"But it's not like that," he stressed.
"That's not the case... Hitzfeld... Sometimes the simpler the method, the more effective it is. You need to learn to relax your mind and not spend all day and night -"
"My goddess!!!"
A burst of exclamations suddenly interrupted the rhythm, and the two people in car 13 were stunned.
Then a sharp whistle was heard from the front.
And the shouting, mixed with panic, became clearer and clearer.
"Larson..."
"Papaconi-Larsson..."
"He's dead!"
Chapter 13: Suicide
Hearing the noise, Hitzfeld jumped out of the car before Leon could react.
Before she took a step forward and ran, she stopped the last police officer who wanted to run with her, and told him to "stay here and watch the body", and then ran forward with Li Ang.
Li Ang's legs are longer than hers, and he has more strength and explosive power, so he naturally arrives at the place before her.
That was carriage No. 9... the carriage where the deceased had the accident, and also the carriage where the five suspects were housed... At this time, quite a few people had gathered around the carriage. In addition to the policemen, there were also quite a few unfamiliar faces. Judging from the uniforms they were wearing, they should be the crew members who had not been seen at the Yunyou Hotel before.
There were several people, all of them were young and beautiful girls. Their leader was an older middle-aged woman, with a slender figure and a gentle face. Although her nasolabial folds showed that she was not young, she still maintained a very good manner.
"What happened?" This well-educated woman was standing in front of a group of police officers, her face serious. "We will cooperate with the investigation, officer, but this happened in the car, we should at least have the right to know, right?"
"Well... I'm afraid we have to wait for the sheriff to come out..."
The police officer who was criticized hesitated. It was obvious that he felt that the matter was too complicated and he didn't know how to respond for a moment.
"Are you detectives?" Hearing the footsteps behind her, the middle-aged woman turned her head suddenly and her eyes fell on Li Ang and the girl behind him.
"Gray hair... one eye... If I'm not mistaken, you must be Miss Aisun-Hitzfeld, the famous independent detective?"
"It's me." Hitzfeld slowed down his pace, tried to control his breathing, and made himself appear calm.
This must be the Miss Mary they are talking about, she thought.
Before she met Miss Mary in person, she thought she was a relatively young girl. But now that she had met her, she estimated her age to be around 35 based on her facial features.
She is already seriously too old, and she is still called "Miss" at this age. Does she not want to get married in this life?
"My name is Mary Dawley. My colleagues are used to calling me by my first name. You can call me the same as they do."
Miss Mary walked up and took the initiative to shake hands with the girl, completely ignoring Leon who had approached first, causing the latter to frown.
"And this gentleman." Miss Mary quickly turned to him, "I just heard them talking about an agent from Port Wayne coming to help with the investigation. I guess it's you... I haven't asked you yet..."
"Just call me Cornerel." Leon's mouth twitched a few times, and he pretended to be calm and said, "Ahem - the King's Capital Agent or something, actually I was kicked out..."
"The situation is urgent now..." But no one here wanted to hear him say these things. Miss Mary interrupted him and said anxiously, "I'm sorry, but you should have heard the noise just now?"
Hitzfeld nodded slightly.
"Can you please persuade the sheriff to let us in to take a look at the situation?"
"Don't worry, miss." She looked at the others, her eyes sweeping over the faces of the police officers and flight attendants one by one, "This matter will be properly resolved."
After saying that, she walked to the other end of the carriage and stared at the gray-clad policeman guarding the door.
The other party was defeated by her imposing gaze and simply made way for her to enter.
Li Ang naturally went in as well. Miss Mary and the others also wanted to sneak in, but they were blocked outside, which led to another dispute.
As Hitzfeld entered the corridor, he heard a sharp argument coming from inside the carriage.
Very distinctive and full of energy... No one except Mrs. Charles could make such a noise.
"This is your guarantee...you said something about safety...protection...but then something like this happens..."
"I demand to leave this damn place immediately! I don't trust you anymore, Sheriff, you must let him go... immediately! Right now!"
"Please calm down ma'am..."
