novelraw Chapter 207: Investigation Report
Chapter 207: Investigation Report
Before Walsh left, Nina Jacobs gave him a few cookbooks.
As far as she knew, postpartum recovery meals weren’t difficult to make. For a professional chef like Walsh, it should be a piece of cake.
She planned to pay Walsh a salary based on the standards of the base’s cafeteria.
She’d heard that salaries at the base could be paid in Points, or even Crystal Cores and Gold.
However, Gold was quite valuable. Typically, only those willing to receive an annual salary could have it paid in Gold.
"It’s a good thing Nina reminded us to bring all the family’s Gold,"
"Now Gold has become hard currency. We can exchange it for Points at the base’s financial office."
Daniel Hale said, feeling very fortunate.
If you didn’t want to exchange it for Points, you could also go to the financial office to have it minted into an equivalent amount of Gold Coins or Gold Bars.
Both Gold Coins and Gold Bars could be used as cash on the base.
They were even more valuable than Crystal Cores.
"I really never would have thought."
Vera Coleman heard that Gold could even be used to rent housing on the base.
It was all thanks to her daughter’s good judgment before; they had lucked out and bought an extra case of Gold.
With the family’s future expenses, that Gold would be their safety net.
"Let’s not worry about these things for now."
"Mom, your due date is getting closer. We need to be extra careful these days,"
Nina Jacobs reminded her.
"I’m planning to take leave in a few days."
The area around the new base was still relatively safe, and Daniel Hale had already spoken to Justin Lawson and the others about taking leave.
"I don’t know what Lawson has been busy with these past few days."
"Especially Adrian Shaw. He’s been getting quite close with that Liam Grant."
"They’ve already had many private meetings."
Daniel Hale didn’t understand it. He only knew that Sheldon Holden and Dawn Donovan, who had previously supported Liam Grant, had become much more active.
"Wasn’t that guy kicked off the rescue team?"
Leo Hale was taken aback.
Sheldon Holden was an old rival of Daniel Hale’s.
If Daniel Hale hadn’t awakened his Spiritual Element Superpower, Sheldon Holden would have likely spared no effort to bring him down.
"Some things might seem unusual, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re bad."
"We just need to mind our own business and do our parts."
Nina Jacobs listened to their conversation, her expression unchanging.
"Nina... do you know something?"
Seeing Nina Jacobs nod slightly, Daniel Hale understood perfectly.
’It must be something that can’t be made public.’
And he couldn’t shake the feeling that Nina Jacobs seemed to be faintly looking forward to something...
"You’re right. No matter what happens,"
"people have to do their part."
Nina Jacobs was telling him to handle a shifting situation by staying the course.
"Why isn’t Sherry Renner back yet?"
Nina Jacobs changed the subject.
It was around eight o’clock at night. Sherry Renner’s shift should have ended at the same time as Daniel Hale’s.
"She’s busy hunting a murderer. The base’s Enforcement Bureau was just officially established, and they’re already facing a major case."
"Plus, the number of victims keeps increasing. She’s probably tearing her hair out right now."
Daniel Hale knew a little about the affairs of the various departments on base.
"Is it that case about the person killing female Superpower Users and digging out their Crystal Cores?"
Nina Jacobs hadn’t expected Sherry Renner to be in charge of this.
"Because Renner is always the first to arrive at the crime scene."
"She’s basically the one who discovers every victim."
Daniel Hale was also aware of Sherry Renner’s abilities.
If it weren’t for this ability of hers, the people at the Enforcement Bureau would have considered her the prime suspect.
"So that’s how it is. Are there any leads?"
Nina Jacobs was also very concerned about this case.
She had originally suspected The Aegis Conclave, but on second thought, if people from The Aegis Conclave were really behind it, they wouldn’t let themselves be discovered so easily.
Besides, it was still too early.
’The Aegis Conclave should still be in its nascent stage.’
"I heard the killer is probably a Gold Element Superpower User."
Leo Hale had heard this from Sherry Renner.
’A Gold Element Superpower User?’
"Why are they so sure?"
’Was there a witness?’
"Because we found this at the scene."
Sherry Renner had just returned and happened to overhear Nina Jacobs and the others discussing the case.
Nina Jacobs looked at the Gold Spike in Sherry Renner’s hand.
It was indeed the size of a Gold Spike that a Gold Element Superpower User could create.
"And we find one of these at almost every scene."
"Did someone else get killed?"
Nina Jacobs asked, seeing the indignation on Sherry Renner’s face.
"Yeah. I thought it would stop once we got to the new base,"
"but another woman was just murdered."
Nina Jacobs had never seen Sherry Renner like this. Sherry was usually the most outwardly carefree one.
Worried about scaring Vera Coleman, Daniel Hale helped her upstairs to rest.
Only then did Sherry Renner say:
"...The back of her head was smashed in. She had only been reunited with her family for a few days, thinking she’d have a better life at the new base."
"The attacker only targeted her head?"
Nina Jacobs found that strange.
Homicides targeting women often involved other forms of assault, but this assailant seemed only interested in the Crystal Core inside the Superpower User’s head.
"We can only deduce that he wants to absorb the Crystal Cores of Superpower Users to increase his own strength."
"He might not be that powerful, or maybe he doesn’t dare go out to kill mutated zombies,"
"so he’s targeting the Mutated Crystal Cores of other Superpower Users instead."
Sherry Renner said.
The Enforcement Bureau had a few veteran criminal investigators.
These were their deductions.
The flow of people in the shelter and the base was too great, and with no surveillance network in place, the investigation was extremely difficult.
Nina Jacobs nodded. What Sherry Renner said did make a certain amount of sense.
But she still felt something was off.
"I was planning to come back early today to study the investigation reports,"
"but the Compass showed another sign of great misfortune. The whole base is about to know about this case by now."
Sherry Renner flipped through the report in her hands. The photos on each page were horrifying.
"Don’t put too much pressure on yourself. Go get something to eat first."
Nina Jacobs had Leo Hale bring out the meal they had saved for Sherry Renner.
After getting Sherry Renner’s permission, she started flipping through the investigation reports on the sofa.
"Why is the food so good today? Am I just that hungry?"
Sherry Renner’s gloomy mood instantly lifted a little.
Food really could cure most sorrows.
"Nina found a great chef today. From now on, we’ll have a professional cook making our meals every day."
"I heard he’s someone Nina knew back in City J, right, Nina?"
Seeing how engrossed Nina Jacobs was in the reports, Leo Hale decided not to disturb her further.
He decided to go out to the yard to walk off his meal.
There, he found Wayne Warner squatting in front of Treasure’s doghouse, intently watching the dog scarf down its food.
A large basin was placed in front of Treasure, the dog food inside already more than half-gone.
"Treasure is really something else."
Leo Hale found it amusing.
’It figures they’re both close to Nina. The man and the dog even have the same traits.’
He had never seen a Golden Retriever that could eat so much.
But he had seen Treasure’s true size before, so he understood the dog’s current appetite.
Back in the living room, Sherry Renner let out a loud burp.
"I’ll pay the chef’s salary from now on,"
she grandly declared.
She had a salary, after all. Since she was living at Nina Jacobs’s house, she felt she should contribute.
"You said the case is now common knowledge on the base?"
Nina Jacobs asked.
She was focused on what Sherry Renner had just said.
"Yeah, it’s already causing a panic, so the higher-ups are pushing York and his team to solve it quickly. I’m just anxious on their behalf."
York was Sherry Renner’s current superior.
"Something like this happening right after the new base was established... everyone’s talking about it."
’Everyone’s talking about it?’
Nina Jacobs fell into deep thought.