Chapter 76 Chapter 76

Cole went back to his house and waited for him.Puller went to the hotel first, then drove here.Cole greeted her at the front door, and Puller followed her down the hall and into the kitchen. "Want something to drink?" Cole asked. "I've got a beer here." They sat down in a back room that looked out over Cole's backyard.The weather is still hot and humid, and the air conditioner hanging on the wall of Cole's house does not seem to be any better than the one in the hotel room.Puller seemed to be breathing soot in the air, and felt his skin turning an oily coal-black just for a moment.

Cole sat across from him, holding the neck of the Michelon beer bottle with his fingers. "While you're chasing other leads," she began, "I did a little research at Trivel's place of work. The only thing that worked was when they told me that nothing was missing from the store, and that they had completely lost everything." Don't know why he has tungsten carbide residue in his house. Their shop never carries that stuff." "That means it has nothing to do with his profession?" "It doesn't matter." "I found the answer about that drug lab."

"What's the answer?" Puller explained to her what he had found at the fire station. "Damn it, the Shangdu Club actually sells drugs?" "It seems so," Puller said, "but it doesn't really help us, and we're running out of time." "What do you mean by that?" Pooler told her about his conversation with Mason.About the gas pipeline run by Trent, about the nuclear reactor that was the real target, and so on.Puller finally mentioned Trent's financial difficulties to her. After listening to him, Cole put down his beer and leaned back in his chair.

"I don't know what to say," she said. "Jane never told me that there was a financial problem, but she told you?" "I think it's because I forced her to answer some questions at a time when she was very vulnerable, and I'm not part of the family. Maybe she didn't want to tell you these things, maybe she was too embarrassed to let you know that she might become a poor person again. " "Would you like something to eat? I'm suddenly very hungry." "Cole, don't talk about food, we only have two days left—" She said in a trembling voice, "I want to make some sandwiches, Puller. I... I need to do something homely. Otherwise I don't know what to do, really, I'm telling the truth. I'm a cop It never occurred to me to deal with something like this, a disaster that shouldn't happen in a place like Drake."

Puller said in a soothing tone, "Okay, okay, how about I help you?" They went to the kitchen and made a turkey sandwich with pickle slices and fried some chips for a side.The two stood by the sink in the kitchen and ate. "What are you thinking?" Cole asked softly.Puller took a bite of the sandwich and swallowed some french fries. "The shooter tonight was a connoisseur. His gun was top notch, as was the cartridge he used. He placed his shot well, killed him with one shot, and nearly got away. It took me a fair amount of effort to subdue him. , and luck also helped me in this process. You know, I am very good at hunting down those snipers, and I can drive them to nowhere in almost any situation." He paused, "But He almost got away anyway. His partner was also good. Not as good as me, but really good."

"You're humble," Cole said. "It's a fact." Puller replied, "Underestimating or overestimating one's ability is a fatal mistake. There are indeed some guys in the outside world who are stronger than me, but today this guy is not among them." "Maybe so." "We figured that Dickie, Trewell and Molly were involved in the manufacture and distribution of drugs. As I said, Dickie gave me the impression that he was in a dilemma. He was involved in the drug deal, obviously He was trying to cover it up, and at the same time he stumbled upon something far more serious than that."

"You said you two made an appointment to meet tonight? Do you know what he wants to report to you?" "I don't know, maybe nothing. I asked him to meet." Cole opened the refrigerator and took out two bottles of Deer Park mineral water, and handed Puller a bottle. "Gas pipelines, and nuclear reactors," she said, "and we've only got two days left. It's just crazy, Puller. Crazy." "That's the way it is." "You've got to get them to send more people." "I tried, Cole. Those guys up there don't want to change their minds."

"They left us here to watch the fun?" The two stood there facing each other, very close to each other.But in Puller's eyes, this distance seems very far away.He had grown up serving his country, and to serve his country was, in essence, to serve its citizens.Many people were looking at him helplessly, just like the woman in front of him.Puller's heart has never been so disturbed as it is now. "I don't know what to tell you, Cole. I really don't." Cole said, "Well, I have one more thing to do." "What's the matter?" Puller asked warily.

"I need to go to Bill Strauss' house and report the death of their son." "I'll go with you." "You don't have to go." "I'm going." They stood up and went out together.