CHAPTER 495: CHAPTER 294 HAPPY_2

On the ground lay a brand-new lanyard name tag. Dean picked it up. Printed with cheap ink, a line read: "Harry Detective Agency."

Another Harry, but this one’s a white guy... he thought.

Dean missed Harry, Lawrence, and the others. This time, to avoid drawing Monet’s attention, he had returned without contacting his mother or his old pals like Lawrence.

Once I find an opportunity, I’ll take you guys down!

Remembering the unpleasantness, Dean tossed the name tag aside and walked into the room. It appeared to have been recently renovated and refurbished, looking fairly neat. At the far end stood a desk, upon which were some cheap-looking second-hand office supplies and a picture frame. On the wall in front of the desk hung several glass frames that seemed to have cost some money; they all contained official-looking detective agency documents that appeared authentic.

Dean’s eyes scanned the contents of the documents on the wall, and he narrowed them. Interesting. How did this guy manage that?

The documents indicated that the Harry Detective Agency was founded just over a month ago. This place couldn’t possibly be the Los Angeles branch of the Smith Detective Agency, nor could it be their affiliate! But Dean was sure the address sent from the Smith Detective Agency’s headquarters’ email was this one. So, how had the white guy—the one who’d just been knocked downstairs—managed it?

Dean thought for a moment but didn’t immediately take out his phone to call the Smith Detective Agency. He walked slowly to the chair in front of the desk and sat down, preparing to wait for the owner to return.

The moment he sat down, Dean discovered something else very interesting. He thought he now understood why this shabby detective agency was called the Harry Detective Agency!

He reached out and picked up the picture frame from the desk. The photo showed two young men, one Black and one white, arm in arm, with beaming smiles. They looked close. The white man on the left was the one who had just fallen from the second floor, and the Black man on the right was Dean’s subordinate, Detective Harry!

Harry, that bastard, actually went and quietly started a detective agency with someone!

Dean thought. Looks like Harry has taken on some side hustles while I’ve been away.

Dean propped up his feet, waiting for the owner to return.

About forty minutes passed.

Hurried footsteps approached. A sleazy-looking white man, his face flushed with panic, burst into the room and slammed the door shut.

"Whew, crazy woman!" he gasped, panting heavily, then turned around.

The next moment, the white man jumped, startled to see Dean sitting in his office chair, smiling and watching him. He instinctively reached for the doorknob, ready to bolt, but then seemed to reconsider. He gave Dean an unfriendly look. "Hey, buddy, I remember you. You were just downstairs. Who are you?"

Dean pointed to the wall behind him. "Isn’t this a detective agency? I’m here to hire you."

"Oh, a client." The white man coughed twice, straightened his cheap suit, and adopted a stern expression. "My name is Happy, and I’m the owner of the Harry Detective Agency. Our agency boasts extensive investigative experience and numerous information channels. May I ask what service you require?"

"Not so fast." Dean took out his phone, dialed Harry’s number, and put it on speaker.

Weird guy, Happy thought. Sensing something was amiss, he took a step back, retreating to the doorway, poised to flee at the first sign of trouble.

Harry, probably slacking off, answered the phone immediately. His tone was sickeningly sweet, "Wow, Boss Dean! It’s been so long since you last contacted us. Have you missed your good buddy Harry?"

Dean rolled his eyes. "If I recall correctly, we just spoke on the phone last week!"

In his spare time, he often called Harry and Lawrence to keep up with the situation in Los Angeles, always looking for an opportunity to return.

Happy, standing by the door, heard the voice from the speakerphone and his eyes widened. "You’re Harry’s friend!"

On the other end of the line, Harry also heard Happy’s voice and exclaimed, "Boss Dean, why do I hear my good buddy’s voice...?"

A dozen minutes later, Harry arrived at the detective agency and gave Dean a warm hug. "Boss Dean, you came back and didn’t even contact us!"

"You know it’s not convenient right now. I need to keep a low profile," Dean said, pushing Harry away with distaste.

