Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

Early morning.

Sunlight spilled into Daisy's bedroom.

Luke faintly heard some noise and slowly opened his eyes, reaching to his left, only to find it empty.

He picked up his phone and glanced at it, it was almost 8 A.M.

Luke left the bedroom and saw Daisy busy in the kitchen.

"Good morning, breakfast will be ready soon."

"Okay, I'm looking forward to it." Luke blew a kiss and went to freshen up.

The number of times Daisy had made breakfast during their time together wasn't many.

This wasn't to say Daisy was lazy, but since they'd been together, they usually exercised at night, making it hard to get up in time to make breakfast.

After freshening up, Daisy had breakfast ready.

Milk and sandwiches.

A healthy combination, though the taste was average.

After eating, they both headed to work, neither bringing up the events of the previous day.

Otherwise, what?

To pursue someone to take things a step further?

Forget it, this is Los Angeles.

If you can't be a girlfriend, be a FWB (Friend with Benefits).

Take it easy.

That scoundrel Little Black has no idea how envious he is of me.

"Buzz…"

Luke's phone rang, and while waiting for the traffic lights, he glanced at the screen.

Susan had sent a message and a location to the squad chat group.

'New case, gather at the crime scene.'

"Received." People responded one after another.

Following that, Little Black also sent a location, "Which boss is en route to pick up this little brother?"

Luke checked Little Black's location, it wasn't far from where he was and was on the way, "I'll pick you up."

Before long, Luke arrived at the location and picked up Little Black.

Little Black hopped into the passenger seat with a hehe laugh, "Wow, as expected, vice-captain Luke is the best to me."

"Where's your car?"

"Uh… it's a complicated situation."

Luke retorted, "More complicated than solving a case?"

"Laura and Jaden found a shelter, which was quite a find, and the environment isn't bad, but... it's a bit far from Jaden's school and there's no school bus service."

"So I lent Laura my car for her to temporarily drive Jaden to school."

Luke found it hard to believe, "Did you sleep with Laura?"

"No, Jaden is my little brother, Laura is the mother of my little brother, how could I possibly do such a thing.

Nothing happened between me and Laura.

And it will not happen in the future either."

"I don't even know what to say to you." Luke didn't want Little Black getting in any deeper.

"I just want to help them out. They need that car more than I do, plus I'm planning on buying a new car anyway. Remember what I told you?

Cadillac, my favorite."

"Do as you please, but figure out your own way tomorrow, don't think of getting a ride from me again."

Little Black asked ingratiatingly, "Can I drive the Harley?"

"No."

"Why? You're not using it, are you?"

"You lend your car to others but want to drive mine, don't even think about it."

"It's a tough situation for Laura and her kid, you should be more sympathetic. It's not easy being a single-parent child."

"That won't work on me, you want to be the good guy, not me.

And a big part of why Laura ended up where she is now is her own doing. Without changing herself, help from others is futile.

Instead of supporting her, it'd be better to have her visit the station a few times to retrieve the money she was scammed out of. That'd be much more helpful."

Little Black nodded, "You do have a point."

"I am not like some people who talk nonsense all the time."

Little Black was silent, "…"

...

They drove north, arriving at a halfway up the hillside. The surrounding environment was beautiful, with lush greenery, birdsong, and floral fragrance, and the air was fresh.

Not far off, a rest area was cordoned off with police tape, and several patrol cars were parked around.

Luke parked the car and, followed by Little Black, got out of the vehicle.

Susan and others had also arrived at the scene.

Luke asked, "Raymond, what happened?"

Raymond was as sparing with his words as ever, "I just got here, the victim is in the car."

Little Black curled his lip, "Would a few more words kill you?"

Luke walked over to examine the car, a black Mercedes. A man was sitting rigidly in the back seat with two bullet holes in his chest, wearing only a pair of socks.

His other clothes were placed on the co-driver's seat.

Little Black mumbled, "A stark naked man dead in a car, this case has an intriguing scent to it."

Luke inspected closely and noticed red marks on the victim's face, which appeared to be not bloodstains but rather lipstick marks.

And judging from the bloodstains inside the car, this should be the primary crime scene.

The word 'car sex' came to Luke's mind.

Such an act required at least two people, so where was the other person?

The murderer?

Or another victim?

The forensic doctor arrived at the scene and began to photograph the body.

Luke began to inspect the clues around the car and found two palm prints on the front face of the car, which indicated that someone had bent over and leaned against the front of the vehicle. This posture was familiar to him.

"Jenny, bring the fingerprint collection device here."

Jenny took out the fingerprint collection device from the trunk of the car, "Did you find something?"

"Compare the fingerprints on the car and identify the owner as soon as possible."

"No problem." Jenny activated the device and began to collect fingerprint data.

