Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth
Chapter 1241 - 546: Clues
"Sob... sob..."
The sound of crying came from the office of the first squad of the Robbery and Murder Department. The deceased's wife had come to the police station early in the morning to inquire about the case.
When she learned that her husband had lost his job six months ago, she was first incredulous, and then burst into tears.
After a while, her crying gradually ceased, and Luke asked, "Regarding your husband's resignation, did you not notice anything before this?"
"No, he never mentioned resigning."
"Sometimes, when men encounter difficulties, it's hard for them to speak out directly. There might be some tentative words.
For example, 'I've been really tired with work lately, not happy with it.'
'I want to change jobs, what do you think?' Luke added, "Your husband left six months ago, and he might have said these things recently or a few months back. Try to recall."
"My mind is a mess right now, I can't remember." Christian Horn pressed her forehead and choked, "We are a couple, we should face everything together.
Resigning is such a big thing, he should have discussed it with me beforehand, instead of deceiving me all along, pretending he was still working at the travel agency.
For an entire six months, I was completely in the dark.
What he did was wrong, I feel like a fool, a complete fool."
The deputy squad leader frowned, spreading his hands, "Ma'am, this isn't the time to blame your husband, your husband is already dead.
Moreover, he must have been under immense pressure before he died.
A middle-aged man who loses his job is like his backbone is broken, I believe, in his final moments, all he could think about was this family, you and the children.
If he heard your words beside God...he would be very sad."
Christian Horn shouted, "What about me? Do you think I'm not sad now?
I still don't know why he died? I don't know if he committed suicide or was murdered? Can you tell me?"
The deputy squad leader retorted, "We only took over your husband's case yesterday, we don't know his character or his past, we are doing our best to investigate.
And you are his wife, meeting him every day, living in the same room, you ought to know him the best.
Whether he committed suicide or was murdered, you should be the one who knows better than anyone."
Christian Horn wiped away her tears, looking at the old man with gray hair but a strong presence, weakly saying, "I didn't come here to argue with you.
You're right, I know my husband...
No, now I'm not even sure if I really know him anymore.
If... if he is still the man I knew, he would never commit suicide.
He must have been murdered."
Luke interjected, "Ma'am, I understand how you feel, I have a few more questions to ask you."
Christian Horn glared at the deputy squad leader and said, "Go ahead, I'd rather talk to you."
"You never noticed your husband resigned from the travel agency?"
"Yes."
"Then how did you manage the household expenses? Or, did your husband have any income during this time?"
"He did say the travel agency wasn't doing well, and his income was lower than before, but the difference wasn't big, about eighty to ninety percent of what he made before.
I thought it was just temporary, who knew he had already quit.
I also want to know now where those funds came from."
Luke pressed on, "During this time, did your husband possibly find a new job?"
"I don't know, he didn't even tell me about quitting, how could he possibly tell me this."
"I'm not asking if he told you, rather, think back if any of his behavior or belongings revealed something similar.
For example, business cards, documents, or phone calls from other companies."
"No, I have no impression."
"Okay." Luke thought for a moment, "How is your family's financial situation?"
Christian Horn rubbed her cheeks with her hands, helplessly saying, "My husband's salary wasn't very high, after deducting the mortgage and basic family expenses, there's no money left, sometimes he'd use a credit card.
That's also why I was surprised to hear he quit.
We had no savings, without that salary we could not cover living expenses and mortgage payments, our future life...
I really can't imagine it.
That's why I blamed him earlier, it's not that I don't care about him, but this job was crucial for our family."
Luke asked, "How many credit cards does your husband have?"
"Two."
"Are you aware of his card usage?"
"No, I don't know.
However, those two cards have low limits, they couldn't cover our living expenses for six months."
Luke said, "To find out the cause of your husband's death, we need to know what he did during this period, even if he didn't say, he might have left some traces in life.
For example, friends and family around him, your husband might have confided in or sought help from them."
Christian Horn's eyes were red, "I understand, I will ask people around him."
Luke said, "If you find any new leads, contact me as soon as possible..."
"Knock, knock..."
At that moment, there was a knock on the door from outside.
Then, the forensic doctor Hila pushed the door open and walked into the office, holding a document in her hand. She opened her mouth as if to speak but stopped when she saw Christian Horn.
