2025-04-02 22:59:20"What the...?" Confused by this sudden explanation, Luke quickly selected the orb again, causing the voice to repeat the description of the Invisibility Eavesdropper device.
"Detective Sullivan, I added two sugars to your coffee, just how you like it!" Bella called out, mistaking his distant expression for simple enjoyment of his drink.
Her voice yanked him back to reality, and the bustling noise of the precinct suddenly felt overwhelming. He needed somewhere quiet to process what was happening. Ignoring Vincent's usual griping and Priscilla's presence, Luke stood up and headed for the door.
As he stepped out, he ran straight into Captain Jake Sheldon. They'd never been particularly close, so Luke ducked his head and tried to slip past him.
To his surprise, Captain Sheldon blocked his path and asked, "Sullivan, weren't you supposed to be taking a personal day? How'd you end up catching our thief instead?" His expression turned serious. "Level with me here. How did you know they'd show up at that location tonight?"
"Captain Sheldon, I'm really not feeling well. Can we discuss this another time?"
Luke tried to step around him, but Sheldon caught his shoulder and said thoughtfully, "Sullivan, whatever your methods, bringing in a suspect is what counts. You're doing this badge proud! Keep it up!"
Luke was shocked by Captain Sheldon's words. In all his time here, he'd never heard the stern, by-the-book captain praise anyone like that.
What had gotten into him?
Captain Sheldon walked into the squad room, where Vincent immediately started up with his complaints again.
Luke didn't have the energy to deal with any of it and headed straight for his temporary quarters.
While they called it quarters, it was really just a cramped office space behind the main precinct building that had been converted into sleeping quarters. The tight space was shared between three officers, without even a private bathroom.
His roommates were fellow patrol officers. The younger one was decent enough, but the older one snored like a freight train – making every night a challenge.
Thankfully, the snorer was working nights, or Luke would never get any sleep.
It was nearly dawn now, around four AM. He made it back to his bunk and didn't even bother cleaning up. He just kicked off his shoes and collapsed onto the bed, ready to pass out.
But after tonight's supernatural experience, sleep wasn't coming easy. Getting executed by lethal injection, crossing into another world, assuming a new identity, discovering this mysterious crime-solving system and earning rewards – it all kept spinning through his mind, keeping him wide awake.
This Crime System especially intrigued him. Luke had a strong feeling that his incredible luck in catching the York Criminal wasn't just coincidence – the System had engineered it somehow.
Maybe when the System activated, it altered reality just enough to put him in the right place at the right time?
After closing the case, the System had rated his completion at seventy percent. That must refer to how well he completed the System's assigned mission. Back at the diner, what if he hadn't chosen to chase the guy in the jacket? Would his completion rate have tanked?
So even if the Crime System set up perfect opportunities, it was still up to him to recognize and act on them to succeed?
The more he thought about it, the more excited Luke got. With this Crime System backing him up, could he solve future cases just as impressively?
"Man... if that's true, I could become the department's top detective. The perks would be insane..." he muttered to himself.
Finally, exhaustion took over and he drifted off...
When Luke woke up, he felt anxious about what the Crime System might have in store for him. He quickly checked on yesterday's reward – the Invisibility Eavesdropper was still there! No doubt about it, this thing was designed for surveillance. Completely undetectable – definitely a valuable tool.
Back at the precinct, the squad room was much quieter than before. Just a few detectives working at their desks. No sign of Vincent Parker or Priscilla.
As he walked in, several detectives gave Luke awkward looks. Fair enough – yesterday had been weird. The usual pushover suddenly goes full action hero and solving the York Case single-handedly. Pretty hard to process.
He ignored the stares and headed straight for his computer.
Luke's desk neighbors were Aaron Dawson and Adam Mercer, who worked on cold cases. These were major unsolved crimes from years back – usually violent robberies or murders that had gone cold but were too significant to close.
While waiting for his computer to boot up, he glanced over curiously at their work – and saw they were looking at photos of bloody crime scenes.
"Jesus, what happened here?" Luke asked, suddenly interested.
"This one?" Aaron Dawson spoke up first. "Uptown murder case from ten years back. Victim was butchered – stabbed over forty times."
"Oh yeah?" His computer was ready, but the case had caught Luke's attention. He picked up one of the photos for a closer look.
As they filled him in on the details, he started analyzing it automatically. "Hey," Luke said thoughtfully, tapping his nose as he looked at them both, then held up one of the photos. "Guys, I might have some thoughts on this, if you're interested-"
He shared his analysis, pointing out things that didn't add up and suggesting new investigative angles. Luke could see the moment it clicked for them.
