In a conference room of the FBI Chicago branch, the projector had just finished broadcasting the murder scene and evidence materials, and the dark room fell into a short silence.
With the lights on, Alfred, the leader of the Chess serial homicide task force, broke the solemn air with a slightly difficult tone: "The clues we have are really pitiful, and they are not even enough for BAU (behavior investigation support). Section) provide sufficient information."
Rob continued: "If the instant attack on the street late at night, like the shot that flew from the prison wall that day, can be said to be no trace, then the murder in the Office of the Narcotics Agency does not have any witnesses and surveillance video. It can be considered incredible."
"There are no eyewitnesses, no video data, no remnants that will reveal our identity, no clues that we can trace. The murderer planned meticulously in advance, and his methods were simple and efficient, and his efficiency was like a killing machine..." The young black man Agent Maine became more and more frustrated as he spoke, and the volume became smaller until he was silent.
"Don't be so dull, guys, you can't say you lose before you fight!" Leo knocked on the table with his knuckles, raising his voice to boost morale, "There is no such thing as a seamless murder in this world. You know, sometimes the key to solving a crime lies in a seemingly insignificant strand of hair. Investigate carefully again, the scene, the exhibits, the murder weapon, the vehicle, the probe, the possible witnesses, even the half in the crevices of the roadside stones. A cigarette butt—in short, everything you can think of and what you don’t think of must be thoroughly checked! Behavioural science analysts, urge them to give a profile, even if it’s just a vague outline."
Alfred cheered up and said as he gathered up the information, "I'll take a few people to the scene again, Maien, you go to the Criminal Evidence Division to see if there are any new discoveries. Leo, I will ask you on the BAU side. NS."
It was not until midnight that Leo and Rob returned to the lakeside villa in sweat. The two were so tired that they didn't even want to eat dinner. After saying goodnight to each other, they took a cold shower and went back to their rooms to rest.
Leo tossed around in bed for more than half an hour, still having trouble sleeping. The imitation portrait of "Finishing" that came from Portland all the way from Portland in his suitcase was stuck on the wall behind the table as before, and he was greeted when he turned over. In the mercury and moonlight spilling out of the window, three beautiful faces with different appearances were quiet and evil, like creepy beasts lurking in the dark forest, staring at him deeply, as if they would speak on paper at any time.
Kill, why every time you are one step faster than us, find and kill those serial murderers? Because you are the same kind of people, can you smell the blood of each other in the vast crowd? Or is it your instinct as a hunter to track prey? Leo asked silently.
The mock portrait on the wall answered in silence.
At this moment, Leo's drowsiness disappeared, and he got up and planned to find a can of beer in the kitchen refrigerator. When I passed by Li Biqing's room, I found a soft white light from under the door. It's one o'clock in the morning, still not asleep? It seems that he often stays up late... Leo frowned in disapproval and tapped the door twice.
The door was not locked. When he opened the door and walked in, the owner of the room didn't seem to expect there were early morning visitors, and turned his head to look at him in amazement.
Opposite the door is an empty wall. The original snow-white lime wall has been occupied by pieces of paper of various shapes, densely printed with text. If you look closely, they are all cut from various newspapers, red and blue. The oily marker left circles and lines on it.
Leo thought this scene was familiar. He immediately reacted: In the Office of the Criminal Division of the FBI, there is also such a wall or a large blackboard, which is filled with all the photos and texts related to the murder.
The Chinese boy was marking the newspaper clippings with an oily pen, and when he saw him coming in, he showed a surprised expression and was a little flustered, "... Leo, are you still asleep?"
"I should ask you that, don't you have to go to class tomorrow?" Leo approached the wall full of newspaper clippings—all media reports on the four serial murders in Chicago. Strong interest. Obviously, this guy's suspense detective addiction has committed again. He thought helplessly, and then warned in a serious tone: "I said, don't interfere with the police, that's not your responsibility. Stay away from my case. , Bi Qing!"
Li Biqing retorted unwillingly: "Why? I didn't interfere with you in solving the case. This is indeed not my responsibility, but it is my interest. You can't deprive it unreasonably! Besides, you didn't agree, I Can you'interrupt'?"
"I agreed, but that was before you were targeted by a serial murderer! Didn't you also promise me that you would not let yourself be in danger? What happened? How about it? Then, kill Lei Zhe in time, and the blood-filled corpse in the rose bush will be you! When you know that the other party is a murderer and go with him dazedly, have you ever thought about the serious consequences of this stupid and aggressive behavior? "The anger gradually appeared in Leo's eyes, like the light jumping on the surface of the dark blue sea, and it seemed to be rippling with a deeper gloom and contradiction. What a worry? In case something goes wrong, do you want me—my sister Jasmine to be heartbroken?"
