Jimmy drove back to the office, tonight's mission hadn't gone as planned, yet duty still continued, especially on Christmas Eve. The largest trouble stemmed from bars and nightclubs around New York. NYPD colleagues had arranged for a significant number of officers to work the night shift across the city to handle various incidents; the FBI would be contacted only for major cases.

Jimmy was watching TV in the office, yes, just watching TV—the 24-hour news was rolling. Sometimes, one had to admit that television stations really had quick access to information: a large number of paparazzi and freelance journalists roamed the city, usually the earliest witnesses at crime scenes, capturing footage to sell to television stations, sometimes even before the police had confirmed information, TV stations were already broadcasting live scenes.

Ordinary disturbances barely made it on screen and weren't discussed much. While listening to the TV, Jimmy opened the case report on his desk; these were old cases that Chris had assigned to Jimmy to practice with—a common practice in the groups Jimmy had been a part of, considered standard procedure.

At 12:30 am while Jimmy was reviewing materials, "breaking news" suddenly broadcasted on the TV. He immediately turned to watch; TV stations only interrupted normal programming with breaking news when it was significant, enough to interrupt what was being broadcast. This type of news didn't necessarily have footage, but it definitely had firsthand information.

"Breaking news: A gunfight has erupted in Times Square. From the sounds of the gunfire, at least three shooters were involved. Numerous tourists have been shot, and the gunmen have fled the scene. NYPD has arrived and is pursuing the shooters. Please stay tuned for further updates."

Jimmy set down his materials and continued watching the TV, but due to insufficient data, the breaking news segment ended and resumed regular programming.

Normally, such shootings are handled solely by NYPD, but if the shooting in a public space caused significant impact, the FBI would definitely get involved in the investigation. It was unclear who had been assigned to handle it at the moment.

Jimmy had already checked other offices; their direct supervisor, Hughes, had gone home, and Ruiz, unlucky from an unsuccessful search, had also gone to rest. Of the groups Jimmy knew, only he remained, the other departments were ones he hadn't collaborated with much before.

Jimmy waited for half an hour and had not received a call; it appeared today's disturbance was not his to handle, someone else must have already been at the scene dealing with it.

In the morning, as Jimmy was just getting back to his apartment to rest, Chris called. "Jimmy, you know about last night's shooting at Times Square, right?"

Jimmy, speaking through the speakerphone while changing clothes, replied, "Yes, I saw it while on duty last night, but nobody contacted me for backup, so I didn't follow up."

Chris said, "There's work to be done. Get ready to come back; we need to investigate."

Jimmy paused, "Chris, you know I was on duty all night, right? I need some rest."

Chris insisted, "Come back first, it's a bit troublesome."

Jimmy replied, "Okay, I'm on my way."

Jimmy quickly changed back into his clothes and drove to the office; Chris was already waiting for him downstairs. Jimmy didn't drive himself but sat in Chris's car, grabbing a moment to nap on the way.

"Jimmy, wake up, we're here," Chris shook Jimmy, bringing him to slight alertness as the two got out of the car. Jimmy realized something was off.

Jimmy asked, "Chris, aren't we going to Times Square?"

Chris explained, "No, NYPD discovered a clue. Two of the shooters from Times Square had been here before. They first shot Joe Matthewson here."

Chris and Jimmy showed their badges and crossed the NYPD's cordon to enter a row house.

NYPD investigators were gathering evidence in the apartment; Chris and Jimmy approached the body. Judging from the wounds, the victim was shot once in the head and once in the chest—a clean, professional job.

"Any developments?" Chris flashed his FBI badge and enquired of an investigator who sported an ID badge.

"Preliminary findings suggest the killers used a special tool to break the lock and entered through the front door. The victim had heard the noise and got up; the gunman shot him and he fell and died. No further shots were fired, seems like a professional job. They left no obvious fingerprints; we collected four footprints from the carpet at the entrance, looks like two people. The victim still needs an autopsy, and the bullets need to be sent to the testing center for ballistics analysis," the investigator responded.

While Chris was asking about the progress, Jimmy had already started scanning the entire room. Though it seemed the shooters had a clear target and left immediately after killing Matthewson in the living room, could a man directly targeted like Matthewson be a simple character?

Soon, Jimmy found two safes of different sizes and a hidden gun room behind a wardrobe, with many guns hanging and several boxes of ammunition beneath.

Jimmy inquired, "Chris, has there been any background check on this Joe Matthewson?"

Chris replied, "Not yet, why?"

Jimmy suggested, "I think we better check into his identity first. A person targeted for assassination definitely isn't a simple character."

Chris nodded, about to speak when his phone rang. After hanging up, Chris told Jimmy, "Let's go, the gunmen have been traced."

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