Chapter 34: Finding the Camera

We found Donnie trying to escape, but my grip on his shoulders prevented him from doing so. However, he continued to attempt to break free until Samuel spoke up.

"If you answer our questions, we will even pay you," he said.

Upon hearing these words, Donnie quickly calmed down and asked, "How can I help?"

"We know you rented a drone. And we are confident that it was rented by someone through you. We need information about this person," I said.

"I can't," Donnie replied.

"I am a detective," I reminded Donnie.

"I already know that, but I simply don't know who it was," Donnie said.

"So you won't tell us even for a monetary reward?" I asked.

"I would love to, but I just found a letter. Well, many of us saw the letter, but only I went to the place indicated in the letter. There was a new letter with instructions. I followed them and left the drone in the same place. Then, I found the money where the letter instructed me to. That's all," Donnie explained.

"I don't believe you, Donnie," I said.

"But I'm not lying. That's the truth. I was paid $500 for renting the drone. You have to admit, that's good money," he said.

"What happened to the drone?" Samuel asked.

"I don't know, I found it in the same place when I returned according to the instructions. Money was lying next to the drone. So, I gave them to the drone owner, for which I received another $500," he said.

"Show me that place," I said.

"Sure, you'll pay, won't you?" he asked.

"Yes," Samuel replied shortly.

I released Donnie from my grip, and he went ahead, showing the way. We followed him for about 15 minutes and came to a building. The building was an abandoned warehouse or something similar. We walked through this building, passing through various rooms until Donnie said we had arrived.

The room turned out to be a sealed one with no access except for the door through which we entered. Samuel and I began to inspect the room while Donnie stood nearby, apparently waiting for his reward.

It took several minutes to thoroughly examine the room, which was not very large, only 20-25 square meters. The room had several old chairs, a desk, and an old safe that was broken.

During the search for evidence, we discovered a small camera. Samuel found it precisely. The camera was inside a slit in an old writing desk. I was surprised at how Samuel managed to find it.

Having retrieved the camera, Samuel immediately installed some chip on it. After which he said, "It was still recording. I'll ask my team to find the resource to which this camera was transmitting the recordings. Perhaps we can use its resource to find him or his accomplice. There should be a recording from the moment he took or left the drone in this room," said Samuel.

"Can I get my reward now?" Donnie asked.

"Yes, take it," I handed him a $100 bill.

"Thank you, can I go now?" he asked.

"Yes, you can go. But if you remember anything, call this number," I said, handing him my business card.

We picked up the camera and headed back to the car. We had to walk back to where we found Donnie since he had already escaped. We had to rely on memory to get back.

On the way to the car, I decided to have a conversation with Samuel.

"Do you think we can track them down?" I asked.

"We need at least the silhouette of the drone recipient. Then we can compare the silhouette with the people captured on the city's cameras during this time," he replied.

"So the AI will do everything," I noted.

"Before, it was a program that did it. Now it's AI. The only thing that has changed is the reduction of the human factor in the work. Now we get the best options from the possible ones. And so far, there have been no mistakes," Samuel said.

"On the one hand, yes, but the spirit of investigation disappears. It feels like the AI is taking care of everything, and we're just looking for clues," I said.

"Maybe, but we still need to catch him and find out the reasons for his actions. I think that's important too," Samuel said.

"I hope we find him and not just another Donnie who did it for a reward," I said.

"There's a chance for that, but I think it will be easier. Such expenses are usually covered by the money he gets from the victims' belongings. Considering how much money he spent on rent, repairs, and intermediation with Donnie, I think he doesn't have much money left," Samuel said.

"If so, then I bet that the killer will be the one behind the drone, not his accomplice," I said.

"Perhaps. But I bet on his assistant," Samuel replied.

"Why is that?" I asked.

"Let's take our prime suspect, Riley. From the very beginning, he's been hiding his identity behind a cheerful and sociable facade. But as it turns out, there are many coincidences surrounding him that started after he lost his wife. Do you think you would suffer emotionally if your wife died because of circumstances beyond your control?" he asked.

I remembered that day, with the video from the maniac who mutilated a girl who resembled Kate in some way. I felt a monstrous fear, a fear that overwhelmed me even more than the anger I felt when watching that video. So, I answered him honestly.

"I would probably go crazy," I said.

"As expected. Many people lose their rationality in such a situation. But Riley stubbornly pretends to be himself at the club, which is very strange, given that he comes to church with a different attitude, portraying himself as a deeply offended and deeply grieving husband. Do you think that if he can deceive everyone around him so skillfully, he would risk and take the drone himself?" he asked me.

That's when I started to think. Yes, if all of this is a game, where he hides his true self from everyone, then it's logical to assume that he wouldn't take the risk. But then the question arises, why did he go to those cities if his accomplice is the one responsible for the murders? With this question in my head, I asked Samuel.

"Then I have a question. Why did he go to those cities if he didn't want to leave any clues that would lead to him?" I asked.

Samuel suddenly stopped.