American comic book: I, with my abundant martial virtue, love to do good to others.

Chapter 221 Solve the case as soon as possible

Lisa's body trembled, and tears welled up again. She clutched her head, her voice hoarse and pained, "I know—I know, but I can't help it. The money I owe is because of my mistake, and I have to take responsibility. I can't let you bear this for me."

"Taking responsibility doesn't mean destroying yourself," Lynn said, his voice low but powerful. "You made a mistake, but you still have a chance to correct it. Those people won't bother you now, but if you continue down the same path, the outcome will only be worse."

Lisa looked up at Lynn, her eyes filled with conflict and pain. "What else can I do? I've lost my job. I have nothing left. I'm like a useless person, utterly worthless."

“You’re not a failure.” Kate grabbed her hand, her tone firm, almost commanding. “You are Lisa James, my friend, a talented designer. You’ve just taken the wrong path, but you can turn back. You have to get back on your feet and find yourself again.”

"Finding myself again—" Lisa murmured, her gaze lost, "but where do I begin?"

Lynn stood to the side, her gaze calm, but her voice carrying an unusual warmth, "Start by finding a decent job. Even if it's just a little effort, as long as you're willing to start, there's always a way. Kate will help you, and I will help you too."

Lisa looked at Lynn, her eyes filled with doubt and hesitation. "Why are you doing this? I've already made a mess of myself, why would you help me?"

"Because you're my friend." Kate's voice was filled with intense emotion, her eyes brimming with tears, but she held them back. "I won't stand by and watch you destroy yourself. I may not have noticed your problems sooner, but now, I will never let you face this alone again."

Lisa's tears finally welled up, and she threw herself into Kate's arms, sobbing like a helpless child, "I'm sorry—I'm so sorry, I really don't know what to do—"

Kate patted her back gently, her voice softening. "It's okay, Lisa. We'll get through this together. You're not alone."

1

Lynn watched this scene, his gaze softening. He didn't say much, but silently walked to the window and looked at the lights in the distance. He knew that Lisa's road was still long, but at least she had taken the first step.

After a long while, Lisa finally calmed down. She wiped away her tears, looked at Lynn and Kate, and said with a long-lost determination, "I'll try. I don't know if I can succeed, but I'll try."

Kate smiled, her eyes sparkling. "That's enough. You just need to get started, and we'll figure out the rest together."

Lynn nodded. "This is a new beginning, Lisa. But you have to remember, change doesn't happen overnight. Every step is important."

Lisa took a deep breath and nodded. "Thank you—really, thank you."

Lynn and Kate exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of relief in each other's eyes.

a few days later.

The plane slowly taxied onto the tarmac. Lynn leaned back in his seat, took a deep breath, and tried to calm the fatigue of the journey. Kate sat next to him, flipping through a travel magazine, but her eyes weren't on the pages. Outside the window, the Manhattan skyline was vaguely reflected on the cabin window, like a restless oil painting.

"Do you think this trip was worth the price of admission?" Kate asked with a smile, her voice tinged with a hint of teasing.

"Of course, not counting your shopping spree." Lynn raised an eyebrow and smirked.

Kate gave a dismissive snort: "You have no idea about fashion investing."

The two checked their carry-on luggage and followed the crowd off the plane. As soon as they stepped out of the terminal, a gust of cold wind hit them, instantly sobering them up. Lynn touched her coat pocket, habitually taking out her phone to call a taxi. Just then, her phone screen lit up with a missed call notification and several text messages.

"Another job?" Kate noticed the change in Lynn's expression.

Lynn nodded, opened the message, and frowned slightly. The sender was his partner, Carter. The message was brief but meaningful: "Serial murders, five deaths, horrifying details. Location: Downtown Manhattan. You need to be there immediately."

Kate sensed something was wrong, and said in a light but worried tone, "It seems our vacation is really over."

"I'm sorry," Lynn said softly, but dialed Carter's number without hesitation.

"You finally answered!" Carter's voice was filled with anxiety. "Five cases, the victims are completely unrelated, but the methods are extremely cruel. The killer's signature was left at every crime scene—a red rose painted on the wall."

