The Last Killer

The local police took over the scene of the explosion. In the end, Leo declined the offer of a police escort and took a taxi with Daqing.It was past twelve o'clock in the middle of the night, and they decided to spend the night at Leo's parents' apartment on East 86th Street in Manhattan, before going to the FBI branch building the next day.

When entering the door, Sha Qing sighed intentionally or unintentionally: "There is no change from last year, it is really nostalgic."

Leo said: "I think it has changed a lot, especially in my bedroom, there is an extra box of clothes and sundries sent by someone in the mail-why should I wash your used underwear for you?"

"You don't need to wash it, but keep it to taste my breath from time to time?"

"I don't have a fetish!" Leo pulled him over and kissed him deeply like punishment, "If you want to feel it personally, you can do it anytime."

"Get down to business first." Sha Qing smiled and pushed away the endless lovers, dug out the black tea from the refrigerator, and brewed a pot thickly.

In the rich tea fragrance, the two looked through the bloody photos of the scene and the investigation materials about the "ghost in the dark alley" before the killing.

"This guy only picks young women. The dark alley is not the place where the crime happened, but the place where the corpses were dumped. The victims have some things in common: blond hair, plump figure, wearing stilettos. They were tortured and raped for a long time before they died. Some of them were violated a second time after death, their clothes were torn apart, and their corpses were put in weird poses—this, and this.” Sha Qing clicked on some of the photos with the tip of his pen, “These have a ritualistic meaning, and the details may It comes from the murderer's long-term fantasy. For the murderer, the result of killing is not the most important thing, what he enjoys is the pain and fear of the victim."

Leo twisted his eyebrows into a stern ball, and used a marker to draw out a sentence in the document:

Elaborately designed murder scripts, strict selection of victims, ritualized killing process, with a complete set of strategies such as approaching, seducing, confusing, etc., showing control throughout the process - judged as "enjoyable killer" (Holmes & Berg classification system) and "anger-induced killers" (Kyper's taxonomy).

"Your definition of a murderer coincides with that of the BAU profilers. In the report they provided, they also pointed out that the murderer attached great importance to the preparation of the crime and enjoyed the killing process. A toolbox built. He is very vigilant and will erase the evidence on the scene, hide the corpse and abandon the corpse at a long distance. The hunting circle and the living circle will be in two areas far apart. This also makes it more difficult for the police to solve the case.”

Sha Qing nodded and said, "Even in my opinion, it's a very difficult type of killer to catch."

"So, that's it?" Leo spread his hands and raised his eyebrows at him, "You want me to believe that you have as much information on this as BAU's profiler?"

Da Qing laughed: "Don't you think that all the serial killers in the country are already in my trouser pocket?"

"Not all of them, but the 13 you delineated are not just silhouettes on paper, right." Leo said firmly.

Sha Qing shrugged nonchalantly.

"I know what you want to do, but you have to give up. You are not allowed to go back to your old ways and act in private, let alone make a bloody storm all over the city!" Leo glanced at his ankle meaningfully, "Treasure your promise to me .”

Sha Qing tapped the metal positioning ring on the ankle with the bottom of the cup, and rolled his eyes amidst the clang and crisp sound: "No! No! Oh, your tone is like a suspicious control freak husband."

"Then tell me more, those key parts that have been concealed in the information, how close are you to the 'ghost in the dark alley'?" Leo pressed.

Sha Qing threw the empty teacup into his arms, got up and walked towards Leo's bedroom: "I know he can hide the murder kit and death souvenirs, but he can't hide the perverted desire to vent. In order to experience a stronger sense of stimulation , he was part of a search party organized by the local police."

"You mean, we will see the murderer's name in the volunteer list of the police station?" Rio Teng stood up, "Then what are we waiting for?"

"Wait until dawn, the managers of the city police archives office will go to work. Do you think all police officers are like you?" Sha Qing yawned lazily, "Tell me, where is that pair of underwear, under your pillow?"

An empty taxi is parked in front of an Italian restaurant called "rivercafe" in Brooklyn, New York.

Iverson, the taxi driver, entered the room under the surveillance of two bodyguards, took off his hat, and stood respectfully in front of the sofa.

