Chapter 18 Chapter 18 The Murderer's Cry

Julier narrowed his eyes and looked at Bailey: "What are you going to do? You did this trick yesterday morning in Fastov's dome, please don't do it again!" Murderer's Cry Bailey nodded, "I know. I got it wrong the first time." He thought angrily: I got it wrong the second time too.But now, this time, definitely not... Thinking suddenly stopped, like a micro-battery wiped out by a positron damper, the crackling disappeared without a trace. He immediately returned to the status quo: "It's up to you to judge, Director. Assume that the evidence against me was designed by others. You agree with me for the time being, and then see what the officer can make you understand. Assuming so, So please think about it, who might be planning to kill me? Obviously, the person who knows that I went to the Williamsburg power plant last night."

"Okay. Who is it?" "Yesterday I was being targeted by some medievalist group as I was leaving the restaurant. I thought I'd gotten rid of them, but I was wrong, at least one of them saw me go through the power plant. You know, I went through the power plant The purpose is to get rid of them." Julier thought about it, "Crowther? He's with them?" Bailey nodded. "Okay, we'll ask him," said Julier. "If there's something in him, we'll find it out. What else can I do, Elijah?" "Wait. Don't give up on me. Do you understand what I mean?"

"Well, see if I understand." Julier clasped his hands, "Crowther saw you walking into the Williamsburg power plant, or his accomplices saw it and told him. So he decided to use That got you in trouble and you couldn't go ahead with the case. Is that what you're trying to say?" "almost." "Okay." Juliel seemed to be getting a little excited, "Of course, he knows that your wife is a member of the organization, but what about you? You will never let your private life be investigated deeply. So he thinks you will resign, no Will fight against the evidence against you, by the way, Ilya, how about resigning? I mean, if the situation is really bad, why don't you consider resigning? We can quietly—”

"If you want me to resign, I won't talk about it, Director!" Juliel shrugged: "Okay. Where did I go? Oh, yes, so he got an alpha emitter, maybe he also has a party in the power plant, and this party gave him the murder weapon, and then He's assigned another party to try to destroy R. Sammy..." He tapped his finger on the table, "No, Elijah, that's not a good idea." "why not?" "It's far-fetched, too many accomplices. By the way, Crowther had an infallible alibi the night before and the morning of the Space City murders. We found him almost immediately However, I am the only one who knows the reason for the investigation."

"Director, I never said that person was Francis Crowther. You said it yourself. Anyone in the Medievalism organization could be the murderer. Crowther was just Daniel who happened to watch I don't even think he's an important figure in the organization. There's something weird about him, though." "Which point?" Julier asked suspiciously. "He knows Jessie is in the organization. Do you think he knows everyone in the organization?" "I don't know. He knows Jessie anyway. Maybe Jessie is important, she's the cop's wife. Maybe that's why he remembers her."

"You said he immediately confessed that Jezebel Bailey was a Medievalist? Really? Did he mean Jezebel Bailey?" Julier nodded: "I told you, I heard it with my own ears." "That's weird, Chief. Jessie didn't use that name before Bentleigh was born. Not even once. I'm absolutely sure of that. And she didn't join the Medievalists until after she didn't." Yes. I am absolutely sure of that. So how did Crowther know that her real name was Jezebel?" Julier blushed a little, and said hastily: "Oh, uh, if that's the case, then he might be talking about Jessie. Maybe I unconsciously said it was Jezebel. That's right, I'm pretty sure, he It's Jessie."

"You said you were pretty sure he was talking about Jezebel. I've asked you several times." Julier raised his voice. "You mean I'm lying? Don't you?" "I was just thinking, maybe Crowther didn't say a word at all. I wondered if you made it up. You've known Jessie for twenty years, and you know her real name is Jezebel .” "You're crazy, man!" "Am I crazy? Well, where have you been since lunch today? You've been out of the office for at least two hours." "Are you interrogating me?" "I'll answer questions for you, too. You're inside the Williamsburg power plant."

Julier stood up.His forehead was sweating, and there were dry white spots at the corner of his mouth: "What the hell are you trying to say?" "Aren't you there?" "Ilya Belle! You are suspended, give me your papers!" "It's not time yet, listen to me." "I don't want to hear it. You're guilty! You're as guilty as the devil! I'm so pissed off, you actually want to use such despicable means to make me, me, make me seem to be plotting to frame you!" Julier growled angrily , almost speechless.He paused, and let out a deep breath: "You have been arrested!"

