1960: My uncle is the FBI Director

Chapter 194 What are the differences between them?

Fourth Precinct, Conference Room.

The bald firefighter had fallen asleep on the table.

He participated in the rescue work tonight and is exhausted.

He could hold on while on the scene, but after dealing with the situation and returning to the Fourth Precinct, he was snoring in less than five minutes.

Billy Hawke sat across the table from him, and their snoring was perfectly synchronized; one would finish before the other began, never simultaneously.

Theodore and Bernie were also a little sleepy.

To avoid falling asleep, Bernie took out his notebook and flipped through it page by page, reading to Theodore the few used cars he had selected and asking for Theodore's opinion.

Prior to this, he had consulted Theodore about some furniture and the renovation of the open space outside the house.

Bernie's style of choosing cars is very Texan.

He only chose muscle cars.

Theodore listened for a while, then looked at him with a puzzled expression:
What's the difference between them?

Bernie thought for a moment, then looked serious:
"Of course there is a difference."

"They have different prices, different paint jobs, and different mileage."

Theodore winked:

"But your core requirement for choosing a car is power."

"You always focus on the engine the most."

"You've never mentioned the paint job or mileage of these cars."

Bernie argued his case logically:

"I've already explained the price."

Theodore shrugged, mimicking his gesture:
"Then pick the cheapest one from these."

Bernie picked out the cheapest one and shook his head.

"This Plymouth has an engine displacement of only 318 cubic inches (about 5.2 liters)."

Theodore stared at him for a moment, then suggested:

"Then let's choose the one with the largest engine displacement."

Bernie was somewhat disappointed:

“There is a Pontiac with an engine displacement of 370 cubic inches (about 6.1 liters).”

"I've driven it before, it's really fun, but it's too expensive, it costs 1700."

Theodore looked at him with suspicion.

Bernie is a big fan of muscle cars with large engines, but he drives very slowly, almost like a snail crawling.

He didn't quite understand Bernie's choice.

After careful consideration, Theodore decided to refrain from commenting, as a sign of respect for his partner.

He shifted the topic to the fire that had just been extinguished and asked Bernie for his opinion.

Bernie stared at him for a few seconds:

"Are you serious?"

Theodore thought about it and admitted that the transition was somewhat abrupt.

He tentatively asked Bernie:
"How about we choose that Chevrolet?"

Bernie put away his notebook and shook his head.

Silence fell over the meeting room, broken only by the snores of Billy Hawke and the bald firefighter.

Detective O'Malley pushed open the door and entered.

He told the two that the officer who went to find electrician Terence Cowan had returned.

But electrician Terence Cowan did not return with him.

He refused to cooperate with the investigation, citing the need to take care of his son.

Bernie glanced at the time subconsciously and frowned:
"How old is his son? Shouldn't he be sleeping right now? Why does he need someone to take care of him?"

Detective O'Malley recounted what the officers had seen:
"It seems like there are only the two of them at home, his son and himself. His son is quite ill and definitely needs someone to take care of him."

He looked at Theodore and suggested that they wait until daytime to bring the person to the station for questioning. Bernie expressed skepticism:
"Can he come during the day?"

He believed that if Terence Cowan's son was really so ill that he needed Terence Cowan to take care of him at home, he wouldn't have gotten better during the day.

Detective O'Malley was also unsure:
"He has to go to work during the day; he can't stay home all the time, can he?"

"If he still doesn't cooperate during the day, we can go to his house to find him."

He paused, then looked at Theodore with some suspicion:
"Is there something wrong with him?"

Theodore remained silent for a moment without giving an answer.

He then inquired about the list of people who had witnessed the fire.

Detective O'Malley shook his head:

"I took a few photos, but the lighting was too dim, so it might be hard to recognize them."

Bernie recalled seeing several police officers moving through the crowd and inquired about the results of the manual tally.

Detective O'Malley pulled out his notebook, flipped it open, and glanced at it:
"According to preliminary statistics, a total of 61 people were watching."

"But the scene was too chaotic at the time, and the statistics were quite mixed with many duplicates. We are still filtering and processing them."

Bernie looked at Theodore.

As it stands, even if they continue to stay in the fourth precinct, they have nothing to do but sleep.

The two decided to go back to their apartment to rest and come back during the day.

None of the three woke Billy Hawke and the bald firefighter. Before leaving, Detective O'Malley thoughtfully gave them two jackets to cover themselves with.

On the way back to Georgetown, Theodore discussed the case with Bernie.

Bernie believes tonight's fire may simply be an accident and has nothing to do with arsonists.

Theodore looked up at him:

"There are too many accidents like this."

Bernie glanced at him:
"What do you mean?"

Theodore took out the notebook, found the light too dim, and put it away again.

"Around 10:30 p.m. on April 28, 1958, a fire broke out in a three-story row house at 1705 Thomas Street."

"The fire was caused by a short circuit in the electrical wiring, which sparked and ignited the curtains."

"Around 11:30 p.m. on April 23, 1961, a fire broke out at apartment 121, northeast section of Brentwood Road."

"The fire was caused by a short circuit in the electrical wiring, which ignited the insulation of the electrical wires and the wooden distribution box."

"Around 11:20 p.m. on May 5, 1961, a fire broke out at apartment 209, northeast section of Brentwood Road."

"The cause of the fire is unknown. Based on the technical support provided by our expert consultants, the most likely cause is that the wire terminals were loose, causing a short circuit and sparks that ignited the pile of debris."

“Brentwood Road and Thomas Street are mainly old apartments and row houses.”

“Our expert consultants have mentioned that the wiring in these old apartments and townhouses is severely outdated and often has been illegally connected.”

"This has led to frequent fires on Brentwood Road and Thomas Street."

After a pause, Theodore continued:

"This is simply the perfect environment for arsonists to commit their crimes."

“The aging electrical wiring not only provided him with the convenience to commit the crime, but also helped him to provide the most perfect disguise.”

Bernie recalled his experience of sifting through the fire investigation reports two days earlier and found that this was indeed the case.

Not just around Brentwood Road and Thomas Street, at least half of the fires in the entire Northeast area are caused by aging electrical wiring.

It's either a short circuit or an overload.

He asked Theodore:
"Do you suspect that some of these accidental fires were staged by arsonists?"

Theodore then steered the conversation back to tonight's fire:
"Today is the fifth day since the first victim was burned to death."

Bernie was somewhat surprised:

"Do you believe tonight's fire was caused by arson?"

Theodore nodded firmly:
"Five days is a very long time for an excited arsonist in the withdrawal period."

"If he had waited longer, he wouldn't have become an arsonist."

(End of this chapter)