Chapter 67: The New Police Beacon

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One week later, Jimmy returned to the repair shop with a completely new set of emergency lights. Having obtained prior permission from Chief James, Jimmy and Kugg's patrol cars were scheduled for the upgrade first.

Due to the difference in the light fixtures' structure and the lack of pre-allocated space on the vehicles, Jimmy and the others had to resort to some heavy-duty modifications. They drilled holes into the edges of the hood to install brackets, mounting ten-centimeter light bars directly above the headlights—one on each side. The rear lights were handled similarly, except holes were drilled into the sides of the trunk lid, and right-angle brackets were used to position the emergency lights horizontally just above the taillights.

Below the roof light bar were four mounting points: three horizontally aligned underneath the light bar, with a T-shaped bracket extending from the middle to secure it and prevent any swaying. After revising the design, they drilled new holes to secure the brackets.

The rearview mirror area proved difficult to work with, so Jimmy opted to place the light horizontally on the center console, securing it with two suction cups. Despite being behind the windshield, the light output remained fully adequate.

As for the power supply, modifying the vehicle's internal wiring harness directly was too major of an undertaking and not worth the trouble. Instead, they continued to use a separate car battery fixed inside the trunk, running wires straight into the cabin.

Once the preparations were complete, Jimmy and Kugg drove their patrol cars back to the precinct. Although the aesthetic remained somewhat crudely industrial and hand-built, it was vastly superior to Jimmy's previous homemade setup.

The next morning, Jimmy arrived early at the precinct. Today marked the first patrol mission for the new emergency lights. Aside from showcasing the results to the precinct staff, the primary goal was to record feedback and opinions from pedestrians on the street.

However, an awkward realization soon dawned on Jimmy. While his patrol car had been modified, he was excluded from the pool of officers authorized to drive it. Since he designed the lights, allowing him to collect feedback would violate fairness, and so he was tragically stripped of his right to drive his own patrol car.

Noah happily drove away in Jimmy's patrol car, leaving Jimmy with no choice but to take Noah's vehicle instead. Feeling uneasy and clueless about the actual performance of the new lights out in the field, Jimmy didn't even bother patrolling and simply slacked off.

When he returned to the precinct that evening, Kugg and Noah had already been back for a while.

Not only were the two of them back, but Chief James was also standing next to a patrol car, surrounded by a few onlookers. A reporter was interviewing the chief, while a cameraman recorded the scene.

Judging by this setup, the debut of the new emergency lights today must have gone exceptionally well. Jimmy was quite pleased, as this meant he wouldn't have to worry about finding a market for his light design.

Jimmy parked his patrol car in the parking lot, entered the precinct through the back door, returned his equipment, and headed to the locker room to change his clothes.

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By the time he emerged, the chief's interview had concluded. The chief and the reporter were chatting idly in the office, while the cameraman sat in the lobby, boredly flipping through a newspaper.

Jimmy chose not to disturb them and slipped away through the side. There was no urgent need to ask about the results today; when he returned to the precinct tomorrow, someone would naturally inform him.

The next day, upon arriving at the station, Jimmy learned that yesterday's interview had already been broadcast the previous night. As for the subsequent footage, it had just gone live, and since there were no results yet, Jimmy decided to ignore it and focus on his regular duties.

His patrol car had been returned to him today, allowing him to head out with the new emergency lights—a decision he soon regretted.

Once he hit the highway, surrounding cars would intentionally or unintentionally follow him for a stretch or simply drive alongside him for a while. When he pulled over to the roadside, passing pedestrians would even come over to say hello—a treatment he had never experienced before.

It seemed the chief's broadcast advertisement from the previous night had worked. Moreover, people here showed a remarkable openness to novel things, and he even spotted someone pulling out a camera to take pictures of the police cruiser.

Jimmy couldn't be bothered to deal with them; as long as nobody stood right next to the patrol car, he let it be. For safety reasons, it was best not to have people lingering near a police car, given the excessive prevalence of firearms in America. One never knew if some lunatic might suddenly walk up and open fire at close range.

Just then, dispatch came over the radio. Jimmy immediately activated his emergency lights and siren, and drove off. Being watched by a crowd always felt deeply uncomfortable, which ultimately stemmed from a lingering sense of insecurity.

It was a standard call: a woman heard noises inside her house, locked herself in the second-floor bedroom, and dialed 911 to ask the police to check it out.

Calls triggered by hearing strange noises were extremely common. Some were auditory illusions or false alarms; some involved burglaries or home invasions; and a fair proportion simply turned out to be stray cats or dogs that had wandered into the yard or house, requiring the involvement of animal control, which was deeply annoying. A single call could take anywhere from half an hour to an hour to resolve—not only wasting time, but also proving immensely tedious.

Jimmy rushed to the destination and spotted the caller's house. No vehicles were parked in the driveway. From the front, the door and windows were tightly closed, and the glass remained completely intact.

Jimmy stepped out of his patrol car, circled the house through the neighbor's yard, and found no external abnormalities.

"Adam 28 calling dispatch. Can the caller still be reached? I have arrived. The perimeter of the house is secure, and no unauthorized persons are outside."

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"Dispatch received. The caller's phone has been disconnected. A callback was just attempted, but there was no answer."

"Adam 28 received. I am going inside to investigate."

Jimmy drew his revolver, walked up to the front door, and activated his psychic sight to scan the interior. The first floor showed no anomalies, but on the second floor, a figure was lying motionless on a bed, suggesting something was wrong. No other humanoid silhouettes were detected in the other rooms.

"Pulaski County Sheriff's Office! Open the door, is anyone home?" Well, Jimmy still had to go through the proper procedures. Peering through the window revealed no signs of a struggle or mess, giving him no immediate grounds to break the door down right away.

After shouting a few times with no response, Jimmy tested the doorknob; it was locked. He promptly raised his foot and kicked the door open, stepping inside. His psychic sight only revealed monochromatic grey and black outlines, making finer details difficult to discern. He glanced around the first-floor area before heading straight up to the second-floor bedroom.

Sure enough, a tragedy had occurred. A female corpse lay face up on the bed, with a gunshot wound to the head. A cell phone rested near the bed, having slid just short of the floor after presumably slipping from her hand. A bullet hole marred the wall behind the headboard. The rest of the room appeared undisturbed. Judging solely by the crime scene, this was unmistakably an intentional homicide rather than an accidental death resulting from a botched robbery.

Jimmy walked straight back downstairs and returned to his patrol car.

"Adam 28 calling dispatch. The caller is deceased, shot in the head. No other individuals found inside the house. Please dispatch an ambulance, and contact the coroner and Captain Kugg for support."

With a homicide on his hands, Jimmy certainly couldn't handle it alone. By calling in Captain Kugg to shoulder the heavy burden of responsibility, Jimmy could comfortably slack off.

The ambulance arrived ahead of time, but knowing the victim was already confirmed dead, the paramedics were in no rush. They simply waited outside with Jimmy for Kugg to arrive, ensuring they didn't disturb or contaminate any evidence at the crime scene before moving the body.

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