1960: My uncle is the FBI Director

Chapter 256 You Just Want to Kill

Billy Hawke asked him, puzzled:
"So you went out and found someone who looked like your wife, and then killed her?"

John Doe looked at him, opened his mouth as if to say something, but ultimately remained silent.

Billy Hawke shook his head, indicating that he couldn't understand.

He then asked John Doe:
"What about her?"

He handed over the photo of 'cherry':
"And what's wrong with her?"

John Doe glanced at the photo:
"The shipyard fabricated a reason to make me leave."

"The union is also unwilling to provide assistance."

"Even though I've served the shipyard for 25 years!"

"I've been working here since I was a young man!"

"They still tried every means to kick me out of the shipyard!"

Whether John Doe admits it or not, Maggie Doe is the person closest to him.

She witnessed firsthand his transformation from an industry master into an unemployed man living off his wife.

Her very existence is a constant reminder and silent indictment of John Doe's failures; as long as she is alive, his failures cannot be concealed.

John Doe could not bear to see his unbearable reality reflected in such a mirror every day.

After becoming the sole breadwinner of the family, Maggie Doe was no longer the submissive wife she once was to John Doe.

She believes she should participate in family decision-making and should have a say in the process.

Even most of them.

The two began to argue more frequently, as if they disagreed on every single thing, no matter how trivial.

Should I continue eating at the same restaurant every month and staying at the hotel or inn next to it?
Should we continue to buy high-end home furnishings?

Should we have a child?
Should I look for another job?

Should we adjust dinner time to 8 pm?
Whether or not to eat steak instead of offal... any little thing can become a reason for the two to argue.

In Maggie Doe's view, these arguments were necessary.

They can help her establish her status and voice within the family.

Just as Theodore and his companions demonstrated during their questioning, she treated her husband's guests coldly, resisted entertaining them, and after being forced to stay, she openly contradicted her husband and expressed her own thoughts during the conversation.

John Doe saw this as evidence of Maggie Doe’s attempt to rebel, an accusation and humiliation of his incompetence, and a sign that she disapproved of his current unemployment and inability to earn money.

Maggie Doe's suggestion to have a child seemed more like a mockery of him for not being a real man.

This was unbearable for John Doe, who felt his whole world had been thrown into chaos.

He desperately needs to get everything back to normal.

On May 18th, the two of them had another argument over dinner.

Maggie Doe got home after 7 p.m. due to work, and was exhausted and hungry.

She hoped to receive the same treatment as John Doe when he was in charge of earning money to support the family; she hoped John Doe would prepare dinner at home and wait for her to come back.

But John Doe refused.

The argument between the two quickly escalated from dinner to having children, and then to John Doe's unemployment.

"She began to recount every injustice she had suffered in the past."

"She cooks for me, does my laundry... Ha! I had no idea she used to be so wronged!"

John Doe, with a mocking expression, put his arm on the table and opened his palm:

“I asked her, if she was so wronged, why did she marry me? Why didn’t she say so before?”

He first looked at Theodore, then his gaze swept over Billy Hawke before landing on Bernie.

Bernie looked at him for a moment, then lowered his head to continue taking notes.

John Doe was greatly encouraged:

"I've only been at home for less than a month!"

"She had stayed at home for over ten years!"

"Her weekly wage isn't even a fifth of mine!"

He believed that all his wife's arguments and grievances were just excuses for her to leave him.

He provided proof for this:
"At the end of that day, she was left speechless by my question."

"She told me that since I thought that way, there was nothing she could do, so we might as well get a divorce."

John Doe became somewhat agitated:
"Did you hear that?! She wants a divorce!"

Billy Hawke nearly blurted out a rebuttal, but thankfully he remembered his place and asked John Doe:

"What happened next? What did you do after this argument?"

John Doe glanced at Billy Hawke and shook his head:

"I want to leave this house and get some fresh air."

"I feel like I'll suffocate if I stay here any longer."

According to him, he initially just wanted to go fishing, but somehow he ended up driving over Maine Avenue.

He met 'Cherry' on the road.

He gave 'Cherry' $10 and took 'Cherry' to the river.

He confided in Cherry about his arguments with his wife, being fired from the shipyard, and the death of his apprentice, Danny Brown.

After he finished speaking, he strangled 'Cherry' as he had done before, only to realize while disposing of the body that he hadn't brought enough tools.

This made John Doe feel once again that things were out of control.

He disposed of 'Cherry's' body haphazardly and left hastily.

Theodore asked him:
"Did your argument happen on May 18th?"

John Doe and Theodore stared at each other for a moment, then lowered their heads and did not answer.

Billy Hawke looked at Theodore.

Bernie, standing behind John Doe, spoke up to remind him:
“This is easy to investigate; just ask Maggie Doe.”

“It’s only been less than two weeks, she should remember it very clearly.”

John Doe quickly changed his tune:
"It seems to have been the day before yesterday."

"I remembered it wrong, it seems to be the 17th."

Billy Hawke confirmed with him:

"In other words, you killed 'Cherry' after the argument was over."

John Doe raised his head with difficulty, then quickly lowered it again and nodded.

Theodore stared at him:
"Forensic experts found no new fractures or other defensive wounds on the four bodies, nor any signs of excessive violence."

"These four victims were murders you carried out in a planned manner after you calmed down."

He displayed a photo of the fourth victim:

"Before you met the fourth victim, you had already decided to reveal all the secrets to him before killing him."

"You even had a plan for how to dispose of the body."

John Doe wanted to argue, but Theodore wasn't going to give him the chance.

He handed the photo to John Doe, almost pressing it against his face.

John Doe turned his head away; the skeleton in the photograph made him uncomfortable.

“You’ve even prepared the ropes, tarpaulins, counterweights, and gears, and you’ve already chosen the location.”