Lynn frowned: "Did the killer leave any traces?"

"The investigation is still ongoing, but there is a survivor who says she saw the killer's face." Carter paused. "She's in the hospital, but her condition is very unstable."

"Send me the location of the crime." Lynn hung up the phone and turned to Kate, her tone becoming serious. "I have to go to the scene; I might be back very late."

Kate raised an eyebrow, a glint of excitement in her eyes: "You don't expect me to stay home obediently, do you? A serial murder case—that's big news for my career!"

Lynn knew she couldn't dissuade her, so she could only sigh and say, "Fine, but you have to promise not to interfere with the investigation."

Kate raised an eyebrow, neither agreeing nor refusing, but quickly hailed a taxi: "Let's go, my detective."

Nightfall in Xicheng: The P2 public taxi is currently operating at full speed. The taxi sped along the road.

They quickly stopped outside the police line. Police cars flashed their glaring lights, several officers maintained order around them, while Lynn and Kate walked straight through the crowd toward Carter.

"Finally here." Carter stepped forward, handing Lynn a file with a weary expression. "This is the preliminary report on the case. The victims are five unrelated citizens, including a lawyer, a housewife, a bartender, an unemployed man, and a college student. Each person was murdered alone."

But the methods were identical—fatal stab wounds, with the carotid artery severed. Even more strangely, each victim's body was arranged in a seemingly meticulously planned pose.

Lynn flipped through the report and asked in a deep voice, "What about the witness? How is she now?"

1

2

"She's still in the hospital, suffering severe psychological trauma, and can barely speak. The doctor says she's on the verge of a nervous breakdown." Carter rubbed his temples.

"What about the surveillance footage from the crime scene?" Lynn then asked.

"It's all destroyed, there's no video footage," Carter said with a wry smile. "We don't even know how the killer managed to avoid the patrols so precisely."

Lynn hesitated for a moment, then looked up at Kate: "You'd better stay here and not go near the crime scene." Kate nodded, but quickly took out a recorder and notebook, and walked straight to a young police officer standing on the perimeter, clearly having already begun her "interview." Lynn shook his head helplessly and led Carter into the cordon.

The crime scene was located on the top floor of an abandoned apartment building, and the air was filled with the stench of decaying blood.

It was nauseating. On the wall, a bright red rose pattern appeared eerily vivid under the dim light. The deceased's body was arranged in a strange posture—arms crossed, legs straight, as if undergoing an absurd ritual.

Lynn crouched down to examine the wounds on the body closely, noting that the knife marks were clean and precise, demonstrating a high level of skill in the crime. He touched the ground around the body with his glove and discovered a tiny shoe print.

"The shoe size isn't large, so the killer is likely a woman," Lynn analyzed in a low voice.

"A woman?" Carter was clearly surprised. "Are you sure?"

Lynn nodded: "Precise knife skills and agile movements usually indicate professional training. In addition, the size and depth of the shoe print are not typical of an adult male."

Just then, a technician came over and handed Lynn a sample result: "We found a small amount of blood near the body, but preliminary analysis shows it does not belong to the victim."

"The perpetrator might be injured." Lynn stood up. "Have the forensic doctor confirm the DNA as soon as possible and see if a match can be found."

Cardi nodded and was about to leave when Lynn's phone rang again. This time, the caller was a doctor from the hospital.

"Detective, there's something you need to know." The doctor's tone was urgent and low. "The survivor has just woken up, but her description is very bizarre. She insists that the killer's eyes were red, and that she saw the killer wearing a coat covered in rose embroidery."

"Red eyes?" Lynn frowned. "Did she mention any other details?"

"She also said that the killer had a strange smile on her face while committing the murders, as if—as if she was enjoying it all."

After hanging up the phone, Lynn fell into a brief moment of thought, then turned to Carter and said, "We need to get to the hospital, immediately."

Seeing Lynn and Carter leave in a hurry, Kate quickly packed up her notebook and chased after them: "What other clues?"

