Empire of Shadows

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Twenty seconds earlier, directly below Director Dale’s office, an agent was holding up a somewhat heavy box, asking in a loud voice.

“If anyone ordered this double-layer pineapple pie, please say so, otherwise I’m going to open it in a bit!”

The young male agent looked at his colleagues around him. Everyone was shaking their heads; it seemed no one had ordered this.

A smile appeared on his face. He liked pineapple pie. His mother used to make it for him often when he was a child.

Compared to the strange-tasting apple pie, the texture and taste of pineapple pie were clearly more likable, at least that’s what he thought.

He rubbed his hands together eagerly and then opened the box.

It seemed a bit difficult to open in the process, and he even used a little force.When the lid was lifted, he clearly saw a line hanging down from the edge of the lid, and at the end of the line was a thin iron wire about four centimeters long.

There was no double-layer pineapple pie in the box, no orange-yellow pineapple pie filling cooked with syrup and jam, only a bomb and a lot of steel nails.

He said “Fuck,” the same word Director Dale would say three seconds later, and then looked up blankly.

The next second, the suddenly rising sound, light, and shockwave of the explosion sent him flying. The scattered iron nails became deadly weapons, flying everywhere, including into the walls, onto the floor, and into people’s heads and bodies!

Because this unlucky agent’s body blocked the direct path for those behind him, not many people directly behind him suffered fatal injuries.

But the shockwave and the huge noise also made them fall to the ground, covering their ears in pain. The whole world was just a buzzing sound…

Soon, people from other offices rushed in. They looked in disbelief at this room that looked like it had been through a war. The walls were embedded with iron nails, and pieces of the wall plaster, shattered by the nails, were everywhere.

Some agents were wailing in pools of blood, while others had already fallen silent.

Especially the few agents sitting around the center of the explosion; the least injured among them had seven or eight nails stuck in them, and all in vital parts.

Some agents were twitching on the floor. Even though they had no obvious wounds, they were still vomiting large mouthfuls of blood.

The tragic scene made people scream. Someone immediately called for an ambulance, the fire department, and even… the police!

The mayor called immediately to ask what had happened here, but the director’s line was busy. Right now, many people wanted to find out what on earth had happened here.

A few minutes later, the whole of Golden Port knew that the Bureau of Tobacco, Alcohol, and Dangerous Goods had been bombed again.

If the first explosion was just a “small scene,” then this time, it was a big one.

One hearse was not enough. They sent two hearses, one after the other, to transport all the bodies away.

A total of six agents died, and nine were injured, two of them seriously.

Director Dale sat stunned in his chair, gazing at the floating clouds in the sky outside the window. His mind was in a mess.

If the first explosion, although not good news for him, also contained some opportunities…

As long as he seized those opportunities, he could definitely attract the attention of Congress and quickly rise through the new department, straight to the central hub.

In a time of crisis, a leader not only withstood the pressure but also beautifully turned the tables, consolidating the achievements and fruits of victory of Prohibition.

He would have both substance and face. The gentlemen in Congress would also be very satisfied with his performance. His future would be a smooth path.

But the second explosion, this explosion, had made him lose all face. His path to promotion was completely closed.

Explosions happening again and again, and this time so many people died, he couldn’t explain it away.

Even if he solved the case quickly, it would be useless.

People don’t care how much time passed between the two bombings, or what he did in response. People only know that after the first bombing broke out, he failed to catch the person who caused the tragedy.

He let them set off a second bombing, and even more people died. Isn’t this just the definition of an idiot?

Why should such a person be appreciated by the members of Congress, and why should he be able to enter the central hub directly based on those merits?

This fall hurt so damn much.

It hurt so much that the phone rang for a long time, and he didn’t react until the deputy director came in and told him the phone had been ringing continuously.

It was the mayor.

The mayor was very concerned about the situation here and wanted to know some more detailed content, but he was absent-minded at the moment. After answering irrelevantly twice, the mayor told him to rest well and not to be overly sad, and then hung up.

Overly sad?

He was indeed quite sad.

So sad he wanted to laugh.

Just as the phone was hung up, it rang again soon after. He thought it was the mayor again, with something left unsaid, so he just used a questioning “Sir?” when he picked up.

But this time, the person on the other end was not the mayor.

“We should talk.” The voice was very unfamiliar. Director Dale frowned and racked his brains, but couldn’t find any memory related to this voice from his time here.

He frowned deeply, lowered his head, and rubbed the space between his eyebrows. “Who are you?”

“Haven’t you been looking for me?” The slightly frivolous and arrogant voice immediately let Director Dale know who was on the other end of the line!

After pressing the record button, he stood up abruptly, walked to the door, and beckoned to the deputy director who was arranging work not far away, then returned to his desk.

