Invisible Security Guard
Chapter 160: Active Cooperation

Chapter 160: Chapter 160: Active Cooperation

Chapter 160: Active Cooperation

Actually, Ember Vance had also been busy these days. Having just arrived at the grassroots station, she had to familiarize herself with various types of work, including dealing with neighborhood disputes.

At three in the afternoon, James Hart called her, asking her to make a trip to the Haidian sub-bureau.

James Hart was also called in for assistance, as the case of the six victims wasn’t under the jurisdiction of the Chaoyang sub-bureau. However, Hart was a veteran with extensive experience in handling cases, and when the special case team was formed, the team leader directly chose him.

James Hart didn’t explain the reason on the phone, but Ember Vance knew about his involvement in the special case team. Being an insider, she was of course aware of the major case that had occurred in the capital.

By four fifteen in the afternoon, Ember Vance arrived at Haidian, where James Hart promptly brought her to the office of the special case team.

There were quite a few people in the office, around seven or eight. Upon Ember’s arrival, everyone was very polite; after all, they were colleagues and had interactions with each other.

"Ember, the reason I called you here isn’t anything complicated. It wasn’t appropriate to talk over the phone, but now we can discuss it," said James Hart as he poured tea for Ember Vance before starting to inquire about her knowledge in front of everyone. This was part of the special case team’s routine for solving cases; the other members needed to listen and analyze as well.

"Go ahead," said Ember Vance, nodding.

"That Yusuf Zuck—do you have his phone number? I asked you to call him earlier, but his phone was off. Do you know where he’s living now?" James Hart asked routinely about Yusuf Zuck again.

"Yusuf Zuck? Ah, I don’t know where he lives," Ember Vance hastily shook her head.

"Weren’t you the one following up on him before?" asked another case officer.

Ember Vance gave a bitter smile, "I was following him initially, but then wasn’t his suspicion cleared?" she explained.

"But you have his number, right? Find it, and everyone else take it down," James Hart instructed.

"Okay." Ember Vance did not hesitate, pretending to be unconcerned on the surface, but inside she was extremely nervous!

This was the special case team, established by the general administration with senior leaders in charge. Their authority was immense.

Ember Vance found Yusuf Zuck’s phone number and read it out twice, with the other officers immediately taking notes.

"Is this Yusuf Zuck related to the case you’re working on?" Ember Vance asked, puzzled.

"It’s not clear yet, we’ve just received reports claiming his involvement with the case," James Hart answered without evasion, as they were all insiders, and obviously Ember Vance couldn’t tip anyone off.

"Chief Hart, should we call now?"

"Call, do it now," James Hart nodded to the case officers.

A case officer picked up the landline, activated the speakerphone, and dialed Yusuf Zuck’s number, while Ember Vance was incredibly anxious.

The call connected, and a series of beeps were heard.

After the third ring, the call was answered, while the case officer began recording and tracking the location via cellphone.

"Who’s this?" Yusuf Zuck asked on the phone.

"Hello, may I speak with Yusuf Zuck?" The voice of a female case officer spoke with a sweet tone.

"Speaking, who’s this?" Yusuf Zuck queried in return.

"Take a guess?" the female case officer replied with a playful laugh.

Ember Vance knew that the special case team was buying time because they could only pinpoint the location after the call had lasted a certain duration. Moreover, they couldn’t risk scaring the suspect off. If Yusuf Zuck was indeed the culprit, and they mentioned something like a certain sub-bureau, it could alarm him and prompt an escape. So the first step was to ascertain his location, and then proceed with other actions!

"Guess your sister! If you’ve got something to say, spit it out; if not, I’m hanging up. And if this is some kind of door-to-door service, I don’t need it right now," he retorted.

"What are you talking about? Have you really forgotten me? Can’t you recognize my voice?" the female officer chided playfully.

"Oh, I remember now!" Yusuf Zuck drew out a long tone on the phone, "You’re that little doctor from the psychiatric hospital, right? The one who cured the mentally ill and then went mad yourself? Are you crazy or something?"

"Snap." The call was disconnected at around the thirty-second mark.

"Captain Hart, the techs haven’t pinpointed the location, but it’s somewhere in the Chaoyang area,"

"Captain Hart, should we keep calling?" a female officer asked.

"No need, let’s not spook the quarry, now we’ll look into his communi..."

