Seeing that Sherlock Moriarty had already stepped forward, Lorne quickly followed.
Following the muffled sobs, the two arrived deep within a more secluded alley. Under the dim light, they spotted two figures.
One was a middle-aged woman whose face was covered in wrinkles and whose skin was rough and peeling from years of labor. The other was a girl, about seventeen or eighteen years old, dressed in tattered clothes, currently crouching helplessly on the ground, her shoulders shaking with sobs.
"It was me—it's all my fault—I didn't watch her properly—"
"I shouldn't have brought her down this alley—otherwise Daisy wouldn't have—" The girl's voice choked up, filled with self-reproach.
Hearing this, the middle-aged woman put away the sadness on her face and fiercely yelled at the girl, "Why are you crying? Go back and wash the clothes right now!"
"Do you want to starve? Do you want to miss out on even the Free School?!"
Only after yelling did she notice that two unfamiliar men had appeared at the alley entrance at some point.
"Who are you? What do you want?!" Seeing this, the middle-aged woman immediately became wary. She stepped forward, shielding her daughter behind her, and demanded loudly.
"Madam, we mean no harm." Before Lorne could speak, Klein proactively stepped forward, removed his top hat, and said in a gentle tone, "We heard shouts and thought someone might need help, so we specifically came to check."
"We don't need help!" The middle-aged woman's voice was loud; clearly, she didn't trust Lorne or Klein.
"Has someone gone missing?" Lorne suddenly spoke, breaking the deadlock.
"How do you know that?" The middle-aged woman froze, a flicker of surprise crossing her face.
"Because recently, many people have gone missing in the East Borough." Lorne's tone was calm and certain.
He glanced at Klein beside him and continued, "And this Detective is here specifically to investigate this matter."
He looked at Klein, signaling with his eyes, "Right?"
"Yes, that's right." Klein was momentarily stunned, then immediately reacted and nodded, "I am investigating this matter, and perhaps—I can be of some assistance to you."
Seeing the two men cooperate and their sincere appearance, which didn't look like that of bad people, the middle-aged woman lowered her guard slightly.
"Can you—can you really help us?" Hearing their words, the girl who had been crouching and sobbing suddenly stood up. Wiping her tears with the back of her hand, she said with a hint of hope, "Daisy—my little sister—she's gone missing."
"Missing? What exactly happened?" Klein pressed.
But before the sobbing girl could speak, the middle-aged woman interrupted her directly, saying stiffly, "You don't need to trouble yourselves. We will go report it to the police ourselves."
Seeing the atmosphere freeze again, Lorne leaned toward Klein and whispered, "Hey! Do you really want to help them? They look so resistant. Plus, they definitely can't afford the commission fee."
"I—" Klein paused, then revealed a gentle smile. "Sometimes, I also do volunteer work."
"You—" Lorne didn't know what to say. He could tell the other party wasn't lying; he was serious.
—
You're supposed to be a highly suspicious detective, why are you suddenly acting so righteous? You're a member of a Secret Organization, where is your professional integrity?
*Sigh*—Forget it, forget it. If I hadn't encountered this, fine, but since I have, I might as well lend a hand—
Lorne took a deep breath, stepped forward, and spoke in a tone of almost cold realism, "Report to the police?! Naive."
He shook his head, looking sharply at the middle-aged woman.
"Do you truly believe the police in the East Borough will seriously look for the daughter of an ordinary worker? If they could really find her, what would we need this Detective for?"
"Are you not afraid they'll just take a perfunctory statement and send you away?" Lorne's voice grew colder. "Are you not afraid those kidnappers will return? Do you want to lose another daughter after losing one already?"
Lorne's words were harsh, but exceptionally effective. The indifference and wariness on the middle-aged woman's face gradually crumbled before the cruel reality. She parted her lips, but nothing came out, and the corners of her eyes slowly reddened. Finally, she abruptly lowered her head and muttered in a painful, desperate voice, "I don't have any money—"
The surroundings suddenly fell silent; even the girl's soft sobs ceased.
