111. Sudden Incident, Grace Goes Missing

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The sky was gloomy this morning. A biting cold wind swept past the police station’s entrance. Dean turned up his collar and quickened his pace as he stepped inside, immediately spotting two familiar figures ahead.

“Karl, Holden,” Dean greeted as he approached. “Has the station received any missing person reports this morning?”

“You mean the case of Miss Grace Spencer? She’s been missing for less than twenty-four hours,” Karl replied, arms crossed, shaking his head. “According to protocol, the case can’t be officially filed so soon.”

“Her son, Luster, is my best friend. Could you speed things up? Once the case is resolved, I’ll treat everyone to a seafood feast.”

Karl raised his chin, eyeing Dean’s earnest expression. Their old teammate Holden couldn’t help but chime in, “Don’t worry, buddy. We know how to handle this. Expect good news soon.”

...

Dean moved into the corridor.

On a row of seats sat Luster, dressed in a gray sweater and blue striped pants. His face, still swollen and bruised, was as tense as if set in plaster. He kept his head slightly lowered, staring blankly at the floor, his hands tightly clasped in front of him. His breathing was uneven, and he shifted restlessly in his seat.

When Luster looked up, he immediately rushed forward, gripping Dean’s hand tightly. “Please help me. Grace is missing. I’ve searched everywhere and found no clues! My father’s gone, she’s all I have. She can’t be in trouble!”

“Relax. I just spoke with the officers. They’re dispatching people to review surveillance footage and conduct interviews.”

“Besides, Grace is an adult who knows how to take care of herself.” Dean and his colleague sat back down. “Maybe she’s just out drinking with friends or new coworkers and can’t contact you for now.”

“I hope that’s the case.”

“Tell me again... when did Grace disappear?”

“Yesterday morning at seven. Grace made me breakfast and left as usual, dressed in her blue blouse and business skirt, to drive to work.” Luster’s lips trembled. “I thought she was heading to the hotel for her shift, but she never came back after leaving home. Her car isn’t in the parking lot either.”

“Maybe something unexpected happened. Perhaps she covered a night shift for a colleague.” Dean looked steadily into Luster’s eyes. “You said she’s been very busy at work, coming home late every day, right?”

“The thing is, Grace didn’t go to work at all.” Luster growled.

“What do you mean?” Dean’s eyelid twitched, a sense of foreboding rising.

“I never got those nightly check-in calls from her, so early this morning, around five, I went to the Houghton Hotel where she works to ask around.” Luster’s voice faltered, his face turning pale, mouth agape, terrified. “Do you know what her coworkers said?”

“Grace resigned nearly a month ago, and it was her own decision!”

“From January till now, almost a whole month, she never showed up at the hotel!”

A cold wind swept through the corridor outside.

Dean’s shoulders tensed instantly as he realized a major issue.

“So Grace still wore her work uniform every morning?”

“Yes. She’d leave early and return late at night, very regularly.” Luster’s voice fluctuated wildly, his complexion shifting as well. “She was creating an illusion for me, making it seem like she was busy at work and everything was normal.”

“Dean, I don’t understand why this is happening! Please, help me think of something, help me find Grace.”

As Luster’s words settled, a prompt flashed before Dean’s eyes: New event triggered—

The Missing Grace (Event 2/2)

Your classmate Luster’s mother vanished one morning without warning. Whether she left of her own accord or met with an accident remains unknown.

Moreover, for nearly a month prior, Grace carefully concealed her resignation from her son.

What secrets lie beneath?

This event is driven by Luster’s intense emotions. You must search for answers together, letting him witness Grace’s fate firsthand.

Difficulty: Medium

Progress: 0/100

Deadline: One week

Reward: 100 experience points + special reward.

Penalty: None...

...

Witness?

A deep, ominous feeling surged in Dean’s heart. Taking a deep breath, he raised his voice to bolster his confidence:

“Don’t worry, Luster. Look on the bright side—Grace probably secured a new job before resigning and is currently working at another hotel.”

