New Gods of North America

Having become vigilant, Wayne didn't reveal Mr. Morier's location to the officers until the very end.

However, he did set up a story, saying that the detective agency had taken on Mr. Morier's security detail and would protect his safety during this time.

The detectives were now showing their mettle, perhaps because they were more experienced in this area, and quickly figured out the attackers' initial entry route into the house.

Following the window that showed the only signs of being pried open, the detectives also found some suspicious footprints in the garden's soil, and they immediately started taking plaster casts of them.

Extracting fingerprints from the window frame late at night was inconvenient, so they simply removed the entire window and packed it up, nailing a wooden board over the window frame using planks from the nearby storage room.

Since Wayne had arrived with Mr. Morier's house keys, the neighborhood security couldn't confirm whether the detective agency's destructive actions were authorized by the resident, and they didn't dare to interfere, so they could only watch.

It wasn't until the security team leader saw the detectives even digging up a clod of soil with a drop of blood on it from the edge of the garden to take away that he finally couldn't hold back, "You can use even this as evidence?"

Wayne acted very professionally:

"The presence of bloodstains can serve as physical evidence, indirectly proving that an attack did occur tonight.

"At the same time, the bloodstains themselves contain a lot of information. For example, based on the shape of the blood droplets, we can deduce the height from which they fell and the direction they were moved. Everything found at the scene may be useful."

Regardless of whether those footprints were actually useful or whether fingerprints could be found on the window, this whole process, coupled with Wayne's on-site explanation, left even the police officers somewhat stunned.

Wayne silently raised his head to the side, his nose held high, as if to say, "Doesn't our detective agency look professional?"

Inessa originally wanted to continue tracking along the footprints and tire tracks on the road, but with the constant traffic and mixed smells in the city, she wasn't sure if she could really find the attackers by following the scent of blood from the corpse.

Wayne thought for a moment and advised her against it, "Since the attackers' target is Mr. Morier, we only need to protect him. Whether the other party delivers themselves to our doorstep later or not, their original plan can be considered a failure. The detective agency's manpower is limited, and the other party seems to have quite a few people, so for now, we should try to avoid being too scattered."

In reality, Wayne mainly felt that the enemy forces might be strong, and the detective agency's combat power had to be allocated reasonably.

Wayne had previously been reluctant for all three partners to come to the scene at the same time, but Inessa's blood-tracking abilities were irreplaceable, and Lena's expertise was directly relevant, making it difficult to choose.

In addition, there were surveillance points arranged by the local intelligence agency near the detective agency's temporary base. If something happened, they would definitely be watching, so Inessa and Lena came together.

If he were to let Inessa take people to track them down alone now, it would seem like a waste of resources.

However, he could send Connal; that guy was also a hunter skilled in tracking, and he was slippery enough to protect himself.

...

On the other side of Richmond, a ball was already in its latter half.

The important figures attending the ball were now mostly no longer in the ballroom but were instead socializing in various parts of the manor, either publicly or privately. They would generally continue until the ball was about to end before gradually returning to the public eye.

This was both to allow the guests to enjoy themselves more fully and also the real reason why many balls were held.

The manor's owner had now obtained the promises he wanted and was preparing to leave his private reception room, intending to leave the space to two distinguished guests who seemed to need to talk alone.

So he subtly made his suggestion, "Reverend Tyrrell, Mr. Walter, in order to satisfy tonight's guests, I specifically had the butler bring out the treasured red wine and cigars, and I can't help but want to go to the cigar room to taste them now. I wonder if you two are interested?"

Reverend Tyrrell chuckled and said that he wasn't suitable for such pleasures recently, while Senator Walter didn't mind such an unexpected small reward.

The latter sat in his seat and nodded with pleasure, "The weather is nice tonight; leave me a spot where I can bask in the moonlight."

The manor's owner smiled and agreed to leave. As soon as he personally closed the door, he quickly instructed the personal manservant waiting outside the door to find the butler and have the butler arrange the most suitable room as soon as possible and notify him to wait there in time.

Unlike the hurried footsteps outside the door, the reception room still maintained its previous leisurely state.

Reverend Tyrrell raised his cup and took a sip, "Walter, what are your thoughts on the assassination of the cathedral treasurer?"

Walter Norton's face showed a thoughtful expression: "That's something related to the church; I haven't specifically looked into it. Corleone arranged for people to investigate before going to New York City; I even met with that Wayne a few days ago."

Reverend Tyrrell didn't hide anything, "I'm also investigating that case now. If the investigation results can satisfy Corleone, I think he might express his support for me before the bishop election."

Walter Norton sat up slightly straighter: "What kind of clues do you need? I know that the assassin in that assassination case seems to have some connection to Military Intelligence Section Seven, but those people all come from Prussia. It mainly depends on which direction you want to guide things."

"Many of our families are doing business with the Windsors; there's no need to drag Military Intelligence Section Seven into this kind of thing."

Reverend Tyrrell pondered slightly, "As for Prussians or Hans, it wouldn't be strange for them to target Windsor and Frank, but to say they would attack people in the church… Do you think Corleone would agree with that conclusion?"

Walter Norton spread his hands: "Just a group of avengers under the war, who knows what kind of madmen they will become. Maybe they originally wanted to frame the Franks, but they just didn't succeed."

Reverend Tyrrell looked like an old merchant with no talent, as if he didn't even know what he was peddling, "This statement doesn't match the assassin's confession. If the goal was to provoke conflict, wouldn't directly assassinating Corleone be more effective?"

He hesitated slightly: "Could it be that someone from our side was involved?"

Walter Norton's expression didn't change, "Unlikely. And there's no need to spread the fire to our own people in this kind of thing, right? I'll have someone visit you tomorrow. That group of people has taken action several times after coming to Virginia. We didn't immediately close the net after we discovered them. You can use that group of people as sacrifices, or add a few more desserts."

Reverend Tyrrell seemed somewhat hesitant, as if he was considering whether such a result could satisfy Bishop Corleone.

However, he was actually suspicious in his heart. Walter was lying. Why?