On the luxurious leather sofa, sat a man in his mid-fifties, in a suit and leather shoes. His dark brown hair was well-groomed, and his figure was a bit chubby.But the sharp hooked nose and contemptuous squinted eyes are like a sharp knife, breaking through the illusion of bloated and clumsy, revealing some qualities that belong to the person who is in command.

"Are you sure they lived in that apartment?" Joey Bolano, the second boss of the family, asked with a hoarse voice and a strong Sicilian accent.

"Sure, apartment 86, East 103th Street, Manhattan." Iverson repeated the address again, pinching the hat in his hand nervously, "I squatted on the corner of the street for half an hour, and the lights were always on in the room. They didn't Come out, it shouldn't be a cover."

Joey tapped the front of his shoe with his cane: "I don't need anyone to judge for me!"

"I'm sorry, Second Boss." Iverson immediately bowed and apologized.

Joey waved the tip of his stick, signaling him to back out.

Joaquin, who was standing behind Joey, stepped forward and lit a cigar for him.The 30-year-old Cuban was originally an expert in selling stolen goods, responsible for taking the lead between theft gangs and the Mafia.After more than two years of observation and testing, Joey is quite satisfied with his agility and loyalty. This year, he began to consider absorbing him, and promoted him from a "partner" to a full-fledged member of the family.In fact, apart from a symbolic initiation ceremony, they already regarded him as one of their own.

"Send more people over there, I want no one alive in that house." Joey puffed out the smoke ring, his tone light as if to say, "I want an extra plate of roast chicken on the dinner table tonight."

Joaquin immediately replied, "I'll arrange it right away."

"When is he coming out?" Joey asked again.

Joaquin knew who this "he" was referring to, and replied: "Tomorrow morning, the Federal Court for the Southern District of New York will make a final verdict, and he will be acquitted."

"No wonder there is a 24-hour deadline." Joey sneered, blowing smoke from his nostrils, "Within 24 hours, if I don't solve the murderer, Alessio can claim revenge for his brother after he gets out of prison." Banner, sit firmly at the head of the family."

"However, who is the 'Godfather' does not depend on an old ring. In the era of new capital, some outdated traditions should be abolished." Joaquin said.

Joey nodded in satisfaction, "Follow me, no one dares to provoke you. If Yannello is ignorant of current affairs and wants to follow Alessio wholeheartedly, then the position of 'counselor' in the family has to be considered for whom to leave it to." .”

Joaquin withdrew gratefully.

Joey turned his face to the half-open window, and the Manhattan district across the river was brightly lit in the night.

Under the cover of night, a group of men in black quietly broke open the door lock and invaded a two-story apartment on East 86th Street in Manhattan.They controlled the entrance and exit very skillfully, kicked open the door of the bedroom at the same time, armed with submachine guns and fired wildly at the bed.While the flames were blowing, bullet casings clanged like hailstones on the solid wood floor.

After a burst of shooting, feathers and cotton wool flew in the air in the bedroom.One of the assailants stepped forward and pushed aside the messy sheets with a gun, only to find that there were only two large pillows riddled with holes underneath.

"There's no one in the house," said his accomplice, leaning in from the door.

"Withdraw." The leader ordered decisively.

They quickly left the apartment and fled in their respective cars.Residents who heard gunshots nearby called the police immediately, and a few minutes later, a police car arrived with a loud siren.

Leo was driving a black Chevrolet SUV on his way to the city police station.

The phone vibrated and rang, and Sha Qing, who was sitting in the passenger seat, reached into his jacket pocket.

"SMS from an unknown number, 20, 15, 24." Sha Qing checked the current time, it was 45:[-] in the morning, "The time matches... I guess your parents' apartment is going to be unlucky."

"These sons of bitches!" Leo swears with heartache.

"Your persistence saved our lives, Mr. Workaholic. So the countdown will continue until either party dies."

"Or you take the nearest flight back to Washington DC, which is far away from the mafia's territory, and they can't reach them."

Daqing smiled: "Don't waste your saliva on suggestions that are impossible, detective."

Leo stared ahead blankly and stopped talking.

Soon after they walked into the city police station, after a lot of fussing, waiting, and routine procedures, it was already 6 o'clock in the morning. He went to drink coffee with a bitter face.