This type of fingerprint collection device was a simplified version. Once networked, entering fingerprint information would allow for a comparison with the system database to immediately determine the suspect's identity, which was very convenient.

"Hey, guys, I found something interesting here," rookie Jackson Beach said.

Luke and Little Black walked over.

Little Black asked, "Rookie, what did you find?"

Jackson shrugged, "I thought you only qualified as a rookie during the probation period."

Little Black joked, "It seems you must be misunderstanding the term. Go home and take a look in the mirror; it might give you a better understanding."

Jackson also grinned, "Thanks, but your experience may not necessarily suit me."

"Such a tough-mouthed kid." Little Black wanted to say more but was interrupted by Luke, who asked, "Jackson, what did you find?"

"Deputy Luke, I found a large-sized Coke bottle with its bottom broken," Jackson passed the bottle in his hand to Luke.

Luke looked carefully at the bottle and then picked up the broken pieces of plastic from the ground, "Used to suppress gunfire."

Jackson curiously asked, "A makeshift silencer? Does it really work?"

"It's practically useless for rifles, but it still has some effect on pistols. Better than nothing," Luke laughed, an item often used in film and television for artistic effect.

He examined the Coke bottle carefully but did not detect any clear fingerprints.

Susan's voice rang out, "Luke, the person reporting the incident has arrived, and you are responsible for taking his statement."

"Okay," Luke responded.

Jackson said, "Deputy Luke, can I help you take the statement?"

"Of course, go and bring the person who reported the incident over."

"OK."

Jackson ran off in quick strides, and Little Black commented, "Such an arrogant kid, with none of the humility you'd expect from a newbie, nor does he seem to respect his elders."

Luke reminded again, "If you don't like him, just ignore him, but don't provoke him."

"Why? What's so great about that kid?"

Luke countered, "A rookie who's just finished probation is already in the Robbery and Murder Department, what do you think?"

Though Little Black disliked thinking too hard, it didn't mean he was stupid. With Luke pointing it out, how could he not understand?

Soon after, Jackson returned with a young man in his twenties, dressed in a tank top, shorts, and sneakers, a full set of sportswear.

The young man asked, "Who's in charge here?"

Luke replied, "I am the deputy chief of the Robbery and Murder Department, Luke. How may I address you?"

"Alger Riao. Are you in charge here?"

"If there's something you need, you can talk to me."

"I've already been here for three hours, and I have things to take care of later. I don't want to wait any longer.

I want to ask, when can I leave?

I need an exact time."

"Mr. Riao, as soon as I've taken your statement, you can go," Luke assured.

"Are you sure? I've already given a statement earlier."

"Rest assured, I have the authority in this."

"OK, let's get on with it then. I don't want to wait any longer."

"No problem." Luke nodded and began to take the statement, "You're the one who reported the incident?"

"Right. Even though I knew reporting it might be troublesome, I couldn't just stand by when I saw something like that."

"When did you find the car and the body?"

"At 6:30 AM, I came out for my morning exercise."

"Do you exercise in the morning often?"

"Almost every day."

"Did you touch anything inside the car or the body?"

Alger Riao waved his hand, "No, I didn't want to cause myself any trouble."

"Did you see any suspicious individuals at that time?"

Alger Riao thought for a moment, "I seemed to be the only person around."

"How did you notice something was wrong with the car?"

"The door facing the road was closed, but the window was open. I saw the car parked by the roadside and habitually looked inside. I realized the man inside seemed off.

I thought about asking if he needed help, but then...

I immediately called the police."

Luke pressed on, "You often exercise here and should be quite familiar with the area. Do you recognize the victim?"

"I don't know him, but a lot of strange people often come here."

"What do you mean by 'strange people'?"

Alger Riao gestured around, "The area is surrounded by hills; it's secluded, has a good environment, and won't be disturbed, so many people like to come here to enjoy the scenery and exercise.

Of course, it's different from the kind of exercise I do – the kind that two people do inside a car.

It happens almost every night. Robberies used to be common around here."

Little Black curiously asked, "What kind of robberies?"

Alger Riao replied helplessly, "There's a group that specializes in robbing people who are having sex in their cars. The police should have caught them a long time ago; maybe they did this."

"Do you have any leads on these people?"

"No, I've only heard about them. I only come here in the morning for exercise; I've no interaction with them. Plus, I don't have a girlfriend…" Alger Riao gave a knowing look.

Luke handed Alger Riao a business card, "If you think of any leads, you can call me."

"Can I go now?"

"Of course."

As for the issue of robbing those engaged in car sex, Luke didn't find it surprising; those involved would undoubtedly choose a secluded, discreet area without surveillance cameras.

Such a prime spot for crime.

Not only do those partaking in car sex like it, but so do the criminals.