novelslam Chapter 31 The Choice!
Chapter 31 The Choice!
Police walkie-talkies may occasionally have a delay, but it is usually around one second.
A 20-minute delay in receiving the signal can only mean one thing: the signal has been interfered with, meaning someone deliberately framed Starling.
who can that be?
Titus immediately thought of Lecter, then Vijay, and both were possible.
Lecter might be retaliating, or he might be using this to provoke the FBI; he would absolutely be happy to do such a thing.
Vijay's purpose was quite simple; he probably wanted to use this to lure out Lecter.
Titus rose from his seat and gave the order:
"We rushed to the scene in the old town immediately."
After Titus finished speaking, the crowd remained still but subtly glanced at a police inspector from the Florence authorities—Inspector Mike.
Although nominally Tytus was temporarily taking over Crawford's command of the operation, with the Florence Police Department providing support, in reality, all of Tytus's instructions required Mike's approval.
After all, the real Crawford hasn't arrived yet, and it's a bit far-fetched for a lowly rookie detective to be parachuted in and command most of the police station.
Titus also looked at Mike, but not with a plea, but with an irresistible air of authority, almost a command.
He was fed up with all the twists and turns. A simple matter required consulting and reporting to this person and that person. One minute this person was in a meeting and couldn't be disturbed, the next minute that person was away on a business trip and couldn't sign off. Capable people were trapped in rules and regulations, bound by all sorts of reasons.
He was fed up with all this social niceties and backstabbing!
Things that are rotten and meaningless should be eliminated!
In that instant, he remembered Mr. Lecter's letter:
"When you taste the wine of power, do you feel the need for more strength to break free from the shackles of the world?"
If Mike is a brainless idiot who can't see the connection between Starling's kidnapping or deliberately makes things difficult for him and refuses to help, then he'll just go and confront him alone, Titus thought.
Inspector Mike was a middle-aged white man with a thin layer of beard on his cheeks and an unassuming silver wedding ring on the ring finger of his left hand. He looked experienced and reliable.
He looked up at Titus.
Just when most people thought there was going to be a good show, Inspector Mike simply nodded calmly and said:
"No problem, but I can only give you one counter-terrorism squad."
Inspector Mike's current message is: this is not our primary objective.
Titus was not an ungrateful person, and he was surprised by this suspicious and unexpected situation.
As the commander of the entire operation, he should not have left. The safest approach would have been to send personnel to investigate first.
But he's not a cautious person; if you had to put it in perspective, Titus is definitely the type who "ignores the risks and keeps installing."
Moreover, this is their only clue at the moment, so it is reasonable for him, as the commander, to personally lead the team to investigate, even if it is a bit radical.
This was not a wrong decision. In any case, Starling was in danger, and he no longer cared about right or wrong.
He nodded to Mike and turned to leave.
An instructor quickly stopped Mike and Tetus and pulled up a video recording. The content was very simple and lasted less than a minute.
On screen, Starling is tied up with rope and suspended in mid-air. The camera slowly zooms in on her face. Her eyes are closed, and she seems to be unconscious. The camera slowly moves down, and a violent roar can be heard!
They hung Starling from the man-eating wild boar pen!
Nine robust wild boars! They were roaring with hunger, drooling!
Titus noticed the wild boar's bloodthirsty tusks, the filthy muddy ground of the pigpen, and the towering walls surrounding it, and found it hard to imagine the torment Starling would suffer if she fell in.
He remembered that Starling was very clean and would secretly apply gentle, non-irritating moisturizers and perfumes to herself. Occasionally, she would wear her silver necklace, apply just the right amount of light makeup, and quietly keep an eye on designer high heels when she was slacking off...
Titus took a deep breath to calm himself down and asked:
"Where did the video originate? Have you traced its IP address?"
"The video was played repeatedly on screens in several large squares, supermarkets, and pedestrian streets in Florence."
Titus and Inspector Mike immediately asked:
"Can you cut off the video?"
The officer nodded and said:
"We cut it off immediately. Several patrolling officers noticed it as soon as the video was played, but it still caused quite a bit of panic."
"As for the IP address, wait a moment... They've set up an extremely complex trap that can't be broken through in a short time."
Inspector Mike ordered:
"Crack it immediately with all your might!"
Just then, Taitu's phone rang, and the caller ID showed: Crawford.
He answered the phone, and Crawford's long-unheard voice rang out:
"Titus, I'm still on my way, but there's an emergency I have to deal with right now, and you're the only person I can trust in Florence."
Titus frowned slightly; he had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, Crawford continued:
"I received a call from Hannibal Lecter, and immediately checked his IP address. Luckily, I was able to pinpoint his location: near Church A in the old town of Florence."
The old town is located in the heart of Florence, surrounded by ancient city walls dating back to the 14th century, and the Arno River has flowed quietly there for centuries.
Titus thought, no wonder he couldn't catch Lecter's shadow even after watching the surveillance footage all day with the Astartes-enhanced Thunderheart.
Everyone assumed he was trying to cross the border in some remote area, but this guy did the opposite and stayed in the city center – a clever move to hide in the dark!
"Sir, do you want me to lead a team to the outer area immediately, even though that bastard Hannibal has tricked us more than once?"
"This time is different. We used professional equipment to trace his IP address, and the location is accurate, but you must act immediately to seal off the area to prevent him from escaping."
"Why would Hannibal Lecter call us?"
After Titus finished asking his question, there was a brief silence on the other end of the phone during this precious and tense time. In the silence, he could only hear the crackling of the electricity.
After a moment, Crawford spoke:
"He told us that Starling was tied up in an abandoned factory in Lane G of the outer district, a long-abandoned dead city where there was no one for several kilometers around due to a chemical leak."
"The kidnapper was Mason Vijay. He deliberately chose a place Lecter had been to, and Lecter recognized it immediately."
"Titus, listen, you and I have both been in contact with Mr. Lecter. He risked exposure to convey a message to us for only one purpose: he didn't want Starling to get into trouble because of him."
"Starling and you are both his prey, and Mason Viger's actions are extremely shameless. Lecter cannot tolerate this behavior and is extremely arrogant, believing that it is okay to expose his location."
"Now, I want you to concentrate your main forces on capturing Lecter in the old town. You can send a small anti-terrorism task force to Starling's side."