America, starting as a trainee police officer

Chapter 127 Out of Time

Levi and Lopez escorted two white supremacists into a police car.

The police car drove back to the Central Wilshire Police Station.

As Levi and Lopez escorted the two suspects from the garage into the detention area, an outrageous scene unfolded before Levi's eyes.

The entire detention area was overcrowded.

A long line of gang members squatted against the wall, their hands cuffed behind their backs. They were all tattooed and white, and even the detention cells were overflowing.

Just as Levi and Lopez had cornered the two white supremacists, Tim and Lucy walked in from outside.

Tim carried a stack of documents and a box of evidence slung over his shoulder, a rare good mood on his face. Lucy followed behind him, carrying a transparent evidence bag filled with bottles and jars.

"Hey, newbies, not bad for you." Tim greeted Levi when he saw him.

"Officer Bradford, what are you doing here—" Levi glanced at the evidence bag in Lucy's hand; the labels on the bottles and jars inside looked somewhat familiar.

"Massage parlors," Lucy said succinctly. "Massage parlors owned by the Southern Front gangs. On the surface, they're legitimate businesses, but in reality—"

"Actually?" Li Wei raised an eyebrow.

"It was actually a legitimate massage parlor," Tim shrugged. "It's just that we've shut it down now."

Li Wei leaned closer to peek at the contents of the evidence bag and couldn't help but laugh: "Twenty gallons of lubricant? Is this a legitimate massage parlor?"

"That was just making pour-over coffee for the customers," Tim said without changing his expression, then turned to Lucy. "I'm here to process the arrest paperwork."

Lucy placed the evidence bag on the table and dusted off her hands: "It's just twenty gallons of lubricant that was seized. The mob isn't going to lift the kill order on Nolan because of this."

Upon hearing this, Li Wei shook his head and interjected, "That's not necessarily true. Twenty gallons of lubricant, how many cups of hand-drip coffee would that take to use up? The Southern Frontline Gang is doing pretty big business."

Lopez chuckled. "Drip coffee? Tim, you've got a way with words. Our team's been eyeing that massage parlor since last month. The lines are incredibly long, all male customers. They come out in less than twenty minutes, all looking like they've had a caffeine overdose. Twenty gallons of coffee beans—how many cups would that take?"

"So you're taking advantage of today to take it down?" Levi asked Tim.

Tim slammed the documents on the table, resting his hands on the edge: "Asset seizures are the biggest loss for gangs. The law states that the police can legally seize anything related to a gang's illegal criminal activities. Vehicles, merchandise, even raiding an entire massage parlor."

"Oh, why didn't you act sooner last week?" Lucy crossed her arms and tilted her head to look at him. "The social conduct police department should have known that massage parlor belonged to the Southern Front gang."

Tim wasn't annoyed and patiently explained, "That's just making pour-over coffee for the customers. Taking down one criminal organization only leads to the rise of others. Generally speaking, it's not worth wasting energy on. But today is the perfect opportunity."

"How so?" Lopez asked, intrigued.

"The Southern Front just scared off a gang trying to take over their territory," Tim said in a low voice. "A rival, a—"

He was speaking when he caught a glimpse of someone standing in the office area out of the corner of his eye, and he froze instantly.

Li Wei followed his gaze.

A middle-aged white woman dressed in casual clothes stood in a corner of the office area, holding a cup of coffee, and was calmly observing the entire detention area.

"What a joke?!" Tim's expression changed, he cursed, slammed the file on the table, and stormed over.

Li Wei and Lopez exchanged a glance, then followed him a few steps, leaning against the wall at the entrance of the office area. They didn't get too close, but they could still hear the conversation over there.

"What exactly do you want from the police station?" Tim asked, suppressing his anger as he stood in front of the woman.

Detective Murphy calmly put down his coffee cup, his tone as indifferent as if he were discussing the weather: "It's my duty to ensure that the police do not commit any wrongdoing."

"One of our officers has been put on a kill list by the mob! He could be killed at any moment!" Tim said through gritted teeth.

Murphy remained unmoved: "What kind of behavior do you think police officers overstepping the line and abusing their power mostly refers to? When a police officer is scared, angry, or wants revenge, they might—it's hard to say—yet yell at a detective, 'Should I report you for protecting a police officer who has misconduct?'"

Upon hearing this, Tim's expression darkened even further.

Watching from the side, Li Wei whispered to Lopez, "Who's that?"

"Murphy from the Department of Internal Affairs," Lopez said in a low voice, "Tim's wife, Isabella, used to be a police officer. She was on the Department of Internal Affairs' radar for drug use. Tim didn't report it in time, and Murphy has been relentlessly pursuing this matter."

Li Wei nodded thoughtfully and continued looking over there.

"Do as you please!" Tim's voice was already somewhat out of control. "You know perfectly well that it's all because of Isabella."

""

"You know what I mean, it's because of Isabella," Murphy said calmly, "because you covered for her for months!"

"That's not the truth!"

"Oh, please!" Murphy finally showed a hint of emotion. "Any cop can smell the scent of drug addicts from ten miles away! You knew Isabella was using drugs all along! And you just watched her go to work every day with a loaded gun on her hip! You had a strong obligation to report her! But you chose to turn a blind eye!"

"OK! You're talking nonsense!" Tim's finger almost poked Murphy's face.

Just then, Lucy walked over quickly.

"Uh—hey—I want to check if the detention room is operating according to protocol. Could you come and inspect it, okay? That's all, let's go!"

Lucy stepped between Tim and Murphy, grabbed Tim's arm, and started walking back.

Tim was dragged away, but before leaving, he turned back and threw out a sentence: "You cops! All of you are the same!"

Murphy watched Tim's retreating figure, then turned his gaze to Lucy, his tone carrying a hint of meaning: "Hey, how should I put it?"

If I were you, I would have applied to change instructors long ago.

"Really? Well, Detective. You can't speak for me!" Lucy said, turning and walking away.

After the two had walked away, Li Wei leaned against the wall and shook his head: "People from the Ministry of Internal Affairs are really unwelcome wherever they go."

Lopez crossed his arms: "That depends on who it is."