"My name is Luke Lee, I'm the captain of the Robbery and Murder Department, and I'm in charge of this case. May I speak with your daughter?"

Alec Wyatt looked down at the little girl and nodded, "Yes.

But she is scared, and I'm worried that questioning her might cause her secondary trauma."

"I'll be careful with how I ask questions."

Alec Wyatt nodded.

Luke pulled up a chair and sat beside the girl, "Hey, I'm Luke, what's your name?"

"Teresa Lewis."

"Were you the one who called the police?"

"Yes."

"Can you tell me what happened?"

Teresa Lewis, her voice choked, said, "After school, I was playing in the park with friends and got home around six. That's when I saw...the living room was covered in blood, my mom was lying on the floor... I yelled for her...

But she didn't seem to hear me.

I ran to her, held her tightly, and called out to her...

But she didn't respond, and she wasn't breathing... sob sob."

Teresa Lewis's emotions were somewhat agitated, and she spoke incoherently.

Jenny walked over, patted the girl's shoulder, and comforted her, "Teresa, don't be afraid.

We're your mother's colleagues; we'll protect you."

Jenny then stepped over to Luke and whispered, "Teresa Lewis is only about twelve or thirteen; she just witnessed the scene of her mother's murder. Her heart must be in tremendous pain. We should provide her with psychological counseling and calm her gently before we continue with the record."

However, as the person in charge on site, Luke had many tasks and no time to continuously comfort her.

Jenny understood this too, and she proactively said, "Captain, let me talk to Teresa Lewis."

Luke nodded; he wasn't very patient in this regard, so leaving it to Jenny was more suitable.

The deputy captain also spoke to Alec Wyatt, "Sir, what's your relationship with the caller Teresa Lewis?"

"I am her father."

The deputy captain looked down at the file, "But you have different last names."

"I am her stepfather."

The deputy lifted an eyebrow, "May I ask you about the deceased?"

"Of course."

"This way, please." The deputy led Alec Wyatt aside to take his statement.

Luke entered the house and was greeted by the scent of blood. The living room was a mess, with items scattered across the floor. A white woman lay on the floor, with her hands and feet bound by ropes. Blood splatters were on her head, body, the floor, and surrounding furniture.

Luke put on gloves and picked up a golf club lying next to the body, which bore bloodstains and biological tissue. From Luke's experience, this golf club was likely the murder weapon.

Luke handed it to Mary from the tech team, "It's yours."

Mary glanced at him, "How thoughtful of you."

"You're welcome."

Afterward, Luke searched the house thoroughly. The place was somewhat disheveled, with signs of rummaging through the cabinets, and many items were scattered on the ground.

In addition, Luke discovered some peculiar clues, making him feel that this might not be just an ordinary burglary-homicide case.

Luke gathered everyone and asked, "So, what did you find?"

Black said, "This looks like a typical robbery murder scene. The house shows obvious signs of rummaging and theft. Also, judging from the victim's fatal head wound, she was likely coerced into revealing the location of valuables before her death."

Jackson rebutted, "Come on, the victim was a prison guard. Which thief would dare rob her home?

I think this is more like a revenge killing. The numerous blows to the victim's head look like the killer was venting anger.

The theft signs could be either incidental or deliberately faked."

Black glared at Jackson, "Kid, why do you always contradict me?"

Jackson shrugged, "I'm just stating the facts."

Black looked toward Luke, "Captain, what do you think?"

Luke said, "I think both of you might be right to some extent, but you're both overlooking some clues."

Jackson thought Luke would side with him but didn't expect he had a new perspective, "What clues?"

Luke led them to the wall and lightly pried off the socket with his hand. "Click," the socket came loose, revealing two black wires inside, cleanly cut as if snipped directly.

Luke said, "I checked the outlets throughout the house and found three without screws and signs of prying, in the living room, master bedroom, and side bedroom. Each outlet had some remnant black wires.

I suspect these black wires were likely part of surveillance or monitoring equipment that had been installed."

Black said, "So the killer's crime was likely recorded."

Jackson asked, "Who installed the surveillance or monitoring equipment?"

Luke said, "I suspect it was probably the killer.

It's rare for ordinary homes to have surveillance in bedrooms. Even if installed, it wouldn't likely be hidden cameras, much less listening devices.

Moreover, if the homeowner installed it, it might have captured the crime. She couldn't have disclosed this to the killer.

How did the killer know about the hidden camera and manage to take away the equipment promptly?"

Jackson followed up, "So, the killer was monitoring the victim's family through the camera, understanding their every move, and then waited for the right moment to kill the victim."

Luke nodded, "That possibility is very real."

Jackson said, "This suggests that the killer must have visited the victim's home before, scoped out the place, and installed the surveillance or monitoring equipment, and took it after killing the victim."

Black said, "Or it could be an acquaintance committing the crime, installing the monitoring or surveillance equipment."

"What equipment?" Just then, Jenny walked over.

Luke said, "I found some remaining black wires in the outlets of the living room and bedrooms, which likely had surveillance or monitoring equipment installed, but those were taken away.

Does Teresa Lewis know about this?"

Jenny examined the socket and shook her head, "She didn't mention it, so I believe she's unaware.

Only a pervert would do something like that."

Luke asked in turn, "How did your talk go?"

"Fairly well, but it's difficult for her." Jenny glanced out the window, sighed, "Originally, today was supposed to be a normal day for her.

She took the school bus home like usual, and she said she arrived at around 4:20.

She had also arranged with classmates to go to the community park to play.

To her surprise, her mother was also home, and they argued over something. Teresa Lewis said things like, 'I never want to see you again.'

Around 4:40, she left home, brooding for a while in the community park, before finding her classmates to play.

She returned home around six and found Latifa Gallo's body..."

Jenny took a deep breath, "She's very regretful, feels she shouldn't have argued with her mother, and especially shouldn't have said those things..."

Luke pressed, "What were they arguing about?"

Jenny said, "The victim wanted Teresa Lewis to come home earlier in the evening. Teresa Lewis felt her mother was too controlling and rebelled, leading to the argument."

Luke distilled the valuable information and said, "In other words, the time of the victim's murder should be between 4:40 and six in the afternoon."

"Wow, Captain Lee, your judgment is precise; it's a pity you're not a forensic doctor." Forensic doctor Hila came over, "I've found some clues that I believe you'll be interested in."

"What clues?"

"Come on," Hila led everyone to the body, "I just had the body moved and found some blood letters underneath. I suspect they might have been left by the victim."

Luke scrutinized the victim's fingers, indeed finding bloodstains, and then looked at the letters on the ground, "Sherda."

Black said, "Looks like a name.

If the victim left it as a clue, it supports our theory that the killer might be someone familiar, and the victim definitely knew the person.

Could this be the killer's name?"

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