Dean didn’t concern himself with these things. There’s usually something detestable about pitiful people. While not an absolute truth, this saying held a lot of sense. If Delun’s wife had divorced Delun sooner, all these troubles might have been avoided. Her unwillingness to do so likely stemmed from two possibilities: either she was deceived by Delun’s sweet talk, or it was for Mrs. Haas’s money. There could be no other reason.
After obtaining the account information Aruski used for the transfer, Dean left the somewhat eerie hospital room with Robert in tow. Aruski’s suspicion hadn’t been completely cleared. However, Delun’s wife had been staying with Aruski at the hotel, so when she went to pick him up, she was within surveillance range. Whether or not she had lied would be easy to verify.
Dean sent the bank account details to Daisy, asking her to help investigate the account holder. Noticing Robert seemed distracted, he joked, "What did you learn today?"
Robert replied subconsciously, "Online dating is scary."
Good news kept coming, one after another. Early in the morning, Daisy approached Dean with a curious look. "Dean," she said, "the account you gave me yesterday belongs to Carnif’s wife. In the last six months, that account has received a total of over one hundred thousand US dollars. Where did you get this account information?"
She had only managed to find out that the money was transferred from Boston, but since it wasn’t from the same bank, she hadn’t yet obtained the transferor’s information.
"One hundred thousand dollars?"
Dean didn’t speak, but Robert exclaimed in surprise, "FK, does studying pay that well?"
Daisy’s expression grew even more curious. "So," she asked, "you already know who transferred the money?"
"Yes, the money was transferred by Delun’s son. He was duped by Delun into depositing all his part-time job earnings and scholarships into that account," Dean explained.
As it stood, the suspicion against Carnif, the black prison guard, was enormous. One hundred thousand dollars was no small sum for an ordinary person with little inclination to save and a penchant for spending beyond their means. It was certainly enough for a cash-strapped Carnif to take the risk of committing murder!
Before Dean could decide how to deal with Carnif, Holz arrived. He brought a footwear impression cast to the Fourth Squad and delivered more good news to Dean. "Dean, you owe me a drink," Holz said. "I found the source of the shoe prints overnight."
"No problem, I’ll treat you, but you need to tell me about the shoe prints first," Dean readily agreed. He wasn’t one to mooch off a girlfriend or his mother. When it came to women, there were always plenty willing to pay for a hotel room themselves. Apart from smoking and fueling his car, Dean hardly spent any money.
Holz placed the footprint impression cast on the desk and said, "These are riding boots, and specifically, police riding boots!"
"Yes, the old-fashioned kind, with thick, non-breathable soles. Nowadays, it’s likely only in some remote towns, or officers with prior experience as mounted police, who would still prefer to wear this type of boot."
"Daisy!" Dean quickly turned to Daisy.
The astute young woman sensibly started typing on her computer, pulling up Carnif’s basic profile.
"Wow, it seems we’ve locked onto the killer!" Daisy exclaimed, her voice filled with delight. "According to Carnif’s records, he served as a state mounted policeman from 1990 to 1994 but was dismissed after a conflict with local white residents."
"Looks like you’re about to solve another case and stop an evil psychopath from being released," Holz congratulated them in advance.
Every pair of shoes leaves unique imprints depending on the wearer. They just needed to find all of Carnif’s riding boots and have him make new foot impressions while wearing them. A match would be damning evidence!
Experience Points were within reach.
Dean smiled. "Call everyone," he said. "We’re making another trip to Harper Prison!"