"The murderer is hiding in Sam's Supermarket!" Lawrence declared, his voice filled with strong confidence.
Dean's eyes flashed with contemplation. Finally, he asked with some hesitation, "Are you suspecting the security guards at Sam's Supermarket?"
The only common link found thus far between the two victims was that they were both customers of Sam's Supermarket. And the identity best suited for observing prey wasn't that of a customer browsing the store, but rather a security guard who had a legitimate reason to watch, and even make contact with, customers. This was also why Dean and Lawrence, after being disarmed by the security personnel, didn't reveal their identities and were compliantly taken away by the police. Those security guards were also suspects. That's why Old Hunter had felt so helpless about the two of them being caught; they might have already startled the snake in the grass.
"Yes!" Lawrence exhaled a large breath reeking of alcohol, confirming Dean's suspicion. However, the reason he provided was completely different from what Dean had imagined.
"Although the murderer has only committed crimes twice, his methods the second time were much more cruel than the first. This obvious change indicates that the murderer has grown more confident—confident that the police won't catch him."
"Why would he have this confidence?"
"Because he's familiar with police investigation logic. He might even have some channel to access our investigative progress on this case. Furthermore, the fact that virtually no clues were left at the crime scene also shows he has strong anti-surveillance awareness."
"He clearly knows that we'll have a hard time finding him, and even if we do, it will be difficult to convict him!"
Lawrence paused, then looked at Dean. "Dean, what kind of person do you think fits this profile?"
"Either someone who's committed crimes before, done time, and knows where the pitfalls are, or... the person has been a cop, or has a relative who's a cop and is clear on how police conduct their investigations."
The one who understands you best is definitely your adversary.
It's the same with crime.
Lawrence's words had inspired Dean. Still, there was something he couldn't quite grasp.
"Lawrence, your analysis is on point, but what does that have to do with your conclusion that the murderer is a security guard at Sam's Supermarket?"
"Intuition." Lawrence's gaze was somewhat unfocused, but his mind was still clear. "I was just deducing the criminal's profile based on his actions. As for pinpointing him as a Sam's Supermarket security guard, that's based on the information we've analyzed so far. Dean, you need to understand that many security personnel have either a military background or have received training similar to a police academy. They are professionals too, and this group most closely fits my deductions about the murderer's profile."
Currently, all information pointed to Sam's Supermarket. This, combined with the psychological profiling of the criminal, helped sketch out the murderer's identity. These two lines of reasoning converged into what Lawrence called his intuition.
It sounded dubious.
But Dean knew it actually made a lot of sense.
Lawrence's deductions, together with the current clues, could intersect at the distinctive traits of the suspect. Dean was working from logic, based on the current clues. Lawrence, however, was employing Psychological Deduction concerning the criminal's mindset. This opened a new door in Dean's approach to solving the case.
"Lawrence, if your reasoning is correct, we just need to discreetly gather those security guards' details and schedules, and we'll easily identify suspects with the opportunity to commit the crimes."
"Additionally, the supermarket has surveillance cameras. We can find out when the victims last visited the supermarket and watch that footage. Maybe we can directly spot the security guard who made contact with them..."
Dean was further explaining when he looked up and realized Lawrence had, at some point, slumped over the bar, fast asleep.
"Amateur!" Dean gave him the middle finger, then decided to call home to say he would be staying out for the night. After that, he found a hotel and got a room for himself and Lawrence.
Thanks to the liberal atmosphere here, Dean sensed an ambiguous, sympathetic gaze from the front desk clerk while checking in. The beautiful receptionist, noting Dean's handsome face, even gave him a thoughtful reminder before he left that there was a "love umbrella" on the bedside table...
Dean: "..."
What a kind-hearted girl.
Fuck!
「The next day.」
Lawrence's pig-like screams woke the soundly sleeping Dean.
"FK, Dean, what did you do to me!" Lawrence, his fleshy face a mask of disbelief, looked aggrieved yet too embarrassed to speak, glaring at Dean with a pair of hairy hands covering his own butt.
"You think I stabbed you?" Dean was starting to question reality. Even if I were gay, I wouldn't go for you. Can't you take a look in the mirror?
"I can't believe it either, but can you explain why my backside hurts so much!" Lawrence exclaimed, his face full of regret, feeling like he had misplaced his trust.
Dean scratched his head. "Lawrence, could it be your hemorrhoids are acting up? Honestly, if I had stabbed you, you'd probably be in the hospital by now."
After saying that, Dean couldn't be bothered with the hysterical Lawrence and got up to take a shower.
Lawrence wanted to argue more but, upon glancing at Dean as he walked and catching sight of the impressive outline moving beneath his pajamas, he silently closed his mouth.
Alright then.
Dean made sense…
The two of them tidied themselves up, then hailed a cab to the Sam's Supermarket parking lot to retrieve their car and drive it back to the detective bureau.
As soon as they entered the office, young Harry excitedly ran over. "Whoa, guys! I heard about your heroic deeds yesterday! Can I get an interview?"
"Damn, does news travel that fast!" Lawrence cursed and quickly dodged to his own desk. He was a bit thin-skinned.
Dean was different. As long as one has no shame, they won't feel embarrassed.
He looked at Harry curiously. "You're well-informed."
"Of course! I'm Harry, the human TMZ of the Los Angeles Police Department," Harry said, full of pride. TMZ is an American entertainment news website known for breaking many sensational stories and is quite famous.
"Are you sure?"
"Dean, you have to know, the chicks I know are scattered throughout all the police stations in Los Angeles. There's no news Harry can't get his hands on!" Harry wagged his finger, his expression a mix of world-weariness and an air of seeking a worthy opponent.
Dean began to see Harry in a new light. Having a well-informed colleague was undoubtedly a good thing, and right now, there was something Harry could help with.
Dean feigned skepticism. "Harry, that's a bit of a stretch. I don't believe you unless you can get us all the security information from that Sam's Supermarket where we took a fall."
"Security information?" Harry's interest was piqued. "Are you guys looking to get revenge on those two? The captain won't let you mess around before the case is cracked, you know."
Dean shook his head. "We're not that petty. The security guards are also suspects; we're just working hard to crack the case."
Harry was still half-doubting. "Alright, I'll help. But Lawrence is definitely petty; you know, he comes to the station so early every day just for the free coffee."
Dean glanced at Lawrence's workstation. The man was already there, sipping a cup of coffee...
This made Dean wonder if Lawrence had gotten drunk so easily the day before on purpose, especially since Dean had ended up paying for both the drinks and the hotel room!
Yesterday's fishing plan with Daisy had yielded no results. Furthermore, because of their reckless actions the day before, Lawrence and Dean were severely criticized by Captain Monet in front of everyone at the morning meeting.
They hadn't gotten their hands on the security guard information yet. So, Lawrence simply took Dean to the residences of the previous two victims to start another investigation, which also served as a teaching opportunity for Dean. Dean, having gained considerable expertise from his past life's difficult experiences, wasn't new to cleaning up crime scenes and was undoubtedly gifted in this area.
After some investigation, they actually discovered new clues!