Seven of Spades2: Trick Roller

"No wonder Hensley was killed," Martin said the next morning, looking up from her pile of documents, "I kind of want to travel back in time and kill him myself."

"Secondary." Levi murmured.For the past two hours, they've spent the past two hours burying themselves in the typescript of Hensley's email and text exchanges over the past six-odd months, and just reading them makes him want to take a shower.

When Clarissa Northridge described how abominable her husband was, she used words too conservatively.She used "vulgar" and "difficult to get along with" to describe, but Levi would prefer to say "cruel, cruel bastard".Up to colleagues, students, down to family members, Hensley spoke to everyone he knew in a malicious and fierce tone, interspersed with vicious abuse and offensive insults, which can be regarded as naked verbal abuse up.While he and his wife don't have much online communication, the little bit that remains is so offensive that Levi can't believe she hasn't mentioned the divorce.Hensley's son is even more pitiful, and he probably will be inseparable from psychotherapy for the rest of his life.

Levy leaned back in his chair and said, "That doesn't help in analyzing motives. I wouldn't be surprised if a gang got together and conspired to kill him."

"Hmm. Did you see this then? The way he spoke to Dr. Kapoor?"

Martin pushed him a stack of materials.He flipped through it briefly, then shook his head, glanced at Martine and asked her for help.

"Compared with others, Hensley spoke less aggressively to her." She tapped the top page with her finger. "There is no foul language, and I never insulted her IQ or ability. You know, Mai Tai is his life's way of life."

Levi looked at the printouts again.Martin was on point - Hensley's texts and emails to Kapoor were still annoying, and Levi's would have been totally unbearable, but their conversations did resemble his conversations with other people. Significantly different.

"They're research partners. Treating her badly might harm his interests." He saw Martin's expression, and then said, "You think they're having sex?"

"Why not?"

"Because..." Levy racked his brains to explain why he was so disgusted with this statement, "Hensley may not be that scary to her, but it's still not the polite way to be. Such a man sleeps unless he gives money."

"It's unreasonable to like someone." Martin shrugged. "Is Dr. Kapoor married?"

Levi closed his eyes, thinking back to that brief meeting in the interrogation room.Kapoor wore a wedding ring, a simple platinum band with no gemstones.He replied: "It's over."

"Then there are more motives. Either she's fed up with Hensley hanging out with call girls and wants to end it all. Or she wants to clean it up and Hensley threatens to tell her husband. Or Hensley I thought about it, but she didn't buy it."

"Generally speaking, I'd agree with you," Levy said, "but I don't think it's her. She's one of the few people who have a full alibi right now—she was on the floors of the casino." , until three o'clock in the morning, the surveillance film was comprehensive. That is to say, during the time of Hensley's presumed death, she was in the casino; but if she planned to frame a woman who left two hours ago, she would It's not particularly wise here. And it would take so long to sneak out of the casino to kill Hensley, it's impossible not to see it on the surveillance."

Martin pursed his lips. "It could be. Still, when you see her again, it's okay to ask. It might be a breaking point."

"Valku, Abrams!"

Levi and Martin looked up, and their immediate superior, Sergeant James Wing, was coming out of his office and striding towards the main office.Sergeant Wen has served in the Marine Corps. He has a military demeanor and is always well dressed and clean-shaven no matter the day or night.

"There's a new case for you." He said, stopping at the work station next to them. "A homicide occurred in a resident of the Copper Crown Community."

Levi and Martin looked at each other suspiciously.According to the shift, they should not be there this time, that is to say——

"Probably related to Hensley's murder."

"Why, sir?" asked Martin.

"The victim this time was on duty at the front desk of the Mirage Hotel the night Hensley was murdered," Police Chief Wen said.

The crime scene was located in a suburban residential area to the northwest of Long Street. It was a pretty southwest style American bungalow.Walking forward with Martin, Levi noticed a Mercedes parked in the private driveway, and he silently remembered it.

Hannah Ostrovsky, the officer who responded to them, met them at the front door. "The victim's name is Alan Walsh," she said as they changed their protective gear. "24 years old. His girlfriend found him this morning—he didn't respond to texts all night, so she thought Come and confront him face to face. I suspect he cheated."

"Yeah, cheating is popular recently." Levi said softly.

Ostrovsky blinked, but said nothing.She led them into the house and said, "The coroner hasn't arrived yet, but the cause of death is pretty obvious."

Walsh lay contorted over the living room table, one arm flung aside.He was a small, chubby white male—really "white" now, because he died of massive blood loss.Not even a visible corpse spot.

"I know this man," Martin said. "I spoke to him on Sunday, when I went to question the hotel workers who worked the night shift on Hensley's murder." She walked around the body for a while. circle, whistled. "The knife pierced the carotid artery directly. Judging from the blood splatter and the way the body fell to the ground, it was done standing behind. Either the murderer was lucky, or the murderer knew how to kill with a single knife."

"Like a doctor's handwriting?" Levi said gloomily.

The murderer hadn't thought of hiding the tool of the crime - a steak knife with a beautifully carved pewter handle.The knife was left on the floor next to Walsh's body, still stained with clotted blood.Walsh had a scratch on his forehead, but it was neither bleeding nor bruised—the mark must have been from the knife.The body was completely rigid, so barring complicating factors, he had been dead for at least twelve hours.

Levi noticed the Chopard watch on Walsh's wrist and frowned. "Are you sure his girlfriend isn't living with him?" he asked Ostrovsky.