“You’re waiting for your college acceptance letter. As a mother, Grace wouldn’t want to distract you. That’s why she didn’t tell you!”

“Stop comforting me.” Luster covered his face, worry etched deeply. “We’ve lived in Las Vegas for so many years. I know her. If she just changed jobs, she wouldn’t hide it from me so stubbornly.”

“She’s definitely in some kind of serious trouble.”

Dean’s face darkened. “Has she acted strangely lately? Said anything odd to you?”

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Luster lowered his head.

“If I had to point out strange behavior, it’s that she’s been showering more often than before—three times a day sometimes, even coming home at noon to shower.”

“Sometimes, when I’m asleep, I can faintly hear the sound of running water from the bathroom.”

Investigation progress jumped to five percent.

...

More showers?

Dean crossed his legs on the bench and rubbed his chin.

Grace had resigned but still wore her neat blue blouse and business skirt daily, leaving early and returning late, and then showering frequently at home.

What kind of physical work was she doing during the day?

Wandering around bored?

Dean frowned, considering a less respectable possibility but wasn’t ready to jump to conclusions yet.

Luster grew impatient waiting for his friend’s response, folding his right hand over his left fist and pacing in circles. “Should we join the officers in the investigation?”

Dean shook his head.

“Interviewing people and checking surveillance is tedious and draining—let the professionals handle that. Let’s try a different approach.”

Dean’s imagination took flight.

Grace disappeared yesterday without prior signs of abnormality.

The 100 experience points for this event just hit the medium difficulty threshold, likely involving something supernatural. Why not broaden the scope?

Besides Grace herself, what about her surroundings? The people around her? Any unusual encounters or signs?

Dean’s gaze swept over the faint bruises on Luster’s face.

“What happened to your face?”

“Got jumped by some thugs on my way home from school two days ago,” Luster replied casually. “I’m almost healed. I’m fine. Finding Grace is more important.”

“Did you offend them?”

“No, I never even talked to them.”

“They just beat you up? Didn’t rob you?”

“No, which is strange.”

Dean nodded. “You were assaulted for no reason, and the next day your mother disappears. Coincidence?”

Investigation progress rose to ten percent.

Luster blinked, shaking his head in disbelief.

“That’s ridiculous. How could those three thugs be connected to my mom’s disappearance?”

“Answer me first,” Dean asked, “Do you remember what those three looked like?”

“I’d never forget. They knocked over my bike, pinned me down, and punched my face like wild wolves.” Luster clenched his teeth. “I often see them hanging around near my house too.”

“Let’s check out the place where you were attacked and see what we find at your home.”

...

The two left LVPD, driving to Luster’s apartment behind a quiet, deserted department store.

Luck favored them.

Passing by the store, Luster paused and turned his gaze as three laughing young men exited the entrance.

All white, looking about nineteen or twenty, sporting black stubble, hair dyed red, green, and blue, shiny earrings, hoodies, fashionable sneakers, carrying bags of chips and soda.

They were humming the season’s hottest song.

If you added a CD player from a few years later, they’d fit Dean’s image of underage street thugs.

“That’s them.” Luster excitedly pointed them out.

Dean tilted his head toward the store’s surveillance camera. The camera abruptly swiveled away.

He strode straight toward the three.

Luster’s vision blurred, unable to see his friend’s moves clearly. Muffled grunts erupted as the three thugs inexplicably collapsed.

“What are you waiting for, buddy? Help me drag them to the back alley.”

...

By the trash bins in the alley.

“Fuck you, punk. I’ll blow your brains out.”

“Wait till I get you. You’ll cry worse than a dead pig!”

The three thugs spat threats fiercely, but the next moment, they screamed like slaughtered pigs. Slapping noises rang out as their smooth, youthful faces swelled into horrifying bruises.

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“Ugh... hiss... ugh... hiss...”

Dean wasn’t done yet. Grabbing the freckled man by the neck, he hoisted him off the ground as if hanging him on a gallows.

