บท 229: Chapter 147: Mystery on a Rainy Night (Part 1)
"When outsiders enter Living Hell, they certainly cannot be as friendly as a tourist group, and Fish would not happily allow them to monopolize the territory. In the beginning, her attitude was very firm and uncompromising, which led to several turf wars,"
Batman continued in the tone of Detective Gordon, "The scale of the gang wars in Living Hell kept getting more out of hand and I had to rush there several nights in a row to prevent them from blowing up the newly renovated buildings. In fact, on my first night, Fish was planning to do just that."
"During the renovation of Living Hell, I updated the water supply system there, but Fish wanted to use this device as a bomb to blackmail other mob bosses, to make them back off. I stopped her."
With his cloak wrapped around him, Batman stood in the corner's shadow, as if he didn't exist, but his deep voice echoed in the room. Shiller asked him, "So you discovered Fish's murder while you were maintaining the peace in Living Hell?"
Batman continued, "I had been patrolling Living Hell for several days, and today was supposed to be the last day, as the mob's territories had been divided and they were about to settle down."
"However, that night, I heard some commotion on the rooftop. By the time I reached there, there were only two people in the room. One was the already dead Fish Muni, and the other was Oswald Kolbott."
Shiller turned to Gordon, he said: "So, Detective Gordon, why are you so eager about this case? As far as I know, at least a dozen mob bosses have died in Gotham this year alone. I believe, Fish is not that special."
"Indeed," Gordon nodded, answering: "The scale of the Munney Gang is not that large in Gotham. In fact, Living Hell, that damned place, couldn't squeeze out much resources. Among the mob bosses, Fish was one of the poorest."
"Brock told me that he just had dealings with Fish a few days ago, regarding a murder case on Green Street, but of course, there's not much to say about that case."
"What's key is, Brock told me that Fish was a complete lunatic. She had a serious mental disorder and was a sadist."
"My intense attention on the death of Fish is actually out of necessity because this case involves an important figure."
"Who?" Shiller asked.
"The godfather's son, Evans Falcone."
"Evans? How did he get involved in this?" A puzzled Shiller asked: "It was just two days ago when I called him to my office to guide his thesis, I didn't notice anything wrong about him."
Gordon sighed, "Living Hell is the first step of Gotham's renovation project, and the old Godfather is very concerned about this, as are the heads of the Twelve Families. For such an important matter, the old Godfather would, of course, send a reliable person to oversee."
Shiller shook his head, "I don't think Falcone would send Evans. Even I know that Evans is not yet mature."
"But what if young Falcone actively wanted to go?"
There was a pause from Gordon, he said, "This is what I heard from our new chief, as you know, he is Falcone's man."
"He told me that young Falcone seemed a little impatient. He proposed to the Godfather that he wanted to personally oversee Living Hell. The Godfather neither agreed nor disagreed, but it seems that, in the end, he approved."
"Perhaps he began to feel threatened." Batman's deep voice echoed from the corner of the room; unlike the somewhat anxious tone of Gordon, his tone was always calm and certain.
"New Mayor Roy has become Falcone's godson, and he's doing quite well."
Gordon nodded, continuing with Batman's thought, "Roy is actually not much older than Evans, he doesn't have much education, but he's a practical empiricist, such a person can gain more favors from mob bosses, after all, Roy's background and theirs are more alike, and they have a lot to talk about."
"But in this way, the original heir, young Falcone, has become somewhat awkward." Gordon shrugged, "It's only normal for him to feel anxious."
"So he persuaded the old Godfather, wanting to participate in the affairs of Living Hell?"
"Exactly, that's also why I'm feeling pressured at the moment." Gordon rubbed his temples, saying.
"As I said before, Fish is a crazy woman, she's violent, completely unadvisable, and acts recklessly, not even putting the son of the old Godfather in her eyes."
"When Evans came to Living Hell, of course, he tried to mediate the conflicts amongst the gangs, he and Fish had several clashes."
"Evans, of course, hoped that Fish could sit down and talk with those foreign mob bosses, to peacefully resolve the matter, showcasing his mediating ability, but Fish was not willing to."
"We have someone inside Munney Gang, he reported back to us that Fish was almost entirely crazed. She started to beat her subordinates, even wanting to indiscriminately kill."
"Wait." Shiller interrupted Gordon, saying, "Could Kolbott be one of the victims?"
Gordon sighed again; he looked a little tired as he spoke, "That's what I conjectured too. Even though I don't know exactly what the kid was doing under her command, he seems like the type she, that madwoman, would have targeted. He's completely defenseless, a perfect target for a sadist..."
Shiller didn't say anything, he just signaled Gordon to continue. After Gordon took a sip of water, he went on, "The tension between Fish and Evans Falcone is getting more and more intense, it almost sparked off several times."