“You might even have gone to the docks beforehand to observe the surroundings and ensure that your murder goes smoothly and that the disposal of the body goes unnoticed.”

Theodore put down the photo of victim number 4, then picked up the photos of victims number 3 and 2:

"Being forced to take on apprentices and arguing with your wife might indeed be reasons, but even if these things didn't happen, you would find other reasons."

"Traffic jam, being chased by a dog, biting your tongue while eating, or maybe it's just that the weather isn't sunny enough... you can always find an excuse."

"You just want to experience the feeling of killing again."

John Doe turned his head, his gaze sweeping over the top of the photograph and landing on Theodore.

He retorted loudly:
"I don't!"

Theodore put down the photograph and picked up 'Canary's' statement:

"When you confided your secrets to victim number 4, how much did you say? Was it the same as last night?" "What about victim number 2? What about victim number 3?"

John Doe was speechless.

Theodore answered for him:
"Perhaps the first killing was indeed due to Danny Brown's accident, but in the subsequent killings, sharing secrets gradually became a routine."

"You just want to get this over with quickly, and then kill someone."

"Confessing secrets has become a step in your killing ritual, nothing more."

John Doe's shoulders slumped and his back bent.

He kept his head down, almost curled up, trying his best to minimize his presence.

Bernie confirmed with Theodore that the interrogation was over and handed him the statement.

Theodore placed the statement on the table and pushed it over.

John Doe signed it without even looking at it.

Billy Hawke opened the door and called his colleagues over.

Theodore tidied the documents, then stood up to end the interrogation.

John Doe looked up at the three men with a pitiful expression:

“I told you everything.”

He still remembered Billy Hawke's plea to the prosecutor and judge.

He emphasized:

"What I said is real."

"I never intended to kill them."

Two agents came in and took John Doe away.

John Doe finally broke down.

He struggled and refused to leave.

The detective could only grab his arm and drag him out.

John Doe burst into tears and shouted at them:

"They're all shipyards!"

"And Maggie Doy!"

"That bitch!"

"They forced me to do this!"

"They forced me to this!"

He tried to shout again, but one detective covered his mouth, and another punched him twice in the stomach.

The shouts immediately turned into painful whimpers.

Billy Hawke looked away and glanced at Theodore and Bernie.

Theodore and Bernie had seen too many prisoners to be surprised by this.

Bernie patted Billy Hawke on the shoulder and put his arm around him as they walked out.

The three returned to the basement office and bumped into Martin Joseph Cronin in the laboratory.

He was there to deliver documents from the Gear Manufacturers Association.

The Gear Manufacturers Association sent back the official assessment results of the gear.

Theodore opened it and examined it; the result was consistent with the judgment of Martin Joseph Cronin's friend.

Martin Joseph Cronin then handed Theodore a file folder:
"This is the data model I built."

He pointed at Bernie:
"He told me, 'You want to refine this model?'"

Theodore nodded.

Martin Joseph Cronin looked at Theodore:
"Then we'd better start now."

"This is much more complex than your river model."

Billy Hawke asked him curiously:

How did you know our case involved a river model?

Martin Joseph Cronin pointed upwards, his tone matter-of-fact:

"This matter has already been discussed extensively in the lab."

"This method of tracing the location where a body was submerged in water is unprecedented."

"We're an FBI lab!"

"This new method will certainly be discussed by us."

His gaze swept over the three men before finally settling back on Theodore.

He asked Theodore:
"You came up with this method, didn't you?"

The other two don't even know what Manila ma is; they're probably not very bright.

They may not even understand the underlying principles.

As Martin Joseph Cronin thought this, he became increasingly convinced that Theodore had come up with the method.

Theodore nodded:

“Using river hydrological data to build a flow model and thus estimate the location where the body entered the water is a simple application of hydrological data.”

"This method was proposed a long time ago, but it has not yet been formally applied to the field of criminal investigation."

Martin Joseph Cronin enthusiastically discussed with Theodore the potential applications of this method.

Billy Hawke couldn't help but remind him:

"It's still working hours."

Martin Joseph Cronin waved his hand:

"I am learning how to build and apply water flow models, which is also part of my job."

Theodore hesitated for a moment, then asked him:

"I remember you're from the materials analysis group?"

Martin Joseph Cronin was somewhat embarrassed.

Bernie steered the conversation back to the bowling league, asking when the schedule results would be available.

Martin Joseph Cronin told him that, based on past experience, the first round schedule would be available within a week of registration closing.

The FBI isn't hosting a formal bowling league, so they can't schedule all the matches at once. They have to do it round by round, and the specific arrangements will depend on the tasks of each department and even the agents.

Bernie asked him again:
When is the first round usually held?

Martin Joseph Cronin recalled:
"The competition will begin the week after the schedule results are released."

Bernie did the math:
"We should gather for training this weekend."

He looked at the crowd:
“I contacted two friends, and they agreed to help us with the training.”

Martin Joseph Cronin shook his head:

"Theodore and I need data, a lot of data, to improve the model."

"In addition to training, we also need data from other athletes."

He started encouraging Bernie to contact his friends and secretly record other athletes' training data.

Martin Joseph Cronin is 100% serious about researching data models.

He treated her even better than he treated his girlfriend.

He accepted Bernie's invitation not for the sake of the competition, but simply because he agreed to help research the data model.

He and the FBI lab had a disagreement about the main research direction of data models...

Rosen's assistant appeared at the door, interrupting their conversation.

Martin Joseph Cronin, ignoring his assistant's stares, waved to them and left.

The assistant looked away and inquired about the progress of the case.

After learning that they had obtained the prisoners' confessions, they instructed them to report to Supervisor Rosen.

(End of this chapter)