“Yes, sir.”
“Try to entertain him with the Vigilante. If we’re lucky, he might kill again and we’ll have Marcus distracted for a while.”
“I don’t think he will. Julius is too scared to send his men out; he told me himself. He’ll probably reduce his crew for a while, send a few when necessary, but not as much as he usually does. His men are terrified.”
“They know how the citizens feel, then. That’s a good thing.” Captain Vera stood from his chair, signaling the end of the conversation.
Adrian followed, but the captain stopped before he reached the door.
“Don’t let Julius out of your sight, and remember, Marcus is not the enemy here.”
“Don’t worry sir. I’ll take care of it,” Adrian replied.
According to his former boss, Marcus had a tendency to obsess over complicated cases. It had happened when he was a kid, getting fixated on something of interest, and it only got more intense when he’d become a police officer.
A new obsession had begun with the Midnight Vigilante, and he knew it involved some of the most prominent citizens of LinHill. Marcus had once believed Julius Martinson to be the mayor, but then he realized the man hadn’t come to power by democratic methods.
Standing in front of Julius’s house, Marcus took a deep breath and approached the two men guarding the front entrance. He produced his ID and waved it in front of the men’s faces. They looked at each other, conferring on their next move. Eventually, he was permitted deeper into the property.
One of them walked Marcus into the living room and motioned for him to sit down before disappearing through a long corridor.
A few moments later, a man dressed in a spotless grey suit appeared, a cigarette in one hand and a drink in the other.
Marcus stood and extended a hand. “Mr. Martinson, I’m Detective Marcus Jung.”
Julius glanced at the offered hand, ignored it, and sank into the sofa. “What can I do for you, Detective?”
“I’m investigating a few attacks that happened last week,” Marcus explained, producing a notepad from his pocket and sifting through several pages. “From what I understand, the victims worked for you. Is that correct?”
“Yes. Did you find who did this?” Julius sipped his drink and tapped his finger against the armrest of the couch.
“It’s an ongoing investigation. But you could help by answering a few questions. Did they have enemies you’re aware of?”
“The Midnight Vigilante,” Julius quickly replied. “I suppose you do have him on the list? He’s my number one enemy, and I’m one-hundred-percent sure he killed them.”
“Why would he do that? Why would he target your men specifically and not someone else?” Marcus asked. He knew he was asking the right questions because Julius looked more uncomfortable with each moment.
“I have no idea. I’m a good, hardworking man. Ask anyone.” Julius smiled. “Whatever people might have told you, they have the wrong idea. I’m merely a businessman.”
Marcus opened his notepad again and read silently while nodding. “You own a casino, right?”
Julius nodded.
“I suppose you have permission for it?”
“From the mayor himself. But you didn’t come here to question me about my job. You’re here to ask for information about the death of my men, and I already told you everything you need to know. The Midnight Vigilante is a criminal, and he’s who you should be chasing.”
“That’s for me to decide,” Marcus said. “Now, I’ll be on my way, but I’m going to ask you not to leave town, in case I have more questions for you.”
Marcus and Julius stood in unison, although Julius didn’t look pleased at the detective’s words. He probably wasn’t used to being ordered by anyone, but it wasn’t the thing that concerned Marcus the most. The man was keeping something from him and it was more than simply running a casino. Even when the Midnight Vigilante was the criminal here, there had to be a powerful reason to be targeting Julius of all people. And why did that man have so many liberties around town?
If he wasn’t completely interested in Julius before, he certainly was now.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Julius was furious, but it hadn’t stopped him making preparations for another reunion. Riley had received a call summoning her to waitress again.
As the night progressed and beverages flowed, Riley grew increasingly desperate to leave the house. She’d encountered her fair share of drunken men in her life, and she was at her wits’ end with the way they treated everyone around them, especially women. It gave them the illusion of power, and Riley tried to demonstrate how wrong they were by slapping their hands every time they got too close. Julius only laughed and whispered jokes to his drunken friends, which angered her even more.
“Please don’t be bothered, doll,” one of the men said as Riley served another round of drinks. He placed one of his dirty hands on her arm. “You should learn how to take compliments.”
“‘Doll’ is not my name. It’s Riley,” she snapped, pushing his hand away and earning a wave of laughter from the man’s partners, along with a nasty look from Julius.
In response, the man scooted his chair closer and reached for her legs. Riley breathed heavily for a few seconds until his proximity made her stomach churn.
Although she knew the consequences, she couldn’t stop herself as she grabbed the nearest empty beer bottle and smashed it against the man’s head, making his friends gasp as he fell against the table.
Julius stepped in the way before the man could retaliate. She backed away, broken bottle still in hand as blood dripped down the man’s head.
“Stupid bitch! Look what you did!” the man yelled.
“All right, that’s enough!” Julius shouted at his guest before turning to Riley, who was shaking from the adrenaline rush. “Apologize to him, now.”
“What? He was groping me! If anyone should be apologizing, its him!” Riley snapped back.
Instead of arguing, the man grabbed his belongings and headed toward the door.
Julius pointed at the man’s retreating backside and unleashed some of
