After shaking hands and saying goodbye to Paul Lee, Eric Carter went to the homes of the three girls who had been killed one after another, but he didn’t knock on the doors or go inside. He only observed the surroundings. After all, any questions for the victims’ families were already in the written records, and in great detail. With more and more time having passed, asking now wouldn’t yield first-hand information—what’s in the records is more accurate.

Scott Dawson didn’t know what Eric Carter was busy with. He just silently followed Eric Carter, not daring to disturb his train of thought.

Back at the county bureau, Eric Carter stayed up all night, marking up a map, sometimes deep in thought, sometimes pacing the room.

The next morning, when Mark Mason entered the office, he was nearly choked by the thick cigarette smoke filling the air. He coughed repeatedly and, seeing Eric Carter still puffing away while poring over a thick stack of documents, frowned and said, “Deputy Political Commissar Carter, what are you up to? Is this room even fit for people to enter?”

Immersed in the case, Eric Carter didn’t respond, which only made Mark Mason even more annoyed.

Around nine o’clock, Scott Dawson wandered in. He knew Eric Carter had been up all night and was a bit worried.

On Eric Carter’s desk, Scott Dawson saw a huge map covered with various markings. For example, around the first victim’s residence, there were notes like “Appendix 1, Appendix 2, Appendix 3…” and so on. Corresponding to these were the thick stack of files—“Appendix 1” on the map was the neighbor on the same floor as the first victim, and the “Appendix 1” file contained information about that neighbor’s family, its members, and mimeographed transcripts of the investigation into those members.

Scott Dawson, also an investigator on the task force, flipped through a few pages, his eyes widening in astonishment. “You did all this in one night?”

In fact, Eric Carter had been working on it for a long time. Ever since he was reborn ten days ago, Eric Carter had started this massive project. With no computer available, he could only do it all by hand.

Eric Carter smiled and said, “This is called three-dimensional thinking. It can spark inspiration.”

In his previous life, even after leaving the police force, Eric Carter would sometimes think about this case. After the internet became available, he even searched for similar cases, but found no clues. He wasn’t formally trained in police work, nor did he dare call himself a detective. With the limited technology available now, all he could do was use his brain and hope to find a breakthrough.

Scott Dawson stared in amazement at Eric Carter’s work and said, “Wow, impressive, really impressive.”

Eric Carter said, “I have some ideas now. I’ll talk to Director Grant later.”

At that moment, footsteps sounded outside. Old Johnson from the criminal investigation team knocked and entered, smiling at Eric Carter: “Deputy Political Commissar Carter, the task force had a meeting this morning and confirmed there’s enough evidence. They’re preparing to send John Lee for prosecution. Director Grant asked me to let you know.”

Eric Carter was taken aback. The task force had a meeting and didn’t even notify him, the deputy leader. But now wasn’t the time to argue about that, so he quickly asked, “Where’s Director Grant?”

Old Johnson smiled apologetically and said, “He went to the county committee. After all, this is a big case. Now that we’ve closed it on our end, we have to report to the county leaders.”

Eric Carter frowned. This Kevin Grant was still as showy as ever. Didn’t he realize this was a human life and needed to be handled carefully?

John Lee—was he really going to be executed so hastily? Then what was the point of Eric Carter’s rebirth? Maybe he was never really reborn at all, and the experiences of the next twenty years were just a fleeting dream. Maybe fate was impossible to change, and John Lee would still be executed by firing squad, and he himself would still be squeezed out of the police force by Kevin Grant, his family ruined by him.

Chapter 004: Layers of Fog

The sky was overcast, with occasional drizzles falling, and the stifling feeling in the chest seemed to quietly disappear.

Brian Howard rode a sidecar motorcycle, carrying Eric Carter and Scott Dawson through the streets and alleys of the county town. Although their movements seemed random, in fact, they were visiting some special marks on Eric Carter’s map.

Based on the home addresses, living areas, and the locations where the remains of the three consecutive victims were found after their disappearances, the county bureau had originally outlined a possible area where the killer might be. Of course, this dangerous area covered nearly half the county. The police had meticulously visited every household in the danger zone, but never found any clues—until finally, at the edge of this designated area, they caught John Lee.

Now, Eric Carter had returned to the area originally circled as the possible residence of the killer, hoping to sort out the clues in his mind.

But with the task force about to announce the case closed, there was really no one left in the bureau to help. Eric Carter had no choice but to call in Brian Howard.

Before Kevin Grant could make this case ironclad, a breakthrough had to be found.

Brian Howard carried Eric Carter and Little Dawson, but felt completely lost inside. He didn’t even know what he was doing. The case was almost closed, but Commissar Carter insisted on stirring things up, and he’d gotten himself involved. If Kevin Grant found out, wouldn’t he make life hell for him?

Still, even though Commissar Carter had lost his influence, he couldn’t just refuse to help him outright. On a personal level, he couldn’t do that—otherwise, he’d be too much of a fair-weather friend.