1960: My uncle is the FBI Director

Chapter 173 Fire

Wednesday, September 4th.

There's less than half an hour left before I get off work.

Billy Hawke tossed a green package onto the table and began recounting his bizarre experience to Theodore and Bernie:
“I told him to search his son’s room and he would find out.”

"He also swore that it was absolutely impossible for his son to have taken it."

“He said I had the wrong person and should have asked the pickpockets near Union Station instead of focusing on his son.”

"He's going to file a complaint against me!"

This is a case of a green package being stolen.

A federal employee of the Department of Agriculture picked up a green package from Union Station. Since it was after get off work hours, he took it home and planned to bring it to the office the next day.

The next day, when I got to the office, I realized I had forgotten to bring the package.

He went home at noon to pick up his package, but couldn't find it after searching for a long time.

He recalled that he had taken the bus home from Union Station the previous night and suspected that the package had been stolen on the bus.

Because the green package contained government documents with a certain level of confidentiality, the case was upgraded from a simple theft to a suspected leak of federal classified information.

The case was assigned to the FBI.

The original investigation team conducted a certain degree of investigation into the case. After learning that the documents were just some quarterly summary reports and that the reissued backup files had been archived, they left them there and did not investigate further.

After Theodore and his team took over, Billy Hawke was sent to inspect the employees' homes.

Bernie opened the green package, looked through the intact documents inside, and casually remarked:
"Whom is he going to complain to?"

Billy Hawke pointed to the telephone on the table:
"He asked me for my boss's phone number, so I gave him our office number."

He looked at Theodore and Bernie with a strange expression:
"If you receive a call from him, be sure to let me know."

Bernie glanced at him, smiled, and agreed.

Theodore thought for a moment and nodded.

He asked Bernie if he could confirm that the green package Billy Hawke brought back was the one that had been lost.

Billy Hawke continued:
"He confirmed it himself, it is it."

Bernie stuffed the report back into the green package and asked Billy Hawke:
"Now that they've already found it in his son's room, why would he still want to complain about you?"

Billy Hawke was somewhat embarrassed:

“He and his son blocked the bedroom door and wouldn’t let me in, so I used a little force.”

He glanced at Theodore furtively and emphasized:
"It really is only a little!"

"I didn't even use much force!"

Bernie was speechless.

Theodore didn't take it seriously and had Billy Hawke take the green package upstairs to register it, and also to check if the case closure report from the previous case had been released.

Since the Bonnie and Clyde impersonation case ended last week, they have been investigating the remaining cases.

Most of these cases were transferred to them after the original investigation team had only investigated them halfway through.

If something can be treated like this, it can't possibly be a major case, or even a murder case.

Their importance is equivalent to that of stolen police cars; their sole purpose is to lower the case closure rate.

It's very likely that none of the parties involved care anymore.

Bernie once complained to Theodore that he suspected his colleagues upstairs were taking the opportunity to dump all the garbage he didn't want to investigate over there.

Last week, while awaiting the closing report of the Bonnie and Clyde copycat case, they closed one case, and two days ago this week, they closed another.

This is the fourth case, including the police car theft.

Supervisor Rosen sent in a total of eight cases.

The next morning, Theodore and Bernie had just arrived at the office when the phone on their desk rang.

The call wasn't the complaint Billy Hawke was so concerned about, but rather from Detective O'Malley of the Fourth Precinct.

Bernie took the receiver.

He came to ask Theodore and his men for help.

The incident occurred within the jurisdiction of the Fourth Precinct, and the deceased was a friend of his.

The deputy commissioner of the fourth precinct assigned the case to Detective O'Malley.

However, three days have passed and the case has made no progress.

Detective O'Malley decided to inform Theodore and his team beforehand, and then report the case to the FBI as a request for assistance.

Many veteran police officers in DC do this.

Throughout their long careers, they will collaborate with the FBI multiple times and make several FBI agent friends in the process.

When they encounter cases that need to be reported to the FBI, they often contact familiar agents in advance to gain control.

Working with familiar agents is always more reassuring than working with unknown agents.

Before Theodore, Detective O'Malley had also contacted two other familiar senior detectives.

They just didn't have time.

Bernie looked at Theodore.

Theodore shoved the case briefing back into his hand and nodded at him.

Bernie hesitated for a moment before conveying Theodore's meaning.