Before he could even finish, Aaron Dawson and Adam Mercer were rushing out of the squad room, eager to chase down the lead he'd given them.
Luke turned back to his computer, allowing himself a small smile. It felt good to help, even in someone else's case. Now, what did that Crime System have planned for him next?
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Luke Sullivan noticed the kid wearing a dark green cap. The youngster was of average height and skinny, almost like a student. Yet they looked very nervous, as if doing something questionable.'Interesting!' Luke thought. He used to deal with these delinquents often and followed the kid out of curiosity. Despite the youngster being on high alert, constantly checking left and right, Luke was experienced in stealth and avoided all detection.Finally, he followed the kid into a dark corner. There was a tattooed man with dyed blonde hair waiting.The two exchanged no words when they met. The youngster immediately handed the other man some sort of black Game Card, while the blonde pulled out an envelope in exchange.'Huh!?' Luke watched from the sideline. Even an idiot could tell that the two must be making some sort of illegal deal! If he rushed out now, he could definitely catch them red-handed, adding more credit to his criminal catching record.But Luke was used to this sort of activit
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Luke's mind reeled. "Wow... No way?" This had to be the second biggest coincidence in the world. He had just quarreled with the owner of Dalton Fruit Company, and now he'd caught his daughter red-handed in illegal activities. Surely, this couldn't be a mere chance!He couldn't help but attribute this to the Crime System. It had to be involved somehow."Mr. Policeman, sir?" The girl's voice snapped Luke back to reality. She stood obediently before him, too scared to run. "Please, can you let me go? The money... I mean, the stolen fee... I don't want it anymore!"An idea suddenly struck Luke. He hastily returned the envelope to her. "What do you mean you don't want it? Here, take it! It's fine, we're all friends here. No problem at all!""Oh... you..." The girl was shocked. "You know my dad?""Mm... you see," Luke thought quickly, changing tack. "I... I just rented your house! Now that I understand your situation, if it's to save your mother, I can turn a blind edge! Don't worry, carry
The Crime System The Strange Detective
It was 6:30 am in the morning, the sun just peeking over the horizon of New York, most of the city still shrouded in shadows. Luke Sullivan hadn't witnessed it himself, but he had been told about the scene at the 24-hour McDonald's on Banyan Street. Two middle schoolers were there, trying to catch up on their morning recitation while quickly devouring their chicken sandwiches.Suddenly, a woman stumbled in. She wore a brand-name windbreaker, but it was stained with blood. Her hair was a mess, and she was clearly exhausted. She nearly collapsed as she pushed open the heavy glass door, limping towards the students."H...H...Help..." she managed to call out weakly.The middle schoolers looked up and nearly screamed. They scrambled back, dropping their juice in shock. The woman was missing her right hand! At the end of her wrist was only an ugly, blood-soaked bandage.At 8 o'clock that morning, Luke was lounging in the giant bed of his new flat, feeling utterly content. The rent was still
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Luke Sullivan was startled awake by his phone ringing. "Hello? Officer Sullivan, where are you? How come you still haven't arrived? The entire unit's waiting on you!" came Bella's urgent voice."What's up? Go where?" he answered lazily."No way?" Bella sounded surprised. "Didn't you get the text? The Maimed Case! The whole team is at the office for a meeting! Hurry up and come... hurry..."The line shut off, and Luke now saw the phone notification. Due to a sudden case today, everyone was required to be at the police station at exactly 8:00 am for a meeting to analyze the situation. The entire team must be there.Looking at his watch, it was almost 8:30 am.Luke was rather agitated. Yesterday he hadn't gotten any sleep, today he finally got some shut eye, but how come there was another case out of nowhere? With a name like the "Maimed Case," too?At first, he was much too lazy to go. But after thinking about the name "Maimed Case," it sounded somewhat interesting. After much contempl
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Detective Luke Sullivan watched as the team scattered, heading back to their desks. Bella Lane grabbed his arm and pulled him aside, her expression concerned."Luke, what's gotten into you lately? Have you lost your mind? This is the notorious Maimed Case! What were you thinking about making a bet like that?" she demanded."The Maimed Case? What's the big deal?" he said with a shrug.Luke searched his memory and found the relevant information. His mind drifted back to around this time last year. He was just a rookie detective then, but instead of working the case, he'd been assigned to help the forensics department set up their new equipment."What's the big deal?" Bella Lane threw up her hands in frustration. "Several officers lost their badges because of this case. If it was that simple to solve, we wouldn't still be talking about it!"Then it clicked for Luke. Last year, around late May, their city had been rocked by two incidents in what became known as the Maimed Case, causing wi
