North America Gunman Detective

Jimmy followed Noah to the wilderness, and the two parked their car on a small road.

Noah handed Jimmy a cigarette, both lit up, and after a couple of puffs, Noah began to speak.

"Jimmy, don't you think today's events were a bit strange?"

"Yeah, I can't figure it out."

"When I first arrived at the police station, Reina was already a sergeant there, and he had been working at the Plaskey County police station for over a decade."

"6 years ago, Reina was fired from the police force because of some issues, though officially it was said that he resigned. He's been out of the picture ever since, until today." Noah took a couple of drags, threw his cigarette on the ground, stamped it out, and then took out another one.

"Reina had always been involved with a certain crime family, but we were all unaware until 6 years ago. A drug dealer was caught in the act, and during transport back to the station, the police car was attacked, the dealer was rescued, and a police officer was killed.

The department later traced the drug dealer and discovered their base, catching a boss who confessed there was a mole in the department. After the drug dealer was arrested, someone informed them of the transport route, leading to the tragedy. Using this man as bait, the department pinpointed the mole to be Reina.

Reina should have been arrested, but for some reason, he wasn't captured. Instead, he handed in his resignation, left the police force, and never appeared in Little Rock again."

"In all these years, no one found out why?" Jimmy was confused; a mole should be the most despised situation within the police.

"No, the truth is we did investigate, but were quickly stopped. I don't know where the pressure came from, but Reina's involvement with the crime family is certain, and he likely had substantial power."

"What happened after? Did they just give up and let it go? We lost a colleague."

"Yes, after that, the investigation was never reopened. Reina left, and the family of the deceased officer was compensated."

Jimmy didn't know what to say. Compensations were given, the mole was found, and then nothing happened. How much pressure does it take to make the entire police force give up the pursuit?

"So, what exactly are they coming back for this time?"

"I don't know, but, Jimmy, be extra careful on patrol lately, I have a bad feeling. I'm heading out, see you."

Noah stubbed out his cigarette, got in his car, and left. Jimmy followed suit, beginning his patrol at a slow pace.

The person who probably knew the most about today's incident was Chief James. A mole in the police leading to an officer's death, even though James wasn't the Chief then, this kind of scandal must have left enough information at the upper levels. Next in line would likely be Chief Sam, who informed the county police and the chief about today's situation, clearly knowing about Reina's case. This wasn't just a normal hostage situation; the key was Reina himself.

With these thoughts weighing on his mind, Jimmy's subsequent patrol was practically an exercise in herding sheep; as long as nothing too outrageous happened, he let it slide. The dispatch center didn't assign him any tasks, and he couldn't be bothered to take the initiative.

After finishing his shift that night, Jimmy went straight back to the station to rest. With his current issues unresolved, the IRS felt like a colossal weight on his mind, and he couldn't see a way out.

The next morning Jimmy went home to rest, and after waking up in the afternoon, he went to Walmart and bought some daily necessities. With life getting more stable, Jimmy felt it was time to turn his apartment into a home, at least to the point where he could cook and live in it comfortably.

Perfecting a home wasn't something that could be accomplished in one shopping trip. Jimmy tidied up a bit, then continued on to work.

He collected his gear according to procedure and hit the road once more. Arriving at his assigned intersection, Jimmy continued to wait for something to happen.

Jimmy was especially bored tonight; whether it was staking out at intersections or patrolling the streets, he didn't come across a suitable target. He wandered the highway like a ghost in the night, and if it weren't for the black and white police car livery, someone probably would have called the police.

Approaching midnight, Jimmy received a dispatch from the center to resolve a noise complaint in Summerfield Village.

Jimmy arrived in Summerfield and found the person who called 911, claiming their neighbor was doing renovations late at night, severely disrupting their rest.

After saying goodbye to the caller, Jimmy reached the neighbor's doorstep.

Although the neighbor's house was brightly lit, there was now no sound at all. Jimmy stood by the door and knocked, "Plaskey County Police, open the door."

"Just a moment," a man inside replied before opening the door, but the screen door remained closed.

"What's going on, officer?"

"What's your name?"

"Frank Moses."

"Mr. Moses, someone complained about you making noise, so I came to check it out. Are you renovating the house?" Jimmy asked, peeking past the man to the living room, which was sparsely furnished with a long sofa and a cabinet against the wall, both looking brand new, as if they had just moved in.

"Yes, just fixing up the kitchen and a bedroom."

"Do you mind if I take a look around?" Jimmy continued.

"Not at all, please come in." The man opened the screen door, and Jimmy followed him in. He was shown the kitchen under renovation and a storage room nearby. The kitchen was littered with wooden racks and several paint cans, part of the wall was knocked down, and there were pieces of broken wood and dirt on the floor, seemingly in preparation for installing cabinets into the wall space.

Jimmy didn't find anything unusual, turned back to the door, and said to the man, "Mr. Moses, renovating at night can disturb your neighbors' rest. You wouldn't want your neighbors complaining about you all the time, right. It would be better to do your renovations earlier, preferably during the day."

"Certainly, I'll be more mindful. I've just moved here and haven't greeted the neighbors yet. I'll apologize to them tomorrow."

"Alright then. Goodbye, Mr. Moses."

Turning to leave, Jimmy walked down the steps but then turned back to ask another question, "Do I know you? You look very familiar."

"I don't think so, I don't remember you, I have just arrived here."

"OK, maybe I'm mistaken. Goodbye, Mr. Moses."

Jimmy went back to his patrol car, reported the outcome, and then left Summerfield.

Back on the highway, Jimmy was still thinking about Frank Moses, who seemed particularly familiar to him, resembling a lot a movie star, only younger, Bruce Willis.

He had seen many Bruce Willis films, though he barely remembered most of them. The ones he did recall were Die Hard, Red Flames Battlefield, and The Expendables. And in the movies he had seen, Willis was much older, whereas the Frank Moses he met seemed only to be in his forties, not the elderly man seen in the films.

If it really was him, then very bad things could happen here, as his movies were primarily about shootings and slaughter. If such serious incidents were to occur here, the people affected wouldn't be just one or two.