"Not yet!" Belle frowned. "Listen, Chief, my blaster is pointed at you. It's aimed right, the hammer is cocked, and it's ready to go. Please don't play this game anymore. I've already given up. I'm going to say something Come out, and do as you please." Julier opened his eyes wide, staring at the eerie pipe in Bailey's hand. "Ilia," he stammered, "you'll get twenty years in prison for this kind of behavior, and you'll spend the rest of your life in the lowest prison in the city!" R. Daniel moved suddenly.His hand clasped Bailey's wrist. "I won't allow this, partner Ilya. You must never hurt the director." His tone was still calm as usual.

Julier seized the opportunity and shouted; "Catch him! You, the first rule!" Since R. Daniel entered New York, this was the first time that Julier spoke directly to him. Bailey said immediately, "I don't mean to hurt him, Daniel, as long as you stop him from arresting me. You promised to help me find out about this. I have forty-five minutes." R. Daniel still held Bailey's hand. "Director, I believe Ilya should be allowed to speak. I am currently in contact with Dr. Fastoff." "How to contact?" Julier asked anxiously. "I'm equipped with a messenger," said R. Daniel.

Julier's eyes widened. "I'm in touch with Dr. Fastoff," the robot said ruthlessly. "If you refuse to listen to Elijah, you will give a very bad impression and the result may be against you." Julier fell into a chair, unable to speak a word. Belley went on to speak: "You took an alpha emitter today from the Williamsburg Power Plant and gave it to R. Sammy. You deliberately chose the Williamsburg Power Plant to frame me. You even grabbed Take advantage of Dr. Gary Chew's reappearance, invite him to the bureau, give him a broken wand, lead him to the camera room, and let him find R. Sammy's body. You expect him to know the cause of death. Come up with the correct diagnosis." Bailey put away the blaster and asked, "If you want someone to arrest me, do it now. But the space city will not accept this result." "Motive," Julier gasped.His glasses were blurred, so he took them off, and suddenly his face looked dazed and helpless, "What is my motivation for doing this?" "You're going to get me in trouble, aren't you? Get me in trouble and that'll stop the Shatton case, won't you? Besides, R. Sammy knows too much about you." "Know what, God?" "Know how an Outerworlder was murdered five and a half days ago. You see, Chief, was it not you who murdered Dr. Sutton?" Julier grabbed his hair violently and shook his head desperately.Instead, R. Daniel spoke up: "Partner Elijah, I'm afraid your reasoning is untenable." He said, "You know, Director Enderby can't kill Dr. Shatton." "Then listen carefully. Listen to me carefully. Why did Julier ask me to take this case and not ask someone with a higher class than me to handle the case? There are several reasons for him to do this. First, we are classmates before and after college , he thought, because of this relationship, I would never suspect that an old friend and respected boss might be a criminal. You see how sure he is that my well-known personality is loyal and reliable. The second He knows that Jessie is a member of an underground organization. If I am about to find out the truth, he can threaten me with Jessie's affairs and stop me from investigating further, or from telling me about it. But he doesn't Really worried that I'd find out. When I first took on this case, he tried to make me suspicious of you, Daniel, and he tried to keep the two of us at work. He knew my father Deprived of my status, he can guess how I will react to this kind of thing. You see, how convenient it is, the murderer actually presides over the investigation of the case himself." Julier was finally able to speak.He said feebly, "How could I possibly know about Jessie?" He said, turning suddenly to the robot: "You! If you're sending these words to Space City, tell them it's all a lie! A lie! !" Bailey continued to speak, his voice was high-pitched at first, then lowered into a strange tone mixed with tension and calmness, "Of course you know about Jessie, you are a medievalist, and you are a member of their underground organization. See Your old-fashioned glasses! Your windows! That aspect of you is so obvious. But there's a better proof than that. How did Jessie find out that Daniel was a robot? It made me wonder at the time ...Of course, we already know that she got the information from her Medievalist organization, but that only pushes the question back a step. How the hell did they find out? You, Director, you came to a conclusion, you said It was Daniel who was identified in the shoe store incident and put the matter to rest. Actually, I don't quite believe what you're saying. I can't believe it. When I first met R. Daniel myself, I thought He's human, and my eyes are normal, nothing wrong with them. Yesterday, I asked Dr. Gary Chew to come here from Washington. I later figured out that I needed