Chapter 2 coconut candy

On the way to send Miss Barbara home from the hospital, Michael drove the car slowly. At this time, he seemed to be no longer a rough and tough police detective, but became extra gentle and patient, because, Miss Barbara next to him has just lost her twin sister, and the pain in her heart can be imagined at this moment. Michael had been interested in the case from the beginning.Perhaps for others, it was just a period of forgotten days, but for Michael and Miss Barbara, they had deep feelings. As he drove slowly, he recalled the details of the case in his mind: It happened on a Sunday morning, the weather was fine, and there were two pigtails and beautiful ribbons on their hair, The little girl with white gloves on her hands and a lined and starched skirt was getting ready to go to church down the street.One of them, however, died, and died a terrible death, strangled alive by a gangster, to the horror of the neighbors, who feared that the gangster might be hiding in one of the houses down the street, so that The whole neighborhood is in panic all day long.

The car pulled slowly into the driveway of a courtyard, and Michael braked in a dark place, then he pushed open the door, jumped out, and turned to open the door for Miss Barbara. Miss Barbara's slender hand rested on his shoulder, and it was no wonder she looked so powerless and vulnerable, after all, she was dealing with the severe loss of a loved one.Michael supported her, walked her along the cobblestone path, and brought her to the French-style French door. She tremblingly took out the key, opened the door, and he followed her into the house. Michael looked around with the help of the light, and found that the house was very clean, and the furniture and other items were also neatly arranged.

"Please sit down, Mr. Michael, would you like a cup of tea?" Miss Barbara tried her best to control her emotions, and said slowly. "Okay!" With that, Michael sat down. Miss Barbara was seventy-five years old, and the wear and tear of the years had left her face covered with wrinkles, but the overall outline of the face was still beautiful, and it was not difficult to imagine that she was still very beautiful when she was young.At this time, her eyes were like two sad blue pools, overflowing with pain and sorrow. "Mr. Michael, I know you will ask some questions, don't be restrained, just ask, I'm ready." She said while busy arranging teapots and cups.

"Then, please tell me what happened tonight..." Michael cleared his throat and said. Miss Barbara's thoughts entered a kind of memory, and she began to calmly tell the story of herself and her sister: "My twin sister and I live here, and we rarely have entertainment, but occasionally three or two friends come to drink tea, Or playing bridge, we have very few friends. During the day, there is no sign that something will happen at night." Speaking of this, she couldn't help shivering, and her voice trembled a little.Then she continued: "In the afternoon I made a little coconut candy out of freshly grated coconuts, Mr. Michael, as you probably don't know, it's a hobby of mine and a habit in our family. "Ah!" she continued, sighing, "not far from our street lives a poor young woman who lives in poverty with four children alone. In her Two of the children are twin sisters, and it's weird to say that when I see these two children, I feel like my sister and I."

Michael could understand Miss Barbara's feelings.As twin sisters, it is entirely possible for the younger pair and the older pair to develop a close bond. "My sister and I can often see them, either in the grocery store or on the street. For about a year or so, my sister and I often help them, that is, do small things for the children." Said Here, Miss Barbara showed a rare smile on her face. "You sisters are so kind!" Michael said with emotion. "Of course we got paid too, and that's joy!" she said, looking up at Michael with her blue eyes.Then she added: "My sister and I both like children. Today, we heard that one of the children was sick, so we hurried to the doctor. After the doctor saw it, the child gradually got better. She said she wanted to Eat the candy I made, and I promise to bring her some coconut candy next time I come."

"So, is your sister going to deliver coconut candy tonight?" "Yes!" She nodded.I saw the sad look on her face again. "I thought that after my sister delivered the candy, she would come back after sitting at the child's house for a while, because our house is not far from there. But who knew she hadn't delivered it... At that time, she didn't come back for a long time to let me I was restless, so I called the apartment manager over there and asked him to find my sister to answer the phone, but the manager said that my sister didn't go there, and I panicked."