"Pretty sure. He lives alone."

"This house is pretty good." Levi waved his hand and gestured across the room. "The furniture is luxurious, the electronics are top-notch, there's a Mercedes in front of the door... how much does a hotel receptionist make?

"It's not enough to live like this anyway," Martin said. "Family money?"

"Officer, I found something here." A person from the crime scene investigation department said.She crouched a few feet away from them, holding a portable forensic lamp aloft.After Levi and Martin also came to her and squatted down, she pointed to a fluorescent spot on the carpet. "Traces of recent vomiting. Someone tried to dispose of it, but they didn't clean it up. Should be enough for DNA testing."

Martin looked bitter and stepped back.Levy had seen her cover the intestines of a shooting victim with her bare hands, but she couldn't bear the mere mention of throwing up.

"The killer must have vomited," Levy said. "That's the only explanation that makes sense."

"I don't object, but why did the murderer vomit?"

Levi walked to the other side of the room, took the whole room in his eyes, and mentally sketched out the cause and effect of the incident: Walsh was standing at the table—looking at something on the table, or using the computer—when the killer came from behind. Assaulted him, plunged the knife into the carotid artery and withdrew it, stepping back.

Walsh would instinctively cover his throat, but it didn't help.He might barely stand for a few seconds, but quickly fell to his knees, hitting his forehead against the edge of the table, and collapsed backward, his folded legs still padded beneath him.He died very quickly.

Then what?The killer dropped the knife, stumbled back a few steps, and spat it out.

"A murderer isn't prepared for how it feels to kill," Levy said. "If that's the guy who killed Hensley ... drugging is not the same thing as stabbing. Killing with a knife is the most experiential and spontaneous The means of the heart. The murderer is disgusted."

"This is by no means the usual impulsive stabbing method. This is determined to kill people." Martin moved closer to examine the corpse carefully. "Just one wound, no other incisions, and no other serious injuries. The choice of this murder weapon is definitely not out of personal preference, but out of some necessity. But, the reason? Walsh and Hensley definitely have a close relationship, It's not just as simple as being in Mirage that night, but what is the connection?"

Neither of them could answer, so they split up.Levi rummages through the desk, Martin scours the bedroom—both of which could be perfect places for Walsh to hide his secrets.Levy first checked the scattered papers on the desk, careful not to touch the body as he moved, but they were just bills and junk mail.His jaw dropped from ear to ear when he saw Walsh's MasterCard statement.If it were not for other sources of income, Walsh would have been deeply in debt for these extravagances beyond his means.

The computer was quiet, the monitor was black, and Levi thought it was off.But when he squatted down to search the lower drawer, the faint orange light on the main unit came into view.It's just in hibernate mode.

He stood up and nudged the mouse with his gloved fingertips.The computer was activated, and he prayed a little, hoping that no password would be required.

This time, luck was on his side.The computer returns directly to the previous activity on the desktop.There was a folder window open, densely packed with subfolders named after strings of numbers with no apparent naming pattern.

He opened the first subfolder, using the mouse as little as possible.There are some JPEG files, the thumbnails are blank, still named after numbers.He hit the slide show button.

The first image popped up on the screen, and he gasped.

Although it was dimly lit, he recognized the hallway of the Hotel Mirage by the style of the decor.An older woman is embraced by a handsome man, the woman is well-dressed and covered in precious jewels, and the man is no older than 20, kissing him passionately.The slideshow continued, showing a series of photographs documenting their flirting and indecent behavior from the hallway to the final guest room.

Levi returned to the original folder and repeated the operation for the second subfolder.This time, the photo was taken in one of Mirage's lounges.A man in a glamorous Balenciaga suit discreetly accepts a small Ziploc bag of pills from another man while handing him a wad of folded bills.

"I'm going," Levi said, and then yelled, "Martyn!"

She came out of the bedroom with a locket under one arm. "Look what I found under Walsh's bed—wow! What's that?"

"The front desk may not make a lot of money, but extortion is definitely lucrative." He showed her the first folder. "Walsh's been spying on Mirage's wealthy guests and extorting money from their misconduct; this is his cash cow to squander. Some folders here were built two years ago. I bet we'll check him Suspicious deposit records can be found at the corresponding point in time when the financial situation of the bank is in question.”

She opened her eyes wide and said, "He knows who killed Hensley."

"Also trying to use intelligence to raise prices. We want to go together."

"How heartless do you have to be to blackmail a person who has already proved that he is not afraid of killing people? Stupid." Martin looked at Walsh's body, wrinkled his face, and made a sign of the cross. "Ah, no offense meant."

"Walsh was standing at his desk when he was killed, and this folder was open on the computer. There were no signs of forced entry or fighting; he invited the killer in."

"Yes, show the murderer what evidence he has," she said. "I'd do the same thing—ask to see it with my own eyes, so I can get rid of the evidence as soon as Walsh dies."

"Even if the folders we want are deleted—the possibility is quite high—Carmen can probably restore them." Levi pointed to the box Martin brought, and asked, "What did you take?"

"I don't know. Let's see."

With a snap of the bolt cutters, the locked box opened.There is only one thing inside - a mobile hard drive.

Levi and Martin met each other's eyes and let out a triumphant hum at the same time. "Let's put our best foot forward and hope Walsh has the heart to back up the files before putting the killer in the house," he said.