him for several reasons, but the first time I contacted him At that time, my purpose was only one. I wanted to see if he could recognize Daniel as a robot, and I would never give him any hints. Chief, he didn't recognize it! I introduced Daniel to him, and he shook Daniel's hand. We The three of them talked together, and it didn't dawn on him until the topic turned to an anthropomorphic robot. This person is Dr. Gary Chew, the greatest roboticist on earth... If your statement is true, that is to say, some medieval In confused and tense situations, the thugs have better discernment than Gary Chubb, and they can be so sure that Daniel is a robot that they can throw the entire organization into action? Now it seems clear that the medievalists must I knew from the beginning that Daniel was a robot. The shoe store incident was specially arranged to let Daniel know, and then through Daniel let the space city know how far the anti-robot sentiment in the city has gone. In addition, it also used this to confuse Sand The Dunton case transfers the suspicion from the individual to everyone in the city. Well, assuming they knew what Daniel was from the beginning, then who told them? There are only two people on Earth who know about it. I didn’t say The other person is you, Director." Zhulier said in an unexpectedly strong tone: "There may be spies in the bureau. There may be many medievalists in us. Your wife is. Since you think I may be too, then there are no other medievalists in the bureau." ?” Bailey's mouth curled down slightly, with a fierce expression on his face: "Don't rush to talk about some crazy spies, let's look at this simple and direct answer first. I said, it's you! You are the one who tipped off the news, No doubt "It's very interesting in retrospect, Chief.Your emotions seem to rise and fall depending on whether I can find the answer.At first, you are nervous.When I decided to go to Space City yesterday morning and didn't tell you why, you looked like you were about to break down.Did you think I had you covered, Chief?Do you think that I went to Space City to set a trap so that you can be bound?You told me you hated them.You even started to cry.Originally, I thought you were hated and angry because you were treated as a suspect in the space city and you were humiliated.But then Daniel told me that they respected you and didn't embarrass you.You have no idea that you're being treated as a suspect.You panic because you are afraid, not because you are humiliated.Then, you listened carefully to my accusations in Space City through the video server, and your confidence was restored when I gave an answer that was completely wrong and far from the truth.You even argued with me in defense of the outsiders.From now on, you will be calm and confident for a while.I was very surprised at that time, because you had repeatedly told me not to offend the outsiders, but you easily forgave me for accusing the outsiders of false charges.Next, I contacted Dr. Gary Joe, you have to know the reason, I won't tell you.And then you're flustered again, because you're afraid—" "Partner Elijah?" R. Daniel interrupted him suddenly. Bailey looked at his watch.It's twenty-three forty-two! "What is it?" he said. R. Daniel said: "If he was in collusion with the Medievalists, then he is disturbed because he thinks you have found out about his relationship with them. However, even this does not prove that he was involved in the murder. He couldn't have been involved in a murder." "You're totally wrong, Daniel." Bailey said; "he doesn't know why I invited Dr. Gary Joe, but it should have something to do with the robot, which is not too outrageous. So this makes the director very scared, Because this murder has a lot to do with some robot. Am I right, Chief?" Julier shook his head: "When this matter is over..." Before he finished speaking, his throat was blocked, making it difficult for people to hear what he was saying. "How did this murder happen?" Bailey tried to suppress his anger. "C/Fe! Damn C/Fe! I use your terms, Daniel. You have all the advantages of C/Fe civilization, but You don't see an earthling taking advantage of this for a moment's convenience. Let me explain to you in detail! There is no difficulty in getting a robot to cross the countryside. Even at night, even if he is asked to go alone, it is the same .Our Chief Enderby handed a blaster gun to R. Sammy, and told him the time and place. He himself entered Space City through the private room, and handed over his own blaster gun. Then he Got another blaster from R. Sammy, killed Dr. Shatton, and gave it to R. Sammy to take him across the country to New York City. Today, he destroyed R. Sammy , because what the robot knows is dangerous to him. It is very clear. Although the chief was at the murder scene, the murder weapon was not found there. We no longer need to assume that any earthling will be exposed to open air in the middle of the night. Under the sky, I walked alone