All good things must come to an end. Half a month later, both the door to the Most Wanted Squad base dormitory and Jack's Firebird were repaired, and the remaining members of the former 110th Special Investigations Unit reunited.
A large barbecue grill was set up on the lawn in front of the small building, and everyone involved in the case, including Stella from the CSI New York office and Reagan's entire family, was present.
Of course, some who had been quietly contributing behind the scenes, such as David Rossi, Dana Moger, the bald Frank Moses, and Jack's two sisters, were not present.
The bald Frank Moses was nowhere to be found, and the two sisters were tied up in California. Rossi had come to New York a few days in advance and, along with Dana Moger, presented Jack with an Audi R8 modified with hidden police lights.
This 99% new supercar was a token of gratitude from the International Division for Jack's gift of an international terrorist.
I heard that this case has alarmed both the President and the Secretary of State. The Americans are currently trying to win over the North Korean born in the 1980s, and the defected terrorist has become their perfect bargaining chip.
The lawsuit against Senator Lavoie is expected to drag on for a long time, but that's beside the point. If nothing unexpected happens, Jack will soon have a Senator's lover.
Of course, strictly speaking, it's Senator Zoe Anderson who has a mistress who works in the FBI.
With so many guests today, Jack's food is all about generous portions. He uses a large, slow-cooking oven, common in Texas, and fills it with whole sirloins of beef and pork ribs marinated for a day.
The slow-cooking method is laborious, and Jack, inspired by Peking duck, uses aromatic applewood as fuel. He also sprays the meat with vinegar and grape juice periodically to prevent moisture loss.
After seven or eight hours in the oven at around 120 degrees Celsius, the brisket oozes juices with a gentle press, while the pork ribs are so tender they fall off the bone, easily peeling off the bones.
Americans love a variety of sauces for their barbecue, and Jack prepared some, but his marinating techniques are quite authentic, and the plain flavor alone is enough to satisfy most palates.
Concerned that his guests might find meat alone unpalatable, Jack also toasted bread, shredded the brisket, and mixed it with onions and bell peppers to create a burger.
The most popular dish turned out to be the Chinese-Western fusion roujiamo. The thousand-thread pastry, originating from Tongguan, Shaanxi, is crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside, creating a surprising and delightful combination with the juicy brisket.
After seeing off most of the guests, the special investigator received his own surprise. Negley hung up the phone and looked from Reacher to Jack in surprise.
"My dad just called me. What did you do?"
"If I had asked Jack to transfer the money directly to your account, you'd have scoffed. But the 24-hour medical care at the Chicago Family Health Center is a different story.
This way, you can have some time for yourself, and no longer have to spend all your free time caring for your father."
Reacher toyed with the beer bottle in his hand, as if it were just a trivial matter.
"Reacher said you don't accept gifts easily, but your father will never spend all that money no matter how much he spends. It will eventually be left to you as an inheritance."
Jack wiped his hair with a towel and took the beer bottle from Negley with a smile.
Cooking food, like exercising, is a very enjoyable activity. The only downside is that it easily smells of cooking fumes, so you need to shower afterward and preferably light a cigarette.
"What about me? The world's biggest Santa Claus, what did you put under my Christmas tree this year?" O'Donnell looked expectant.
"You don't have a penny." Reacher smiled and clinked the bottle with him.
Jack took out an envelope and handed it to him, "At the credit union on the corner of your street, Reacher set up an education fund account for your two children. The money is enough to cover the children's private school expenses and future college expenses.
Even if you and your wife have enough children to form a basketball team, and each child wants to be a doctor, there will be no problem."
"The incident with Congressman Lavoie has fully demonstrated how dangerous it is to deal with those guys. In the future, you should no longer need to do those things of blackmailing politicians. Take the cases you want to take."
The big guy's words made O'Donnell laugh and shook his head, "I really don't know what to say."
Reacher then looked at Dixon, "Speaking of work, you can resign. Jack's friend registered a consulting company for you. I don't know the details, but the IRS will entrust you with some long-term tasks.
That company is well-funded. I know you have a lot of ideas and are so smart you're only suited to working for yourself. You can unleash your creativity and do whatever you want."
Dixon's eyes widened in surprise. "Uh, wow!" the woman uttered for a long moment, unable to utter a single word. It took a long time for her to
finally manage a thank you. Everyone turned to the big guy, but after a long wait, no further information emerged. Finally, O'Donnell couldn't help but ask curiously, "What about you? Big guy, what did you get yourself?"
Reacher frowned, pondering for a moment before hesitantly saying, "A new toothbrush? Jack said I always stuff my toothbrush in my pocket, which is unhygienic, and suggested I get one with a protective case."
Everyone chuckled, thinking he was joking, until a half-smile crossed Jack's face. Dixon was stunned. "Oh my God, he's serious."
"I was originally planning to sign a share transfer agreement with the big guy, using the annual dividends to supplement his travel expenses, but he refused."
"Jack put a box of cigars on the table," After deducting the cost of the door upstairs and the repair of my car, I bought an extra box of cigars, and the remaining money was donated to a non-profit organization that provides psychological counseling for veterans."
As he spoke, the special investigators present, including the ladies, were each given a cigar.
The ladies just held it in their hands as a souvenir, and the men all lit their cigars. O'Donnell slowly blew out a smoke ring, shook his head and sighed.
"You know, Reacher, when I heard that you were wandering around with only what could fit in your pockets, I thought you were crazy, like those guys with post-traumatic stress syndrome.
But now I have to admit that perhaps you are the one who lives the most thoroughly among us. "
Reacher smiled but didn't answer. No one spoke anymore. Everyone knew that it was almost time for them to officially say goodbye.
As if feeling that the atmosphere was suddenly made a little weird by this guy O'Donnell, Dixon rolled his eyes, hugged the big guy's arm and smiled sweetly.
"Maybe you have other things to do, Reacher, come home with me, I really want you to meet my parents."
Under the gossiping eyes of everyone, the big guy's muscles tensed visibly, and even his breathing stopped.
Seeing that the rough guy's face was getting redder and redder, and he had no idea how to respond, Dixon chuckled and hugged his neck, "Damn it, you can't even see that this is a joke, why do I feel guilty? "
Oh, I thought I didn't know." Reacher suddenly became incoherent, and it took him a long time to react from the "shock" just now, and he hugged Dixon with his back hand.
Jack took out an envelope like a magic trick and put it between their lips that were about to touch each other, "Before you go upstairs and collapse the bed, here is a small gift for Reacher."
Dixon took the envelope with a red face, and after Reacher nodded, he opened the envelope and took out a card from it and asked in confusion, "What is this?" "
A Greyhound Bus Travel Pass, an annual ticket worth $1,980. Within one year, Reacher can use this small card to take Greyhound buses anywhere in the country.
This way I don't have to worry about someone just jumping on a freight train and getting into an accident because the train derailed." Jack explained with a smile.
"It sounds like a freedom worth $1,980." Reacher happily took the small card and put it in his pocket, then got up from the sofa with Dixon in his arms.
"Maybe you can consider staying here for dinner. I saw that Jack has prepared a lot of ingredients.
Everyone raised their middle fingers at him, and Negley even laughed, "I'll wait for you for 10 minutes at most. Dixon and I have an appointment to go to the airport together."
"10 minutes is really not enough. I'm not O'Donnell." Reacher's last words before going upstairs attracted two middle fingers from O'Donnell.
(End of this chapter)