Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

"Mrs. Smith, how is your relationship with your husband?"

"Pretty good."

Luke took out a photo of Shirley, "Have you seen her before?"

Zoe Smith glanced at it, "The last time I gave a statement, I think I saw this woman's photo?"

"Correct, have you ever seen the person in the photo?"

"No."

Luke no longer concealed, "The night your husband died, she was also at the scene of the crime."

"What exactly are you trying to say?"

"Do you know why your husband went to Kabool Mountain?"

"I don't know, isn't that for you police to investigate?"

"Yes, the investigation has concluded. Would you like to know?"

"Of course." Zoe Smith's expression remained indifferent.

"That night your husband went to Kabool Mountain to have sex in the car with the woman in the photo. They were robbed while doing so, and your husband died wearing only a pair of socks."

Zoe Smith frowned slightly, "Detective Luke, although I appreciate you telling me the truth, your description is quite cruel and makes me feel very unfriendly."

"Sorry, but I'm just saying that your husband indeed did it. Did you know about this?"

"No."

"Suppose, what if you knew about this?"

"You suspect I killed Baron?"

"I'm not suspecting, I've found evidence, which is why we asked you to come to the station."

"What evidence? Just because of that photo taken at the hotel where you can only see a hat? You plan to convict me with a photo that didn't even catch a face?"

"Mrs. Smith, the police conducted a thorough investigation into your affairs. Not only did we find that you left the hotel, but we also discovered you had two car rental records at Herez company.

The first car rental record was from 8 a.m. on June 25th to 8 a.m. on June 26th

Pick-up location: downtown Los Angeles.

Car model: black Audi A6

The second car rental.

Renting time: from 8 a.m. on June 28th to 8 a.m. on June 29th

Pick-up location: Long Beach.

Car model: gray BMW 5 Series.

The timelines of both rentals coincide with the vehicle sex robberies and homicides. How do you explain this?"

Zoe Smith was silent for a moment, took a deep breath, "I did rent cars, but that doesn't mean I'm the robbery suspect.

The reason I rented the cars was that my BMW X6 was broken, and I needed a car. It's just that simple."

Luke took a sip of coffee and spoke leisurely, "To prevent the vehicles from being scammed, stolen, or involved in other accidents, car rental companies install GPS tracking devices on the cars.

We investigated the driving routes of both cars and found that both cars visited the crime scene during the time of the offense. How do you explain that?"

Zoe pressed her lips together with her hands, "Even if I was at the scene, it doesn't mean I'm the killer."

Luke continued, "On June 28th, you drove the gray BMW from Long Beach to Kabool Mountain to commit the crime. After killing your husband Baron, you took a roundabout route back to Long Beach.

While investigating the driving routes, we found you stopped for more than ten minutes on the way back.

According to the driving route, I found the scene and discovered that it was a wasteland. Searching around the parking spot, we found an area with signs of digging, more than a hundred meters away from where you had parked.

Upon digging, we found a black plastic bag containing a revolver, plastic handcuffs, a mask, a fake sheep's tool, and others."

As he spoke, Luke walked over to the interrogation chair and showed Zoe several photos. Her complexion immediately changed.

Luke continued, "As a doctor, you should be very clear that contact always leaves traces. Even if you wiped off the fingerprints on the surface, you might have left other biological material like skin flakes, hairs, secretions, etc.

These items have already been sent to forensic analysis and your DNA sample has been sent for comparison. Do you still think you can escape the law's punishment?"

"Huh..."

Zoe sighed deeply, took off her glasses, and wiped the lenses. After a long silence,

"Yes, I killed Baron.

I thought it was perfect enough, but you still found out. Since that's the case, it's meaningless to deny it any further."

Luke pressed on, "Was the car sex robbery and murder on June 25th also you?"

"Yes."

Luke showed the photos of the two victims, Abal and Maxine. "Are these the two?"

"Yes, I robbed that man and found a revolver in the car, which I also used to kill Baron."

Luke pointed at Maxine's photo, "Did you also rape her?"

"Yes, to avoid suspicion from the police, I thought of this way to make the police think the perpetrator was a man.

I believed I hadn't left any clues, how did you find out?"

"It's just bad luck on your part, you ran into an expert," Luke continued to ask, "why did you rob them?"

"It was just an attempt. I had no grievances with them and didn't know them; the police would have difficulty tracing it back to me. Even if this attempt failed, it would be hard for the authorities to trace.

If this method of committing the crime succeeded, then I would use it on my husband."

"You knew about Baron's infidelity long ago?"

"Yes, he thought he could deceive me, which is laughable. Being a doctor isn't just about effort; intelligence and talent are also important.

I dare say that in terms of intelligence, I surpass most people, including my idiot husband."

Boel curiously asked, "Why did you kill him? Because you still loved him?"

"I did still love him, but that's not why I killed him. If I have to say why I killed, I can only say that California law compelled me to do so.

