1960: My uncle is the FBI Director

Chapter 145 Looking for Mom

Bernie confirmed with the old woman that her name was indeed Mildred Anderson.

His surname is Anderson.

Bernie asked her if she knew Charles Anderson and about their relationship.

Mrs. Anderson was silent for a few seconds before her tense body relaxed.

She acknowledged her mother-son relationship with Charles Anderson and then asked Bernie:
"What trouble has he gotten into this time?"

Bernie glanced at her and said in a deep voice:
"Charles Anderson is now a prime suspect in a murder case."

Does he still live here?

Mrs. Anderson showed no surprise whatsoever. She even nodded, as if to say, "I knew it!"

"No, he moved out a long time ago."

Mrs. Anderson told Bernie that she was not at all surprised that Charles Anderson would become a murderer.

She told Bernie about Charles Anderson's childhood.

In her words, Charles Anderson was practically the son of Satan.

He learned to steal at a very young age, and when caught, he would spit at people.

As he grew older, he would often squat by the roadside and throw stones at passersby.

As he got older, he started getting into fights and almost poked someone's eye out.

According to Mrs. Anderson, Charles Anderson was a born bad seed.

She repeated it one last time:
"I knew all along that he would kill someone sooner or later."

She also clarified to Bernie:
"This has nothing to do with me."

“I kicked him out a long time ago.”

"We haven't been in touch for a very, very long time."

Mrs. Anderson shrugged: "I can't help you."

Theodore came over and asked him more about Charles Anderson's childhood.

He is now also very interested in Mrs. Anderson.

Mrs. Anderson moved her fingers, not daring to ask the two for money, and began to tell the story honestly.

Mrs. Anderson also enjoyed a happy period after marrying Charles Anderson's father.

However, her good fortune was short-lived. Not long after giving birth to Charles Anderson, her husband, Mr. Anderson, was murdered for smuggling alcohol.

Forced by circumstances, she had no choice but to sell her body to make money.

She became a prostitute.

No pimp wanted a prostitute with a child; she had to rely on herself.

She had to work harder than her peers to earn a little money so that she and Charles Anderson wouldn't starve or be evicted from their apartment.

Being alive and having a place to live had already exhausted all her energy; she had no energy left to care about Charles Anderson.

Mrs. Anderson spoke casually, as if she were talking about someone unrelated.

Before leaving, Theodore asked Mrs. Anderson:

Did Charles Anderson wet the bed frequently as a child?

Mrs. Anderson nodded:

"He was still wetting the bed when he was eight or nine years old!"

"He did it on purpose!"

"I'm so tired every day, and I still have to do his clothes!"

She said, "He just wanted to torture me! He's a monster!"

Theodore then asked her, "Does he abuse animals?"

He explained in detail: "For example, cats and dogs, throw them from a height, throw stones at them, bury them, or burn them to death."

Mrs. Anderson said nonchalantly:
"How could I possibly know!"

"As long as he lets me rest for a while and doesn't cause me any trouble, that's fine."

She shrugged: "He was only six years old when he learned to throw stones at people."

“If he really did what you said, I wouldn’t be surprised at all.”

“He’s a born bad seed.” Bernie looked at her with a complicated expression, but made no judgment.

Theodore nodded to her, said goodbye, and left.

Bernie lagged behind, took out five dollars and put them on the table.

As Bernie emerged from the old apartment, he looked up and sighed.

Theodore, puzzled, saw that he was hesitant to get into the car, so he simply reached for the keys.

Bernie stopped sighing and immediately covered his pocket.

Theodore pointed to his wrist, reminding him:
"It's almost time to get off work."

Thinking about Bernie's driving speed, Theodore tentatively asked him:

"I'll drive."

Bernie shook his head repeatedly, quickly opened the car door and got in, urging Theodore to get in and leave.

By the time I got back to the Department of Justice building, it was already past closing time.

The two finished packing up and were about to leave when the phone on the table rang.

The call was from Detective Thomas of the Third Precinct.

He told the two that an hour earlier, the hotel manager of the Riverside Hotel had called and mentioned a man named Charles Anderson.

Detective Thomas wasn’t curious at all about who Charles Anderson was.

After relaying the message, I hung up the phone.

Bernie gripped the receiver and fell into a brief silence.

Theodore reminded him, "The hotel manager is also going home soon."

Bernie snapped out of his daze, put down the receiver with a complicated expression, and redialed.

The call was quickly answered.

The hotel manager told Bernie that he had received a call an hour earlier from a fellow traveler.

The colleague inquired about Charles Anderson, asking if he had made a mistake and been fired from the Riverside Hotel.

To avoid alerting the suspect, the hotel manager told Charles Anderson across the street that he was a hardworking and conscientious employee.

He said that Charles Anderson's departure from the Riverside Hotel was a loss for the hotel.

The hotel manager praised Charles Anderson extensively over the phone before asking if the other party had applied for a job with him.

The other party told him smugly that Charles Anderson had been notified to start work the next day.

The hotel manager casually gave Bernie the hotel's exact location and kindly introduced its basic information, concluding sincerely:
"I hope this will be helpful to you."

Bernie was silent for a while, then asked him:
"Was the person who called you really your friend?"

The hotel manager replied with a smile:

"We're in the same industry!"

After ending his call with the hotel manager, Bernie contacted Detective Thomas of the Third Precinct, asking him to mobilize officers from the Third Precinct to assist in the arrest of Charles Anderson.

The call was quickly connected, but it wasn't Detective Thomas who answered; instead, a young voice answered.

The young detective told Bernie that he was the officer on duty and that Detective Thomas had already gone off duty.

Bernie couldn't help but glance at the time.

Only seven minutes had passed since the phone call with Detective Thomas!
This speed reminded him of the Felton East Precinct.

The problem is that while the Felton East Precinct staff are proactive about leaving get off work and work very diligently, they are not.

At the East District Police Station, they always finish their work before leaving!

With mixed feelings, Bernie politely asked the young officer on duty to contact the patrol department and dispatch officers to stand guard at the entrance of the target hotel, awaiting their return.

After ending the call, the two drove to the target hotel to meet up with the patrol officers.

According to the hotel manager, Charles Anderson will appear tomorrow.

On the way, Theodore showed Bernie the address of the target hotel alongside the address of the old apartment.

These two addresses are very close.

Bernie was confused.

Theodore put down his notebook: "Charles Anderson went to see Mrs. Anderson."

(End of this chapter)