"Another person died! How do you expect me to stay calm?!"
The quarrel took place at the end of the corridor, which was only separated by a wall from the external corridor platform.
It was also next to the zoologist's bedroom. Sheriff Rand blocked the door to the room and refused to let Mrs. Charles in. He tried his best to argue with her, but it was obvious that he was at an absolute disadvantage in terms of momentum.
The passengers in other rooms also heard the noise and stood at the door to look out. They were the two fur traders, Bilis and Yoderal. When they heard the footsteps, they turned around to look at Hitzfeld, both of their faces filled with confusion.
It seemed that they didn't understand what was going on.
"Miss Detective!" Black-haired Bilis frowned and leaned forward, asking in a blaming tone, "What happened? I heard them shout... the gardener died?"
"This should have nothing to do with us, right, Miss Hitzfeld?" Yoderal also looked worried. "Billis and I have just stayed in the bedroom to rest. We didn't go out. We can prove it to each other!"
"Get out of the way, gentlemen." Hitzfeld waved them off, "I have to finish reading this before I can tell you about this..."
She walked quickly to the center of the vortex between Sheriff Rand and Mrs. Charles, and said to the former: "...Sheriff."
Sheriff Rand didn't look very well at this moment. The joy on his face disappeared, replaced by fear and anxiety, and his eyes were also blank.
When he saw Hitzfeld, he was even stunned for a moment. It was not until the girl called out for the second time that he said "Oh" and stiffly gave way.
Hitzfeld was able to see the scene in the room clearly.
The first thing that catches your eye is two overturned potted plants.
The flowerpot fell to the ground and broke into two pieces. The black soil inside was spilled on the ground and sprayed thirty centimeters away according to the kinetic energy trend. Some tiny ants could be vaguely seen crawling around.
The other flower pots were not moved, and were still placed on the beds on both sides. On the bed in the middle, opposite the door, sat the zoologist and botanist she had talked to not long ago.
His attire remained the same, half of his body was leaning on the iron frame, his head tilted to the side, and a police officer was checking his condition.
Without further ado, Hitzfeld stepped in and took over the autopsy.
Mrs. Charles wanted to stop her and say something, but she moved so quickly and with such force that she only had time to open her mouth before being forced into silence.
Everyone can see that the most focused person here is Papaconi-Larsson.
At one point, both Mrs. Charles and Sheriff Rand wished that the gray-haired girl would suddenly announce that "he is still alive."
"He died not long ago..."
The cold words were uttered by the girl in a gentle voice, but it still gave people goose bumps.
"Before death, he had violent convulsions and his face was distorted. The cause of death was estimated to be a bite wound on the back of his left hand."
Unlike the first victim, the wound on Papaconi's hand was too obvious. It was just above the base of the thumb, and there was a circle of swelling there. The skin around it was swollen and red, and if you looked closely you could see two white depressions embedded in it.
It should be the mark left by a fang bite.
"He was poisoned to death by his own little pet."
After a quick inspection, the girl stood up.
"Where's the spider?" she asked the police officer next to her.
The man gave her an awkward but polite smile, moved aside a little and looked down at the ground.
Hitzfeld then lowered his head and saw a lump of blurry meat paste in a mixture of red, yellow, and green colors on the ground in the corner between the two bed frames.
"..." Hitzfeld looked up at him.
"It tried to bite the sheriff when we first came in..." the man explained, "so I just..."
"why?"
Li Ang leaned against the door, staring at the group of northern black ants busy fleeing on the ground.
"Why was he bitten by a spider?"
"He said that it is difficult for a blue-tailed spider to bite through human skin, unless he actively provokes it and lets it lie on his hand and bite it tightly..."
Hitzfeld looked at the dead man's bowed head.
After thinking for a while, she moved closer to the hand with only obvious scars and smelled a strong odor on the surface of the skin, the composition of which was unknown.
"It may be a crazy attractant..."
The corners of his mouth twitched, and his eyes continued to focus on the dead man's abdomen.
"The level of struggle was low... the use of sedatives in advance cannot be ruled out."