for a kilometer and a half to commit murder." R. Daniel said before he finished speaking: "I am very sorry for you, partner Ilya, but I am very happy for the Director. You said these things but did not say them. I told you, Director The analysis of his brainwaves showed that he couldn't have intentionally killed someone. I don't know what words to use to describe his mental phenomenon, weakness, conscience, or compassion. I understand the definitions of these words in the dictionary, but I can't judge. But anyway, the chief didn't murder anyone." "Thank you." Zhuriel murmured, with strength and confidence in his voice, "Ilya, I don't know what your motive is, and I don't know why you want to destroy me in this way, but, I It will definitely come to light.” "Wait," interrupted Bailey. "I'm not done yet. Look at this thing." He took out the small square aluminum block and slammed it on Julier's desk, as if the fall would strengthen his confidence and strength.He hadn't allowed himself to see the truth for half an hour and he didn't know what to expect on the film.He is betting.All he can do in the end is just gamble on luck. When Julier saw this little thing, he shrank back unconsciously. "what is this?" "Don't worry, it's not a bomb." Bailey said sarcastically: "It's just an ordinary micro projector." "Oh? What does this prove?" "Let's see what we can prove now." Bailey reached out and touched a certain slit on the cube, and the corner of the director's room was blank for a moment, and then lit up again, showing a scene of three-dimensional exotic images. Images stretched from floor to ceiling and beyond the walls of the room.A gray light flickered in front of their eyes, a light that the light sources in the city could never provide. This must be what they call the dawn, thought Bailey, with a mixture of disgust and joy. In this light came Dr. Sutton's Igloo.Dr. Shatton's body filled the center of the memory, looking fragmented and terrifying. Julier watched, his eyeballs bulging out. "I know the chief is not a murderer." Bailey said: "I don't need you to tell me that, Daniel. If I figured it out sooner, I would have solved the case. In fact, I just Just figured it out an hour ago. I accidentally mentioned that you were curious about Bentleley's contact lenses, and all of a sudden, I figured out that the answer was you, Chief. I thought about your nearsightedness and your Glasses, this is the key to the answer. I guess they probably don’t have short-sightedness in the outside world, otherwise they might have found the answer a long time ago. So I would like to ask you, Director, when did you break your glasses?” "What do you mean?" Julier asked. "When you first came to me and talked to me about this case, you said you broke your glasses in Space City," Bailey said. "I thought you broke your glasses when you heard about the murder. But you didn't say that, and I have no reason to assume that. In fact, if you entered Space City with criminal thoughts in your head, you'd be nervous enough to break your glasses before you kill someone. I did. Am I right? That's what it is, isn't it?" R. Daniel interrupted: "I don't understand what the subject of your words is, partner Elijah." Bailey thought: I can only be Ilya's partner for another ten minutes.quick!Say it!Think quickly!As he spoke, he adjusted the view of Sutton's dome.He spreads it awkwardly, his fingernails a little unsteady with tension all over his body.The volume in front of me gradually expands, grows, and widens as the picture closes and slows down, gradually approaching. Bailey could almost smell the stench of body burnt.Dr. Sutton's head, shoulders, and a section of an arm were lying in a mess, and underneath was the charred remains of a spine, connected to the hips and legs, and burnt ribs protruded from the spine. Bailey glanced at Julier out of the corner of his eye.Julier had closed his eyes, looking like he wanted to vomit.Bailey felt nauseous himself, but he had to keep his eyes open to see.He slowly turned the control switch of the image transmission, the three-dimensional picture rotated, and the ground around the body appeared in a continuous quarter circle.His fingernail slipped, and the ground on the screen suddenly skewed and stretched out. Finally, the ground and the body were blurred, beyond the scope of the teleporter's resolution capability.Bailey zoomed out and let the body slide away from the frame. He's still talking.He has to talk.He cannot stop until he finds what he is looking for.If he can't find that thing, then what he just said is in vain.Even worse than white saying.His heart was pounding and his head was swelling. "The director can't kill on purpose. It's a fact! But it has to be 'intentional'! What if it's an accident? Anyone can kill by accident. In fact, the director didn't go to the space city to kill Dr. Shatton. He went to kill you Yes, Daniel, you! Did his brainwave analysis say he couldn't destroy a machine? That's