Several agents from the New York branch of the FBI also rushed to the police station. Leo handed over the list of volunteers who organized the police search teams three times before and after to Terry, an agent of the Information Services Section, and said to him: "Make a program to include these Everyone on the list, including their height, weight, appearance characteristics; work, address, growth history, scope of leisure activities... Then I will use the exclusion method to screen the suspects."

Terry took the list, called up the relevant electronic files, and started programming like an enclave.An hour later, he said, "That's it, sir, that's 268 in total."

"Very good." Leo turned his head and said to Sha Qing, "Luo Yi, your time."

"My show." Sha Qing hooked the corners of his lips teasingly, "In order to have more time to design murder scripts, he is engaged in a high-degree-of-freedom occupation, with a fixed job and difficult leave.

"His living circle will be far away from the hunting circle, connect the four dumping sites to draw a circle, and exclude those whose residence is within a concentric circle with a radius of 20 kilometers.

"Anger-inspired killers generally commit crimes after full sexual maturity, and those younger than 30 years old are excluded.

"He is very smart, and although he may not fit well with others, he will be excellent in both academics and military service, and low education levels are excluded.

"He is good at showing his charm to seduce and confuse victims, and lower their vigilance. Therefore, he will have a good figure and looks above the standard, and those who are too fat and ugly are excluded.

"Okay, tell me how many people are left on the list?"

Terry replied blankly, "Seven."

He printed the detailed information of these seven people, took it over, and slapped Leo's chest: "Let's go and hunt, Captain America. Don't forget to pay more attention to the basement, attic, garage and other places, then A secret base where 'ghosts of the dark alley' store murder kits, remains of victims and memorabilia of their deaths."

"Aren't you going?" Leo asked.

Sha Qing bent his ten fingers, and made a animal claw shape towards him, which is the favorite selfie of little girls at the moment: "I'm afraid that if I can't hold back, I will make him like a victim—no, it's a little bit different, I will torture him , dismembered, but not raped."

He gestured cutely, but his tone was serious and cold, and there was no joke at all, so that the nearby police officers all cast surprised glances.

Leo wiped his face vigorously with the palm of his hand, and replied in an indescribable voice: "You stay in my fucking sight! Otherwise, I'm going to get a needle in the ankle and sleep in the confinement room for twelve hours. Hour!"

Sha Qing retorted: "Do you think that by locking me in the confinement room of the police station, you can escape Sicily's revenge?"

"No matter what, it's better than you going deep alone to settle with them! How dare you swear that you didn't have such an idea just now?"

"You think I can't deal with them, so I have to entrust my personal safety to the police? Come on, even your FBI safe house is full of loopholes!"

"It's not 'you FBI', it's 'we', 'we'! How many times do I have to say this?"

Terry was sandwiched between two colleagues who were at war with each other, and raised his round arms: "Can you guys leave the police station and quarrel again, it makes me feel a little... ashamed..."

"Shut up!" The two turned their heads and shouted at him at the same time.

Then Leo took out the handcuffs from his trouser pocket, shook him threateningly in front of Sha Qing, and grabbed his wrists to drag him out of the police station.

The FBI teamed up with the city police and dispatched two teams at the same time to work from 8:12 am to [-]:[-] noon. Four of the seven suspects were ruled out, and the remaining three were to be searched.

Leo bought two combos at the roadside fast food joint and returned to the car to eat his beef parsley cheeseburger.Da Qing smeared caper jam on his bacon burger, took a bite critically, "Have you arranged the order of the remaining three?"

Leo nodded.

"According to the general rules of film and television dramas, the real culprit is always the last one, so can we just skip the first two and save some time?" Sha Qing complained.

Leo laughed, swallowed the orange juice in his mouth, and asked: "I have a little doubt. You are only one list away from the 'ghost in the dark alley'. This is not difficult for you. Why is he still alive?"

"I originally planned to kill him before going to Luna Island, but he was lucky. The blond wig and stilettos I bought online were still on the way." Sha Qing explained in a serious manner.

Leo couldn't help shaking his head, then smiled, and said seriously, "Baby, you have to control yourself."

"I know." Sha Qing replied nonchalantly.

"For the chain that binds the beast."

Sha Qing was silent for a moment, then hummed with his nose.