In short, Papaconi-Larsson appears to have taken his own life.
Just dug up a clue.
Interrupted again.
Chapter 14 Guarantee
Anyway, the worst thing has happened.
Sheriff Rand probably had come to his senses during this time. He simply comforted Mrs. Charles, got out of the car alone, and went to explain to his subordinates and crew who were gathered outside.
Hitzfeld and Leon were not in the habit of staying with corpses for too long, so the girl asked the police officers to find some empty bottles, and together with them - they picked up the scattered and fleeing northern black ants.
"And these flower pots." She looked at Mike who was squatting on the ground. "It would be best to find a spacious and bright room and move them all there."
"Let us do it, Miss Hitzfeld." Mike emphasized as he explored under the bed, "You've done too much today, leave the rest to us, don't hesitate, this is our job."
Hitzfeld did not refuse the offer, and to be honest, she was a little tired.
Although she was qualified as a funeral director, she was not qualified to dissect a body full of doubts. She and Li Ang got out of the car first, planning to have a good rest while waiting for the coroner.
However, this idea was forced to be postponed after getting off the bus, because she saw Miss Mary standing beside her with a worried look on her face, and immediately realized that she still had some questions to ask her.
"Is that convenient for you, purser?" She took the initiative to move closer, and whispered while everyone's attention was focused on the carriage, "I have some questions... about the deceased. I want to find out more from here."
"Oh... of course!" Miss Mary was stunned for a moment, then nodded quickly, "I'm glad... ah... I mean, if I can really help..."
She also looked like she was hit hard, and it was true - two passengers died on the second trip of the new line. Although she was powerless and could not be blamed for anything in the process, her work qualifications at the Rexing Company would definitely be greatly affected.
There was no chance to find an empty carriage now, so Hitzfeld simply took her a little further away and stood by the small ditch beside the railway track, having taken out a notebook and a pen.
"I want to know what Papaconi-Larsson is like on a daily basis," she asked. "What's he like when he interacts with people?"
"It's normal." Miss Mary said softly, "He is very polite to everyone. At first, no one understood why he brought bugs on the bus, but he gave a lot of tips, and he was very enthusiastic towards everyone, so we didn't care."
"How did he discuss this with you?"
"It was just a normal explanation of his demands. He wanted to do research, so he wanted to put these things in the carriage and then put them all in one room."
"Did he live in that location from the beginning?"
"No, he started in car 6."
"With Mr. Yodelal?"
"Yes."
"Did Mr. Jodral have any objection to him fiddling with flowers, plants and insects?"
"In the beginning, yes... but he treated that gentleman to a steak dinner, and I think their conflict was resolved."
"It didn't take too much effort?"
"Of course, after all, they are only in the same carriage, and Mr. Papaconi does not live in the same bedroom with Mr. Yoderal. There is no need to worry too much about bugs."
"What do you think the other passengers on this train think of Mr. Larson?"
"I'm afraid I can't say anything, Miss Detective." Miss Mary shook her head. "From what I feel, I think most of the passengers' attention is on Mr. Temple..."
"Because he's the least sociable?"
“He certainly gives that feeling.”
"But Mr. Larson usually stays in his room fiddling with flowers and plants, right?"
"It's different..." Miss Mary gestured with her hand, thinking about how to explain it to her. "Papaconi and Mr. Yoderal are in Carriage 6, Mr. Bliss and Mr. Tompley are in Carriage 9, and Mrs. Charles and Miss Charles are in Carriage 7... It seems that they know very little about each other, and the train has just started not long ago, only half a night, so they shouldn't have a solid impression of others."
"But that's not the case, Miss Hitzfeld. Miss Charles is on board. She's very playful and has run around in almost all of our six open carriages."
"You mean Bella-Charles's frequent running around caused Mrs. Charles to go to her, and she liked it..."
"She likes to go to Mr. Papaconi to play with bugs." Miss Mary added, "So twice in a row, I saw the lady chatting with him at the door of the room. They both seemed to have a good attitude... She also got to know other passengers on this trip in this way."
