New Gods of North America.

Chapter 471 Chance Encounter
Sometimes it's quite interesting to hear about other people's unexpected "car crashes".
Wayne quickly asked Doug to take note of the key points of this incident, intending to publish an "accident collection" in the future to be used as a negative example within the detective agency.

Unfortunately, even if professionals fail, they will appear more "slippery" than amateurs.
Although the address that Inissa finally got was within the "activity area" that the detective agency had previously designated for the murderer's accomplices, it was actually a restaurant, not a place that could be identified with a person like an office or a family residence.

However, knowing the drop-off point would make it easier to find the suspected accomplice of the murderer.

Considering that he knew at the time that the stalker was just a small-time gangster and the driver of the rental carriage was a pure passerby, even if he would habitually hide his tracks later, he would not take too complicated anti-tracking measures.
So from a probability perspective, his actual base is most likely around the drop-off point, within an hour's walk - this is the result of a larger range for safety reasons. Normally, within half an hour is enough.

If there is really nothing in this range, it means that the other party is likely to get on the wagon again, but the same old saying still applies: "Don't add entities unless necessary."
Whether there are dates or not, just give it a try first.

……

The next day, the detective agency started looking in the restaurant. Since they didn't know the appearance and name of the suspected accomplice of the murderer, and this place might be close to the accomplice's daily activities, maybe the acquaintances of the accomplice would secretly tip off the murderer.
So Wayne used the excuse of "returning the wallet" when he was looking for the person, saying that he had just passed by the person and after picking up the wallet, he only saw the person's back and then couldn't find the person in the crowd.

Then, describe the figure and clothing of the man in the windbreaker that was investigated before, and try to find the target. This way, even if the person being questioned knows the target, the probability that he or she will tell the truth will be slightly higher.

After asking all the way down the street, it was finally a kid who was wandering around the street polishing shoes who provided a clue, saying that the person Wayne was looking for might be a man named "Steve".

But he didn't seem to live on this street, but was going through the alley and heading to another block. As for more specific clues, Xiaohaige didn't know, but he could help find out.

Although it didn't hit the mark, it was more consistent with the "character portrait" drawn by the detective agency for the other party. So Wayne happily gave the other party a silver coin and said that if he could provide more clues in the future, there would be corresponding rewards.

I don't know if you have ever had the experience of walking through a downtown commercial district. In a commercial district in a city, the bustling streets are often just a few streets that are connected to each other. Sometimes, just walking through a not-too-long alley, the bustling level may suddenly drop a lot, but if you continue walking forward for a while, it may become bustling again.
The bustling areas are generally the "outside" facing the street, while the areas surrounded by the busy streets are deserted areas that many people don't care about.

Just as it may be darker under the lights than a little further away, the neighborhoods behind the bustling city are actually not particularly suitable for living. Even if we don't mention the "mixed crowds" and security risks that may be represented by the flow of people, just talking about the average rent and house area, there is not much cost-effectiveness here.

In this era when transportation is not particularly convenient, this may be a helpless choice for many people in many cases.

But if we assume that the other party has a secret identity, then a position like this, "hidden in the city", is quite "advanced and defensive".

So when Conor told Wayne that he met someone he knew here, Wayne didn't feel too surprised and went over to say hello, "Hi, what a coincidence."

The other party didn't seem to know Wayne, "Who are you?"

In order to make it easier to ask questions, Wayne continued to maintain his familiar enthusiasm: "Our detective agency has a temporary office in the Jefferson block on Sixth Avenue. There are two surveillance points set up by you. Mr. Walter visited there two days ago. One of our agents saw you go there afterwards, and it seems that you went there more than once. He still has an impression of you. Do you have a surveillance point here as well?"

This time, the other party was a little confused.
Perhaps because the detective agency had discovered his tracks, and Wayne had met his boss, who might even be "his boss's boss," Mr. Walter, the other party quickly put away their overly hostile vigilance, but still seemed a little hesitant:
"As for the specific content of the operation and the detailed location of the surveillance point, these are all secrets to us. I'm sorry that I cannot disclose them."

That's it.

At first glance, you look like a work liaison between different surveillance points. You probably go to different surveillance points regularly to follow up on the situation and then go back to summarize it.

Wayne didn't expose him, and then asked the question that concerned him more, "Have you seen such a person here? It is said that his name is Steve. He seems to like to wear a windbreaker and has the habit of covering his face. His body features are probably..."

After listening to this, the other party rolled his eyes a few times, swallowed his saliva, and then shook his head: "I have never heard of such a person."

"Is that so... That's a bit regrettable."

While Wayne was expressing his regret verbally, he continued to observe the other person's micro-expressions.

When you were recalling just now, you glanced to the left, and now you glanced to the right. According to the current internal teaching plan of the detective agency, this is called a "sign of lying."

Not honest.
I feel that even if that guy is not your target, you should know that such a person exists.

However, every organization has its own internal regulations. After reaching a preliminary conclusion in his mind, Wayne did not embarrass the other party. He exchanged a few more pleasantries and then said goodbye to the other party.

By the way, Wayne felt that this guy looked more like a so-called "housekeeping" than a "field worker" and was probably not that professional, so he asked Connor to follow him secretly and see where these postal people under Mr. Walter usually had their offices in Richmond, as he might be able to use them when something happened.

Then the detective agency had a rough idea. If the local spy organization also set up surveillance points here, then the probability that the target lived nearby would increase greatly.
Therefore, "asking passers-by" turned into "key interrogation". One group continued to proceed step by step, while Wayne took two people to find a real estate agent in the area, and used the reason of planning to rent a house to find out the situation of the residents nearby.

But halfway through the journey, Wayne suddenly realized that something was wrong.
If the people under Mr. Walter already knew who the murderer's accomplice was and had set up surveillance points, then wouldn't there have been clues to Tom Hagen's assassination long ago?

Or are they just targeting this guy because of his identity, but don't know if he has any connection with the assassination suspect?
　Happy New Year!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)