"A witness has just woken up; perhaps that could provide us with a breakthrough." Lynn quickened his pace as he answered. The atmosphere inside the car was unusually tense. Kate secretly observed Lynn's expression and noticed a vein throbbing slightly on his forehead. This was Lynn's characteristic expression when he was thinking, usually indicating that he had some guesses, but these guesses were not easy to come by.

In the hospital ward, the witness huddled in a corner, her hands clenched tightly, her body trembling uncontrollably. When she looked up and saw Lynn, a glimmer of hope flashed in her eyes, but it was quickly overshadowed by fear.

"Don't be afraid, we're here to help you." Lynn tried to keep her voice calm. "Can you tell me what the killer looks like?"

The woman swallowed hard, her voice trembling: "Her—her eyes were as red as blood. Her coat was covered in roses—she smiled horribly, as if—as if she was enjoying it all."

Kate listened intently, a multitude of questions swirling in her mind. Red eyes? Rose patterns? These descriptions seemed too fantastical, even unreal. Lynn's expression, however, grew even more somber.

He stood up and whispered to Carter, "This isn't your average serial killer. The killer's methods and motives have a ritualistic quality to them."

"You mean—" Carter hesitated for a moment, "this might be some kind of religious killing?"

"It's not certain yet," Lynn said in a deep voice, "but we need to find out the killer's identity as soon as possible; time is running out."

Kate stood on the street corner outside the crime scene, watching the busy figures inside the police cordon, and took a deep breath of the cold air. She knew she couldn't obtain firsthand investigative information like Lynn, but she could use her journalistic skills to uncover clues hidden within the case.

Kate pulled out her notebook and voice recorder and strode towards a middle-aged man standing on the street smoking. His coat was open, and his fingers were trembling slightly; he looked like he had been standing in the cold wind for a long time.

"Sir, may I have a few minutes of your time?" Kate asked politely, her voice gentle yet firm. "I'm a reporter for the Manhattan News, and I'd like to hear your thoughts on this case."

The man paused for a moment, hesitated, and then said in a low voice, "I don't know what I can tell you—"

But that night, I did hear some strange noises.

Kate immediately turned on the recorder and nodded encouragingly, "Could you describe it in more detail?"

The man took a drag of his cigarette, his gaze drifting into the distance: "It was midnight. I had just gotten off work at the bar. When I reached this street, I suddenly heard a woman scream from upstairs. The sound was sharp and short, like it had been cut off. I was terrified, but I didn't dare go closer; I just glanced at it from a distance—"

I saw a shadow, blurry and indistinct, it looked like a woman, but she moved incredibly fast and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

"Are you sure it's a woman?" Kate pressed, trying to glean something from the situation.

"It's not very clear, but her silhouette doesn't look like a man's." The man took a final, deep drag on his cigarette.

She stubbed out her cigarette. "Also, the coat she was wearing had a faint sheen—it looked like it had embroidered patterns on it."

Kate's heart skipped a beat, the image of the "rose coat" Lynn had mentioned flashing before her eyes. Suppressing her excitement, she continued, "Do you remember any other details? Like her height, build, or—"

Face?"

The man shook his head: "I couldn't see very clearly, but when she walked away, her figure was tall and slender, and her movements were very agile."

Kate thanked him sincerely, quickly jotted down the information, and headed towards another small convenience store nearby. The owner, an elderly woman in her sixties, was fiddling with the cash register behind the counter. Kate smiled and handed him her press pass, saying, "Hello, I'm investigating a case that happened in the neighborhood. Have you heard about what happened that night?"

The old woman frowned and gave her a wary look: "The police have already questioned me, so I have nothing to say."

Kate nodded in understanding, but didn't give up: "I just want to record the voices of the community."

Telling everyone what happened here might help solve the case sooner.

These words seemed to touch the old woman. She hesitated for a moment, then said in a low voice, "That night, I was resting upstairs. Around one o'clock in the morning, I heard a series of hurried footsteps outside the door, as if someone was running. I looked out the window and only saw a dark figure flash by, moving faster than an ordinary person."