“You’re Polly?” he asked, watching the deputy director come in. He held the receiver with his shoulder and quickly wrote a line on a piece of paper.

The voice from the receiver was indeed as rumored. “I like people to call me Big Polly. You can call me that too.”

“So, are you satisfied with my gift?”

Director Dale’s pessimistic mood seemed to have eased a bit. This idiot actually called to provoke him, which suddenly made him feel less pessimistic.

“If you’re talking about the explosion that just happened, then Polly, you deserve to die!” Director Dale stated his attitude. “We will not give up on arresting you because of your atrocities. On the contrary, it will make us more eager than ever to bring you to justice as soon as possible!”

“We are a law enforcement agency, representing justice and the law. We will not bow to evil. Even if you threaten to harm me, my family, and all of us, we will not compromise.”

“Justice will prevail, Polly. We stand on the side of justice, and you are evil.”

Polly looked at the handset in his hand. What the fuck are you talking about?

He coughed and interrupted the other party. “Listen, Dale.”

“I’ll arrange for someone to turn himself in. He will admit that he was responsible for the bombing, and this matter will end here.”

“He will become a new merit under your badge of justice. Then you continue to be your director, and I continue to do my things. You don’t cause me trouble, and I won’t cause you trouble. We all do our own things, how about it?”

Director Dale’s attitude was very firm. “Not how about it. You’d better go to the nearest precinct and turn yourself in right now…”

“Do you not fucking understand what I’m saying?” Polly’s temper flared up again. “Do you know what you’re saying?”

Director Dale became very calm, and his mood also greatly eased. “When I sit in this position, the interests of the country and the people surpass everything.”

“You can do it again, twice, many more times.”

“But, Polly, you are not fighting against me, nor are you fighting against the Bureau of Tobacco, Alcohol, and Dangerous Goods. You are fighting against this country and justice.”

“Either turn yourself in and accept trial.”

“Or I catch you and send you to the electric chair.”

When he said the words “electric chair,” Polly slammed down the phone. But at this moment, a smile had already appeared on Director Dale’s face.

Perhaps, this was a gift from God who was unwilling to see him sink into despair?

This conversation, which he considered perfect, should absolutely appear on all radio and a small number of television broadcasts. Newspapers and magazines should turn it into written dialogue and print it in every corner of the world!

Polly had dealt him a heavy blow, but he had also sent an opportunity. He was saved!

The smile on his face was completely from the heart, but he quickly reined it in and became sad again.

He also took a deep breath, stood up, and began to proactively deal with some matters after the explosion.

A large number of agents returned from outside. Director Dale looked at them, his face pained and serious. “This is the second time they have used a bomb attack to force us to back down.”

“Shortly after the explosion, Polly, the leader of the Brotherhood, gave me a call. He told me to drop the investigation.”

“He tried to force me to accept his conditions, to let him find a scapegoat, and let him go scot-free by threatening to create more explosions!”

“I refused!”

“He was very tough, but I sensed the weakness behind his toughness. He is feeling scared, which is why he is retaliating against us so irrationally and inhumanely.”

“This shows that everything we have done since the establishment of this department until today has been correct!”

“The decision of Congress and the Presidential Palace was correct!”

“I believe the light will shine brighter and brighter, like the midday sun, while the shadows will become less and less, like melting ice and snow.”

“Justice will prevail. We will never compromise with evil…”

The reporters frantically took pictures, recording. An image, perhaps not so glorious and great, but at least of a tough guy, was stabilized.

After he finished this brief press conference for the reporters and society, he immediately began to assign tasks.

“According to our previous plan, tell them that whoever can help us find Polly, we can guarantee that he will not go to jail and will be completely exonerated!”

“In addition, put some pressure on the other gangs, let them also join our operation. If we don’t find Polly, if we don’t send him to the electric chair, I will not let their businesses operate for a single day!”

Police cars with wailing sirens ran all over the streets. In the evening, the mayor learned about the whole process through word of mouth from others.

He thought for a long time, then shook his head. Director Dale was a very typical politician. He was more like a politician than a law enforcer. Of course, this was also the current situation in the Federation.

Originally, his position was very passive, but that call from Polly brought Director Dale back from a passive position to an active one.

And he turned his incompetence into the difficulties and obstacles in implementing the resolutions of Congress and the Presidential Palace, praising the policies of the upper echelons and establishing his own image along the way.

The image of a “tough director” had been established. Even if Director Dale couldn’t be promoted to the central hub, he wouldn’t easily fall in Golden Port.

Politicians always look at problems differently from others. The mayor’s attention quickly shifted from Director Dale to Polly.

He thought for a moment, picked up the phone, and dialed a number.

“Did you see the news?” he asked.

