Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

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There haven't been any major cases these past few days, so Luke basically goes home after work, enjoying the comfort and ease brought by the luxury home.

When Luke got home, he took off his clothes and jumped into the pool in the backyard to swim.

It's one of the best exercises; the water resistance can reduce bodily injuries, of course, provided that the pool water is clean enough.

After the workout, Luke took a shower. Feeling a bit hungry, he ordered some takeout: fried chicken, fries, shrimp balls, fish, and other snacks.

At nine in the evening, Luke placed the snacks on the coffee table, grabbed a few bottles of chilled beer, and sat in the living room eating and watching TV. The huge TV screen and high-end sound system enhanced the viewing atmosphere.

Biting into crispy fried chicken and then drinking chilled beer is definitely the best combination to excite the taste buds.

At ten o'clock, just as Luke's late-night snack was ending, and he was about to bathe and sleep, there came an unusual sound from outside.

"Buzz buzz..."

He put down the beer bottle and walked into the yard, seeing a plane flying overhead.

The plane wasn't big, neither a helicopter nor a passenger plane, somewhat like a...

firefighting plane.

Luke looked in the direction the plane was flying and noticed a faint glow in the distance, illuminating half of the sky.

If you can see the fire from such a distance, it must be a big fire.

Luke returned to the living room, switched to the news channel, and listened to the news while tidying up the takeout.

He guessed right; a fire had broken out in Mogaro Forest Park, with the fire department, police, and ambulances already on the scene.

After tidying up the takeout trash and washing up, Luke went to bed. Even if he couldn't sleep, he had to lie down.

Since a major fire had occurred, there were likely to be casualties, and the detective bureau might also participate in the investigation.

In Luke's experience, the best thing to do now was to rejuvenate himself.

Sure enough, around midnight, Luke's phone rang.

"Hello, this is Luke."

"This is Reid.

A big fire broke out in Mogaro Forest Park. Did you know?"

"Yes, I saw it on the news."

"I'm on the scene as well. Firefighters found a corpse in the park, and our Robbery and Murder Department is now in charge of investigating this fire."

"Okay, I'll bring people over immediately." Luke was already mentally prepared, washed his face, notified his team members, and then rushed to the fire scene.

Mogaro Forest Park was still ablaze, and the nearby sides of the road were chaotic with a variety of vehicles, making it impossible for Luke's car to get any closer.

After getting out of the car, Luke walked some more distance before finding the police command center.

"Director."

Reid nodded and pointed to a middle-aged man beside him, "This is the Fire Department Chief, Mario Crouch."

Luke looked at the man, "Hello, Chief Crouch.

I'm Luke Lee from the Robbery and Murder Department."

Mario Crouch looked serious and shook hands with Luke, "Reid, I'll go check up front."

"Be careful."

Mario Crouch hurried away.

Luke asked, "Is the situation very serious?"

"Yes, the fire is still spreading, and some firefighters have been injured. Mario Crouch is under a lot of pressure."

"Haven't they already deployed firefighting planes?"

"The fire started in a valley, which is relatively hidden and not easy to detect.

Around nine last night, someone noticed the fire and called 911. By the time the fire department arrived, the fire had already spread extensively, and it was difficult to extinguish in a short time."

"Is it arson, or an accident?"

"The primary focus initially is on firefighting and maintaining order; the cause of the fire has not been investigated yet." Reid looked at Luke and patted his shoulder, "Come on, I'll take you to see the body."

At this time, there were quite a few onlookers, and some officers were needed to maintain order.

Luke walked forward several dozen meters and saw the forensic doctor in protective clothing, beside a charred corpse, with a faint stench in the air.

Luke asked the forensic doctor Hila, "Can you identify the deceased?"

"No objects have been found yet to prove the identity of the deceased." Hila looked up at the two of them, "Sorry, gentlemen, I need to focus on this corpse and can't answer your questions right now.

Of course, you can watch from the side, as long as you don't talk."

Luke and Reid exchanged a glance and wisely chose to leave.

After chatting for a while, Luke saw that a squad of people had arrived, so he bid farewell to Reid and gathered his team for a talk.

"Hey, guys, good morning."

"Morning?" The deputy frowned, smiled wryly, "Yes, it is indeed morning, just a bit too early, not good at all."

Small Black yawned, "Captain, did we come to catch arsonists?"

Luke sighed, "I'm afraid it's not just that. The firefighters found a body on the mountain."

The deputy team asked, "Was it a murder?"

Luke shook his head, "The body is already charred. I can't tell how it died. Let's wait for the forensic doctor's analysis."

