America: The Gear-Up Detective

Thursday morning.

Rod felt full of energy even before he got out of bed.

After stretching his body with satisfaction, Rod began to wash up. "Looks like I've been taking good care of myself these past few days."

As soon as I arrived at the restaurant, I saw my grandfather's breakfast on the table. Elderly people all over the world have one thing in common: they need less sleep.

Edgar got up early to make breakfast, then went about his own business, usually fishing.

Breakfast was a classic white meal: bacon and eggs, toast, and a glass of milk.

After breakfast, Rod began his new day.

The weather in Los Angeles has been nice lately, sunny and with a gentle breeze in the mornings, so it doesn't feel too hot.

At nine o'clock sharp, Rod entered the sixth team's office.

Everyone else has things to do. Although the murderer in the case of the body being dumped has been caught, the case file still needs to be submitted to the prosecutor, and a trial will be held later. Officers like Rod will also need to testify in court when necessary, so there is still a lot of follow-up work to be done.

As is customary, José was organizing the case files and conducting a final review to ensure that every piece of evidence was legally obtained.

Anna was writing a report to submit to the prosecutor. It was a simple but tedious task, and Anna, a newcomer, was in charge of it.

Hank and Jackson were having breakfast together, but Evan was nowhere to be seen.

Rhodes glanced into the captain's office deeper inside, but didn't see Captain Connor.

He walked up to the two who were eating breakfast and said, "Good morning, have you seen the captain?"

Hank, holding a coffee and chewing on a sandwich, replied, "I saw him. It looked like he went to the door to smoke with Evan."

"You need to see him?" Jackson asked curiously. Connor was usually serious and rarely smiled. Apart from Evan, who was equally serious, most of the team members were unwilling to have any contact with Connor in private.

"There's something I need to take care of."

Rod touched the sunglasses in his pocket, then turned and walked downstairs.

The lobby on the first floor of the detective agency is very large, and there are usually many police officers coming and going.

The main entrance is sensor-activated. Just inside the entrance, slightly to the left, is the information desk, which can also be called the reception area.

It was early morning, and many police officers were still talking in the lobby, along with some visitors and members of the public who had come to handle their cases.

As soon as Rod arrived at the police station's lobby on the first floor, he saw Connor walking inside.

Rod came up directly from the underground garage without using the main entrance, which explains why he didn't see Connor smoking at the door.

Connor was still wearing a casual suit. As he walked from outside into the building, he took off his sunglasses, held them in his hand, and chatted with Evan as he walked.

The two seemed to be talking about something rather serious.

However, both of them are meticulous people and wouldn't talk about entertainment news; it's most likely still work-related matters.

In fact, Rhodes didn't have any elaborate plan; he just acted according to circumstances.

She planned to hide behind the front desk, and while the two were walking and chatting, she would pretend to bump into Connor when he wasn't paying attention. Then, she would knock off his sunglasses and, while picking them up, switch them with his own.

The plan is a bit rudimentary; the specifics will depend on how it goes. If it doesn't work out, we'll look for another opportunity.

Thinking this, Rod slowly walked towards the back of the front desk information area not far away.

Just then, a heated argument broke out on the outer side of the front desk in the detective agency lobby.

"Please, please investigate again. How could my husband have died suddenly? His schedule was so regular, it couldn't be..."

A woman with blonde hair, dressed simply and carrying a black crossbody bag, who looked to be in her fifties, stood in front of the front desk, shouting excitedly.

The officer on duty today was the overweight Dalton, who said with a troubled expression, "Madam, could you please calm down?"

"How can I stay calm? Go check on him again! It's been seven months, and I've always felt it—he must have been murdered!"

The blonde woman became increasingly agitated, pounding her hands on the front desk and even waving her black crossbody bag.

Rhodes' attention was also drawn to it.

Unfortunately, the woman who suddenly started waving her crossbody bag didn't notice what was happening behind her.

Connor, who was chatting with Evan, did not notice what was happening beside him. When the crossbody bag flew towards him, Connor instinctively raised his right hand to block it.

"Snapped!"

The sunglasses he was holding in his right hand were grazed by the metal accessories on his crossbody bag and flew off.

Connor didn't notice the sunglasses; he instinctively raised his hand to block, then grabbed the strap of his backpack and pulled it behind him, causing the attacker to stumble.

Connor then grabbed the attacker's arm with his left hand, and with a quick twist, pinned the woman, who was waving a crossbody bag, to the ground.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye. By the time Rhodes reacted, he saw a pair of blue sunglasses with a golden sheen fly to his feet.

[Luck Value: 13]

"???"

"What's going on?"

Looking up at the commotion not far away, everyone in the hall was focused on Connor and the attacker's actions. Rhode strode forward and took the sunglasses in his hand.

"assembly!"

Regardless of the consequences, let's get our hands on it first.

[Equipment assembly in progress... Assembly complete... Information updated, please check promptly.]

Ignoring the system message for now, since I already have the fish in my mouth, there's no rush.

Only then did Rod have time to care about his captain, and he hurriedly stepped forward.

"How are you? Captain, are you alright? And Evan too?"

Evan was older and his reactions were indeed slower. Connor had already pinned the attacker to the ground when Evan suddenly stepped back, looking startled.

"Oh, I'm alright. Connor, are you okay? What happened?"

No wonder Evan has rarely gone out on fieldwork in the past two years. With his reaction speed, he simply can't react to any unexpected situations that arise at the crime scene or during arrest operations.

The other patrol officers and detectives nearby also came over and gathered around.

At that moment, Dalton, who was still standing at the front desk, dragged his slightly overweight body out and hurriedly said, "Detective Connor, are you alright? Why don't you get up?"

Connor used his knee to press against the blonde woman's back, his left hand to hold the attacker's hands in place, and his right hand to pull out a pair of silver handcuffs from his lower back. He then handcuffed the woman who was lying on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably and unresponsive.

Connor stood up, brushed the wrinkles and dust off his suit, and looked at Dalton. "What the hell? What's going on? Assaulting a police officer in the police station?"

Dalton sighed, helped the attacker, Renee, who was lying on the ground, and gestured to a nearby patrolman to take her to the lounge to calm down. Then he said to Connor and Evan, "Ms. Renee is a pitiful person too."

"That's no excuse for her assaulting a police officer at the police station." Connor was clearly angry, fumbling for something in his suit pockets for a while without finding anything, and his face turned visibly red.

Seeing this, Rhodes took out a pair of sunglasses from his pocket and handed them to Connor. "Captain, are you looking for this? I just picked it up after it was knocked away by that crossbody bag."

Connor visibly relaxed. "Thank you, Rod. This is a gift from my daughter. I can't imagine what I would have found if I had lost it."

Seeing that Connor's mood had improved, Dalton, who was standing to the side, continued, "That lady just now lost her husband a year ago."

Her husband died in a hotel.