Chapter 145: Looking for Mom
Bernie confirmed the old woman's name, Mildred Anderson.
When he asked if she knew Charles Anderson and what their relationship was, Mrs. Anderson fell silent for a few seconds, her tense body relaxing somewhat. She admitted to being Charles Anderson's mother, then asked in return, "What trouble has he gotten into now?"
Bernie's voice dropped. "Charles Anderson is currently a major suspect in a homicide case. Does he still live here?"
Mrs. Anderson's face showed no surprise. She even nodded, as if she'd been expecting it. "No, he moved out a long time ago." She told Bernie she wasn't surprised at all that Charles Anderson would become a murderer, then recounted his childhood.
In her words, Charles Anderson was practically the son of Satan. He'd learned to steal at a very young age and would spit at people when caught.
As he grew older, he'd squat by the roadside and throw stones at passersby, then graduate to fights, almost poked someone's eye out once. In Mrs. Anderson's account, Charles Anderson was born evil.
She repeated one last time: "I knew all along that he would kill someone someday." Then she clarified: "This has nothing to do with me. I kicked him out a long time ago. We haven't had contact in a very long time."
She spread her hands. "I can't help you."
Theodore walked over, now very interested in Mrs. Anderson as well, and asked for more details about Charles Anderson's childhood.
Mrs. Anderson twitched her fingers, not daring to ask the two for money, and recounted everything honestly. She'd experienced a period of happiness after marrying Charles Anderson's father, but good times didn't last.
Shortly after Charles Anderson was born, her husband, Mr. Anderson, was killed for illegally selling alcohol.
Forced by circumstances, she'd had no choice but to earn money by selling her body. No pimp wanted a prostitute with a child, so she'd had to rely on herself, working harder than her peers just to earn a little money, to prevent herself and Charles Anderson from starving, from being evicted from the apartment.
Simply staying alive and having a place to live had already exhausted all her energy. How could she possibly have had the spirit to manage Charles Anderson?
Mrs. Anderson spoke calmly, as if talking about unrelated people.
Before leaving, Theodore asked, "Did Charles Anderson often wet the bed when he was little?"
Mrs. Anderson nodded. "He was still wetting the bed when he was eight or nine! He did it on purpose! I was so tired every day, and I still had to wash his clothes!" She said, "He just wanted to torment me! He's simply a devil!"
Theodore then asked if he'd abused animals, cats, dogs, throwing them from high places, throwing stones at them, burying them, or burning them to death.
Mrs. Anderson said indifferently, "How could I possibly know! As long as he could let me rest for a while and not cause me trouble, that was enough."
She spread her hands. "He learned to throw stones at people when he was only six. If he really did what you said, I wouldn't be surprised at all. He's just naturally evil."
Bernie looked at her with a complex mix of emotions, making no judgment. Theodore nodded to her and excused himself.
Bernie lagged behind, taking out five dollars and placing it on the table.
Coming out of the old apartment, Bernie looked up and sighed. Theodore was puzzled. Seeing that Bernie was reluctant to get into the car, he reached for Bernie's pocket where the car keys were.
Bernie stopped sighing and immediately covered his pocket. Theodore pointed to his wrist, reminding him, "It's almost time to get off work."
Thinking of Bernie's driving speed, he tentatively asked, "How about I drive?"
Bernie shook his head repeatedly, quickly opened the car door, got in, and urged Theodore to get in quickly and leave.
By the time they returned to the Department of Justice Building, it was already after work hours. As the two were tidying up, preparing to leave, the phone on the desk rang.
Detective Thomas of the Third Precinct told them that an hour ago, the hotel manager of the Riverside Hotel had called, mentioning information about a person named Charles Anderson.
Detective Thomas wasn't curious at all about who Charles Anderson was. After relaying the message, he simply hung up.
Bernie held the receiver, falling into a brief silence. Theodore reminded him, "The hotel manager will be off work soon too."
Bernie snapped out of it and redialed with a complicated expression. When the hotel manager answered, he explained that an hour ago, he'd received a call from a colleague and friend who'd asked about Charles Anderson, wondering if he'd made a mistake and been fired from the Riverside Hotel.
The hotel manager stated that to avoid tipping Anderson off, he'd told the other party that Charles Anderson was a very hardworking and conscientious employee, that Charles Anderson leaving the Riverside Hotel was a loss for them.
He'd praised Charles Anderson profusely over the phone, then asked the other party if Anderson had applied for a job there. The other party had proudly told him that Charles Anderson had already been told to start work tomorrow.
In a relaxed tone, the hotel manager gave Bernie the detailed location of that hotel and thoughtfully introduced him to its basic situation, finally saying sincerely, "I hope it can be of some help to you."
Bernie was silent for a while, then asked, "Was the person who called you really your friend?"
The hotel manager replied with a smile, "We are colleagues, after all!"
After ending the call, Bernie contacted Detective Thomas of the Third Precinct again, asking him to mobilize the precinct's police force to cooperate with the operation and arrest Charles Anderson.
The call connected quickly, but it wasn't Detective Thomas who answered, it was a young voice. The young detective told Bernie he was the officer on duty and that Detective Thomas had already gone off duty.
Bernie instinctively looked at the time. Only seven minutes had passed since he'd spoken with Detective Thomas!
This speed reminded him of the Felton East District Branch. The problem was, while the Felton East District Branch was proactive in leaving work, they were also very diligent in their work, the East District Branch always finished their tasks before going off duty! This precinct, apparently, did not.
Bernie, with complex feelings, politely asked the young officer on duty to contact the Patrol Department to dispatch patrol officers to stake out the target hotel's entrance and await rendezvous.
After ending the call, the two drove to the target hotel to rendezvous with the patrol officers. According to the information relayed by the hotel manager, Charles Anderson would appear tomorrow.
On the way, Theodore placed the target hotel's address and the old apartment's address together, showing them to Bernie. These two addresses were very close.
Bernie was puzzled.
Theodore put down the notebook, his voice quiet. "Charles Anderson went to find Mrs. Anderson."
[End of Chapter]