After filming the shotgun, Henry crossed the living room and went upstairs to the second floor via the staircase, never stopping the recording throughout the entire process. In the master bedroom on the second floor, a white woman was lying face down on the floor, her back a bloody mess, showing no signs of life. The phone in her hand indicated that she was most likely the one who called the police.

Just like downstairs, Henry avoided the blood, filming both wide shots and close-ups, absolutely refusing to check on the condition of the shooting victim.

He knew exactly what he was there to do.

Leaving the master bedroom, he checked another room next door, but found nothing of value. Henry hurried downstairs, and as he turned the corner, he happened to see through a glass window that there were two more people dead in the dining room, so he went over and filmed them as well.

“We need to get out of here fast!”

Henry muttered to himself, running toward the front door as fast as he could. It had been over a minute since he entered, and the police could arrive at any moment. If they caught him, not only would it bring a lot of trouble, but the footage he shot would definitely not be safe.

This was extremely valuable breaking news!

Clutching the camera tightly, Henry sprinted out of the estate at full speed, already able to hear the sound of sirens in the distance. If he didn’t leave now, it would be too late.

Jumping into the black Ford, Henry tossed the handheld camera onto the passenger seat, started the car, and sped off. After turning off Bill Road, he finally let out a small sigh of relief. Not far ahead, he saw two police cars driving by in succession, clearly heading to reinforce the crime scene.

Henry drove past the two police cars, all his tension dissipating, replaced by excitement.

He had been in this line of work for some time and could judge just how valuable this footage was!

Leaving Santa Monica Valley, Henry found a place to park. After stopping the car, he immediately pumped his fist in the air.

“Nice job, buddy!” He looked at himself in the rearview mirror, gritting his teeth and saying, “This is our exclusive! Ours! We’re going to make it big this time!”

A year of struggle had made Henry fully appreciate the hardships of survival for small-timers, and he understood how hard it was to succeed.

Now, he knew very well that to achieve success, he had to seize every opportunity to move forward, never stopping for anyone or anything.

To succeed in America, money was an absolutely essential foundation.

As he pondered how to sell the footage, Henry waited for his mood to settle a bit, then took his laptop from the back seat, connected it to the camera’s storage drive, and began playing the video he had just shot.

The footage started from the moment he entered the estate’s gate and ended when he left the mansion. Although it was only about three minutes long, Henry knew it could bring him far more income than anything before.

“Perfect!” he muttered to himself as he watched the footage. “You did a perfect job, buddy!”

After finishing, Henry played it again. When he saw the two Black men driving away, he hit pause.

In the video, the car’s make, license plate, and the general appearance of the two Black men were all clearly visible. If handed over to the police, it would be important evidence and clues.

Henry frowned slightly. Should he cut out this part and give it to the police?

Chapter 9: One Hundred Thousand Dollars

Leaning back in the driver’s seat, Henry stared intently at the laptop on the steering wheel, considering how to handle the footage of the car and the two murderers.

Hand it over to the police? That’s what a good citizen should do...

But Henry had never considered himself a good citizen of Los Angeles. Even after more than a year in this world, he felt no sense of belonging to America.

More importantly, what benefit would this bring him?

Aside from some routine moral praise, Henry couldn’t think of anything else.

He played the footage again, propping his chin with one hand, and began to consider how this might play out.

A serious and vicious crime like this, if it happened in downtown Los Angeles or Santa Monica Valley, would definitely develop in completely different directions—the former would be ignored, the latter would attract a lot of attention.

The case occurred in a wealthy, safe neighborhood, which alone would draw public attention. The LAPD would also be under tremendous pressure. If they couldn’t find valuable leads, it was very likely they’d offer a huge reward.

How much could the reward be? Henry estimated that, given the status of the victims and the location, it would definitely be tens of thousands of dollars.

There was no reward yet. If he handed over the footage now, Henry believed he wouldn’t get any real reward at all. He would never overestimate the credibility or integrity of the American police.

Moreover, once the footage was handed over to the police, it meant he could no longer sell it to TV stations, which would mean losing a large sum of income.

For him right now, even a few thousand dollars was a big deal, let alone tens of thousands.

Therefore, handing the footage over to the police was definitely the worst option.