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Then it hit him. "That's it! Finally! Hahaha..." Luke Sullivan shouted, his mind racing with new insights into the case.He was in an unusually good mood as he squeezed onto the packed city bus with Bella Lane. They'd been assigned to the same unit in Special Crimes, which was seriously short-handed due to the Maimed Case investigation. Though she was technically support staff, Bella Lane seemed thrilled to be partnered with him - her not-so-secret crush. Meanwhile, Luke was practically bouncing off the walls, humming and chattering away, momentarily forgetting about his bet with Vincent Parker.That morning, he'd managed to restart his Crime System. Before even hitting the bathroom, he'd lit up a cigarette, only to start coughing violently on the first drag. That's when he heard it: "Crime System engaged. Welcome. Enhance your destiny."He'd scrambled to write down what he could remember in his pocket notebook, managing only fragments like 'land' and 'water'. Though he couldn't fully
The Crime System The Relentless Pursuit
Luke Sullivan's life had a way of throwing shocks at him. Now he stood staring at Angela, the victim of the purse-snatching case he was working. Seeing her made his heart skip a beat, even though he knew it couldn't be the same person. She wore a pink sundress, her hair pulled back in a neat ponytail. More sophisticated now, but still carrying that same grace that turned heads. Even in distress, she maintained a composure that commanded respect."Stop! Thief!" Angela yelled, her eyes meeting Luke's briefly, doubt flickering across her face.That snapped him into action. "Angela's bag was stolen? Not on my watch!" Luke took off after the thief, but the culprit had a good head start. The crowded downtown streets were packed with cars, bikes, and pedestrians. He needed an edge.Then he saw it. A police horse!"What the—?" Luke muttered.Without thinking twice, he grabbed the reins from the horse and swung himself up. "Hyah!" he urged the horse forward. But the stubborn animal wouldn't b
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Luke understood two things clearly as the pieces fell into place. One, Lila's drugged gun wasn't some off-the-shelf purchase. It had been specially prepared for this crime. She couldn't have been sure that Sophia Young would go into the grave alone, so the gun was her backup plan. Ironically, Luke ended up being the one who got shot in the end.The second realization was more chilling. For years, ever since that piano competition, Lila hadn't thought about severing hands in revenge, even though she felt robbed. It wasn't until last January when she learned her mother had a terminal illness that her resentment boiled over. Losing her mother's presence, already so fragile, shattered her last thread of patience. Devastated, she finally gave in to her thirst for vengeance.Luke sighed deeply and said, "You're so capable, Lila. But why would someone with your skills choose something so stupid for revenge? You could've tracked down those suspects and forced them to tell the truth! Whoever h
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Luke sat up instantly. Lila Davis? Wanting to see him? What could her angle possibly be? Despite himself, he was curious. There were still gaping holes in the story—mysteries left unsolved.After grabbing his coat, Luke made his way to the station.The interrogation room was just as oppressive as he remembered—dim corners soaked in shadow, with a single, merciless bulb spotlighting the prisoner. Luke had been here many times, but never on this side of the table.Lila Davis sat waiting, her arms strapped tightly to the interrogation chair. Her head drooped forward, long tangled hair hiding her face. When she heard Luke’s footsteps, she raised her head slowly.She wasn’t tall. Her face was sharply angled, her skin pale to the point of translucence. She barely looked thirty. If not for the crimes she had committed, she could have passed for an ordinary college student. Yet this woman had done the unthinkable—severing the hands of three victims."I heard you wanted to see me," Luke said,
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Luke Sullivan was still drifting in a semi-conscious haze when the baritone voice of Vincent Parker sliced through the fog like nails on a chalkboard."You’re really something, Luke Sullivan! Such a major thing happened, and I’m the last to know! Do you even consider me your superior anymore?" Vincent’s booming indignation hammered at Luke’s skull. "Sure, I’m not the acting leader, but I’m still your superior! How dare you keep me in the dark? I’m no better than an outsider now! Let me tell you this—if the culprit isn’t caught, none of you will have a peaceful day!"Luke barely mustered the energy to curse Vincent out in his mind. The man’s voice was so obnoxious. Yet, as the anesthetic’s hold on his body slowly ebbed away, a more alarming realization struck him—he couldn’t move. His limbs felt leaden, like he’d been run over by a truck.“Miss Wendy, is Officer Sullivan alright?” a soft, worried voice asked. It was Bella Lane, and her concern was a welcome relief from the shouting.“D