She couldn't speak any more, and her slightly trembling lips were drawn into a sad line, obviously it was the painful memories that made her unbearable to look back on.After a while, she clasped her hands on her knees and continued: "I hurried out to look for her, but there was nowhere. Later, when I reached the dark alley next to the grocery store in the dark, Hearing a soft groan, I walked to the front quickly and found that it was my sister, she was lying there, her injured head was still bleeding... At that time, my sister told me in a weak voice that the gangster snatched She still ate those coconut candies when she left her purse... Hearing this, my whole body trembled: it was like a beast, the injured person was right at his feet, and he was still eating candies!"

"Sugar? That might be a drug addict, because sugar is a sign," Michael said. "My sister told me that the gangster who robbed her was tall, with a W-shaped scar on his face, and he was a young man." At this time, Miss Barbara couldn't control her emotions anymore, she burst into tears Say. It's getting late.Michael stood up, touched her thin shoulders that were still shaking with his hand, and said gently: "Miss Barbara, this kind of thing happened, you should not sleep at home tonight, I think you should stay Spend the night somewhere else, I will arrange it."

"Thank you, Mr. Michael, this is my home and I don't want to leave it." She politely declined. Michael hesitated for a moment and said, "Okay. But I have to remind you that in the past six weeks, there have been robberies in this area. This case is the fourth one. The only thing is that your sister was the first to die." "Are they all done by the same person?" she asked cautiously. "We can't be sure about that, but a woman who was also mugged called the police and said she took one look at the man before he was knocked unconscious and said he had a W-shaped scar on his cheek, and other descriptions were similar. You're basically saying the same thing," Michael said.

"Looks like it's the same person," she said to herself, "So, you've been tracking this murderous guy all this time, and it's just a little bit of luck, isn't it?" She seemed to want to know the determination of the police to solve the case . "Yes." Michael admitted.But he went on to say: "Please believe that as long as the criminal is not brought to justice, we will not give up our efforts." After Michael had said goodbye to Miss Barbara, he was back at Police Headquarters, but the matter was still on his mind. Thinking of Miss Barbara's painful appearance, Michael was determined to catch the murderer as soon as possible. "Attention, there is a tall man with a W-shaped scar on his face, a suspect who is about 20 years old. He killed someone during a robbery. If you find him, arrest him immediately." Detective Michael said in the radio communication room issued an order.