not murder, it's sabotage. He's an occupationist, and the most fanatical medievalist. He and Sand Dr. Don, he knew what you were designed to achieve, Daniel. He was afraid that this purpose might be achieved, and the earth people would be forced to abandon the earth. So he decided to destroy you, Daniel. You are your type The only robot in the world that has been built, in his opinion, by destroying you you can show how determined the medievalists of earth are, so that it can discourage the outsiders. He knows that the outer world advocates a complete end to the space city. The pressure of public opinion is great. Dr. Shatton must have discussed this matter with him. And he thinks that destroying you can have a final boost and bring the space city project to an earlier end. I am not saying that he has this kind of The idea is that he's interested in doing it himself, Daniel. I guess he'd have sent R. Sammy to the Kill you. R. Sammy can't kill people because of the first law, and he can't tell if you're real or fake. And, if the director himself wasn't the only one who could enter the space city at any time, he would have sent someone else Do this. Now, let me put together what the director's plan might look like. I admit I'm only guessing, but I think I'm pretty close. He had an appointment with Dr. Sutton that day but he arrived early on purpose, lest it would be dawn. I guess Dr. Sutton is still asleep at this time, but you, Daniel, are awake. By the way, I guess you are talking to Dr. Sutton Live together, Daniel." The robot nodded: "You guessed it, partner Ilya." "Then I'll go on," Bailey said; "the plan is that you'll walk to the door of the dome, take a blow to the chest or head, and be billed. The director will leave quickly, through space In the deserted streets of the city at dawn, meet R. Sammy who is waiting somewhere. He will hand it back to R. Sammy, and then walk slowly to Dr. Shatton's dome. If necessary, he will Will 'discover' the body himself, however, he would rather have someone else find it. If he was asked why he came so early, I think he would probably say that he was here to tell Dr. Shatton that the Occupationists were preparing to attack Space City Rumor has it that the space city is to be kept on guard to prevent open conflict between the Outer Worlds and the Earth. As it happens, there is a destroyed robot in front of him to make his words more credible. "Director, if someone asks you how it took you so long to get to Dr. Shatton's house after you entered Space City, you can say let me think about a person you saw sneaking across the street and running towards the open countryside. You chased for a while.In this way, they can also be led to the wrong tracing route.As for R. Sammy, no one paid any attention to him.Most of the fruit and vegetable farms outside the cities are robots. "How close to the truth do I say, Chief?" Julier twisted his body, "I didn't—" "Yes," interrupted Baley, "you didn't kill Daniel. He's here, and you haven't been able to look at him, call him, or speak to him since he entered the city. Now, you see Follow him, Chief." Julier couldn't look at Daniel.He covered his face with trembling hands. Bailey's hands kept shaking, and he almost dropped the transmitter. He found it, found what he was looking for! Now, the memory is focused on Dr. Sutton's dome door.The door was open: the panel slid along the groove of the metal rail into a recess in the wall.Just inside the gleaming metal rail groove.right there!There... clearly, that little light! "I'll tell you what happened," Bailey said. "You were standing in front of the dome when you broke your glasses. You must be nervous. I've seen you nervous. When you get nervous Take off your glasses. You did the same thing at the time. But your hands were shaking so much that you couldn’t even hold them steady. The glasses fell to the floor, and maybe you stepped on them. Anyway, the glasses are broken. At this time The room just opens, and a man who looks like Daniel is facing you. You shoot him, hurriedly pick up the broken glasses and run away. It wasn't you who found the body, it was them. When they came to you Only then did you realize that you didn't kill Daniel, but Dr. Shatton who got up early. Dr. Shatton's luck was so bad that he shaped Daniel according to his own shape, but you broke your glasses because of nervousness, and there was no Can't tell who they are. If you want real evidence, there is evidence!" Dr. Sutton's igloo shook, and Bailey placed the teleporter carefully on the table, pressing down on it with his hand. Julier's face was contorted with fear, and Bale's was distorted with tension. R. Daniel looked unmoved. Bailey pointed. "There, there's something shiny in the groove of the door panel's slide rail. What's that, Daniel?" "Two little pieces of glass," the robot said deadpan, "have no meaning to us." "It makes sense now. Those are fragments of concave lenses. Measure their optical resolution