Detective O'Malley immediately recited a series of case numbers:
"Wait for me, I'll bring the documents over now."

After the call ended, Theodore went upstairs to find Supervisor Rosen.

According to standard procedures, after a case is reviewed, it will be assigned to Rosen's supervisor for unified allocation.

If it's not an informal, private favor, the agent needs to inform Supervisor Rosen beforehand.

Under normal circumstances, Supervisor Rosen wouldn't say much.

Supervisor Rosen remains busy.

President Jack's willingness to take responsibility played a role, but the shadow cast by the failure of the Soviet space mission and the government's secret operation was too great.

Theodore walked into the manager's office and stated his purpose directly.

He told his supervisor, Rosen, that he wanted to take on a murder case in the Northeast.

Supervisor Rosen glanced at Theodore, slightly surprised: "Which one?"

What's the number?

Theodore pulled out the case number and handed it over.

Supervisor Rosen glanced at it and handed the number to his assistant:

"Give me this case first when it arrives."

He needs to check the case first to confirm that it is not a time-limited case such as kidnapping or extortion, not a politically sensitive case, and not a large-scale or high-impact sensitive case before handing it over to Theodore.

Detective O'Malley arrived quickly, but Theodore didn't get the case until the afternoon.

A briefing is being held in an office on the basement floor of the Department of Justice building.

Detective O'Malley stood in front of the whiteboard and gave Theodore and his two colleagues a case briefing.

He was wearing a wrinkled police uniform and smelled bad.

His hair was somewhat disheveled, his beard was unkempt, and he was unusually excited, but his speech was somewhat incoherent.

Detective O'Malley hasn't slept for three days.

He pasted a photo on the whiteboard, stared at it for a while, and then began to introduce it:
"The deceased was named Alan Brennan, a firefighter."

“4月23日午夜11：37分，布伦特伍德路东北段121号失火。”

"The nearby fire station dispatched officers immediately after detecting the fire."

He pointed to the photos: "Alan Brennan was the duty captain that night."

"The building that caught fire was an old, four-story apartment building."

He also lives in this apartment building.

“He was very familiar with the apartment environment and rushed into the fire to rescue people after arriving at the scene.”

"He never came out again."

"After the fire subsided, firefighters rushed into the scene and found his body near the second-floor staircase."

He took out another photo and pasted it next to the previous one.

The first photo is of the deceased before his death, with his arm around Detective O'Malley, grinning foolishly at the camera. The second photo is of the body.

The corpse had cracked skin on its scalp, chest, and other areas, resembling a shattered black porcelain doll.

His upper limbs are bent at the elbows and half-clenched into fists, while his lower limbs are bent, assuming a posture like a boxer preparing for battle.

The firefighter's suit was tattered and torn, mixed with charred muscle, and stuck to the corpse.

Detective O'Malley stared at the photo in silence for a moment, then, after thinking for a while, continued:

"He was burned alive."

Theodore hesitated for a moment, then interrupted Detective O'Malley to ask him if he needed a break.

He suspected that even Detective O'Malley himself didn't know what he was talking about.

Detective O'Malley, his eyes bloodshot, waved his arm and raised his voice:

"Nooo! I don't need it. I'm fine."

Bernie nudged Theodore lightly.

Theodore glanced at him, then turned to Detective O'Malley and asked:
"Where's the autopsy report?"

Detective O'Malley pulled out the autopsy report and handed it to Theodore.

The autopsy report was not very detailed and could not compare to the one from the Third Precinct.

But it covers most of the essentials.

The corpse's skin showed typical signs of third-degree burns, with the entire body charred and cracked, and the skin peeling off easily with the slightest touch.

The fat between the ribs in the thoracic cavity melts and solidifies into wax.

The muscles in his limbs contracted, causing fractures in his elbows and knees, suggesting he may have struggled violently in the fire.

Prying open the mouth reveals teeth biting together and ash residue.

The laryngeal cartilage is deformed, resembling a scald from boiling water; scraping the mucosa reveals moist soot.

The surface of the lung lobe shows a net-like black pattern, and pinkish blood foam oozes out when cut with a knife.

When the heart is cut open, it is cherry red; ventricular blood turns rose red when exposed to Hopkinson's reagent; and carbon monoxide tests positive.

In summary, the deceased was burned alive.

