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Chapter 57: Uncomfortable Truths
Bernie kept coming to Theodore, trying to pry for details about the Teddy Santos case.
This was mainly because Councilor Santos had previously been completely to Bernie's liking. Santos had a rough and straightforward personality, a hot temper, and wasn't overly refined or pretentious.
He liked to give bear hugs, swore when he disliked something, and even used colorful slang and Spanish curses. He'd throw punches if things didn't go his way and didn't pull rank, even if he lost a fight.
Bernie had been practically his biggest fan.
As a result, when this same person suddenly changed, starting to use his son's case as political leverage and playing the sympathy card heavily to gain capital, it shattered Bernie's illusions completely.
This gave Bernie the uncomfortable feeling that his idol filter had been destroyed. Looking at Santos on television now, Bernie felt queasy all over; he seemed to see Old Howard in a different skin.
A full week had passed since the Teddy Santos case concluded.
In just seven days, Councilor Santos had gained significant support by presenting himself as both a 'tough guy fighting corruption' and a grieving father seeking justice.
Howard, Carter, Grant, and other councilors had quickly defected, declaring their support for Santos with suspicious speed.
Coupled with his already stable base among oil workers, Councilor Santos was now the overwhelming favorite for the next Mayor.
Unless a major scandal like Councilor Miller's downfall occurred, he would be the next Mayor and would likely serve multiple terms.
Theodore was already accustomed to his partner's intermittent brooding; he acted as if Bernie wasn't there, bent over his desk, writing furiously and recording every detail of the case.
He was generally satisfied with how the Teddy Santos case had unfolded. Now that it was over, looking back from an overall perspective, he had gained many new insights that needed to be preserved.
He had to record these observations carefully.
These were characteristics that fit this era, different from the time period he had known in his previous life.
Only by adapting to these cultural and social characteristics could he truly apply his profiling skills without limitation.
For example, the hunting knife Paul Miller had chosen wasn't just a mockery of the friendship between Little Howard and Teddy; it was also deeply connected to their family backgrounds.
In Texas, a hunting knife was a symbol of cowboy spirit and independence, representing traditional agricultural and pastoral culture.
However, after the rise of oil capital, traditional agricultural and pastoral culture had been severely damaged and had gradually become a dependency and plaything for the wealthy elite.
After a brief investigation into the three families, it became clear that the Howard and Santos families were old-fashioned; both were particularly conservative in everything from education to their business practices.
Miller, however, had disdained tradition entirely, and his methods were completely divorced from any conservative values.
If Theodore had understood the cultural significance of the hunting knife in Texas beforehand, his initial profile would have been far more accurate.
Time entered August, and Felton felt like it was trapped inside a steamer, humid and stifling, terribly uncomfortable for everyone.
Criminals also seemed to have no motivation to commit crimes in such oppressive weather.
The precinct didn't receive a single murder case for an entire month, an unusual dry spell.
The humid and hot weather had also affected the detectives in the Homicide Team. Everyone was slumped over their desks, listlessly flipping through old cold cases with no enthusiasm.
Inside the office, besides the monotonous whirring sound of electric fan blades, there was no other sound to be heard.
Not even the news reporting that Jack Kennedy was coming to Texas to campaign could stir up any desire for conversation among this group of normally talkative men.
Bernie was no longer dwelling on Santos; he had completely let it go. He was now slumped over his desk like a defeated dog, his mind and eyes focused solely on cursing the inadequacy of the electric fan.
Santos's gratitude hadn't been merely empty words.
He frequently mentioned his appreciation for Theodore and the other two detectives in public appearances, and now their names were truly known throughout the city.
This quickly brought tangible benefits to Theodore's career.
The Senior Police Supervisor from headquarters came to talk to them again, highly praising their performance in 'ignoring the pressure of the powerful and upholding justice.'
The praise was just an appetizer; this conversation was different from the superficial one previously.
This meeting took place with both Wenner and Chief Weideke present as observers.
The Senior Police Supervisor conducted a detailed examination of their duty records, complaint records, violation records, and many other official documents.
He even brought in Theodore's previous partners for extensive questioning.
This investigation was conducted very meticulously and lasted for a full week of intensive scrutiny.
The Senior Police Supervisor brought two specialists to question Theodore and Bernie separately.
Their questions were straightforward and uncomfortable:
"Have you ever accepted bribes?"
"Have you ever participated in illegal gambling?"
"Have you ever used prohibited substances?"
"Have you ever visited Rose Street?"
"Do you have any moral flaws we should know about?"
"Have you violated regulations while on duty?"
And so on, and so forth.
They would carefully observe each interviewee's reactions while asking these probing questions and meticulously record every response.
Theodore was fascinated by this process; it was somewhat like early micro-expression observation techniques.
However, their observation of micro-expressions was only used as a minor component of their auxiliary judgment system.
They relied more heavily on lie detectors and obtained information extensively by questioning past colleagues, superiors, partners, and acquaintances to make their final determinations.
Theodore passed easily enough; his previous self had been a somewhat naive, idealistic young man who could work himself to death on the job, so naturally, there were no negative records to uncover.
Bernie's investigation, however, was spectacular.
Prostitution, gambling, smoking marijuana, theft, robbery, violent assault, and assaulting a police officer.
The most outrageous revelation was that Bernie had even been involved with criminal gangs and had served time in prison.
Halfway through the investigation, the Senior Police Supervisor stopped and asked a soul-searching question: "How exactly did Bernie get recruited into the police force?"
Theodore asked his soul-searching question: "Are you absolutely sure this is you?"
Theodore had seen prodigal sons return to the straight and narrow, but he had never seen one return so wholly and thoroughly. He seriously wondered if this was even the same person.
Bernie was highly annoyed and embarrassed by this investigation. He felt deeply ashamed of his past and was very reluctant to discuss any of it.
Theodore asked him in genuine confusion how he had even managed to join the FOP.
The FOP also conducted background checks, which were often more detailed than the official government ones.
Bernie explained that the FOP guarantor was the one responsible for the review process. Due to this responsibility, FOP members were always extremely cautious when assuming the role of guarantor for someone new.
Theodore fell silent immediately, realizing the implications.
His own guarantors had been Wenner and Bernie.
What Chief Weideke and Wenner had told the Senior Police Supervisor remained unknown to them, just as Bernie consistently refused to tell Theodore how he had managed to turn his entire life around so dramatically.
In any case, the review concluded after a week, and both of them passed with flying colors.
The Senior Police Supervisor took all of their records with him; everything would be professionally rearranged.
The inappropriate, flawed, and potentially controversial parts would be quietly removed, and both would henceforth be spotless in their official files.
The weekend after the investigation ended, Theodore visited Bernie's home.
During their conversation about the stressful week, he learned that in just two days of being home during the investigation, Bernie had managed the impressive feat of making his youngest daughter cry, accidentally injuring Little Sullivan while roughhousing, somehow crippling his pet dog's leg, breaking his wife's treasured pearl necklace, and shattering a window with a poorly thrown baseball.
This domestic chaos caused Little Sullivan to start saying plaintively.
"Daddy, Daddy, hurry up and go to work!"
And
"Daddy, you're going to be late, hurry up and go to work!" bright and early on the third morning.
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