The legal system in California has problems, it's disgusting." Zoe showed a look of disgust.

Boel inquired, "Did you kill your husband because of alimony?"

"Correct, California is a no-fault divorce state. As long as one party files for divorce, no reason is needed.

The original intention of this law was to help women whose marriages had been destroyed get back on their feet and find happiness again, but it's gone too far to the left.

Infidelity also falls under no-fault, and you can't even bring it up in court, yet you're expected to generously understand and tolerate the other's true love.

I've never understood why, given that California has established a comprehensive system of trust, infidelity isn't considered a breach of that trust?

Isn't it irresponsible and a betrayal of marriage?

Why doesn't it warrant any punishment?

fuck!"

Zoe Smith's face showed her anger, "If I hadn't killed Baron, do you know what would happen?

The first scenario, I accept Baron's infidelity, I would toil every day at the hospital, dealing with all sorts of patients, while he could take my money and gallivant around, finding more women to spend my money with.

The second scenario, I have a huge argument with Baron, he proposes divorce, and I am forced to agree.

What's even more infuriating is that I would have to pay him alimony.

My annual salary exceeds a million US dollars, and I would have to pay him at least three hundred thousand dollars in alimony every year, after-taxes.

To ensure that he can maintain a standard of living after divorce comparable to that before divorce.

Crappy law.

He cheats, and I still have to pay three hundred thousand dollars in alimony per year, until he gets married.

Do you know the result?

He doesn't need to marry or work; my three hundred thousand dollars in alimony are enough for him to frolic around the world and find all kinds of women.

This is unfair.

He's like a disgusting vampire.

I don't want to support him for a lifetime, doing so would make me feel like an idiot.

So, the best and only solution was to get rid of him.

No betrayal, no alimony, no shame, I'm free.

Truly free!"

This motive for murder was convincing enough to leave Luke and Kabool speechless.

California is indeed a bit too left.

Speaking of alimony, before Luke came to Los Angeles, he had heard about men paying alimony after a divorce in the United States, but at that time, it was mostly men paying women.

It was only after arriving in Los Angeles that he realized it wasn't the case; it was the higher-earning spouse paying the lower-earning one.

If a couple is married for over ten years, unless the lower-earning spouse remarries, alimony must be paid for a lifetime.

This is also one of the reasons Luke is hesitant to get married.

Marriage involves too much stuff, it's a hassle.

Marriages are happy, but couples will eventually argue, and American women are quite independent, quick to call it quits.

Once divorced, you have to pay them alimony.

If they don't remarry and simply cohabit with a boyfriend, you still have to pay alimony, which might just cover their rent.

Isn't that disgusting?

Luke said, "Actually, the first time I saw you, I suspected your motive for the crime, and I was observing your reaction all along, but I didn't find any indication that you were lying.

Can you explain why?"

Zoe slowly said, "Most people aren't caught lying because of guilt, but because of nervousness.

If it's a trivial matter that neither you nor the other party cares about, even if you lie, it's not a big deal, there's no psychological burden, and you don't get nervous.

Before committing the crime, I considered that the police would interrogate me.

I had killed someone, and once the police questioned me about the case, I was likely to become nervous, making mistakes, or even getting caught by an experienced cop.

To avoid this, I did some research in advance.

There are some methods, like strengthening your psychological quality and having a strong mind; when you don't care about the murder, you won't be too nervous.

Ordinary people can't achieve this method in a short time.

I could only choose another method, writing down questions the police might ask and then repeatedly practicing in front of a mirror, memorizing all the questions and answers, to minimize the feeling of nervousness.

Plus, it's normal for me to show some emotional fluctuation after my husband dies.

Seems like it worked well, I succeeded."

Upon hearing the explanation, Luke understood why the two questions he asked earlier were contradictory.

The first question, Luke asked whether she had left the Long Milan Hotel the night of the crime?

She said no.

Luke sensed a lie.

Afterward, Luke showed her a photo of her leaving the hotel wearing a round-topped sun hat and asked if it was her.

She said it wasn't.

This time Luke clearly noticed signs of lying.

In fact, she lied both times. It's just that Luke didn't see it the first time.

Because Zoe had anticipated the first question and practiced it many times, she wasn't nervous when answering.

But when she saw Luke pulling out the surveillance photo of her leaving the hotel, she panicked and gave herself away.

Kabool, suddenly spoke up, "Zoe, if you had another chance, would you marry Baron again?"

"No, absolutely not," Zoe replied briskly, "I fantasized about love when I was young. Baron was handsome then, witty, and popular with the girls.

Actually, most women are more easily seduced by a handsome man than by money.

When we first met, my parents opposed it. I was a promising intern, and he didn't even have a proper job then.

But... he was really handsome, a smooth talker, good at charming women.

I thought that was love, romance, far more noble than money, but in the end... it was all a mess.

Marriage isn't for everyone."