North American Detective: I am Proficient in All Kinds of Gun Quick Draws
Chapter 34章 Hospitalization_1

Chapter 34: 34章 Hospitalization_1

"Get down, hands on your head!"

The guards, seeing the sticky mess of red and white at their feet, found their gun hands trembling, their nerves stretched taut.

Dean was speechless.

My shoulder’s this swollen—and they want me to put my hands on my head? Dream on!

"Get down, hands on your head!"

The guards repeated the warning, their voices even more agitated.

Dean hurriedly said, "Guys, relax. I’m Detective Dean from the Robbery and Homicide Division, Squad Four. My gun’s on the ground, and my badge is in my chest pocket."

He was afraid that if he spoke too slowly, these bastards would empty their magazines into him.

Dying like this would really suck.

The lead guard had also noticed Dean’s handgun lying to one side.

He rushed forward, kicked the gun away, and then, ignoring Dean’s swollen shoulder and leg joints, pressed his knees into Dean’s upper body, ensuring Dean couldn’t move.

Only then did the lead guard lower his weapon. He pulled the detective badge from Dean’s chest pocket, walked aside, and pressed the call button on his shoulder radio.

"Calling... Checking detective ID... Alright, thank you."

Once his identity was confirmed, the lead guard tossed the detective badge in front of Dean, his expression grim. "Detective Dean, can you explain why you killed Bill, the forensic medical examiner?"

Dean had shot and killed a forensic medical examiner in the Forensics Department. This meant they had failed in their duty!

Dean shrugged his badly swollen shoulder. "Buddy, there’s surveillance here. Bill attacked me suddenly, tried to kill me. I only fired in self-defense."

This was the Forensics Department’s territory. He was currently immobilized. And Harry hadn’t arrived yet. Dean wasn’t foolish enough to directly claim Bill was the murderer, nor would he reveal the surveillance equipment he’d secretly installed.

The lead guard was about to ask something else when a voice cut in.

"Dean, are you okay?"

Harry’s voice arrived before he did.

The lead guard clearly knew Harry. He walked to the main entrance and blocked Harry, who was trying to get in. "Harry, there’s been a homicide here. You can’t come in until evidence collection is complete!"

"Come on, Haul, we’re all on the same side."

Harry grinned mischievously and, when Haul wasn’t looking, he slipped past him and dashed into Morgue Three.

With Harry now present, the Forensics Department guards were much more polite to Dean.

After they checked the surveillance footage, it was confirmed that Bill had initiated the attack and intended to kill Dean, who had then fired back in self-defense.

Even so, on the way to the hospital, the Forensics Department still assigned two guards to ’escort’ Dean. Captain Monet of Squad Four also received a concerned call from the head of the Forensics Department.

This matter involved a crime by internal personnel. It wouldn’t be over anytime soon.

Meanwhile, Harry took the miniature adhesive recording device Dean had hidden under the iron table and returned alone to Squad Four to prepare it as evidence.

「Hospital.」

Dean stared at the white ceiling, his mind blank.

After the doctor’s examination, it was determined that he had severe contusions and bruising on his hands and feet, with minor surrounding muscle tears. Normally, he wouldn’t expect to be mobile for at least half a month.

Of course, his constitution was good, so his recovery should be a bit quicker.

"I hope these injuries won’t prevent me from attending Mas’s funeral," Dean muttered, shifting uncomfortably.

Even though he’d dealt with Bill, he was still somewhat depressed.

What should have been a sure thing had instead landed him in the hospital, almost beaten to death by Bill... He was in such a pathetic state.

Bill’s sudden burst of violence and the chokehold he used to overpower Dean were only part of the reason.

The key was that while Dean possessed brute strength and quick reflexes, he was unskilled in close-quarters combat, both in his past life and this one. Until his physical attributes gave him an overwhelming advantage, this was a distinct weakness.

As he was lost in thought, KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK. There was a knock on the door from outside.

Captain Monet walked in, followed by Harry, who was carrying a bouquet.

"Buddy, this is the first time I’ve ever brought flowers to a man. You’re really lucky," Harry said, placing the bouquet aside and winking at Dean. "How are the nurses here?"

Dean ignored Harry, whose mind was clearly elsewhere, and looked at Monet. "Captain, what about the Forensics Department?"

"Don’t worry, Dean." Monet spoke gently. "The evidence you provided is very important to our case. As for killing Bill, that’s no longer important. The Forensics Department not only doesn’t dare blame you now, but they also need our help to deal with the Internal Affairs Department."

"The Internal Affairs Department?" Dean asked curiously.

Working within the system, there was still a lot he needed to learn.

"They’re a really annoying department, more annoying than my mother’s nagging," Harry interjected, a hint of resentment in his voice.

It turned out that the Internal Affairs Department was a supervisory body. If there were cases of corrupt cops, bribery, crimes committed by public officials, citizen complaints, and so on, the Internal Affairs Department could intervene, conducting inquiries and investigations. They were like a noose around every department’s neck. They wielded considerable power, making all departments wary and keep their distance.

Bill, a senior forensic medical examiner, was the mastermind behind a series of home invasion murders treated as a game. The Internal Affairs Department would definitely step in to investigate.

The serial home invasion murders had already garnered significant attention. Now, with the municipal government elections approaching, it was hard to say if those council members, for the sake of their approval ratings, would make the head of the Forensics Department a scapegoat to appease public opinion.

That was why Monet was being so nice to Dean now. He was a great asset!

"Dean, rest well in the hospital. I trust that by the time you’ve fully recovered, the case will also be closed," Monet said, kindly fluffing Dean’s pillow before he left. His attitude was a world away from their first conversation.

After the two had left, Dean immediately called Mas’s sister, Niel.

Mas’s funeral was in three days. In his current state, he could attend Mas’s funeral, but officiating it would be difficult. It was a situation he couldn’t help.

Niel didn’t blame him. She said a pastor would officiate the funeral and urged him to focus on his recovery, adding that if it was too inconvenient, he could visit Mas’s grave to pay his respects after he got better.

After hanging up Niel’s call, Dean thought for a moment and decided not to call his mother, Sheila, to tell her about his injuries.

When he last visited, he hadn’t mentioned moving back home. His mom, Sheila, knew he’d been busy with a case recently and assumed he was still at his rented place, so she wasn’t suspicious.

After dealing with these trivialities, Dean found himself spacing out from boredom, waiting for good news from Lawrence.

The case was already very clear. Bill was the planner, and the other, unknown, individual, Kaz, was the perpetrator. The two of them had despicably treated brutal murder as a game. Now that he had shot Bill in the head, that threat was eliminated. As long as clues were found at Bill’s house, Kaz probably wouldn’t escape either.

The only thing that unsettled Dean was the conversation between the two. Bill’s codename was Butcher. And his first words to Kaz had been, ’This round of the game is over!’ This was definitely not a good sign!

「The next day, early in the morning.」

Dean was still fast asleep when Lawrence arrived—not with good news, but with a stranger in tow, who woke him.

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