After a round of pleasantries, and through Harry and Happy’s pieced-together account, Dean learned the full story.

It turned out that after Dean left, although Squad Four still handled many cases, Dean’s old team had been directly taken over by the current captain, Old Hunter. Old Hunter’s case-solving skills were mediocre, to say the least. So, naturally, the rate of successfully closed cases plummeted. Now, the entire Squad Four depended on Lawrence to carry the heavy load. The problem was, Squad Four had been split into two teams, which also reduced Harry’s team’s income. Harry still had a daughter to support, and he was a big spender. Later, he and his good buddy Happy—who was the hacker friend Harry had mentioned before, a guy with serious computer skills—decided to start a detective agency to earn some extra cash.

Harry exhaled a smoke ring, his face melancholic. "I can use the police department’s system, and I know a lot of people. Happy is proficient with computers, has decent investigative skills, and dreams of being a detective. So, we partnered up and started this agency.

"We thought taking on jobs like catching cheaters would bring in some money, but it turned out this line of work isn’t easy either. After opening, we had no clients..."

Dean let out a cold laugh. "Then can you two idiots explain why the email I received from the Smith Detective Agency had this address?"

The Smith Detective Agency was not to be trifled with. If they discovered this, Harry and his friend Happy would be in serious trouble.

Harry was also unaware of this. He looked at his good buddy Happy in surprise. "Buddy, what did you do?"

Happy shrank back a little. "Those assholes looked down on me, so I created an email interception program specifically to intercept emails they sent to Los Angeles. When I saw they were sending an email to Boss Dean, seemingly wanting him to take a case, I thought I could learn how to be a detective by observing. So, I quietly altered the email content..."

Dean was speechless. "..."

As it happened, when Happy realized detective work wasn’t easy, he had tried to learn the ropes by looking up the Smith Detective Agency’s Los Angeles office, hoping to get hired. Instead, he was humiliated by the receptionist. That’s what led to Dean being duped into coming here.

Fate is such a curious thing, Dean mused.

Worried that Dean would blame his good buddy, Harry quickly interjected, "Boss Dean, Happy’s not a bad guy! He’s really capable and has a lot of potential. He just needs an expert to show him the ropes. By the way, Happy, didn’t you get your first case recently?"

Happy was also speechless. "..." He glanced at Harry, who was trying to speak up for him, then at Dean, who had a teasing smirk. He managed an awkward yet polite smile. "Hehe, yes. There were a few hiccups, but I still completed the client’s assignment."

Dean smiled. "You mean the client hired you to find evidence of her husband’s infidelity, and you personally stepped in so her husband ended up cheating *with you*?"

Harry stared at his good buddy Happy in shock, his lips trembling. His shock then turned into a look of deep admiration. "Happy! For a job worth only one thousand US Dollars, you went to such lengths?" He hadn’t expected his good buddy to be so ruthless with himself just to break into the market and ease Harry’s financial pressure.

At that moment, Harry resolved that even if it meant selling Fasting services, he would get Boss Dean to mentor Happy and help his good buddy achieve his dream of becoming a detective!

Happy flushed. "That was just an act, an act! The client’s husband really did have issues, but the guy was too careful. I couldn’t find any way to obtain evidence legally, so I had to resort to some dirty tricks... I... I’m innocent!"

In the end, Dean decided to take Happy under his wing and show him the ropes. It wasn’t because Happy was Harry’s friend. Rather, it was because Happy, for the sake of a thousand US Dollars, was shameless enough to compromise his integrity, get personally involved, and even deceitfully manufacture a scandal concerning the client’s husband’s sexual orientation. He was flexible, shameless, and quick on his feet when it came to escaping. He’d be useful enough as a temporary assistant.

After instructing Harry not to reveal his return to Los Angeles for the time being, Dean, with his newly acquired subordinate Happy in tow, headed for the real Los Angeles office of the Smith Detective Agency.