly, "Reid informed you?"
Luke joked, "Hmm, sounds a bit like a palace coup."
The deputy captain waved it off, "Come on, I'm just an old guy who wants to taste being a captain."
"Don't rush, you'll get your chance." Luke was determined to take a proper holiday during Christmas to spend time with his family and even if there were cases, he would leave them to the deputy captain to enjoy the thrill of being in charge.
Of course, before Christmas arrives, he still had to investigate thoroughly. He would be busy when it's time to be busy and relax when it's time to relax. Only then would he be confident.
The deputy captain pointed towards the apartment door, "This morning, the apartment neighbor noticed that the door of the victim's home wasn't locked. When they opened it, they found the victim's body.
No identification proving the victim's identity was found at the scene."
"Was the victim the homeowner?"
"No, the homeowner is a white male; the victim is an Asian female."
Luke asked, "Have you contacted the homeowner?"
"We have his phone number but haven't been able to reach him. I'll have someone stay on it.
Will let you know when we make contact."
"What about the person who reported it?"
"They went out to run errands."
"Contact them. I want to see them in a bit." Luke said before entering the victim's apartment.
The apartment wasn't large, resembling a studio. Right upon entry, one could see a large bed, on which lay an undressed female corpse, legs dangling off the edge, eyes wide open, and a clear ligature mark around the neck.
Luke walked in for a closer look. The victim was an Asian female, with black hair, a petite build, and nice proportions, with a bloody letter 'H' carved between her chest and abdomen.
Scattered around the body were various items of clothing, stockings, underwear, an eyemask, a kimono, tissues, and more.
The technical team and the forensic doctor had also arrived at the scene and were already inspecting the area around the body.
Luke carefully avoided them to search other areas of the apartment, which didn't have much furniture—just the bed, a wardrobe, a dressing table, and a TV.