"The murder case is closed. Now, let's talk about drug trafficking."
Luke changed his tone, no longer aggressive.
"From what I understand, you conducted a very detailed investigation into Charlie Will's drug trafficking case, with witnesses, physical evidence, time and place of the incident, and a complete account of what happened. Am I right?"
Mike Gray's face was cold, like an ice sculpture. His assistant, seeing that the situation was not right, had to speak up.
"Mr. Xiao, what do you mean by all this?"
"You can't even tell that! Of course, I don't believe you."
Luke spread his hands. "The Gotham incident just happened not long ago, and no one has forgotten the role the FBI played in it. Speaking of which, you guys are really something. Taking bribes is one thing, after all, you're a government department, everyone takes them. If you don't, you'd feel out of place.
But what's unexpected is that you actually fabricated cases. As a law enforcement agency, you actually used false cases to exonerate drug lords. Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk!"
Luke shook his head and chuckled, the sarcasm on his face almost palpable.
"As expected of the highest investigative agency in the United States. Impressive, truly impressive. Amazing, amazing."
The agents in the room had ashen faces, and Krilas and others outside were also livid. The Gotham City incident severely damaged the FBI's image among citizens, almost becoming a professional stain that no one wanted to mention. Now, however, the wound was publicly reopened, and after a barrage of ridicule, they were powerless to refute, only able to let themselves be hit, feeling so miserable they wanted to kill.
Luke continued to perform, "Look at me, I'm talking nonsense again. I'm sorry, I'm truly sorry, I take back what I said earlier. After all, the FBI's heart isn't made of flesh; if it shatters, I can't afford to compensate."
Everyone: "..."
Someone couldn't take it anymore and said angrily, "Luke Xiao, this is the FBI's Metropolitan Field Office, not a place for you to run wild."
Luke glanced at that person and continued,
"Due to some past experiences, I personally hold deep prejudices against the FBI, and my words may have been offensive. Please don't take offense. Of course, having said that, things still need to be done.
Charlie is a good person, an upright and kind law-abiding citizen. To prevent him from suffering an unjust accusation, I specifically hired several private investigators to investigate the drug trafficking case. And sure enough, they found something."
"Lawyer March."
Osman March quickly stepped forward, opened his briefcase, took out a pre-prepared laptop, and played the video inside for everyone to see.
Judging from the shooting angle, the video source should be a camera in an underground parking lot. In the empty underground parking lot, a guy wearing a gray baseball cap emerged. He first looked left and right, confirming that there were no other people, then went to the back of a silver-white Ferrari, opened the trunk, and put a plastic bag containing white powder from his backpack inside. After doing all this, he walked away quickly with his backpack.
The video ended here.
Luke took out a piece of nicotine gum and popped it into his mouth, chewing as he spoke.
"Mr. Gray, what do you think of this video?"
Mike Gray remained silent, his face so gloomy it could drip water. This video should have been deleted; why did it end up in Luke Xiao's hands? What exactly happened in between?
Was there an insider? Or another reason?
For a moment, he couldn't figure out the reason, and his mood became increasingly agitated, his thoughts starting to become confused.
Something was very wrong; everyone could see it.
The silver-white Ferrari in the video was indeed the suspect's car; the license plate number and model were correct. This meant that if the video was real, the drug trafficking case was not established, and Charlie Will was framed. If it was just framing, that would be one thing; at most, an apology would suffice, as it wasn't the first time anyway.
But Charlie Will was tortured during the interrogation. If this got out... Several agents who knew the inside story exchanged glances, all seeing the signs of an impending storm in each other's eyes.
The nicotine gum tasted terrible.
It was bitter, sour, and had a strange taste. Luke couldn't stand it and spat it on the ground. This scene fell into everyone's eyes, making their faces even darker.
This guy was too arrogant; he simply didn't treat the FBI as human.
Luke smiled and continued,
"If Mr. Gray thinks that's not enough, no problem, there's also a witness."
He gestured with his hand, and Osman March nodded, made a call, and a moment later, two burly men escorted in a thin, pale, dark-eyed white youth who clearly looked like a habitual drug user.
"Joe Locke, the baseball cap guy in the video. I spent a lot of effort to find him in the sewers of Gotham City. By the way, when I found him, he was being hunted…"
Luke looked around, seemingly implying something.
"I wonder which bastard was chasing him?"
Mike Gray's face was ashen.
Luke glanced at him and continued, "Before I came, I called the Metropolitan Police Department. They'll be here to pick him up soon. If Mr. Gray is interested, you can interrogate him first. Of course, don't use torture. His body is very weak and can't take many punches. If he dies, I won't be able to explain it."
The half-mocking, half-teasing words made everyone's blood boil. As FBI agents, when had they ever been so humiliated?
Anger accumulated little by little. Let alone ordinary agents, even a seasoned veteran like Mike Gray found it hard to cope, but he had to endure it.
Mike Gray took a deep breath and said with a forced smile,
"Mr. Xiao, thank you for your help. We will definitely investigate Charlie Will's drug trafficking case thoroughly. If the facts show that he was framed, we will definitely give you and your company a satisfactory explanation." He paused, then added,
"I guarantee that once the results are out, I will notify you immediately."
Luke said strangely, "Are you trying to see me out, sir?"
Mike Gray patiently, even using honorifics, said, "Do you… have anything else?"
Luke grinned, smiling silently, his expression as obnoxious as possible.
"As expected of a cunning old fox in a high position, sir. Seeing the situation turn sour, you want to run away with a mere fart. Unfortunately, I'm a stickler for details and like to see things through. How can I leave without clarifying everything?"
As he spoke, he picked up his phone and sent a text message.
Soon, Charlie, Cindy, and the disability appraiser Luke had hired all walked over.
The disability appraiser showed everyone his license and credentials. After confirming his identity, he read out the injury assessment report amidst the complex gazes of the FBI agents.
After a lengthy report of several hundred words, the air fell into an eerie silence.
Luke took the report and threw it on the table.
"Give me an explanation, Mr. Gray."
"An explanation! What explanation!"
Mike Gray didn't even look at it, casually tossing the report into the trash can.
"What can a piece of paper prove?"
Luke clapped his hands, "You've finally shown your true colors, sir. I thought you would keep holding it in, letting me brazenly tease you."
"This is good too, saves trouble."
Everyone: "..."
Is this young man crazy? That's Boss Gray, a high-ranking FBI official with absolute power, someone even congressmen treat with respect. And you're provoking him like this? Aren't you afraid of retaliation afterward?
If he wanted to kill someone, he had a thousand ways to choose from.