In order to track down the murderer and protect Miss Barbara's safety, from this day on, Michael drove around Miss Barbara's house every night to patrol, but she didn't know it. He found that Miss Barbara had a routine these days. Every evening as soon as it was dark, she came out of the old house and walked slowly west, past the grocery store and then At a crossroads, finally walk down the next street and follow the original route when returning.At first Michael admired Miss Barbara's regular behavior, which he felt would do her good in restoring her spirits.Of course, sometimes Michael couldn't bear to look at her wandering figure. After all, she was a seventy-five-year-old man walking alone in the night, looking so fragile and helpless. Miss Barbara also has a strange behavior, that is, after turning back every night, she will always stand in front of the house for a while, look back at the dark gravel road she walked, and then enter the house, and then there are curtains upstairs. A dim light would come on behind her window, and she would be ready to sleep. "Maybe she used this method to relieve the pain of losing her twin sister?" Michael guessed. In fact, Miss Barbara has started this kind of nocturnal pilgrimage since her sister was buried, even in rainy and rainy days. To stomp the paths that made her sad. Although Michael can understand Miss Barbara's way of resolving her sorrow in this way, he is also very worried about her safety, because the murderer is probably hiding in the shadow of a nearby tree, or a dark door The corner of the side, the alley. "She'd better end this eccentric behavior as soon as possible, otherwise it will be dangerous. If she continues to do this, I will go to a psychiatrist." Michael thought silently. One day three weeks later, as usual, Michael waited behind a billboard in the dark, carefully observing the opposite road. He hoped to find the shadow of the gangster today, because he squats in this area every night Waiting in the pit has been going on for many days. The gloomy, dark night enveloped the land, and Michael pulled up his collar, his eyes still staring across the road without blinking, like a hunter patiently waiting for the prey to appear.Suddenly, that familiar figure appeared again in the darkness. He looked at the hands of the luminous watch and found that she came out ten minutes later than usual today.Miss Barbara walked slowly towards the shadow of the grocery store, was about to cross the street, and looked around cautiously. "I have to stop her! Otherwise, she will easily become the target of gangsters, and even repeat the mistakes of her sister." Michael thought anxiously.When he was about to cross the street to stop her, an unexpected situation happened. Suddenly a tall figure emerged from the shadow of the alley next to the grocery store. He stooped and crept to Baba. Behind Miss La, he suddenly hugged her, grabbed her neck with one hand, and grabbed her purse with the other.As Michael expected, Miss Barbara was indeed robbed. "Stop! I'm the police!" Michael rushed over and shouted.The tall man threw Miss Barbara to the side of the road and quickly hid in the darkness behind the wall of the grocery store with the stolen purse. When Michael rushed to Miss Barbara, and was about to chase after the gangster's hiding place, Miss Barbara struggled to stand up, grabbed his arm, and fell on top of him. A sudden weight hit Michael staggered several steps, causing his body to lose his balance, and his shoulder hit the corner of the grocery store heavily. "You? Oh!" Michael was very annoyed. "Why are you here? I really didn't know it was you, Mr. Michael," gasped Miss Barbara. "That wretch is going to get away, let me go! For God's sake, hurry!" he shouted, trying to shake off Miss Barbara's skinny hands, which were holding on to his clothes. . "Don't, Mr. Michael, he may have a weapon on him, don't take risks for me." She still didn't let go. "What are you doing, Miss Barbara!" He was so anxious that he pushed her hands hard, trying to break free.However, Miss Barbara suddenly leaned back, fell to the ground, and let out a cry of "ouch". "What's the matter with you?" Michael leaned down, "Are you hurt?" While asking hurriedly, he glanced at the dark alley that was already empty, of course, with a regretful look. Miss Barbara, who fell to the ground, was pale and was rubbing her left calf with her hands. "I'm sorry, Miss Barbara, I didn't mean to." Michael said apologetically, reaching out to support her. As a result, Miss Barbara gently pushed his hand away and stood up by herself, "It's not your fault, I accidentally tripped over it myself." She said slightly relaxed. "Oh?" Michael felt a little unbelievable, "Then did you see the robber's face? Is there a W-shaped scar?" He obviously hasn't forgotten the murderer who escaped just now, and continued to ask. "I didn't see it clearly, but it was a young man with a W-shaped scar on his face. Forget it, that's enough." When she said this, her tone was calm, and her eyes were strange, as if she was thinking The thoughtful eyes flashed like two blue candlelights piercing the night sky. Michael returned to the police station with regret and doubts in his heart.Although he took a shower and refreshed his body a lot, the discomfort in his heart didn't decrease at all, and his head still hurt a little. He wanted to sit quietly for a while and reorganize his thoughts. Suddenly, there was a call from the contact center police at the door: "Detective Michael!" "What's up?" "I just received a call saying that the gangster who robbed people from behind has been caught. He is tall and has scars on his face. He is a young man." "What? That's great!" Immediately, his head stopped hurting, and he asked eagerly, "Where is it?" "His body was found in Foley's apartment at No. 4 along River Street. His girlfriend wanted to have a tryst with him in the apartment after get off work, but found that the lover was lying dead on the floor. At that time, his girlfriend screamed and ran away. Come out, that's what it is." Michael quickly dressed and came to the Foley apartment.In a small and