A very steady voice came from the other end of the phone. “I saw it.”

“Now you locals are starting to break the rules. How do you people plan to handle it?”

After a few seconds, the other party said, “We will clean him up…”

The mayor said with a slightly mocking tone, “I hope you can do it. If this matter affects my going to the state assembly, I will stay here for a longer time!”

He hung up after he finished speaking. He was telling the other party that if they didn’t want him to stay and create an ideological confrontation with the “locals,” they had better handle this matter as soon as possible.

Sometimes, this “hostile identity” was quite useful.

Lance also heard this emergency news bulletin on the radio. He was worried about Polly’s intelligence.

He might have seen Director Dale as someone like Chief Charlie or other police precinct chiefs, someone you could give some money, give them a way to explain to the public, and then add some threats to suppress the matter.

This set of methods worked when dealing with the local grassroots law enforcement system, like Imperial Precinct Chief Bruce. Give him a thousand dollars, and a little pressure, and as long as he has a way out, he will roll down on his own.

But it was obvious that Director Dale, who was transferred from above, came with a mission. If he compromised so easily, then the ones to deal with him would not be the people of Golden Port, but the people from Congress, or even the Presidential Palace.

He had no way out, so he would not accept threats. This couldn’t be entirely said to be Polly’s fault for being a fool. After all, he had not received any higher education, nor had he seen a bigger stage.

He just mistook the mouth of the well he saw for the entire sky, that’s all!

A little past one, about forty minutes after the bombing, a car with the Bureau of Dangerous Goods printed on it screeched to a halt outside the labor agency.

Senior Agent Lukar got out of the car. His deputy also intended to get out but was refused by him.

He walked to the coffee shop next door, ordered two cups of fine coffee, and then walked into the agency carrying the coffee holder.

There were a lot of people here. He squeezed through the crowd and came to the very back.

He knocked on the manager’s office door. After waiting for the “come in” from inside, he pushed open the door.

Lance looked at him with some surprise. He had a smile on his face. “Isn’t this a surprise?”

He placed the coffee holder on the table, took out a cup and placed it on Lance’s side, and also took a cup for himself. “I’m treating you to a cup of coffee. Now you owe me one.”

A smile appeared on Lance’s face. He opened the lid and took a sip. “No problem.”

Lukar took the opportunity to sit down. He looked at some of the decorations hanging on the surrounding walls. “Do you know where Polly is?”

Lance shook his head. “I’m not interested in where a mad dog has run off to.”

Polly had disrupted the peace of the entire Golden Port, which also meant that many people’s businesses would be affected.

Lukar was satisfied with Lance’s understanding. “Before we find him, we will continuously raid your territory. As long as we find you selling alcoholic beverages, we will arrest you.”

“Until Polly is caught.”

This was Director Dale’s order. Whether it was poor places like the Empire District and the Port District, or places full of rich people like the Bay Area and the Starlight District.

A bar wants to sell liquor?

Fine, find Polly.

As they were talking, the phone on the desk in front of Lance suddenly rang. Lukar made a “why don’t you pick it up and listen” gesture and expression.

Lance picked up the phone. “Lance, this is… People from the Bureau of Dangerous Goods are blocking the door.”

He glanced at Lukar, who was sitting opposite him with his legs crossed, smiling.

The latter sensed his gaze and extended his hand, making a small gesture. “Like it?”

This bar was not his own bar, but a bar under Eric’s name. In other words, they had started indiscriminate attacks, just to show their determination and means to catch criminals at all costs.

Lance thought for a moment. “Let the customers leave first, then close the door and accept their inspection.”

“If they want to find the bar’s operator, have them call Lawyer Orson.”

“As for you, don’t worry.”

“Because compared to them, we are also locals.”

Lance’s last sentence was actually directed at Lukar. They were all locals, including the illegal immigrants.

There were quite a few people in the Bureau who were transferred from other cities or other states. If these outsiders went too far in Golden Port, the Five Families of Golden Port and the gangs of all sizes would show them how to survive in this city.

And let them experience the unique scenery of Angel Lake.

“I really don’t like the way you threaten people, Lance,” Lukar said, taking a sip from his coffee cup. “So subtle. If you want to threaten me not to lay a hand on your people, you can just say it out loud!”

Lance didn’t fall for it at all. He hung up the phone. “Did I say anything?”

Lukar casually picked open the cigarette case Lance had placed on the table and took one out. He lit it with his own lighter, and while exhaling smoke, he said, “Sometimes you’re quite hypocritical. You should act like a fierce bandit, not a politician.”

“Just like the first time we met. You clearly knew everything, but you still had to pretend to be innocent?”

Lance said with a smile, “There are too many bad people around. If we are not careful, we will be used by bad people, don’t you think?”

(End of this chapter)

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