1960: My uncle is the FBI Director

Chapter 27 Celebrity Detective? Psychic Detective?

Felton’s local media covered the Holt case.

Newspaper, television, and radio reports mainly focused on two key points.

One reason is that Congressman Howard believed in the professionalism of the police department, and that the entire department worked together to catch the murderer.

Another key point is Theodore and Bernie; they regard these two as representatives of the police department, and their names are always mentioned in any praise of the police department.

Theodore, in particular, has been dug up by the media, with stocks 600403 and 600511 being hailed as a 'detective'.

While mainstream media outlets may have slightly different focuses, their overall reporting tends to be factual. Tabloids and radio stations, on the other hand, completely ignore the facts and simply report that Theodore is a psychic.

They nicknamed him 'Psychic Detective'.

The Felton Star published an article on its front page titled "Psychic detective ends bloodshed in May!" and continued to report on Theodore's solved cases for several days.

The report was highly praised, and the Star jumped from a community newspaper to a third-rate newspaper with thousands of subscribers, and began to make a profit.

In gratitude to Theodore, the Star fabricated more legends about him in its newspaper, and Theodore is now portrayed in their reports as the successor to the famous vampire hunter Van Helsing.

Tabloids exaggerate, and shady radio stations are no less so.

Using information released by the police, the midnight radio station pieced together various details and combined them with its imagination to transform the crime-solving process into a supernatural story.

In the radio narration, Theodore fought against Lucifer, sought Gabriel's help, and finally, with the help of the gods, captured Cerberus—a hellhound, not a human.

Because of this, late-night radio stations have even started receiving call-in interactions from listeners.

Theodore listened to their report and seriously suspected that he was hearing the story of the Wen family's two villains.

No matter how bizarre it may seem, whether Theodore and Bernie like it or not, they have become star detectives.

Many strangers began to recognize them, and many even regarded them as representatives of the West Precinct and even the Felton Police Department.

People's impression of the police station is tied to the two men.

The prostitutes, especially those on Rose Street, were grateful to have caught Holt, the prostitute killer, and always spoke highly of him to their clients.

Many of the bizarre tales about Theodore originated from them.

This further enhanced their reputations—after all, this is Felton, and what man doesn't go to Rose Street?

Police headquarters quickly dispatched a senior superintendent to speak with the two men personally, demanding that they maintain a good public image.

At the end of the conversation, the senior police superintendent hinted that they had gained the attention of higher-ups.

After seeing off the senior police superintendent, Theodore and Bernie exchanged a wry smile.

The two knew perfectly well where this attention came from; it was the result of a joint effort by the municipal government and the police department.

In 1960, racial segregation and racial oppression pushed social contradictions to a climax, and large-scale demonstrations and protests broke out in various places, especially in the conservative Southern states, where the atmosphere was particularly tense.

Felton, located in Texas, is a stronghold of conservatives, and a large number of Black people work in the lowest-paying jobs.

As protests and demonstrations became more frequent in various places, Felton inevitably experienced turmoil as well.

The municipal government needs to divert citizens' attention, calm their emotions, and build confidence.

Representative Howard needs to garner votes to prepare for his mayoral campaign.

The police department needs to cultivate a positive image and maintain public support.

Of course, Theodore and Bernie also benefited greatly.

As the two became star detectives, the police force needed to allocate more resources to them and treat them as key personnel for development.

Their future prospects were naturally bright.

…………

Over the weekend, Theodore accepted Bernie's invitation to visit. He and Bernie were partners, and in this era, partnerships held a very special meaning—a very stable and reliable relationship.

If anything were to happen to Bernie in the future, Theodore would be obligated to take care of his family, especially his children. Bernie's invitation to his home was also a way of introducing him to his family.

Bernie has a son and a daughter; his son is eight years old, and his daughter is still an infant.

Little Sullivan was a very lively little fellow. He loved the toys Theodore brought and quickly became friends with him. Then he kept pestering Theodore to see his sidearm. After being warned by Bernie, he calmed down.

Theodore quietly took the gun off his shoulder, removed the bullets, and handed them to him to play with.

Bernie's wife is young and virtuous; she is a housewife who takes good care of the home.

Judging from their relationship, the couple is very loving.

Mrs. Sullivan was very enthusiastic and, upon learning that Theodore was single, even offered to introduce him to a girlfriend.

Theodore joked that he would definitely dress up nicely then.

The Sullivan family served Theodore roast meat marinated in their secret sauce, giving it a unique flavor.

Theodore tasted it carefully and confirmed that it was a flavor he had never tasted before, and it suited his taste perfectly.

Theodore had a pleasant day at Bernie's house and was in a good mood that lasted until Monday.

On Monday morning, the detectives arrived one after another, greeting each other and sharing what they had done over the weekend, creating a harmonious and relaxed atmosphere.

Theodore was trying to persuade Bernie to give up buying toys for little Sullivan.

It's a science kit called the Gilbert Uranium-238 Atomic Energy Laboratory, and its advertisements have been everywhere on TV lately.

The advertisements claim that it can improve children's intelligence, cultivate their interest in science, and that every child who plays with it will grow up to be a scientist.

Little Sullivan's friends had a way with him, making him incredibly envious.

Bernie loves his son very much, and although the toy set is expensive, he still plans to grit his teeth and buy it for his son.

He didn't understand why Theodore was stopping him.

Theodore really liked Sullivan, so of course he had to stop him.

This "science kit" includes real radioactive samples, as well as equipment such as a cloud chamber and a Geiger counter, allowing children to observe radioactive decay.

Children's toys of this era were outrageous. Besides 'science kits' containing real radioactive sources, there were luminous watches containing radium, luminous alarm clocks containing thorium, toy soldiers containing lead, and chemical experiment kits containing concentrated sulfuric acid...

In short, people in this era can be truly insane when they go crazy.

Theodore started by talking about radioactivity and gave Bernie a long, rambling science lesson.

He talked until his throat was dry, Bernie was getting sleepy, and finally couldn't take it anymore and raised his hands in surrender.

"I understand, there's something in there that can kill! I'm not buying it!"

Theodore, still not entirely convinced, made a list of dangerous toys and asked the rest of the group. It turned out that quite a few people had indeed bought toys on the 'dangerous' list.

Theodore briefly explained the dangers of the toys, and the detectives were skeptical, but since it involved their own children, the team members didn't hesitate at all and ran to call home.

When Wenner came in, he saw a group of people gathered around the phone.

He had just come out of the branch chief's office when Chief Widek consulted him about the position of patrol department head, his intention to replace Kahor was particularly obvious.

This is inevitable.

As Theodore and Bernie receive more attention and are given special attention, Widek must give their boss, Wenner, full respect, whether he likes it or not.

Moreover, Widek wasn't unwilling at all; he was more than willing.

Wenner is Bernie and Theodore's boss, but isn't he Wenner's boss?

(End of this chapter)