Detective O'Malley was right.

Theodore looked up at him.

He continued giving the briefing:
"His helmet wasn't beside him, and his breathing mask wasn't on his face, but rather on his chin."

"The forensic examiner found obvious skull damage."

"Someone knocked him unconscious, threw him into the fire, and let him burn alive!"

Theodore looked down at the autopsy report.

The forensic examiner found a 1.2-inch linear fracture in the left occipital bone of the deceased's head, with a dent nearly 0.1 inches deep and a dark red color.

This may have been caused by being struck by a heavy object before death.

However, this does not necessarily mean that it was caused by human intervention.

The fire scene was complex, and it was possible that a heavy object had fallen and hit someone on the head.

Detective O'Malley seems to have returned to normal now.

He took out his notebook, flipped through it, and introduced several more suspects.

The suspects were identified as residents of the other six apartments in the building, as well as three other firefighters who entered the fire to rescue people.

Detective O'Malley questioned the suspects.

He used some questioning techniques over the past three days.

But found nothing.

Alan Brennan was a kind-hearted man who often helped his neighbors and was very popular.

These suspects had all received help from Alan Brennan, and on more than one occasion.

They all praised Alan Brennan highly.

Detective O'Malley couldn't even find a motive for the crime!

After listening to the briefing, Theodore checked the time and said he wanted to go to the site.

Detective O'Malley put away his notebook and immediately walked out.

Billy Hawke caught up with him, snatched the car keys from Detective O'Malley, and patted him lightly on the shoulder, telling him to rest for a while on the road.

Detective O'Malley shook his head and refused.

The apartment where the incident occurred was not far away, and they arrived quickly.

The windows of the four-story red brick apartment were shattered, and the mottled exterior walls were covered with traces of smoke and fire.

Because of the fire, the apartment building has been vacated and is now empty.

Upon entering the building, the stairwell was pitch black, with a lot of garbage scattered on the floor. Almost all of it was charred, and some was even completely carbonized.

The staircase should have had a wooden handrail, but it was completely carbonized and broken off by someone unknown.

The metal railings also showed obvious deformation, with some sections even tilting over and falling off.

Detective O'Malley explained that the fire was very thorough. After the fire, residents returned to their homes and found only a few items intact; most of the belongings were charred.

As they climbed the stairs, they soon arrived at the place where Alan Brennan had been burned to death.

That's the corner of the stairs on the second floor.

Two molten boots, smoldering and mixed with grease, stood there.

There are clear cleaning marks on the ground.

Detective O'Malley pointed to the ashes on the stairs:

“These were all piled up here before.”

He then pointed to the location where the deceased's body had been found:

"When this place was first discovered, it was piled with a lot of debris."

"According to the residents, it was some garbage that they were going to throw away."

Theodore looked around and asked him, "Where's the helmet?"

Detective O'Malley climbed four steps upstairs and stamped his foot: "Here it is."

Theodore's gaze lingered on the steps for a moment before he looked up.

He walked between the second and third floors, then asked Detective O'Malley:

"Has the cause of the fire been found?"

Detective O'Malley, unsure how he suddenly jumped onto the fire, shook his head, indicating he wasn't quite sure either.

He has been locked in a fierce battle with several suspects for the past few days.

Theodore was going to check on the fire station.

Alan Brennan was assigned to Fire Station 13.

When they arrived, the firefighters were training.

A group of people wearing black rubber-coated canvas jackets, black leather helmets, breathing masks and goggles on their faces, with wooden-handled iron axes at their waists and heavy breathing apparatus on their backs, ran around.

The breathing mask is a full-face rubber breathing mask, and the helmet has a brass DC fire department logo on the front and reflective strips on the back.

Theodore stood in the doorway for a while, then turned to Bernie and Billy Hawke and asked:
Can you tell who's who?

No / Yes

Bernie and Theodore looked at Billy Hawke together.

Billy Hawke pointed to the leader:

"His eyes are not big, and his cheekbones are very high."

Theodore was skeptical.

The group of firefighters who were training stopped when they saw them.

The leader took off his helmet and mask and walked this way.

He was bald, had small eyes, and high cheekbones, giving him a serious and harsh look.

He approached Theodore and the other two and asked in a deep voice:
"Are you here to investigate the cause of Allen's death?"

(End of this chapter)