William Carter's tone suddenly shifted: "But it seems that if someone repeatedly steals and refuses to change, they can be prosecuted even without reaching a 'large amount.' This can't be your first time doing this, right?"

Kevin Parker suddenly froze, his pale face going blank.

William Carter tapped the table lightly: "You were watching TV at home alone? What about the people you live with?"

"Stephen Wright came home after work yesterday, changed his clothes, and left. Brother Scott... that's Stephen's fellow townsman, went back to his hometown a few days ago for a funeral. A few other coworkers went out to play cards, so it was just me, but it wasn't— it wasn't me..."

"I didn't say it was you." William Carter cut off his rambling defense. "Some nearby residents reported hearing an argument near the crime scene at the time. Given how close your place is to the scene, you should have heard it. Did you hear anything?"

Kevin Parker bit his lip hard.

"If you heard something, just say you did. If you didn't, then you didn't. Does this question really need so much thought?"

"Ma-maybe I heard a little, the TV was kind of..."

William Carter: "About what time?"

Kevin Parker blurted out, "Quarter past nine."

As soon as he said this, Jason Turner, who was taking notes with his head down, and Eric Harris, who was listening by the door, both looked over at him.

William Carter narrowed his eyes: "Didn't you just say 'maybe heard a little'? How come you remember the time so clearly now?"

Kevin Parker: "..."

"Xiao Ma, you need to tell the truth," Eric Harris said softly. "How do you know it was quarter past nine? Did you actually hear it, or were you near the crime scene at the time? What do you know?"

William Carter didn't give Kevin Parker any time to react, immediately following up: "If you can't explain yourself today, you'll be a major suspect!"

"I don't think it's you," Eric Harris played good cop to his bad cop, "If you didn't do it, you don't need to be afraid. Just tell us everything you know. This is a major case involving a death— you know how serious this is, right?"

Kevin Parker instinctively looked to him for help.

William Carter slapped the table: "Who are you looking at? We're asking you to explain!"

"It wasn't me... I h-heard it," Kevin Parker was on the verge of tears, "At quarter past nine, I heard people arguing downstairs. The voices sounded kind of familiar, so I wanted to go down and take a look..."

"What did you see?"

"Nothing at all." Kevin Parker's eyes widened. "I didn't see anyone, not even a shadow. It was like what I heard was all an illusion. The streetlight was broken, I... I..."

William Carter let out a snort: "Kid, are you telling us ghost stories?"

Kevin Parker's eyes reddened, and he glanced at him in terror, bloodshot veins crawling across his eyeballs.

The group kept questioning him over and over, interrogating him until evening, pushing Kevin Parker to the brink of collapse. But the young man never revealed any useful information, just repeated his clumsy late-night ghost story several times.

"I don't think it's him." After leaving the sub-bureau, Samuel Reed said, "This kid doesn't have much psychological endurance. He spills everything as soon as he's scared. With the way we questioned him, if he really did something, he would've cracked by now... But the ghost story part is really strange."

William Carter grunted in response.

Eric Harris: "What is it?"

"Not necessarily," William Carter said. "He might only be telling part of the truth, probably still hiding something else— let's talk about it tomorrow. How are you two getting back, heading to the bureau first or..."

He didn't finish his sentence before a whistle interrupted him.

The three of them looked up together and saw a huge SUV, at least two meters tall, parked by the roadside. Someone was leaning against the car: "Officer Harris, you've worked hard. Can I give you a ride home?"

Chapter 5 Brian Cooper Four

The man was tall, wearing a black shirt and crisp dress pants, hands in his pockets, legs casually crossed in front. His long hair fell over his shoulders, and whenever someone met his gaze, his eyes would instantly fill with a double helping of laughter, given out freely to all.

Samuel Reed had never seen a man deliberately acting so flamboyant at the entrance of a police station: "Deputy Harris, is that your friend?"

Eric Harris seemed to have a bit of a toothache.

Samuel Reed, ever perceptive, immediately sensed something was off and asked, puzzled, "What is it?"

Just as Eric Harris was about to walk over and speak, the usually silent William Carter suddenly reached out and grabbed his elbow, nodding at the man: "Edward Bennett, what are you doing here?"

Edward Bennett straightened his long legs, lifted his eyelids and glanced at him: "Oh, sorry, I didn't know this place belonged to Carter."

William Carter squinted expressionlessly, while Edward Bennett looked at him with a half-smile, and the completely clueless Samuel Reed inexplicably sensed a tense, dangerous atmosphere.

After a moment, Edward Bennett smirked, as if asking for a beating, then withdrew his gaze and turned to Eric Harris: "Eric Harris, get in the car. If you don't leave now, Captain Carter is going to give me a ticket."

Before Eric Harris could reply, William Carter coldly interrupted: "Did I say we're off duty? You two come back to the bureau with me right now. We need to report progress to Director Clark as soon as possible, and there's also a case discussion meeting."

Samuel Reed: "..."

Didn't you just say "let's talk about it tomorrow"?!