Little Black rubbed his nose, "Oh my, no wonder I keep smelling the scent of roasted meat."

Luke scanned the crowd and said, "Although the situation is unclear now, we can't just idle around. Everyone, split up to investigate and gather as many leads as possible related to the fire disaster."

"Yes, sir."

"Guys, hold on." Just as everyone was preparing to split up and investigate, Port called everyone back and took out a case of canned coffee from a nearby car to distribute among them.

The deputy team opened a can and took a sip, "I've never been a fan of canned coffee, but it feels pretty good today." Follow current novels on novel fire.net

Little Black asked curiously, "Why do you have so much coffee in your car?"

Port explained, "I used to work night shifts as a detective in the Southern District, so I got used to keeping some canned coffee in the car."

"Good habit, thanks." Luke raised his cup to gesture, acknowledging that while carrying out tasks late at night, it was inevitable that everyone would feel a bit fatigued, and Port indeed seemed to be the one with the best mental state among them.

Afterward, the group split up to investigate, Port and Little Black teamed up to go into the crowd to search for witnesses.

By the glow of streetlights and the fire, Port vaguely saw a familiar face in the crowd.

It was a white middle-aged man, of average build, slightly skinny. He was looking in the direction of the fire, with a faint cryptic smile on his face.

Port frowned slightly, could it be him?

Port pushed through the crowd, quickly walking toward the man. The man also noticed Port, turned his head, and looked over. The smile on his face froze, then he turned and ran.

"Stop! LAPD!"

Port immediately pursued him.

Little Black was a bit confused, unsure of what was happening, but out of trust in his colleague, he also followed.

The white man ran with outstretched legs, his running posture was odd, and he wasn't very fast.

It didn't take long for Port to catch up with the fleeing man, pinning him to the ground, cuffing him, and reading the Miranda rights.

"Hey, you're hurting me!" The man struggled somewhat reluctantly.

Port pulled him up from the ground and prepared to search him, yet found a tent in his crotch area.

Little Black arrived, chuckling, "Fuck, how many Viagra did you take, you bastard?"

The white man glared at Little Black, "I'm not like you; I don't need that kind of stuff."

Little Black joked, "Port, did you search him yet?"

Port showed a disgusted expression, "I think it's better to wait for later."

Little Black glanced around and didn't see any scantily clad women, "Hey buddy, where's your female companion? Introduce her to me."

The white man spat, "Go to hell, you black bastard."

"No girlfriend, so it's a male companion, haha." Little Black laughed heartily and then asked Port beside him, "How did you know this guy was suspicious?"

"I caught him before; this guy was imprisoned for arson last time, didn't expect he'd be released so soon." Port seemed to recall something and questioned, "You should still be on parole, right?" Port looked at the expressions of the man, becoming more certain, "Right, who is your parole officer?"

"I don't want to talk about that guy, I'm just out for a stroll."

"A stroll?" Port snorted, "Right into a fire disaster scene, you think I'd believe that?"

The white man laughed, "What do you think I'm doing here?"

Port probed, "Did you set the fire at Mogaro Forest Park?"

The white man's expression changed multiple times, swallowed nervously, then said with some excitement, "Yes, I set it."

Little Black dug his ear, as if thinking he heard wrong, "What did you just say?"

"I set the fire at Mogaro Forest Park, I set it!" The white man's voice was loud, instantly drawing attention from the surrounding crowd.

Luke also came over, "Marcus, what happened?"

"Captain, we caught the arsonist!" Little Black pointed at the white man, "This guy, to be exact, Port caught him."

Port said, "Captain, this guy is an arsonist; I caught him before. He should still be on parole."

Luke nodded, scrutinizing the white man, "What's your name?"

The white man looked at Luke, "Volod Russell."

"Why are you here?"

Volod Russell retorted, "Who are you?"

"Captain of the Robbery and Murder Department, Luke Lee."

"I know you." Volod Russell smiled, fearlessly asked back, "Are you investigating this case?"

Luke nodded, "Are you involved in this arson case?"

"Yes." Volod Russell looked at the blazing fire in the distance, as if admiring his masterpiece, smiled, "I set the fire."

Luke stared at the man's face, noticing no sign of deceit, and asked again, "Did you ignite the fire at Mogaro Forest Park?"

"Yes, I did." Volod Russell's tone became more and more firm.

Luke still didn't see any sign of lying and said to Port beside him, "Buddy, congratulations on your contribution!

Had I known, I wouldn't have had the coffee, and I could have gone back to sleep."