North American Detective: I am Proficient in All Kinds of Gun Quick Draws
Chapter 118 - 104: Reversal! _2

Chapter 118: Chapter 104: Reversal! _2

Carnif nodded irritably, squatted in the corner of the office, and lit a cigarette.

Dean gave Robert a look, signaling him to watch Carnif, before stepping out of the office. He then took out his cell phone and dialed Duren’s wife’s number.

To facilitate the investigation, they had exchanged numbers the day before.

The call connected, and Duren’s wife sounded nervous. "Detective Dean, is there something else?"

"Is there something you’re hiding from me?"

"No... no," Duren’s wife panicked upon hearing Dean’s stern tone. "Detective Dean, what’s the matter? I really haven’t hidden anything from you."

Dean sensed she probably wasn’t lying, so he became more direct. "Every time you visit Duren, do you always help him get a release?"

"Huh?"

From the other end of the phone came Duren’s wife’s embarrassed exclamation, followed by the sound of a door opening.

She seemed to have moved to another place before whispering, "Yes. I don’t want to, but Duren threatened me. He said if I didn’t, he’d ruin Alruski when he got out. I had no choice but to satisfy him; I was even too scared to divorce him."

"Has he ever asked you to sleep with any of the prison guards, or have you experienced any unusual incidents during your visits to see him?"

Dean’s questions became increasingly outrageous.

But Duren’s wife was the kind of woman who would sacrifice a lot for her son.

She bore the shame and answered, "He mentioned it. He asked me to seduce that Black prison guard for his parole application, but the guard wasn’t fooled; he only wanted money. As for unusual incidents... Oh, right! The last time I went to see Duren, I don’t know if I was too tired, but I dozed off in the office for a bit. When I woke up, my black lace pantyhose were gone. Duren said he planned to keep them to use in prison, so I didn’t ask any more questions."

Black lace pantyhose... Oh, Earl.

Dean sighed internally, saying soothingly, "Alright, I understand. Thank you for your cooperation, ma’am. Don’t worry, your son will be fine. I won’t bother you any longer."

He hung up the phone and recalled the information about Earl.

Earl’s father had died early, and perhaps for this reason, he was often bullied in this remote small town, even once slapped so hard on the ear that he became partially deaf.

Ever since then, Earl’s personality had become even more reclusive.

Then, an even more unfortunate event occurred: Earl’s mother was in a car accident and ended up in a wheelchair.

As an adult, at his mother’s suggestion, Earl pursued a job as a prison guard here.

Because he was a child from the town, coupled with his unfortunate family situation, low salary, and the prison’s lax standards, the prison management hadn’t fussed over Earl’s hearing impairment and had approved his employment.

Dean was not an empathetic person.

But somehow, in his heart, he hoped Earl wasn’t really the culprit; it was hard to imagine how Earl’s mother would get through the rest of her life otherwise.

Dean scoffed at himself. Having a mother who loved him in this lifetime, his somewhat twisted humanity seemed to be leaning towards that of a normal person.

"Dean, we’ve got the results!" Holz walked into the prison guard’s office, interrupting Dean’s reverie.

Outside the office, Holz’s father, Mr. Bob, was closely examining a fresh cast of Carnif’s boot print. When he saw Dean arrive, he put down the cast and said, "This one doesn’t match the print found at the scene at all."

"Why?"

"Habit!" Bob explained. "The wearer’s weight, their typical gait, and the differential wear on the soles—all these lead to subtle differences in footprints."

"There are three inconsistencies at the moment."

"First, the shoe print at the scene is shallower, which means that person weighs at least fifteen kilograms less than Carnif."

"Second, the riding boots Carnif wears look old-fashioned, but the material is different—something many retired mounted police officers do. Old riding boots weren’t breathable and could breed bacteria, even causing feet to rot and stink. So, Carnif’s boots are custom-made and very new, which doesn’t match the pair found at the scene that had clearly been worn for a long time."

"The third point, and the key to my conclusion that Carnif isn’t the one who left the prints at the scene, involves walking habits. Some people favor their weight forward, some prefer it back, some walk pigeon-toed... All these result in different imprints. The footprints at the scene are heavier at the front and lighter at the back, deeper on the inside and shallower on the outside. Having observed Carnif’s walk, none of these details match. This is a detail few people would notice. So Carnif shouldn’t be the one who left the shoe prints at the scene!"

Holz asked with a puzzled tone, "Dad, then why did you still make a cast of Carnif’s footprints?"

With a hearty laugh, the old man Bob replied, "Experience is one thing, but the facts have to speak for themselves."

In this alternate United States, the forensic analysis of trace evidence was quite advanced, sufficient to serve as a corroborating link in the chain of evidence.

Thus, Carnif, the most likely culprit, was cleared of suspicion just like that.

If it wasn’t Carnif, then the most suspicious person remaining was Earl.

Daisy had also checked Earl’s accounts; they were very clean.

So, it seemed Duren had lured Earl into wrongdoing by prostituting his own wife.

Dean shared his previous findings with everyone.

"Earl?" Harry looked as if he’d seen a ghost. "Speaking of which, when he wears riding boots, his height does align more closely with the wound assessment’s estimate for the perpetrator. But to say he’s the murderer... it just feels odd to me."

He still remembered Earl’s endearingly naive way of answering their questions that day. Such a stark contrast to a killer.

"That’s because you have little experience!"

Holz glanced at Harry contemptuously and, with the benefit of hindsight, said, "Did you notice the hearing aid on Earl’s desk? Daisy once showed me Howard’s mother’s interview transcript and asked what could cause a piercing noise on the phone. I hadn’t paid attention to it before. That kind of thing isn’t uncommon. For example, problems with a nearby TV antenna’s reception, interference between electronic devices, telegraphic disturbances... all of those can create such noise. Now it seems it must have been interference from Earl’s hearing aid!"

Dean frowned. "Why didn’t you tell me this?"

Before Howard’s mother lost contact with her son, she had heard a sharp electronic noise.

Dean had seen the interview records. But he wasn’t an omniscient deity, so after asking Daisy to check with Holz, he hadn’t followed up on it.

Feeling wronged, Holz said, "It’s only been two days since we discovered the case, and I’ve been at your beck and call. I haven’t had the chance to tell Daisy yet."

Normally, solving a case, if not taking months, would require at least ten days to two weeks. Who could match Dean’s efficiency? This also had him running around like a headless chicken.

Harry, having just been mocked by Holz, quickly seized the opportunity to mock him back. "Wow, Holz, if you had mentioned this earlier, maybe Dean and I would have solved the case on our first visit to the prison. And don’t you have those twin assistants? Where are they?"

"Enough!"

Dean stopped the two men from bickering. "Whether Earl is the murderer or not, let’s first see if his footprints match the traces at the scene!"

"It’s simple. Just call him over, and I’ll pay attention to his walking habits," the little old man Bob said confidently.

A moment later, Earl was called down by Carnif.

When he saw Dean and Harry, a rare smile appeared on his plump face. "It’s good to see you again, Detectives."

He liked Dean and Harry very much. Because in his relatively short life, aside from his mother, they were the only people who had ever put a friendly arm around his shoulder.

This made Earl eagerly anticipate their return.

Looking at Earl’s innocent smile, Harry subconsciously turned his head away.

Dean smiled at him, then looked towards Bob standing beside him.

Is Earl the real murderer?