and compare them with the glasses that Director Enderby is wearing now. Don't smash them, Director!" Bailey rushed forward and snatched Julier's hand glasses.Panting, he handed the glasses to R. Daniel, "I think this is enough to prove that the director arrived at the dome earlier than you thought." "I totally believed it," said R. Daniel; "I now know that the director's brain wave analysis has fooled me. Congratulations, partner Elijah." Belley's watch was exactly twenty-four.A new day begins. Julier's head drooped slowly, buried in the crook of his arms.He spoke, but it was a series of inarticulate choking sounds. "I was wrong, wrong. I never wanted to kill him..." He said, slipping off the seat suddenly, and fell to the floor, unexpectedly. R. Daniel jumped over at once. "You hurt him, Ilya. That's bad." "He's not dead, is he?" "No. But unconscious." "He's going to come to his senses. I don't think he'll take it anymore. I've got to do it, Daniel, I've got to do it. I don't have legal evidence, I have only inferences. So I've got to keep bugging him, a little bit." Tell the truth a little bit, and hopefully he'll break. He finally broke, Daniel. You heard him confess, didn't you?" "right." "I've already said that this will benefit the space city's plan, because wait a minute, he's awake." Julier moaned, his eyelids moved, and then opened his eyes, looking at the two people in front of him wordlessly. "Captain, can you hear me?" Bailey asked. Julier nodded feebly. "Okay. Listen to me, what people in the outer world are worried about and anxious to do now is not to punish you. If you cooperate with them" "What? What did you say?" There was hope in Julier's eyes. "You must be a big shot in New York's Medievalist organization, and maybe even in the entire Earth organization. You figure out how to get those people to agree to colonize space. You should see the key to convincing them, right? We Returning to the land is possible, but only on other planets." "I don't understand." Julier murmured. "That's what the outsiders are aiming for. And God help me, that's what I'm after now, as a result of my chat with Dr. Fastoff. That's what they most want to achieve. They Constantly risking death to come to Earth, and even to stay here, for this very reason. If Dr. Shatton's death can turn you from medievalism to favoring the colonization of the galaxy, well, they might see it as a kind of A worthwhile sacrifice. Do you understand now?" "Ilya is very right," R. Daniel went on. "Help us, Chief, we will let it go. Now I am speaking to you on behalf of Dr. Fastov and our people. Of course, we have The fact that you committed a crime, if you only temporarily agree to help us, and then betray you after a while, we can always use this matter to hold you back. I also hope you understand that I don’t want to say that.” "Won't I be punished?" "As long as you help us, you will not be punished." Julier burst into tears: "I do. It was an accident, and you have to explain it to them. It was all an accident. I just did what I thought was right." "If you help us, you're doing the right thing," Bayley said. "Colonizing space is the only possible way to save the planet. If you're not prejudiced, you'll understand. If you still don't, talk to Talk to Dr. Fastoff. Now, all you can do to help is put the R. Sammy thing down. You can call it an accident or something, and get it over with." Bailey stand up. "Also, remember, I'm not the only one who knows the truth, Chief. Get rid of me and you'll destroy yourself. The whole space city knows about it. You get it, don't you?" "No need to say more, Ilya." R. Daniel said: "He is very sincere, and he will help. Judging from his brain wave analysis data, there is no doubt about this." "Okay, then I'm going home. I'm going to see Jessie and Bentley, back to my old life. I'm going to sleep Daniel, after the space city is gone, will you stay on Earth?" "I haven't been notified yet," R. Daniel replied. "Why do you ask me that?" Bailey bit his lip and paused for a moment. "I never thought I'd speak to anyone like that to you, Daniel, but I trust you. I even admire you. I'm too old to leave Earth, but when the Colonial Training Center is established, I will There is Bentleley. Maybe, if one day, Bentleley and you, together..." "Maybe." R. Daniel said blankly. The robot turned to Julie Enderby.Julier was looking at them, and some kind of vitality gradually appeared on his weak and slack face. Daniel said: "Friend Juliel, I have been trying to understand some of the things Elijah once said to me. Perhaps I am beginning to understand, because I seem to understand suddenly that instead of destroying evil that should not be done, that is, Instead of destroying your so-called evil, it is better to turn this evil into your so-called good." He hesitated, and then, almost as if surprised by what he said, "Go, and never sin again." Bailey laughed suddenly, he held R. Daniel's elbow, and the two walked out together.