"By rights, Evans Falcone should not be afraid of Fish, being an heir to the Falcone Family. Even the Twelve Families would listen to him."
"However, he was eager to prove himself and wanted to resolve the matter on his own, so he didn't want any outside help. But he was too impetuous as a result, he not only failed to deal with Fish, but also lost the sympathies of the other outsider mob bosses, who felt that he was slow in his actions, which was out of character for the Gotham Gang."
"Now with Fish dead, all the other outsider mob bosses believe it was Evans Falcone who did it. They feel threatened and are even more unwilling to listen to him. Some members of the Twelve Families are also unhappy with Evans Falcone's actions."
Gordon opened his hands on the table, "He started off being indecisive, and held unrealistic expectations of a peaceful transition. But in the end, out of anger and embarrassment, he resorted to assassination. This is completely disgraceful, no matter how you look at it."
"Our new chief of police is a man of the old Godfather, and he's not sure of the Godfather's stand right now. After all, it's his own flesh and blood, the Godfather can't just give up on him."
"Therefore, the new chief wants me to solve the case quickly. Even if it means falsely accusing someone else, he wants to clear Evans Falcone's suspicion, so that the Falcone Family heir doesn't look too foolish, affecting the Godfather's prestige."
Gordon slapped the table with his palm, "That's why I called you here in the middle of the night. We want to get a breakthrough from that kid named Oswald."
"It appears, you're not willing to absolve Evans Falcone. Instead, you want to uncover the truth."
"I do not wish to exonerate anyone. Even if Fish was a maniac who deserved death, I still want to find the real killer."
Shiller got up, and Gordon stood up with him. Gordon said, "Professor Rodriguez, I know, over the years you've been tracking the murderers of a series of brutal killings. You've solved big cases all around the world."
"I admit, I really need your help right now, but I just can't offer any decent remuneration…"
Gordon sighed and said, "This case involves forces that are too complex. If we can't solve it quickly, I'm afraid…"
Shiller turned to look at him. Under the lighting, Gordon looked haggard and his expression anxious.
This detective was no longer young. His face wore the lines of age. Shiller said to him, "You probably know this better than I do. This is a struggle between the heirs of the Falcone Family, and quite likely implicates the selection of the next Underground King of Gotham…"
"Getting involved in this whirlpool, any one person in Gotham could get torn to shreds, including you, Detective Gordon." Shiller's tone was serious as he solemnly added, "In the midst of such a whirlpool, seeking the truth may lead to a bullet in the head the very next day…"
"He won't die." came Batman's voice. "If Gotham City only has one good person left to protect, then at least I can make sure he survives till the next day."
Shiller eyed Batman, who was returning his gaze. A silent atmosphere diffused between them. Shiller had almost forgotten when was the last time he had such a conversation with Batman.
In the end, he sighed and said to Gordon, "This matter does concern me, in a way. The Living Hell is the first step for Gotham's reformation. It holds great significance. If any intense conflict breaks out at this juncture, even if you all didn't invite me, Falcone would have. If there are problems with Evans Falcone, as his tutor, I have to pick up the pieces."
Gordon walked ahead to open the door for him. As Shiller walked out with his head bowed, he murmured, "I knew I wouldn't be able to enjoy peaceful days here for long…"
When they arrived at the morgue, the coroner was already gone. Gordon pulled out Fish's body from the refrigerator, Shiller lifted the white cloth for a glance. Fish's head was shot by a bullet.
Gordon removed the rest of the white sheet and then said, "The fatal injury was the gunshot to the head. There are no other injuries anywhere on the body. The coroner's report stated they ruled out other possible causes of death."
"Well, there's a shot to the head, at least the killer's civilized."
Gordon shrugged, "It may sound like a black joke, but it's true. Here in Gotham, I have been dealing mostly with bodies riddled with bullets from assault rifles. Just one bullet to the head, the killer is indeed quite civil."
Shiller stared at the corpse silent for a while. Batman also walked over, silent as well. In the end, Gordon couldn't bear the atmosphere anymore, he glanced left at Shiller, then right at Batman and asked, "So, have you two discovered anything?"
"We are seeing the same thing as you."
"Alright, let's put our investigative thoughts together." Shiller took the lead, "Gordon, you should be able to continue investigating along the line of Evans Falcone. After all, your chief stands by Falcone's side. You can use the pretext of clearing Evans Falcone's name to get help from your chief. Batman will investigate the other mob bosses to see if they're suspects."
"As for me, the only possible eyewitness at the scene is currently suffering from Acute Stress Disorder. I need to treat him. If we have his testimony, it'll make things easier."
"Moreover," Batman looked at Shiller, "We can't rule out Oswald as a suspect. After all, apart from the deceased, only he was at the scene. It's possible that he killed Fish first, then pretended to be unconscious."
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