Li Biqing lowered his head slightly, and after a while, he whispered, "Sorry, I broke my promise again... But, I can't do nothing, Leo, you understand this feeling, when a desire drives you to do something. At this time, your thoughts, your emotions, and even your blood are eagerly urging—do it! Do it! You can’t turn a deaf ear to these sounds, unless you’re heartbroken!"
Leo was silent, and muttered: "I regret agreeing to Jasmine to take care of you. You know how dangerous my job is. If this kind of care comes at the cost of threatening your life, maybe I should let you go."
"You are wrong. Even if I was in danger, it wasn't because of you. Even if I didn't know you, I might meet Lei Zhe, or another guy with a ghost—to be honest, I haven't encountered this kind of thing rarely before. People, they always think of me as a soft persimmon and want to squeeze it all the time. Is it possible that the words'very bullying' are written on my face?" Li Biqing looked up at him, her expression a little confused and soft. He sighed, which made him look more like a glutinous rice dumpling that was cooked and rolled with sugar. It was pure and harmless, suitable for all ages.
Leo's desire to stay away from him collapsed again.
In any case, the consequences of leaving this guy alone may only be more serious. At least for now, he can still protect him as much as possible. If he is left alone on the street, who can he turn to for help in danger
"If my personal interests really trouble you so much, I will choose to leave, find another language school, and finish the university courses. If at that time Dr. Cremont would still write me a letter of recommendation , I will accept his kindness and help, and work with him." Li Biqing said with determination.
His last words hit Leo's weakness.
Do not! I don't want to be a colleague with you at all, even if you are not in the same department! The federal agent rubbed his eyebrows in frustration, sighed and said, "Well, you won. I won't block your interest anymore, as long as it doesn't interfere with my work—remember, I can only'interrupt', not Intervene!"
"No problem!" The Chinese boy cleared his face in a blink of an eye, grabbed his arm and pulled him to the desk.
Leo then discovered that there was a chess set on the table, and wooden black and white chess pieces were standing by at their respective positions.
"I have studied the news in the newspaper for several days, and I have always wanted to talk to you about some ideas, but you are always busy." Li Biqing enthusiastically pressed him on the chair and began to publish an exclusive research report. The first sentence The words made Leo very surprised: "I think the murderer is not alone!"
"... Speak more clearly."
"Four homicides, four chess pieces, I found a pattern, two deaths were shot, the black chess was left at the scene, and the one who died of the throat and neck was left with the white chess— Is there any meaning in this? Why do the killers use two completely different methods of killing? You must know that for serial killers, the method of starting is relatively fixed. This is the same as the patterns and words they deliberately left, which are self-affirming. A sign and a show off of one's own abilities. A person with bare hands may abandon a knife and use a gun because of the pursuit of more powerful strength, and a person who is proficient in the use of firearms, why should it be more difficult to choose a handy weapon without using it? Is your pen as a murder weapon?"
Li Biqing said this in one breath, only to add some fresh air. Seeing Leo staring at the chessboard in front of him, he fell into deep thought. He immediately said: "Looking to the antagonistic nature of chess, I couldn't help but wonder whether the murderer would be two people, one holding black chess and the other holding white chess. , Competing against each other to kill people in the way they are good at, and the target of the target is also the scope and limitation of the two agreed in advance."
The experienced federal agent immediately grasped the key to the problem: "Next, regarding the scope and limitation of the target, I think it has something to do with the remaining chess pieces, right? Three pawns and one knight."
"Yes, this is exactly what I want to continue." Li Biqing picked up these chess pieces from the chessboard one by one, and placed them in front of him. The head of the department office, the chess pieces correspond to the classes they represent. This also proves from another perspective that this is not an ordinary serial murder, but a game between white and black; it is a competition between cold weapons and hot weapons; A killer game where the city is the chessboard and the lives are the chess pieces!"
Leo frowned deeply. Although it is still at the level of speculation or imagination, if Li Biqing’s conclusions are correct, the FBI will undoubtedly encounter the most difficult murderer this time: professional killing knowledge, rich killing experience, and sharp killing methods. , And a heart that completely ignores life and is as cold as ice. The disparity between ordinary murderers who are drinking, drugging or distorted in their childhood is just like wild cats and Bengal tigers. Although they are both cats, they are very different in aggressiveness and danger. The most troublesome thing is that the number has to be multiplied by two.