Leo started the SUV, led several police cars, and sped towards the residence of the next suspect on the list.

"I thought you were all capable members of the family." Joey's face was gloomy, and he tapped the ground next to his feet with his cane. "But two consecutive misses made me have to re-evaluate the importance of you to the family."

A group of subordinates standing in front of him lowered their heads, not daring to protest.

"You know, there is a limit to my tolerance. There are still 12 hours. This is his countdown, and it is also yours." Joey said.

One of them couldn't help but boldly asked: "He is now surrounded by a group of cops. We can't find a chance to attack him. Can we give him more time?"

The tip of Joey's stick moved up and touched his chest: "You are delaying time, aren't you? By tomorrow morning, Alessio will be released, and everything will be fine for you."

The other party's face changed, and cold sweat oozes: "My loyalty to you is beyond doubt, boss!"

"Then prove it with actions. I don't care what means you use, I only want his life, remember, 12 hours."

Watching his subordinates walk out of the room, Joey leaned on a cane and stood still with his eyes closed for a while, then picked up the phone receiver on the desk: "Joaquin, come here."

At 2:[-] in the afternoon, after the rain, the sun evaporated all the water stains on the street, and the temperature finally felt a bit of spring warmth after the temperature rose.

Da Qing took off his jacket and sat idly in the car, listening to music while waiting for Leo and the commandos to come out of the suspect's residence.Apart from him, there were four other local police officers staying outside.

On the other side of the street, behind the street trees is a row of old-fashioned buildings, most of which are cheap rental houses and small hotels.

Behind one of the inconspicuous windows on the second floor of a certain building, the crumpled curtains were opened a gap, the camouflage barrel of the Roba QR2-F sniper rifle protruded from it, and the crosshairs in the scope locked the window The head of an Asian youth.

The sniper fine-tuned the crosshair deftly, stopped chewing gum, and put his index finger inside the glove on the trigger.

The bullet was ready to go, but the phone suddenly vibrated silently in his pocket.

The index finger froze unwillingly, away from the trigger.He took out his phone from his pocket and looked down.

After a few seconds, he returned his gaze to the scope, deflected the sight to the right, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

Sha Qing never believed in supernatural powers, but he believed in nerve early warning, which was an extremely keen intuition honed from countless blood and crises on the battlefield, and for him, the battlefield was everywhere.This intuition prompted him to slam open the door of the passenger seat in the drowsy warm afternoon sun, lower his body and roll out.

The ensuing bullet shattered the rear window, sending shards of glass flying everywhere.

The police officers rushed out of the car one after another, using the body of the car as a cover, and aimed their guns at the densely packed windows of the opposite building.

The barrel of the sniper rifle had already retracted from the gap in the curtains, and the sniper neatly disassembled the gun, hid the parts in the cleaning cart, and pushed the cart away from the guest room while whistling.

When the commandos who heard the sound rushed across the road, surrounded the building, and searched floor by floor, the sniper had already fled.

"So the guy who lives here is not a 'ghost in the dark alley'? Then the next one will be next." Shaking the list between his fingers, he shook Leo.

The black-haired detective had a frosty face, and said sternly, "Don't take it seriously, Luo Yi! They even sent snipers. If you reacted a little slower just now, what would have happened to you? It seems that you can no longer Follow us, I will send you back to the branch building first, you just stay in the office and don't go anywhere until I come back."

"If you're worried, then hurry up and catch the 'ghost in the dark alley', and give me some time to solve this shit." Sha Qing said.

Without further ado, Leo stuffed him into another police car.

"Wait!" Sha Qing yelled, walked to the side of the SUV, checked the glass shards scattered in the rear compartment, and looked up at the windows of the building across the road. "If this shot really wanted my life, the guy must have failed his sniper class. He aimed at the rear window of the car..."

"You want to say that the sniper is showing mercy to you? Why, you are handsome?" Leo's anger still persisted.

"I don't need to talk about the obvious things." Sha Qing smiled, "Come on, first catch the mouse in the dark alley, and then I will kick the Italian's ass."

"You are walking a tightrope on a cliff with your own life!" Leo took out his phone and showed him the newly received text message: 8, 21, 30.

"I've always had this style, don't you know?" Sha Qing asked back.