"I can find him..." Ember Vance suddenly interrupted James Hart before he could finish. She knew she couldn’t hide it any longer. Once the special case team started investigating Yusuf Zuck’s call log, they would also discover the frequent communications between her and Yusuf Zuck over the past few days, and then her cover would be blown.

"Didn’t you say you couldn’t find him?" the woman who made the call earlier frowned and said.

"Why didn’t you ask me where he lives? How would I know where he lives? But I did speak with him several times these past days!"

"Spoken several times?" Hearing Ember Vance’s words, all the officers felt incredulous. They had just been discussing how to investigate Yusuf Zuck, yet now it seemed that Ember Vance was quite familiar with him?

"What’s going on?" James Hart’s expression turned dark as he asked.

Ember Vance twirled her hair, pondered for a moment, and said, "Before I was transferred to the precinct, I had spoken with him a few times. Mainly because I couldn’t stand it, you know. He insulted me, and I wanted to pick a fight with him. I threatened him, but he wouldn’t listen to me."

"After I was transferred to the precinct, I took over a case which involved him again, Bud Trujillo’s case. Bud Trujillo had hurt someone in Fengdu, seeking him out."

"Then I contacted him again to ask what was going on. We spoke several times, and he even called me this morning to ask about passport procedures. Moreover, even though I don’t know where he lives, I do know his general location. It seems his father is hospitalized in the capital!"

"So you’re saying your relationship with him is quite well-acquainted?" the same female officer asked, while the others looked at Ember Vance strangely. James Hart was even more concerned. What was going on with Ember Vance?

"Whether I’m familiar with him or not, what does it have to do with you?" Ember Vance’s stubbornness flared as she confronted the female officer.

The female officer’s mouth curled into a smirk: "It just feels like you’re contradicting yourself. You said earlier you didn’t know where he lived, but now you’re saying you’ve been in frequent contact with him, so I’m confused! I hope you can give us a detailed explanation!"

"Explanation? What do I have to explain to you? Do I need to report to you whom I call? Captain Hart, I’m leaving!" Ember Vance stood up to leave, and James Hart reached out to stop her.

"Don’t hold me back!" Ember Vance became angry, not giving James Hart any face, and stared at him fiercely: "If you think I’m suspect for any reason, just arrest me directly. Otherwise, stop bothering me."

"Ember, why are you losing your temper again? You need to cooperate with us, this case is being taken seriously by the department," James Hart was frustrated as well. When Ember Vance got angry, nobody could handle her.

"I can’t help, sorry Captain Hart. If Yusuf Zuck has broken the law, just arrest him, what’s it got to do with me? Plus, I’ve already explained everything to you, haven’t I? If someone else didn’t understand, that’s your problem with intelligence."

"Taptaptap..." Ember Vance said unapologetically, then strode away in her high heels.

"Captain Hart, this was one of your officers? What kind of attitude is that?" the female officer complained as she watched Ember Vance walk away.

"Let’s start by investigating his call records," James Hart said gravely.

Ember Vance hadn’t even left the Haidian precinct when she called Yusuf Zuck. Now that James Hart and the others knew, she didn’t bother hiding it anymore.

The call was answered after just one ring, and Ember Vance immediately said, "I’m at a special task force in the Haidian precinct. The woman who called you earlier is a member of the task force. They now know about the frequent calls between you and me and that we’re quite familiar. Uh, they’re mainly investigating an arson murder case near the Beijing Film Academy. Someone reported you, claiming you did it, but they don’t have direct evidence. I estimate that by tonight, someone will come looking for you!"

"If someone asks about your relationship with me, just say we have a police-citizen relationship, nothing else," she added.

"Also, does that incident, have anything to do with you?" Ember Vance was rushed and panting heavily.

"Why would everything have something to do with me? I don’t understand, what, I committed arson and murder? When did this happen?" Yusuf Zuck sounded puzzled.

"Phew, that’s good then. Rest assured, if there’s nothing on you, no one can touch you."

"Okay, I understand the situation. I’ll head to the Haidian precinct right now; no need for them to come to me. I’ll cooperate voluntarily. I’ll just say you asked me to come over, how about that?" Yusuf Zuck thought for a moment and said.

"That’s fine, I’ll wait here for you!" Ember Vance paused, hung up the call from Yusuf Zuck, and immediately turned around!

"Taptaptap..." When she walked back into the office in her high heels, everyone turned to look at her!

"You’re looking for Yusuf Zuck, right? I’ve asked him to come over."