Money—Lorne pursed his lips.
"We are also investigating similar cases, so we can help you incidentally," he said, softening his tone and looking at Klein. "This counts as providing us with new clues, right?"
"Right." Klein nodded immediately. "I occasionally volunteer, and today is a rare opportunity."
"Volunteer?" The girl named Fraya raised her head, chewing on the unfamiliar word.
Klein nodded slightly, "Yes, this commission is free."
"It's free, you know~ There's nothing to lose by trying." Lorne chimed in from the side.
The middle-aged woman was silent for a long time. She raised her hands, which were wrinkled and swollen from long exposure to cold water, fiercely wiped her eye sockets, and said in a hoarse, low voice, "Thank you—thank you both. You truly are kind gentlemen."
Afterward, she recounted the events. Her name was Liv, the girl beside her was her eldest daughter Fraya, and the one who went missing was her youngest daughter Daisy.
This afternoon, Fraya brought Daisy back from outside. To rush back for lunch, she chose this secluded small alley. But in the time it took for her to lose focus momentarily, she realized Daisy, who had been following behind her, was gone.
She retraced her steps to search but never found her, and Daisy never returned.
It seems she really was kidnapped—Lorne frowned slightly, looking at Klein beside him. "Great Detective, what do you say?"
"I plan to first look around the vicinity to see if I can find any clues. Such as footprints, signs of a struggle, or anything that doesn't belong here." Klein gave a professional response.
"Mm, that works." Lorne nodded, then looked at Liv and her daughter. "I'll accompany you to the police first. Although it might not be very useful, this procedure must still be followed."
He said to Klein, "Great Detective, you search this area. We will return and meet up shortly."
"Alright, you go find the police first." Klein agreed to Lorne's arrangement. Regardless, kidnapping was certainly something that needed to be reported to the official authorities.
"Well then, ladies, let's go find the police first—"
Before parting ways, both Lorne and Klein involuntarily had the same thought flash through their minds.
This guy—doesn't seem so bad after all—
Lorne took Liv and her daughter to the nearest small Police Station, which looked quite rudimentary.
"Officer, this is what happened—" Liv was anxiously explaining the situation to a tall, thin, and lazy-looking police officer.
But the officer merely picked his ear and said impatiently, "Got it, got it. Missing persons case, they're common lately. Just register it and go home to wait for news."
"But, Officer, Daisy—" Fraya couldn't help but step forward, wanting to plead a few more times.
"Ahem!"
Lorne took a step forward, turning his back to the mother and daughter so they wouldn't see his actions.
Looking at the tall, thin officer's careless demeanor, Lorne suppressed the urge to punch him in the face, pulled a few suile banknotes from his pocket, slipped them into the officer's hand, and chuckled softly, "Officer, a child has been lost, and the family is anxious. Please put in some extra effort."
The officer pinched the banknotes in his hand, skillfully tucked them into his pocket, and the impatience on his face was instantly replaced by a false enthusiasm. He smiled and said, "No problem, no problem. I will definitely put my heart into resolving this matter for you."
"However—Sir." He changed the subject, with a hint of seemingly sincere helplessness, "There really have been many similar cases recently. I can only say I'll do my best; I can't guarantee specific results."
"Understood, understood."
To be honest, Lorne really wanted to use his fists to force the man to take this seriously. But, how to put it, the man was still an officer managing this area.
If he provoked the officer, he could simply leave, but Liv and her daughter couldn't. They still lived here, and if they offended the officer, the situation for the mother and daughter would only become more difficult.
Moreover, it was true that there had been so many kidnappings recently; some things couldn't be forced.
There was nothing for it. Since he encountered it, he might as well finish the good deed. Although he was also short on cash recently, he wasn't lacking a few suile.
It looks like I need to find a way to increase my social standing. This guy doesn't respect me at all—
After completing the statement and registration, he turned to the mother and daughter and said, "Alright, let's go back and see if the Detective has found any clues