Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

8 bottles of mineral water, 3 lives.

Just at the crime scene, Luke had already run three today.

Tom's house was also sealed off.

The technical team and the forensic doctor were short-staffed and hadn't arrived yet.

Luke, wearing gloves, examined the scene.

From the existing evidence, it was quite likely that young Tom was the poisoner, and poisoning required tools to carry out the act.

As long as the related tools and cyanide were found, it could prove the suspect's guilt in the poisoning.

Luke carefully observed the mineral water bottle, placing it in the sunlight. The bottle's exterior had an advertisement paper, and Luke faintly noticed there seemed to be a small black spot inside the advertisement paper.

Luke used scissors to cut open the advertisement paper and discovered the mineral water bottle had a bump the size of a pinhole, which was sealed with glue from the outside. It was difficult to discern unless observed closely.

Luke speculated that this pinhole was very likely the point of cyanide injection, a method that would ensure the bottle cap's integrity and not arouse any suspicion from the drinker.

It was hard to detect.

Afterward, Luke began to search Tom's house, mainly looking for cyanide, syringes, glue...

However, Luke and the others turned the house upside down and still didn't find these items.

Had they been hidden somewhere else?

If the person was the real poisoner, what was the motive?

And why commit suicide by taking poison?

Luke didn't find a suicide note at the scene either.

There were many doubts, and the physical evidence at the scene was hard to explain.

Luke turned his gaze toward Tom's mother, who appeared grief-stricken, holding a photo of Tom, sitting on the ground in silence, shedding tears...

At this moment, Luke didn't want to disturb her, but the case was urgent; no one knew if the poisoner had placed 9 or 12 bottles of water in the subway.

To prevent more victims, Luke had to clarify Tom's situation.

"Mrs. Lewis, please accept my condolences," he said.

Tom's mother did not respond, not even glancing at Luke.

"I know you are very sad right now, and I can understand your feelings. Tom was young; he shouldn't have left us like this...

We all mourn his passing.

But what's done is done, and all we can do now is find Tom's killer to avenge him.

That way he can rest in peace."

Slowly lifting her head, Mrs. Lewis asked, "Why did this happen? Why is Tom dead? Why?"

"We aren't sure ourselves, we are investigating."

"Liars, you must know something, otherwise, why would you come to my house?"

"As I said before, we are investigating a poisoning case. Tom was somewhat connected to this case. We came here to investigate him; we didn't expect him to die."

"How did Tom die?"

"Although there hasn't been a technical verification yet, I suspect it's very likely cyanide poisoning. Do you have anything similar in your home?"

"I have no idea what cyanide is. We've never stored anything poisonous. Why would my son be involved in a poisoning case? How did you trace it to him?"

Luke, hoping to gain valuable clues from her, first had to earn her trust. He said, "This morning we received a report of a poisoning incident. According to our investigation, someone had placed poisoned mineral water at a subway station. When we arrived and checked the surveillance, we saw Tom carrying a box of mineral water into the subway.

We suspect he might be the poisoner."

"Impossible, Tom couldn't be the poisoner. He might have been a bit mischievous, but he was fundamentally a good kid. And he was only twelve this year; he didn't understand these things, he probably didn't even know what cyanide is, so how could he poison with it.

Besides, if he was the poisoner, why did he die?"

"Exactly, that's what I suspect as well." Luke seized the opportunity to ask, "Has Tom been acting unusually recently, like encountering any trouble or dilemmas?"

"No."

"Had he ever shown any suicidal tendencies before?"

"No! He was a very optimistic child. Although our family is not very wealthy, I have always taught him that one might not be successful, but one must always be happy.

He would never commit suicide, never."

"Did Tom have any friends with dangerous behavior or antisocial personalities?"

"Not that I know of."

"Did Tom always live with you?"

"Yes."

"When was the last time you saw Tom?"

"Around 8 a.m. this morning when I went out to run some errands and to do some shopping at the supermarket. I bought some salmon that he liked; I was planning to make him salmon sushi... Oh my God...

Oh God, why are you so cruel!"

"What was Tom doing at that time?"

"He had just woken up and was eating breakfast."

"Did he say where he was going? Or if he was meeting anyone?"

"I was in a hurry this morning and didn't get around to asking; I was too careless."

"We found forty US dollars in Tom's pocket; was it from you?"

"No, I only ever give him ten or twenty dollars at a time. He spends it quickly, he couldn't have had so much money."

From the conversation just now, it seemed Tom's mother didn't know much.

Luke also didn't detect any signs of lying from her.

However, Tom's mother was in a state of great grief, with considerable emotional upheaval, which meant that even if she were lying, it wouldn't be easy to tell.

Although no definite clues were obtained, Luke still extracted some valuable information from Mrs. Lewis's words.