Luke pointed outside the door, "Jenny, take Mrs. Horn to the public lounge."
Jenny understood, stood up, "Ma'am, please follow me."
Christian Horn didn't know Hila and followed Jenny out of the office.
Luke closed the office door and asked, "What are the results of the autopsy?"
Hila said, "We conducted a comprehensive examination on the body. The deceased died of heart failure induced by drugs."
"Was it poison?"
"We didn't detect any lethal toxins in the deceased's body.
I know this sounds a bit contradictory." Hila organized her thoughts and explained, "We found some chemical substances in the deceased's body that are suspected to be drugs. These chemicals have a certain impact on the body, but they are not fatal.
However, the deceased had consumed a large amount of alcohol and drugs before death.
The combination of the three resulted in some chemical reactions, leading to the deceased's heart failure and death."
The deputy shrugged, "That's why many medical instructions state not to drink alcohol while taking this medication."
Hila replied, "You're right."
Luke asked, "Can the chemical composition of the drugs suggest what drug it might be?"
"The deceased took the drug yesterday, and the components have broken down in the body, making detection challenging.
Moreover, the chemical composition of the drug is complex. I have currently detected five uncommon chemical components. After comparison, a blood pressure medication called Nebivolol contains four similar chemical components."
The deputy raised an eyebrow, showing a look of fear, "So, the deceased died from drinking excessively and taking drugs after consuming blood pressure medication?"
Hila shrugged, "The human body is very complex. Different people react differently to the same medication.
Also, the impact on the body varies with different proportions of chemical components, so it's not certain that the deceased took Nebivolol blood pressure medication.
I can only provide objective data, and the rest is up to you to investigate."
Jack thought for a moment and said, "If the deceased had high blood pressure and happened to be taking antihypertensive medication, then it's likely not murder."
Jackson raised a question, "But the deceased's wife never mentioned he had a history of drug use."
The deputy pouted, "No one would willingly expose their ugly side."
Jack followed up, "If the deceased had high blood pressure and a history of drug use, it suggests he might have died accidentally. Can we close the case?"
"We found bottles of alcohol at the scene, but no drugs. The deceased couldn't have eaten the drug packaging too, but the tech team didn't find any drug packaging at the scene, which suggests it was likely taken away.
So, there might have been a second person at the scene." Luke said this and then turned to Port beside him,
"Go to the public lounge and bring Christian Horn back. She should know about her husband's health condition."
"Okay, Captain."
Port got up and left the office.
Matthew came over, "Guys, I don't want to interrupt your discussion on the case, but I've found a new situation, quite urgent."
The deputy said, "Then what are you waiting for."
"I discovered that Rochelle Horn's Wells Fargo credit card had a transaction ten minutes ago."
"Ten minutes ago?"
"Yes."
Luke instructed, "Go check the specific location of the transaction."
"Okay, Captain."
Jack widened his eyes, "Could he have risen from the dead?"
Hila shook her head, "No, ten minutes ago, he was still lying in the morgue, couldn't go anywhere."
Jackson speculated, "Could the person who took the drug packaging have taken Rochelle Horn's credit card?
Finding the person who used the credit card might reveal the truth behind Rochelle Horn's death."
"Bang!" Christian Horn burst through the door, her face showing an anxious expression, "Have you found the person who killed my husband?"
"Not yet." Luke said in a calm tone, "However, we did just get some clues related to your husband that we'd like to verify with you."
"Go ahead and ask."
"Did your husband use drugs?"
"No, he never touched that stuff, and besides, he didn't have the money to buy drugs."
"Did he have high blood pressure or take similar medication?"
"No, he was in very good health."
"Where is your husband's Wells Fargo credit card?"
"I don't know, my husband always used that card himself, it should be on him."
The deputy said, "A person who doesn't use drugs suddenly uses drugs.
A person without high blood pressure suddenly takes blood pressure medication, and dies from these drug components.
It's quite apparent someone wanted to make the deceased appear to have died from suicide or accident."
Christian Horn's body went weak, collapsing into a chair, "Oh God, who schemed so meticulously to kill my husband, and why did they do it?"
The deputy answered, "I don't know either.
However, the person using your husband's credit card might know."