even somewhat suffocating room, he saw a man's body lying on the side of the bed with his head down. Michael turned his body over, looked at the scarred face carefully, and asked the policeman next to him: "Is this the person we are looking for?" The policeman replied: "It should be true, because the scar on his face is so unique, we have compared it with the photo on the wanted notice." Michael seemed to be thinking about something.He walked to the wardrobe in the corner, opened it, and found that it was full of all kinds of women's handbags, all of which were snatched by the deceased. "Which one is hers?" He recalled silently, "By the way, when Miss Barbara was robbed by gangsters next to the grocery store that night, I seemed to see a flash of white light, which seemed to be a small handbag. Yes, it’s dark with white borders.” He started looking through the pile of bags, and sure enough, he saw a very old blue handbag with white stripes. Michael picked it up and found that the zipper of the bag had been broken, which was obviously broken when Miss Barbara and the gangster tore it apart.He slowly opened the bag, and suddenly he was stunned by something in front of him. It turned out that there was a piece of candy wrapped in a wrapper in the corner of the bag. He peeled off the wrapper and found a piece of coconut candy inside. In the morgue, Michael shouted loudly: "Doctor, I want to know as soon as possible, how did the murderer die? You tell me now!" "Why are you guys in such a hurry? I have to look at the results based on the tests. Well, since you ask, then I dare say that this cold-blooded killer must have taken arsenic, and he died of poisoning! I believe the coroner will also prove my conclusion " said the doctor with certainty. A nearby policeman whispered to Michael, "The lab guys found a little tissue paper on the floor of that apartment. That's what old-fashioned candy stores use to wrap sugar." "I'm not surprised by what they've found." Apparently that wasn't his focus. Michael came to the door of Miss Barbara's house again, and not long after ringing the doorbell, Miss Barbara came out in a flannel nightgown and slippers. "I'm sorry, Miss Barbara, to bother you again, but I have to do this," Michael said apologetically. "It's Mr. Michael, it's okay, please come in." Miss Barbara politely led him into the living room, and after he sat down, she asked, "Would you like some tea?" "Oh!" Michael sighed, and continued, "I won't drink this time, come on, you sit too." After speaking, he stared at her, as if he wanted to see the truth from her face. Miss Barbara also sat down on the edge of the sofa, she put her hands gently on her knees, obviously waiting for Michael to ask questions. "Is your purse that was robbed dark blue with a white border?" he asked. "Yes. Have you found it yet?" She had a look on her face that seemed to have been known. "I found it. It was in the room of a dead man. The dead man was very young and had a W-shaped scar on his face." Michael noticed an imperceptible smile on her lips when she heard this. "Miss Barbara, you're deceiving me!" he yelled. "No, no! Dear Mr. Michael, I didn't lie to you!" Miss Barbara said still calmly. Seeing Miss Barbara's calm look, Michael couldn't hold back the anger in his heart anymore, he kicked the table leg fiercely, and said: "These days, you go out for a walk every night, in fact you are You are using yourself as a bait, the purpose is to wait for him to come out, hoping that he will attack you, isn't it? When he does attack you, you drag me and fall down again, in fact, it is all intentional, you just want to delay Time, so he can get away with your bag and its contents... What's in your bag? Some money maybe, but coconut sugar laced with arsenic, am I right?" "Mr. Michael, don't be so terrible, and besides, how can I get arsenic?" Miss Barbara denied. "Don't lie, I'm not a kid, you have a rose garden and it's easy to get arsenic at the pharmacy. You put the arsenic in coconut sugar and you threw it at him with the purse, you know? He ate almost all of it It's gone." Michael said angrily, so that the veins on his forehead swelled up. "What? He ate it all?" She looked surprised. Michael took out from his pocket the candy he had taken from the bag in the closet of the dead man’s room. While pretending to carefully peel off the candy wrapper, he said: “This piece of candy was stuffed in the corner of the leather bag. He didn’t eat it. That bag is hidden. The blue one with a white border is your bag, so do you admit that you made the candy?" "Look! What a lovely piece of candy you have in your hand. So many people have squeezed it, but it's still lovely, isn't it, Mr. Michael?" she said, getting up slowly. "Oh?" Michael still hadn't figured out what she meant. She gently moved to his side, grabbed the piece of candy and threw it into her mouth when he was not prepared, then looked at him with a soft smile on her face, "Mr. Michael, do you think I am eating poisonous candy? " Michael was taken aback. After a pause, Michael shook his head and said, "Miss Barbara, the candy you ate just now is poisonous, but the poison in a piece of candy is not enough to kill you. Frankly speaking, for your courage I Having learned it, I have no doubts in your courage to do anything." "Really? Then, will you arrest me for destroying evidence?" She asked seriously. "No, I'm not going to do that. Even though I have enough evidence that you made a piece of poisoned coconut sugar, but you didn't invite anyone to eat it, and that dark blue leather bag with a white border, it was a criminal who attacked you conclusive evidence." Michael replied equally earnestly, "Well, I must go, Miss Barbara." Michael got up to leave. "So, would you still like to come for tea?" she asked as she accompanied him to the door. Michael stopped, looked at her repeatedly for a while and said, "I'm sorry, I think, I never want to see you again." After speaking, he turned and stepped out the door. Miss Barbara behind him smiled and nodded at him, then stood in front of the door again, watching his retreating figure gradually disappear into the night.