Dakota’s apartment.Dakota had just taken off his coat when he noticed his phone screen light up; there was an incoming call from an unknown number. “Hello?”It took a moment for Dax to recognize the voice on the other end. He loosened his tie; being a professor at a prestigious university required him to dress as neatly as possible—suit and tie, that was his everyday look. It was a call from his dad’s personal assistant, Elina.“Hey, sorry El, but I can’t. There’s a seminar at the police station this Saturday. Just tell Dad I’ll visit afterward, maybe the day after tomorrow.”Dakota fixed his bangs, and it didn’t take long before the call ended. An invitation to his own birthday party—his dad was really trying to get closer to him in every way possible, even if it made him uncomfortable. It was so frustrating, he thought as he slowly made his way to the bathroom. Maybe he would cool off and soak in the tub for a while; he needed that.Not long after, while filling his bathtub, his p
Bayward Police headquarters.The leaves of the tree outside the window were pushed by the wind, tapping against the glass repeatedly. Sam’s gaze was far ahead, staring into the distance, even though Rina’s voice dominated his office as she presented her findings.Drrrrtttt.Sam’s phone on the table vibrated, and he quickly picked it up. Call from Kim."Hello, Kim, uh..." Sam raised his hand to glance at his watch."I might be able to get there by two in the afternoon. Do you have something going on? How’s Dax?" Sam took a deep breath, and stopped listening to Kim's feedback."He might just be exhausted. You can go; I’ll be there in an hour. We can’t take any risks, even though there’s someone watching over Dax in his room. He could still be in danger."Sam remembered that while Dakota was in the hospital last night, someone had broken into his apartment, rummaging through everything as if searching for something, even though security was tight. Luckily, Dax wasn’t there.Not long after
Dakota turned to Sam. "That’s why I asked you and Rina to come to my birthday party, because the culprit will be there." Sam didn’t budge, another puzzle. Even though he was a pretty sharp detective, he still found it hard to dive into Dakota's train of thought. "Can I know who it is?" Dakota nodded. "You should already know, Sam. Why are you asking me again?" Dakota seemed annoyed, which was rare since Sam always acted foolishly in front of him. "Okay, the woman, but you don’t have solid proof, Dax. We don’t have strong evidence, it’s all just hidden and vague traces." Dakota pushed the laptop in front of Sam, letting him see the screen where he has shared several photos. "Investigate the people in the police department first; we have spies here." Sam looked at the photos, which were none other than pictures of his own team, even the chief and the deputy, all filling the screen, including Thomas, Dakota's partner. "You’re not joking, are you, Dax?" Dakota neither
Back at the police station, Sam pushed the man named Robi towards the officer to take him to the holding cell. Dakota glanced at someone who had just exited Mr. Ron's office, walking a bit hurriedly. It was Thomas; he hadn’t seen him in a while because he had been busy transferring to another station out of town. His former colleague was back, limping slightly. “Tom, is your leg okay?” Dakota asked. The stocky man smiled at Dakota and raised his hand."Oh, it's nothing major, Dax. Just got a bit tangled up while chasing the suspect yesterday. I’ll go to a massage therapist and I’ll be fine afterward. Not a big deal. Oh, by the way, how's your case going?" Sam returned after dropping off the guy, just about to say something when Dakota jumped in first. "There's nothing much, same old, same old. We're still trying to find witnesses, but there hasn't been any significant progress yet." said Dakota.Sam frowned at Dakota's answer, but Thomas nodded. "Oh, I see. Well, if you need my
As midnight approached in Dakota's apartment. Dakota sat on the edge of the bed in the dark, just sitting quietly and thinking. He pulled out his phone and replayed a five-second video where a woman resembling his mom fell from a balcony, but the person who pushed her wasn’t clearly visible. This video might be the closest evidence he had now that his mom didn’t die by suicide; someone had pushed her.Dakota opened his email on his phone and sent the video to Sam's email address. It didn’t take long for Sam to call back. “Is this the video from yesterday, Dax? Are you sure you want to investigate it?” Sam asked. Dakota nodded. “Well, I’m not sure, Sam, but this might be connected to the murder at the hotel. This video was sent during the incident, and the break-in at my apartment might also be related to it. Whoever they are, they’re trying to find it because they think it might be in my apartment.” “Why do you think that, Dax? Where did you get that information?” Sam asked. Dako
“Chiiitttt!!” The sound of tires screeching on the hot asphalt filled the air as several vehicles with flashing lights on their hoods chased after a medium-sized black car. The wail of a siren echoed down the main road, and other cars on the street scrambled to avoid getting involved, pulling over as much as they could. “Chase that one!” Rina was seen sitting in the passenger seat while Aries drove like a racer, pursuing their target along with two other official vehicles. “There he goes, turning right!” Rina held on tightly as Aries expertly maneuvered the car, making a sharp turn that nearly slammed her against the side of the small vehicle. Rina's phone buzzed in her hand. “Yeah, Boss!” It was a call from Sam. Sam, who was in one of the rooms of a three-story apartment on the outskirts of the city, frowned at the noise coming from the phone. “Where are you guys? Are you still chasing him?” Sam asked, recalling Rina's last update that she and Aries had tracked down the man sus
Police headquarters. Rina and Aris were in the interrogation room, questioning each witness and colleague who had seen BigPapa last. Among them was Albert, the finance director of BigPapa and Co. A sharply dressed man whose hair seemed to be stiff from an excessive amount of hair gel that made it shine. In his fifties, he still had a keen interest in fashion, sporting a complete outfit of a dark brown suit made from high-quality merino wool. The latest Dolce shoes, and a small wallet that he always carried to hold his Apple phone and a first-class mini cigar. All of these items were undoubtedly expensive; even a police captain might struggle to afford them on their monthly salary. "This isn't a prostitution ring, but a professional escort service, you understand what that means, right? Or should I explain it further? And please note, BigPapa is not a pimp; that might have been the case in the past, but since we established BPC (BigPapa and Co.) two years ago, we’ve been running a p
Klek. Dakota get out off his car, he parked it in front of an old house not far outside the city. He checked his phone; this was definitely the location Aaron had given him. But this place was very quiet and dark, it was so deserted. The only light came from the streetlamp in front of the large house, which looked like it hadn’t been taken care of in ages. Wild plants were overgrown up to the house balcony, while the roof was nearly collapsing. Some nearby buildings were barely recognizable, and tall weeds were sprouting through the cracks in the pavement, along with dry leaves from the bougainvillea and other lush trees that almost covered the floor surface in the front yard. Dakota took a deep breath; it was already dark, and that guy was really strange for inviting him to a place like this. He pressed Aaron's number, and after several rings, no one picked up. Dakota was starting to get annoyed. From the beginning, he had been a bit hesitant about Aaron's suggestion to meet som