This aligns with the content of his commission.

Investigating which oil paintings were stolen, their condition and packaging, is likely to determine their authenticity and whether they were switched in the meantime.

The stolen paintings cannot be openly authenticated.

Luke boldly speculated that this employer is likely the buyer or a potential buyer of the paintings.

Moreover, the employer does not fully trust the professor.

Luke said seriously, "I want the identity of the employer."

Michelle Harold looked troubled and secretly glanced at Captain Marcus beside her.

Marcus chuckled, "You're not the only one who's been caught.

That white fellow is in the other interrogation room, you should understand what I mean."

Michelle Harold licked her thick lips, her gaze flickering. After pondering for a long while, she said, "Albus Stone."

"The 'Buffett' of California?" Luke thought of the old man lying on a hospital bed, resuscitated with an electric shock device.

"Yes," Michelle Harold replied, then asked back, "You've already started investigating him?"

"What condition was he in the last time you saw him?" Luke suspected the old man was pretending to be sick.

"Sitting in a wheelchair, wearing a breathing machine, panting after saying a few words, looking as if he were about to die.

I even doubted whether he could survive until we completed the commission."

"Did you complete the commission?"

"Yes, we did some investigation on the oil painting heist, and after talking to the security transporting the paintings, we roughly figured out the situation before the paintings were stolen, and then reported to the employer.

Luckily, the old man was still alive at the time."

"Do you know why Albus Stone hired you to investigate the paintings?"

"No."

"Was anyone else with him when he met with you?"

"No, he talked to us alone. At that time, I also wondered why this frail old man didn't find an agent."

"How did he find you?"

"By phone."

"How did he pay?"

"Cash."

"Where was the meeting place?"

"At his large villa, the first time I saw a villa with a garden that big."

"Do you know the whereabouts of those ten paintings?"

"No."

Luke took out the forensic sketch of the professor, "Do you recognize him?"

"I don't."

"Do you know any other clues about Albus Stone?"

"No."

"Did you have any contact with him previously?"

"No."

"Then how did he find you?"

"I don't know, but when a big employer comes to us, we can't refuse."

"Are you willing to identify him?"

"Can it reduce my sentence?"

"Of course."

"Willing to be at your service... Captain Marcus."

Luke "..."

Little Black wished he could bury his head in his pants.

...

It's near noon.

Luke led the team to Albus Stone's house.

As soon as they got out of the car, they felt the atmosphere was a bit unusual. The villa gate was open, and there stood a white man at the entrance, wearing a black suit, a black tie, and a white flower on his chest.

Luke walked to the gate, and the white man asked in a deep voice, "Sir, are you here to attend Mr. Albus Stone's wake too?"

Luke frowned, could he really be dead?

"When did Mr. Albus Stone pass away?"

"Last night."

This is too coincidental.

"Where is Mr. Albus Stone's body?"

"It's still in the villa and will be moved to the church in the afternoon for a memorial ceremony."

The white man led Luke into the villa while speaking. On the west side of the villa garden, a sunshade was set up, and a stage was erected with Albus Stone's portrait and a transparent glass coffin on it, accompanied by slow and melodious music from the nearby speakers.

A number of people attending the wake were seated below the stage, some silently mourning, some reading a book, and others sipping coffee while sitting quietly in a corner.

Luke slowed his pace and walked over to check the glass coffin. Inside lay an old man, a white man, who appeared peaceful, the same man he saw being resuscitated on the hospital bed that day.

Is he really dead?

Why would a dying person go to great lengths to hire detectives to investigate paintings?

Could it be... to silence them!

Luke's mind was filled with questions, but faced with a deceased, he had no way to inquire.

Luke glanced below the stage and recognized a familiar figure, someone he had only met once before, Mrs. Stone.

Luke walked over to the elderly woman and comforted her, "Madam, I'm sorry for Mr. Stone's passing."

Mrs. Stone looked at Luke and shook her head, "He left in his sleep, very peacefully."

Luke pressed further, "Did Mr. Stone pass away in the villa?"

"Yes."

Luke recalled the scene of his last visit, where Albus Stone's bedroom was equipped with a full set of monitoring and resuscitation equipment, as well as doctors and nurses. If there were any abnormalities in Albus Stone's condition, they should have been detected immediately, and any resuscitation would be a hassle, certainly not peaceful.

"Was there a doctor present when Albus Stone passed?"

"No.

A few days earlier, my husband felt God's call, had the equipment removed, and the doctors and nurses left."

"Did Mr. Stone willingly give up treatment?"

Mrs. Stone shook her head, "His condition was very severe, almost untreatable. It's more like he wanted a peacefu departure and voluntarily gave up resuscitation."