Jimmy returned to the police station and was pondering Justin's situation. He had thought Justin was just using his identity to get conveniences for his clients or to obtain some information, but it seemed they were involved in no small matter.
The mansion looked like something not just anyone could afford, a two-level villa that still appeared rather new, probably built not many years ago. Moreover, with that surrounding wall, it was clearly different from the other villas nestled in the woods. Although he hadn't seen many, even the villa used by the FBI last time, or the villa belonging to Baka, the Indian, wasn't as nice as this one.
Although he had only briefly glanced at the interior, he could tell that the decoration was exquisite. The owner of such a house couldn't just be called influential, they had to be wealthy at the least.
The Emil they had taken into custody was clearly from the assassin's industry. From the scene, it seemed he had forced his way in from outside, first taking out three people outside, then going inside to kill another three. No bloodstains were found from the yard to the mansion's door, so the wounds on his leg and waist must have been inflicted by someone inside the house.
Wealthy people with bodyguards, assassins—it all pointed to a rather serious case.
After coming back, Jimmy also checked the case records. So far no one had reported the crime, meaning that at least when Emil had barged into the house and started killing, no one had been able to make an emergency call. Emil was definitely a professional.
It was uncertain whether the scene had been discovered by anyone. Jimmy was too hasty, as he had neither cleaned up any traces when entering nor exiting. If a professional were involved, they might've been able to analyze some details through footprints or tire tracks.
It seemed necessary to visit the bar tonight, to at least confirm the next steps with Justin.
Jimmy waited until 8 PM, successfully handed over his shift, changed into casual clothes, took the patrol car to the repair shop for cleaning, then walked to the bar.
The bar at night was never empty. Whether on weekdays or weekends, the difference was only that there would be far more people on the weekends, while it wasn't packed during the weekdays.
Jimmy looked around; the bar area was almost full. He headed to the side of the bar.
Jimmy, "Justin, give me a whiskey."
Justin turned his head, took a glance at Jimmy, picked his bottle from the shelf, added some ice cubes, and handed it to Jimmy.
Justin, "It's pretty busy today, you better head inside."
After briefing another bartender, Justin came out from behind the bar and entered a private room.
This room normally wouldn't be open to the public, and while there were quite a few people outside, no one came in here.
Justin took out a Gold Coin from his pocket and handed it to Jimmy.
Justin, "This is for you."
Jimmy took the Gold Coin and slipped it into his pocket. He then said to Justin, "How's Emil doing?"
Justin, "Everything is fine, except that his legs will need a long recovery period. The tourniquets were tied on for too long."
Jimmy, "What about the aftermath? The mansion."
Justin, "Cleaners have been arranged. Don't worry, no one will know, and no one will report it. Emil is going to bleed a lot for this."
Jimmy, "That reassures me. Go on with your work. I'll take a stroll outside."
Justin knew Jimmy's objective. They left the room; Justin returned to the bar, and Jimmy sat down at an empty table in the middle.
Time flew by quickly, and Jimmy was chatting with two girls. It seemed he wouldn't be lonely tonight when suddenly, his phone rang.
Jimmy gave a regretful smile to the two, gestured at his ringing phone, and headed towards the private room, which had good sound insulation.
Jimmy chose to answer the call in the private room because it was from the dispatch center. He had already changed his availability status with the center, so a direct call indicated an emergency.
"Jimmy, an urgent case in Ainton, near the intersection of Ainton Avenue and El Street, a gang conflict may erupt, South District station urgently requests backup, you are needed to support immediately."
"Costa Supervisor, I can't support right now. I didn't bring my gear today, and I'm in a bar, just had a drink. Responding to a call now could cause problems."
"Can you drive now?"
"Probably not. I just had two or three glasses of whiskey, and it's too far from here to get there."
"Where are you? I'll have LRPD send someone to take you. Casual dress is fine, did you bring your badge and gun?"
"It's all on me, I'm at the Camlite Bar next to the police station."
"I'll wait at the door."
Jimmy hung up the phone with a sigh. The day had been so slow, and just when the night promised some good news, it was all messed up by these tedious gang members.
Jimmy walked back to his table, apologized to the two individuals there, said hello to Justin at the bar, and then headed out the door.
Standing at the door, he let the cold wind blow over him as he smoked a cigarette. Soon, an LRPD squad car arrived at the entrance of the bar.
