North American detective: From scoundrel to god among men

Chapter 4 A Rainy Night, Delicious Food, and Dr. Bianca

Titus followed the waiter's gaze to a corner of the restaurant with a floor-to-ceiling window. There was a round table in the corner, and single leather sofas were placed in front of and behind the table against the window. A small khaki cloth was placed on the back of the sofa. It seemed that the restaurant had only cleaned this small cloth, but the environment here was considered clean by the standards of the South District.

A Caucasian woman of medium build with beautiful blonde hair was sitting on the sofa.

A short while later, the waiter came again.

"This lady would like to have dinner with you."

After ordering, Titus sat down opposite the woman.

He ordered a meat platter, which included a large amount of smoked meat, whole roasted potatoes, cooked carrots, sausages, and fruit pie.

A platter is typically enough for a gathering of four adult men.

The waiter's strange gaze lingered on Titus and Bianca before he finally walked toward the kitchen under Titus's reassuring look.

Soon after, a steaming hot platter of meat was served.

It was served on a long wooden plank that took up almost the entire round table.

The waiter cut the meat into chunks and drizzled it with a secret sauce, the intense aroma constantly stimulating Tatus's taste buds.

Titus forked a piece of smoked meat and swallowed it whole, then ate a large chunk of potato. With each bite, he felt more and more fulfilled, as if a huge, long-neglected machine had been injected with oil and lubricated.

These nutrients will become energy to promote his further development and maximize the function of all organs in his body.

He took a breath, drank a glass of water, and marveled at how quickly the restaurant served the food; such a large table of meat dishes had arrived in less than two minutes.

At the same time, he was surprised to find that the blonde woman across from him was also eating his platter.

The woman forked a piece of sausage, took a big bite, and oil splattered out. She was clearly not expecting this, and quickly pulled out a napkin to wipe her mouth.

But when she looked down, she discovered something even more terrifying: her clothes were stained with meat juice. Only then did Titus realize that the person in front of her was a doctor, because she was wearing a white medical coat and had a ballpoint pen hanging on her chest.

A female doctor, finishing her shift late at night, hadn't even had time to change out of her uniform...

Never mind, she looks pretty tired, and doesn't look like she can eat much.

As Titus pondered, the woman looked up and met his gaze. She smiled slightly, picked up a piece of carrot, and ate it.

Titus was not to be outdone and started eating as well. In no time, the two of them had finished the entire platter, though Titus ate most of it.

Titus patted his stomach; he was about six-tenths full. He felt he could now punch with the force of a ton, or even more.

Just as he was wondering whether to order anything else, the waiter immediately brought over another meat platter.

"Buy one get one free?"

"No, sir, this lady also ordered a meat platter."

Titus looked at the woman again, who gave him a wicked smile that seemed to say, "Wait till I explain."

"I'm sorry, I didn't expect that..."

"I didn't expect to order a meat platter too?"

The woman answered quickly.

"Sometimes, you need to try something different."

Titus nodded in agreement:

"This is on me."

The woman shook her head and said:

"I can't eat this much, you can really eat!"

"Let's get acquainted, as an apology to me. My name is Bianca."

Is this how you calculate "apology"? Was I hit on? It can't be that they're after my appetite.

He thought of his own great face, a classic Hollywood tough guy face.

A strong jawline, deep-set brows, a high nose bridge, and simple short black hair—without much embellishment, he's simply "tough and handsome."

Titus noticed that Bianca had a beauty mark under her eye, her blonde hair was styled in a bun, and she had a charming dimple when she smiled; she was a classic blonde beauty.

He had no reason to refuse anymore.

"Hello, my name is Titus."

The two exchanged ID numbers, and Bianca told him that she was an emergency room doctor and felt like she was being drained dry by the hospital.

"He's an FBI agent, dealing with the most dangerous criminals every day," Titus said. "My boss picked out one of the best of them for me during the day."

Bianca asked, "Who is it?"

Titus said, "Keep it a secret."

The two started chatting idly, and Bianca said, "I won't tell you, but I'll find out tomorrow when I'm with you!"

"Then I must arrest you for obstructing official business," Titus replied.

The rain outside intensified, pounding against the French windows, but Titus seemed oblivious. The thunder, the rain, and the noise from the restaurant all faded away in an instant.

Bianca said, "Then you'd better catch me."

……

The following morning, Titus and his partner Clarice Starling went to the hospital.

The hospital director was Frederick Chilton, fifty-eight years old, with a mottled old face and sparse brown hair.

Dr. Chilton held out his hand to Starling, his fingers shiny and oily like his sparse hair, both exuding a peculiar aura.

It's not hard to guess that Dr. Chilton had just rubbed his hair with lanolin.

Starling noticed Chilton's stubble and the dandruff on his shoulders.

She tried to suppress her disgust and was about to respond when a strong, powerful hand beat her to it.

"Hello, Dr. Chilton."

Titus grasped Chilton's hand with a warm expression. Chilton instinctively pulled his hand away; he only wanted to touch the beautiful girl, but Titus's hand was as stiff as an iron clamp.

"I am Titus Gallagher, you can call me Agent Gallagher."

"This is Clarice Starling, Agent Starling. We are here on assignment from the FBI to interrogate Hannibal Lecter."

Chilton was only able to reluctantly withdraw his hand after Titus finished his introduction.

Then, Chilton replied:

"Oh, of course, I received a call from Jack Crawford."

"Please give me your ID cards."

This was a routine procedure, and the two did as instructed to confirm their identities.

Chilton returned his ID card, a lewd glint in his eyes, and continued, "Now give me your briefcases and backpacks."

The data was carried by Starling, partly because she belonged to the Behavioral Analysis Unit, and partly because Starling was an intern agent, strictly speaking, still a student.

Unlike Titus, who is a newly promoted agent in the Violent Crimes Unit and was in charge of this operation, it was reasonable for him to let Starling handle the information.

Titus carried nothing but his pistol, so this statement was mainly directed at Starling, who was carrying a handbag.

"I think you've already seen the documents," Starling replied.

"But you're a student," Chilton said.

This is clearly deliberate harassment or to satisfy someone's perverse desires.

Titus saw this and said:

"But I'm a full-time agent. Are you planning to investigate me with the FBI, Dr. Chilton?"

Chilton hesitated for a moment, but after looking at Titus's 1.9-meter height, he finally decided to follow his heart and continue leading the two of them.

"I don't mean to doubt you, so come with me."

Starling glanced gratefully at Titus, her partner who had helped her twice already. He was a big guy but very thoughtful and made her feel safe.

In the corridor, Chilton explained to the two of them who they were about to face.

"Lecter was a socially hostile psychopath, incorrigible, unbreakable, and extremely irrational; standardized tests were ineffective against him."

"Remember these rules: Don't reach over the railing; don't give him anything but soft paper, not even pencils; items can only be given to him via the food conveyor, and the same goes for coming out."

"Whenever Lecter leaves the ward, he will be handcuffed, shackled, and completely restrained, and his mouth will be covered as well."

"It's inside."

Chilton pressed the button on the double glass door, and they were met with a dimly lit corridor with iron cells on one side and a red wall on the other.

The air was cold and damp, filled with screams, curses, pleas, and the constant dripping of water. This place housed mentally unstable, hardened criminals who could not be sentenced to death, a veritable abyss of evil.

The two had barely stepped into the dungeon (it was three levels underground, so please allow me to use the medieval-sounding word "dungeon") when they heard the screams of the prisoners.

"I can smell your private parts!"

Titus was certain that the shout wasn't directed at him, otherwise the terror level here would have increased several notches.