The Homicide and Robbery Division had four squads, each corresponding to the jurisdictional area of a different precinct. The First Squad’s area of responsibility primarily covered several districts within the Canyon Precinct’s jurisdiction. They had a dedicated detective team stationed at the precinct for daily operations.
Dean and Harry went to the Canyon Precinct police station.
The Christmas holidays had ended. There were noticeably more vehicles on the roads. But Dean’s cool black Hummer was definitely a head-turner.
The Hummer H1, derived from a military off-road vehicle, was somewhat ugly but simple to repair, sturdy, rugged, and highly adaptable to various terrains. Correspondingly, the vehicle had fewer electronic devices and wasn’t as comfortable as a sports sedan. This remained true even for the modified version.
But this car packed a punch. Outrageously, shooting ports had been installed on its side and rear windows. It was practically a custom-built, miniature armored vehicle disguised as an off-roader.
No wonder it was so expensive! Dean thought. He suspected that not even a standard military Hummer could beat his H1.
Harry felt rather dejected. Working with Dean meant plenty of credit, but it often left Harry feeling envious.
"Dean," Harry gossiped listlessly, "I think Lawrence and the others are planning to come back in early February. By then, the Captain will probably have him take on a rookie."
Having been promoted to Detective, Dean would undoubtedly form his own team. In that case, the Fourth Squad would need to expand as well.
Dean nodded. "Lawrence already called me about it. He said he has a surprise for us."
"He’s probably finally won Phoebe over."
While Dean didn’t have high hopes for their long-term prospects, he was still happy for Lawrence.
Harry’s reaction was much stronger. "Impossible! Absolutely impossible! Phoebe’s all about looks! You might have a chance, Dean, but Lawrence? If he put on a leather skirt, he’d look like a pig butcher. There’s no way she’d accept him."
"That’s what they call the ’contrast effect’ in women," Dean said, somewhat pensively. "If your looks were ruined one day, you probably wouldn’t turn your nose up at a chubby girl who pursued you."
Lawrence was practically an inspirational tale, Dean mused. The guy who relentlessly pursued a girl and ended up with everything. He just wondered how long it would last.
A middle-aged man with white hair stood on the balcony of the Canyon Precinct police station, staring blankly at the traffic below.
"Detective Leslie." A petite, fair-skinned, and buxom blonde policewoman in uniform interrupted his thoughts.
Leslie turned to look at this subordinate, who hadn’t been with them long. "Portolia? What is it?"
The policewoman looked at Leslie with undisguised affection. "Detective," she said, "even before I joined the First Squad, I’d heard all about Detective Dean. They say he solved multiple major cases in just over two months. May I accompany you later?"
Upon hearing this, Leslie’s brow furrowed slightly. Portolia was one of the few detectives of Japanese descent and also the widow of his former colleague. She would have been more suited to a clerical or administrative role, but she had insisted on frontline duty.
After observing her for several days, Leslie couldn’t shake the feeling that her motives weren’t entirely pure.
Considering Portolia had a two-year-old son, Leslie suspected she was trying to get involved with the up-and-coming star detective, much like she’d been trying with him recently.
Although he inwardly disapproved of the idea, the thought of his former colleague’s son made him sigh. He nodded. "Alright. Tell Yale to go with Wang Shi and the others to handle that other case."
Having received permission, Portolia smiled and turned to leave.
「At ten in the morning.」
Dean, along with Harry, arrived at the Canyon Precinct police station.
A white-haired, middle-aged man, accompanied by a petite and beautiful female officer, greeted them. "Hello, Detective Dean. I’m Detective Leslie from the First Squad, and this is Detective Portolia."
Harry, eyeing the doll-like Portolia, couldn’t help but gulp, which made Portolia cover her mouth and chuckle.
Dean was also intrigued. "Are you of Chinese descent?"
Portolia shook her head with a light laugh. "I’m of Japanese descent. My parents are in business here, so we immigrated. But you, Detective Dean, certainly fit our aesthetic—a very masculine and handsome man."
"Ah, the Land of the Rising Sun." Dean’s interest visibly grew. "I’m a big fan of the... ’action’ movies from your country."
Portolia smiled without speaking, her gaze towards Dean already turning openly flirtatious.
This Detective Dean seems like an easy target, she thought.
Leslie, feeling ignored, awkwardly withdrew his hand. He knew Dean was doing this deliberately but wasn’t offended. After they had all introduced themselves, Leslie extended his hand again. "I’m—"
"Detective Leslie," Dean cut him off bluntly. "Since we all know each other now, let’s head to the victim’s place. Can you fill me in on the situation?"
This so-called assessment, Dean thought, is just their way of trying to make me look bad. Fine. In that case, I won’t bother with pleasantries. I’ll take the challenge head-on, crush these people, and show them what a real gap in ability looks like!
Leslie was quite composed. He retracted his hand again, seemingly unfazed, and began to explain as they walked.
"The deceased is Elinna, a newlywed housewife. Her husband went to his hometown for a visit. When he returned the next day, he found his wife hanging from the chandelier. There were also obvious ligature marks on her wrists. Her husband suspects she was murdered and reported it."
The members of the other three squads wanted to use a case to gauge Dean’s abilities. Coincidentally, a homicide had just occurred in the First Squad’s jurisdiction, which was why Leslie was there to meet Dean.