Jimmy greeted the officer, took the passenger seat, and the squad car tore off towards the southeast of Little Rock with its lights and siren blaring.
Jimmy lowered the car window, letting the cold air hit his face to sober up as quickly as possible. He didn't want to be disoriented in case something went down later.
Ainton lies directly south of Little Rock, but it's quite far out, and the LRPD has no authority there. Only the Ainton police and county police are in charge. However, unlike the numbers at Little Rock police, Ainton police are understaffed, and the South District substation of the county police only has about ten officers, so Jimmy was unlucky to have been drafted into this.
By the time the LRPD car dropped Jimmy off, the scene was already bordering on chaos.
There were a few houses at the intersection, surrounded by woods, and now in front of one house stood 7 or 8 people, facing outwards, while over 20 were encircling the house, yelling something at those inside behind a metal fence.
It wasn't that Jimmy didn't want to listen to what they were saying, but with so many people talking, all he heard was a buzzing noise that made it impossible to understand anything.
The Ainton police and the county police had already parked several vehicles opposite the road. However, no physical confrontation had occurred yet, and the police had not intervened by force.
Jimmy got out of the squad car and instructed the LRPD vehicle to return. He was of no use here, and it would be better to avoid further trouble by leaving.
Jummy approached a county police cruiser and saw that Allen from the South District substation was present. He inquired about the situation and learned of a comically tragic set of circumstances.
The so-called local gangs were nothing but groups of young hooligans sticking together for warmth. The encircled house belonged to one of the group's members, who apparently had too much to drink at the bar and got carried away with a girl.
The girl wasn't part of the gang, but her brother was a core member of a rival group. This ignited a powder keg. For them, calling the police was not an option; they had to deal with it privately.
News spread quickly in such a small place, and word got out among the gangs. One side wanted to protect their member, while the other wanted to retaliate. This escalated into the current standoff.
As Jimmy and Allen were exchanging information, a gunshot suddenly rang out from the crowd. Jimmy's buzz from the alcohol was instantly gone. He dove to the ground behind the police car, and the other officers also took cover.
"Shots fired, shots fired. We need backup at Ainton Road and El Street intersection," Jimmy heard Allen call for backup over the radio. He got up and looked towards the crowd.
The origin of the shot was unclear, but it acted like a starter pistol. Several of the people outside rushed towards those at the house, pushing over the fence as if it wasn't even there.
No one fired again, and the scene degenerated into hand-to-hand fighting, with no weapons involved. Jimmy and the others began shouting for the brawlers to stop, but it had no effect.
The police were reluctant to step into the fray, knowing it could be very dangerous. Brandishing guns as a threat might not work either, once a brawl starts, it's not easy to stop, and there was no direct threat to the officers.
Watching the chaotic scene, Jimmy felt a surge of adrenaline. He grabbed the shotgun from Allen, turned to an empty area behind him, and fired two shots at the ground. The loud "bang bang" startled the brawlers, who gradually began to stop and back away from the center outwards. Those in the middle, upon hearing the gunfire or seeing others cease fighting, likewise stopped and moved apart.
Jimmy held the shotgun trained on the ground, not approaching the crowd as officers from the local police began emerging from behind the cruisers to start apprehending individuals.
The officers from the South District substation and Ainton police, familiar with many of the gang members, apprehended a few leaders directly while ordering the rest to stay put.
Despite the commotion, the gang members did not flee; being captured would only result in a record, not a significant issue for them. Escaping from the police, however, would be a felony offense.
With everyone separated, the officers did not find anyone with gunshot wounds. They began patting people down to ensure there were no dangerous items, and eventually, they found a handgun on one of the leaders.
It turned out that the gun had gone off accidentally during a heated exchange of insults. It was loaded and the safety was off, and it discharged in a pocket during vigorous movement. The bullet hole in the pocket was evident, but thankfully, the gun barrel was pointed downward, preventing any injuries.
As reinforcement officers arrived, the county police and Ainton cops took everyone back. Those involved in the fight were recorded and then released, while the leader caught with the handgun was not so fortunate. With evidence of illegal concealed carry, he was taken into custody immediately.
Jimmy didn't accompany them to the station but arranged for an officer from the county to drive him back.
Jimmy's shotgun discharge into the ground was simply recorded in an incident report by the officers later. Although it was not by the book, no one else objected, so Jimmy promptly returned to his business.