The man kicked wildly, face turning from red to pale, foaming at the mouth, near suffocation. Luster tugged Dean’s arm.

Dean casually flicked his hand, tossing the man like trash into a corner.

The man gasped for air, eyes wide with terror. His two companions dared not breathe loudly, fearing this powerhouse.

Dean nodded, slowing his speech, enunciating clearly.

“Listen carefully. I ask, you answer.”

“I’m not eighteen yet. Killing people isn’t a crime, got it?” Dean’s tone was flat, but his eyes stabbed the three like knives.

“I get it, sir, I get it!” The freckled thug sniffed his bleeding nose, trembling like a sieve. That cold, indifferent gaze reminded him of killers just out of decades-long imprisonment.

This guy was definitely bloodstained!

The other two curled up like whipped dogs.

“Do you recognize him? Why did you attack him?” Dean pointed at Luster.

The freckled man wiped his nose blood.

“We were in a bad mood and wanted to vent. That pretty boy looked easy to beat up, so…”

Luster’s face darkened, frustration swelling.

What did he mean “looked easy to beat”?

The freckled man licked blood from his lip and looked at Dean timidly. “We didn’t mean it. We didn’t know he had a friend who could fight like you. Otherwise, not even with ten lives would we dare touch him!”

Slaps, thuds, nosebleeds. The man spun like a top, then collapsed unconscious.

“Lying has consequences.” Dean turned to the second thug with the mohawk, raising his iron fist, ready to strike. “One chance only. Why did you attack him?”

“Please, no slaps. I’m begging,” the man pleaded, terrified by the strong hand like a gun pointed at his head, spilling secrets like spilled beans. “That day, while passing the supermarket, a man stopped us, gave us a hundred dollars, and told us to beat him up badly.”

Luster looked at Dean in surprise. Dean’s strange hunch was right.

“Go on,” Dean urged, unfazed. “Who’s the man who paid you? Name?”

“I don’t know. I don’t recognize him!” The mohawk man hurried to explain. “After we finished the ‘job’, he was gone!”

“Lying!”

“Do what you want. If you want to slap me, slap me. Say I’m lying if you want!” The mohawk gave up, squinting, his sausage-like lips twisted in defiance.

“Buddy.” Before Dean could strike, Luster grabbed his arm and shouted, “He’s already so beaten up. I don’t think he’s lying.”

“Listen, scoundrel!” Luster glared with hatred. “If you don’t want more trouble, tell me what that man looks like.”

“Trucker cap, white vest, middle-aged, slightly overweight.” The lucky thug glanced at Dean. “A half-head shorter than you.”

“Oh, and I remember he had a fingernail-sized scar on his nose bridge,” the third man added.

Trucker cap, white vest, scar on nose bridge.

Dean’s eyes flickered with strong recognition.

Memories surged. Over a month ago, when Dean and Holden investigated Joan Katrie's case at the Houghton Hotel, they saw this man harassing Grace outside.

At that time, Grace claimed he was just a suitor.

Investigation progress jumped to fifteen percent.

...

“Do you recognize this scarred man? Seen him near your home?”

Dean looked at Luster.

“No. Never seen him. I haven’t offended him.”

“Time to go.” Dean turned to the semi-conscious freckled man. Amid terrified screams, he landed two more punches, leaving two dark bruises like panda eyes.

Luster wasn’t satisfied. He kicked the man once more. Amid the pleasant screams, he quickly followed Dean, nervously glancing back.

“Just leaving them like that? Aren’t you afraid they’ll report this?”

“Report? These three scoundrels probably have countless records. They wouldn’t dare come to the police station. Besides, I was easy on them—they only got some superficial injuries.” Dean explained calmly.

“Have you figured out why that scarred man hired them to beat me?”

“Maybe as a threat.” Dean shook his head. “Anyway, that scarred man is very likely connected to your mother’s disappearance. We need to ask around at the station. But for now, let’s search your home nearby.”

(End of chapter)