The Close Attack
Hanging up, Luke scrolled through the photos again, searching for anything he might've missed. Then it hit him—the jars under Lila Davis's bed. There was an empty spot, clearly meant for a fourth jar. His gut churned. That jar was for Sophia Young. But where was it now? If it wasn't at her place, had Lila Davis taken it with her?A thought struck him like lightning. Why was Sophia Young even in town? To repair her father's grave. If her flight landed on schedule, she'd likely have gone straight to the graveyard.The graveyard. A secluded spot with no cameras and no witnesses. The perfect place for Lila Davis to strike.Luke's hands tightened around the steering wheel as he sped off. The clock was ticking, and the pieces of this grim puzzle were falling into place. Time to stop a killer.He had never driven a police car before. He didn't even have a driver's license. But Luke Sullivan from his previous life? A different story altogether. Back then, he was a street king. Police stations
The Unknown Location
Luke had barely flipped his phone open when Bella Lane's vivacious voice burst through the line. "Luke, what a coincidence! I was just about to call you!" she chirped. "Lily Xavier's private life is a mess. I just saw her go into a hotel with two guys!""What?" he stammered, thrown off guard. He had meant to tell her about what he'd just uncovered at Lila Davis's house, but this? This was unexpected.Before he could gather his thoughts, she cut him off with a laugh. "I'm joking! She's there for a conference. Relax! Kekeke…"Luke sighed, cutting her short to lay everything on the table about what he'd found. The dismembered hands, the chilling clues—everything. By the time he finished, Bella Lane was silent, her usual spunk replaced with stunned disbelief."L-Luke! What do we do next?" she stammered.Good question. What did they do next? Luke wasn't exactly a seasoned cop, and an earth-shattering case like this wasn't something they taught at the academy. He knew they had to lock down
The Ladder of Vengeance
When Luke finally laid eyes on Lila Davis's detailed plan, it all clicked. The methodology was diabolically brilliant. If "vent" was the keyword for Mary Nelson's case, then for Yara Voss's case, it was undoubtedly "ladder." The revelation hit him like a sledgehammer. Lila Davis had used a retractable ladder to bridge the five-meter gap between the building next to Yara Voss's apartment and her home. This wasn't a spur-of-the-moment crime; it was a masterclass in meticulous planning. Months earlier, Lila Davis had scouted the rooftop of the adjacent building, stockpiling food and water to sustain her. On May 23rd, after severing Mary Nelson's hand at the stadium, she didn't return home. Instead, she disappeared into the bustling morning work crowd and made her way to the neighboring building. From there, she ascended to the rooftop and hid. Her entry was ghostlike. She hadn't come through Yara Voss's building but the adjacent one, days in advance. When law enforcement reviewed s
A Real Mastermind
Luke walked over to the bookshelf, his gut telling him this was where the answers lay. The books were arranged perfectly, categorized into literature, science, technology, and—interesting—medical science. His eyes stopped on a section labeled "Medical." Among the titles were books on anaesthesiology and human anatomy. Luke's heart raced. Could this be a clue to Lila Davis's connection to the Maimed Case? Reaching out for one of the books, he heard the old lady gasp. "Officer, why aren't you wearing gloves?"Luke stood in the dimly lit room, the faint smell of old books and lavender air freshener lingering. The elderly woman, with her worn expression and frail frame, watched him warily from the doorway. "I'm here to investigate, not to take evidence!" he said bluntly, waving off her protests. "Why would I need gloves? Don't worry, your daughter isn't a detective. She won't notice!"Ignoring her muttering objections, Luke grabbed a book from the neatly arranged shelf. The title read
The Secrets Behind Closed Doors
"Do you know where your daughter is?" Luke asked Lila Davis's mother, trying to mask the uneasy feeling creeping up on him. Something about her story didn't sit right. "How can I find her?" The old lady shifted nervously, still preoccupied with her worry over the piano incident. "Officer, I've told you everything you asked. Why do you still need to find her?" "Nothing serious," he lied, flashing his badge for effect. "This is just routine. We're investigating the piano competition. There's a chance we might catch the culprit who hurt your daughter." Her furrowed brow relaxed slightly. "Oh… well, my daughter should be with the performance troupe—the one at the City Cultural Center. She mentioned going to the countryside with them tonight and wouldn't be back for four or five days." Luke felt his chest tighten. Out of town? The timing was too convenient. If Lila Davis was the mastermind behind the so-called Maimed Case, could this be her next move? "Ma'am, let me ask you this.
