Chapter 37

[1st POV]

The progress in the investigation with Renee was swift. In fact, on the very first day of our active work.

Detectives Summers and Olson questioned several witnesses, who provided very useful information about a local Chinese gang.

They are not affiliated with the Triad. On the contrary, their relationship with them worsened, bringing them to the brink of war. 

As a result, they ordered a lot of weapons and medical supplies through newly established "connections."

However, the issue arose almost immediately after our colleagues were killed, and the next day, a small group of Chinese were killed.

At first, we believed it was the Triad responsible for the killings, but after studying the shell casings and the bullets found in the bodies, it was determined that the culprits of this massacre were another gang. 

This gang is even younger than the dead Chinese, and they are also tourist.

They have been robbing banks and kidnappings and have attacked police convoys twice, freeing their accomplices.

Currently, we know the identities of only three of those who were attacked.

The exact number of the group is unknown, but based on experts' analytical calculations, it should consist of at least six to eight people.

Right now, Renee and I are meeting with one of the guards who miraculously survived the last hijack.

"Mr. Cortez?"

We addressed the man in front of us, a middle-aged individual missing his right arm and eye.

"Yes, that's me. And who are you?"

He frowned.

"I'm Detective Renee Montoya."

"I'm Detective Isaac Dinklage."

He noticeably relaxed.

I could tell he experienced some post-traumatic stress disorder. He could really use some psychological help.

"Ah... yes, I remember now. You must be the cops who came to investigate some case here. I was informed about you. Please, come in!"

We sat in the living room and began asking the questions that concerned us.

Actually, Renee started, and I just helped her, asking questions that interested me.

Based on what he said, I personally formed the following picture of events.

There's a group operating in the U.S., possibly connected to a secret organization, carrying out raids on important convoys and eliminating certain individuals from their "list."

However, Renee had a different impression.

"They're probably some scumbags who served in the military, then went insane and decided to shoot on civilians."

She gritted her teeth.

We had already left the witness's house and stood by the car. I was deep in thought, and the significance of Cortez's story began to dawn on me.

"No! You're wrong. Actually, there's a logical answer in your words, but you took the wrong direction. They're not insane."

"What do you mean?"

Renee raised an eyebrow.

"You know I served in the Marine Corps, right?"

She nodded.

"Well, that's good. Of course, I didn't fight in the Middle East, but I did take part in hostage rescues once or twice with my fellow soldiers. However, we mostly played a supporting role as a backup. The actual rescue was carried out by a special group but it wasn't special forces. Special forces are easy to spot by their uniforms. However, these guys were completely different. They didn't look any different from ordinary passersby on the street. In fact, they seemed weaker than the average person but they were the ones sent in. There were only ten of them and they... completed the mission, the one they were given, in one minute and four seconds from the start of the operation. There were only two terrorists survived, and that's only because our superiors needed information from them. There were no casualties on the team's side and no casualties among the hostages."

"That's a nice story, but what does it have to do with our case?"

"Then, we went to a pub with the guys to have a beer after three days. A signal operator from the HQ came along with us. I don't even know how he got such a responsible position, but he turned out to be quite the chatterbox when he drank. In the end, if we believe his words, those guys who freed the hostages weren't assigned to any of the security agencies. Moreover, this signal operator was monitoring all the radio signals in the area. He jammed ALL the signals and intercepted those who tried to come from the captured site. However, the interesting part was that this group didn't have even the slightest trace of a radio or any other communication device. They didn't carry anything like that with just weapons and a small ammo kit and they didn't have any body armor. What we initially thought were their bulletproof vests turned out to be just thick jackets to keep them warm, nothing more. They also didn't sustain a single injury and you have to understand that storming a building without complete intel on the location of the hostages and the exact number of terrorists is almost suicide and leading a group of ten and successfully completing the mission in such a short time is nearly impossible. At first, we didn't believe this guy. We thought this group still had protection and communication. We had a little laugh about it and then forgot… until now."

"That sounds intriguing, but I still don't understand why you're telling me this. Did the same group really attack the convoy? And that government agencies are behind all this?"

"No! You didn't let me finish. A month after that operation, I happened to overhear a conversation between my commander and some high-ranking official from the Pentagon. They were drinking in his office and got talking about new weaponry. I'm still military, and though I didn't want to eavesdrop, I couldn't help myself. Then, after about ten minutes, the conversation shifted from guns and technology to 'living weapons,' about children raised from a young age to be killing machines. That group was one of those child groups. The twist is that they don't feel fear at all because of genetic modifications that completely remove that feeling in them. That's why they are some of the most dangerous soldiers of today. But the project was partially a failure and was covered up. Those who remained after the completion were either eliminated or started being used in operations like these."

"And judging by Officer Cortez's story..."

"They stormed a convoy that consisted of fifty soldiers and twenty police officers, with the support of several machine guns on separate vehicles. They carried out a successful operation, losing no one and killing almost all of the convoy. They essentially destroyed a small army. So it's not accurate to say they were just 'crazy people.' They might have been military, but definitely not ordinary soldiers. They were a special group who did this with a specific purpose, and for someone..."

"So..."

Renee began to grasp what was being said, "This is even worse than we thought... Either the government or people with connections managed to get such individuals for their own purposes and can do whatever they want."

"Yes, and the problem is that we don't even know exactly what's going on. We thought this gang was somehow linked to smugglers, but it turned out to be something completely different. But our theories are useless to anyone. We won't even be able to prove them. Even if we somehow manage to present this to our superiors, I'm sure those 'higher-ups' will clip our wings. If we decide to ignore this information, we still won't be able to connect the case to the murder of our colleagues and smuggling just like that, without evidence. The threads are currently leading to this mysterious group."

"Damn it! Why did I have the feeling that we'd handle this quickly and return to Gotham?!"

Rene's emotions are running high.

She's now speaking in Spanish, and I can barely make out the sounds, let alone understand what she's saying.

"Now we've got a serious problem."

I said, deep in thought, "We need to go over everything once again. All the facts and points from the detectives' murders, the smuggling, the Chinese massacre, and the theory about this 'special ops group.' We need to figure out where these threads lead and what really connects all these cases."

"Alright, I think we should head back to the hotel and discuss everything thoroughly once more."

Renee concluded.

To be continued...

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