North America Gunman Detective

Chapter 1547 - 829: Mrs. Walz (Part 2)

The old man still preferred the little kid. Ever since Jimmy and the others came in, he kept smiling and teasing little Liam. It wasn't until the little guy yawned that Nia took him out of the living room to coax him to sleep.

Mrs. Valz's smile slightly faded as she said to Jimmy, "Child, push me to the study, please."

Of course, Jimmy didn't refuse. He picked up a small bag next to him and came to Mrs. Valz, "Grandma Valz, Uncle Tom asked me to hand this over to you. He said he can't come here often, so he couldn't come with me."

Mrs. Valz took the bag, opened it, took a quick glance, and nodded, "Is he doing well?"

As Jimmy pushed Mrs. Valz's wheelchair toward the study, he said, "Everything's fine, except for a few more wrinkles. The climate over in Florida is quite nice, and the farm he's managing looks good too."

Mrs. Valz: "That's good. Tell him to come and see me when he has time, and not to worry about other things."

Jimmy: "I'll pass the message along."

Mrs. Valz signaled Jimmy to close the door, "Sit down, child. Did something happen?"

Jimmy was taken aback, "No, everything's normal recently. You see, I even brought the kids out. If there were any danger, I certainly wouldn't let them come out with me."

Mrs. Valz put the bag on the table and looked at Jimmy: "No, I mean your job. Someone told me you seem to be planning to leave the FBI and haven't been going to work regularly for a long time."

Jimmy was stunned. Was Mrs. Valz paying attention to his affairs? He turned his head to look out the door. Nia was walking with the child in the hallway, coaxing him to sleep. The maid was in the kitchen, and a bodyguard left the house and stood outside after they came in. There was no one else here.

Jimmy: "I really didn't expect such a small issue to reach you. It's just some minor problems. I'm not leaving the FBI. I quite like it there."

Mrs. Valz: "Child, just tell the truth in front of me."

Jimmy: "It's nothing major, just office politics, you know. Compared to other departments, the FBI is a bit more conservative."

Mrs. Valz slightly smiled, "Do you feel you've touched their bottom line?"

Jimmy shrugged: "It seems like it. To prevent me from achieving anything substantial, they directly stopped assigning cases to my support department."

"What are you thinking?"

"Wait a little longer. I'm still young, aren't I? I think in a couple of years, when I have enough experience, I can probably try again. Plus, little Liam is still young. I just happen to have more time to spend with him."

Mrs. Valz frowned, "Is that true? Is that really what you think?"

Jimmy nodded. In his view, there really wasn't a good way to break the stalemate right now. Even putting aside whether he could succeed in doing something on the sly, even if he did, it would ruin his reputation in the bureau. If an Asian has a bad reputation, there's no hope of advancing calmly in the future.

Mrs. Valz: "Foolish! You've been isolated from your career for months. If you wait any longer, you may not even need them to reject you; you'd be dismissed because of prolonged absenteeism. Even if your position remains, you'd become a complete outsider."

Jimmy said with a bitter smile, "I've thought about that too, but... I can't do anything now. Switching to the support team was initially to solve the rank issue I faced. But here, I can't really do anything. Even external assignments are blocked by them. Someone at headquarters wanted me to help, but it was blocked by my superior. I don't even know what the case was about."

Mrs. Valz: "You should be more proactive, show your strength. If you don't fight for things, you can't blame others. You must seize all the power you can to put yourself in a higher position, rather than going with the flow and waiting for others' handouts."

Wow, even though Mrs. Valz is old, her temperament is not at all like an elderly person. She's actually encouraging Jimmy to keep striving.

Jimmy nodded, "I'll consider it. I don't have many cards to play."

Mrs. Valz shook her head: "No, you have many cards. The most important thing is, they need you, not the other way around. You have many paths to choose, and even turning back is an option."

Jimmy raised an eyebrow, "I think I understand what you mean. I'll deal with it."

Mrs. Valz: "You already have a family, a wife, and a son. You've grown up. Do what you want to do. Let's go out, let Nia chat with me for a while."

Jimmy pushed Mrs. Valz back to the living room. Nia had already placed little Liam on the sofa, and he seemed to be asleep.

After accompanying the elderly lady to a meal in Mrs. Valz's cabin, Jimmy and his family said goodbye and drove back to Washington, D.C. Visiting Mrs. Valz's cabin was always particularly cumbersome. However, the elderly lady was unwilling to move elsewhere. Her family had mentioned this issue before, but unfortunately, no one could force her to leave. So every time Jimmy visited, he had to rent a car in Washington, D.C. Coming and going, and accommodations were not very convenient.

But now that this trip was finally over, bringing a child was really tiring. If it were just Jimmy and Nia, it would be a bit easier.

Nia and Liam also received gifts from several elders, especially the one from Mrs. Valz to Nia, a string of pearl necklaces. Of course, it wasn't new but something Mrs. Valz used to wear, making it very appropriate to give to a younger relative as a gift.

As for little Liam, this little guy hadn't learned to walk yet but already had to prepare a place to collect his gifts. Jimmy gained an extra suitcase filled with baby items and the gifts given to Liam.

Jimmy stood by the hotel window looking at the lights outside, now having enough time to think about Mrs. Valz's words.

There was no doubt that she knew about Jimmy's current situation, whether from regular concern or inquiries after Jimmy scheduled a home appointment to see her. In any case, such petty office politics were negligible to someone like Mrs. Valz, who had been Deputy Director of the CIA. This was one reason why Jimmy was seriously considering her words now; the elderly lady had a wealth of experience, and since she brought it up, she must have thought of something.

Jimmy's marginalization boils down to a few points: being Asian, young, too capable, possibly having conflicts with other small groups, etc. As for reliability and loyalty to the FBI's position, those should not be factors. Mrs. Valz's implication seemed to be that Jimmy needed to flex his muscles. But he was already one of the most capable agents—how else could he show strength?

It was probably the first time Jimmy seriously analyzed why he was stuck in his current position. Previously, he hadn't cared much. Work was work, family was family. When Nia was pregnant and after Liam was born, who would care about minor work annoyances?

Ethnic issues are a big problem. The glass ceiling is inherently there, which everyone agrees with and is one of the reasons for his suppression. But the attitudes of Ruiz and Dave should indicate this isn't the most important reason. Considering other possibilities, it's likely that he's obstructing someone or making others fearful.

Those in high positions rarely have clean hands, including Jimmy's father-in-law, Kevin. Even based on Jimmy's own estimates, Kevin's income doesn't match his quality of life, even if they have many returns on investments; it still wouldn't be enough. It's likely similar for people in the FBI. Given Jimmy's previous performance, if he really moved up, he might diverge significantly in many areas, not fitting in.

Damn it, Jimmy stood by the window clenching his teeth, but feeling powerless.