The Chinese boy standing next to his seat was still eloquently continuing to explain his personal views: "In addition, in the interval between each murder, I think there are many subtle points. The second case occurred in the first case. On the day, the third case occurred on the eighth day after the second case, and three days later, the fourth case—1, 8, and 3. Are these three numbers just accidental, or are there any connections and patterns that we haven’t discovered yet? It’s a pity I have too little first-line information!" He looked at the black-haired federal agent with extremely regretful and eager eyes, leaning over his shoulders with both hands, "I need on-site investigation, autopsy report, evidence analysis, The details in the archives that are not available to the public need to be kept secret, not the speculation and rhetoric news gimmicks on TV newspapers!"
He got too close, almost smelling each other, making Leo feel a sense of violation of his personal space being invaded. He was not used to this feeling, and he could move his chair back, or push the opponent away quietly, but for some reason, he didn't do it. The skin pressed against the palms of his shoulders radiated heat. This burning sensation was like an electric current flowing straight to his chest, making his chest twitching tight, and it seemed that there was a soft and sharp little paw scratching his heart. Scratching lightly like itchy... His throat slid involuntarily a few times, only to feel dry and dry, like clusters of small hungry flames suddenly burning in his throat.
But the boy who was close at hand was still adding fuel to the fire—he grabbed his shoulder and shook it, and said in a tone similar to that of a younger brother begging to buy a baseball glove from his eldest brother: "Leo, you are listening. I mean, you can do it, right? Take me to your office building to read the case-related materials, just like last time in Portland, I swear I won’t cause you trouble, on the contrary, I will Bring you unexpected gains..."
Leo finally couldn't help but move the chair and let his shoulders slide away from his palm. When the two people's body temperature stopped touching, he breathed a sigh of relief and tried to calm the strange feeling in his chest, so that he forgot for a while. reply.
"Leo?" Li Biqing asked suspiciously.
"... Give me a profile and give it to behavioral science analysts. If they can get their approval... Okay, I will take you there." The federal agent replied after thinking twice.
"Aha!" Li Biqing laughed in surprise, "No problem! I'll sort out a copy for you—" Then he hurriedly fetched paper and pen.
"Wait a minute!" Leo grabbed his arm. "It's not now. You have to get enough sleep for eight hours. Tomorrow you have time to write."
His resolute tone made the other person shrug anxiously: "Okay, I'll go to bed. There is no class tomorrow, I will take it to you as soon as I finish writing."
Leo then let go and said, "Go to bed and turn off the lights. Then I will go."
The last trace of luck was broken by him, Li Biqing had to obediently turn off the headlight and climbed onto the bed, got into the bed, leaving only a dim bedside lamp. "Good night, Leo." He hesitated for a moment, and then said, "Did you sleep well recently?"
A touch flashed in his eyes, and Leo asked nonchalantly: "What?"
"You have dark circles. You have been so busy these days." Li Biqing looked at him sympathetically, "Anyway, the body is the most important thing. Get a good night's sleep and don't put too much pressure on yourself."
Leo nodded slightly and reached out to turn off the bedside lamp for him, "Good night, boy."
"It's as if you are much older than me, but I'm your brother-in-law..." He heard the other person muttering under the covers, trying to laugh, but couldn't.
When he turned to leave the room, he heard a soft goodnight behind him: "Sleep well, Leo, have a good dream." His footsteps stagnated, and then he closed the door with his backhand.
Returning to his bedroom, Leo was quite sure that with his current state of mind, he could not fall asleep even if he went to bed with his eyes closed and brewed until dawn. When he is extremely sleepy, he may take a short nap for three to five hours, but he will soon wake up from all kinds of anxiety, tension, and endless nightmares. Two years ago, he thought he had gotten rid of these damn symptoms. But no, the sleep that finally calmed down lasted only more than a year, and now he had to take out the pills that he was determined to quit countless times from the medicine bottle with the label torn off. But even so, the efficacy of the medicine was declining, but he was too busy to visit his private doctor again.
After the case was over, he had to take a few days off to see the doctor. He gave an order to himself, then opened the cabinet above the washstand, shook out two pills from the white medicine bottle and swallowed them directly, hesitating. Pour out two more pills and swallow them in one bite.
After lying on the bed, the drowsy sleepiness began to fall. Before a busy day of work, he will have a full eight hours of dreamless sleep, ordering his tense nerves to get enough rest time, whether it is the murderer currently being hunted, or the obsessive "killing", or The cry of the old soul could no longer sneak into his brain.
After waking up from sleep, he was still a vigorous and resolute FBI agent, a courageous, upright, and elite law enforcement officer who punishes evil.