Mr. Rat of the Steam World

Chapter 67 Detention
Inside the Black Gold Factory office, Dane Fisher's slick smile remained unchanged as he attentively poured Sheriff Edwin another cup of black tea.

"Oh, Sheriff, it's truly touching that you still think of us taxpayers in your busy schedule." Dane rubbed his hands together, repeating the excuse he had already rehearsed countless times.

"As for the issue of missing workers you mentioned, I really have no idea. It's common for employees to resign on their own, and we can't possibly restrict their personal freedom, right? Where they go after leaving the factory is none of my business..."

Sheriff Edwin slowly stirred the tea stems floating in his teacup, but his eyes were already starting to wander.

We've been chatting for so long, and we're even a little full from drinking tea. How should we find a topic to talk about next?

“There’s really nothing we can do about this worker’s disappearance… I’m just here to get a basic understanding of the situation. You know how things are, I’m just going through the motions. Our main goal is to raise awareness about worker safety. I know you really can’t do anything about it, but there’s nothing I can do about it either…”

Just as Edwin began to ramble on and on.

boom!
The office door was suddenly pushed open! A young police officer with a flustered expression rushed to Edwin's side and whispered a few urgent words in his ear.

"..."

"..."

Dane looked on, puzzled.

Edwin was taken aback at first, but when he heard what the officer said, his fingers gripping the teacup tightened unconsciously, and his previously unfocused eyes suddenly snapped open.

"Bang!"

Edwin suddenly stood up, flicked his wrist, and the brass handcuffs at his waist clicked softly as they slipped from his palm.

“Mr. Dane Fisher—” Sheriff Edwin’s voice was stern, “You are suspected of illegal biological experiments, kidnapping and murdering industrial workers. You are hereby arrested in accordance with the law!”

Dane's hand holding the teapot suddenly froze in mid-air. His expression changed drastically, but he reacted extremely quickly, his voice suppressing his anger.

"Where did you get the search warrant! Where did you get the audacity! Where did you get the evidence!"

"I'm sorry, the evidence was found at your home. Although there was no search warrant, several residents reported a gunfight in the vicinity, and there was blood and bullet marks at your door. To ensure public safety, we took emergency measures to break down the door for inspection, which is a legal procedure!"

The moment his wrists were locked, Dane's eyes and expression changed several times. The muscles in his face seemed to tense up, but Edwin, who was on high alert, caught it instantly and subconsciously thought of the supernatural beings Sherlock had mentioned, and that he should bring more people with him, and that each of them should be armed.

"Don't move! Mr. Fischer, I'm warning you, you'd better keep absolutely still!"

Edwin roared without warning, and almost at the same time, he drew his revolver from his waist with lightning speed, the dark muzzle pointing steadily at Dane.

After a pause of about a second, the young police officer beside him belatedly realized that although he still didn't understand why his superior had suddenly drawn his gun, he still drew his gun without hesitation and followed suit.

Immediately afterwards, the two police officers who were standing guard outside the door heard the noise and came in, and they also drew their guns without hesitation.

Click.

He drew his gun and aimed.

With four guns pointed at him at such close range at the same time, Dane's expression froze. Suddenly, he raised his hands and laughed, resuming his previous smooth smile.

"Sir, there's no need to be so serious. I'll cooperate, I definitely will."

Sheriff Edwin dared not be careless for a moment, his eyes fixed on Dane's every slight movement.

Although I was a little surprised by the evidence that was suddenly handed to me, I figured it must be the result of Sherlock's operation.

However, he had already prepared himself mentally when he agreed to take on this so-called supernatural contact, since Sherlock had said in the letter that he had not concealed any details about Dane's suspected supernatural abilities.

Sherlock even explicitly stated that he could understand if she had concerns, and that if she refused, he would take other measures, so there was no need for her to feel pressured.

The current situation is that he made the choice after he was fully aware of the danger, and he does not regret it.

Because he had always wanted to understand what was hidden behind the scenes of this world, and with the increasing number of supernatural cases lately, as the sheriff, he really didn't want to remain ignorant any longer. Confirming that Dane didn't react further, Edwin took two steps back, leaving enough distance for a safe maneuver. At the same time, he gestured with his eyes and a very subtle head movement: "Get him in the car! You drive, let him sit in the passenger seat! I'll sit in the back!"

The young officer understood and nervously shoved Dane towards the door. Edwin followed closely behind, his gun never leaving Dane.

Even out of fear of making a mistake, he did not aim at the head, but kept the muzzle on the larger area of ​​the torso.

Even if there is a problem, if the first shot hits and incapacitates the opponent, there will be an opportunity to fire a second shot.

We arrived at the Baker City Police Station in silence and with a heavy heart.

Edwin let out a deep breath as the heavy iron bars of the cell door slammed shut behind Dane. He immediately issued stern orders to the officers on duty.

"Double the manpower, each fully armed and with ammunition, and keep a close watch on him! Report every fifteen minutes! If anything seems amiss, even if he needs to use the restroom, notify me immediately! Any suspicious behavior can be shot on the spot."

After giving his instructions, Edwin turned around abruptly and hurried toward the area in the backyard of the police station where evidence was stored.

Outside a metal door sealed with airtight rubber strips, two young police officers stood on either side, their faces pale and their eyes darting around, seemingly trying to avoid looking inside. Seeing Edwin stride towards them, the two men almost reflexively straightened their backs.

"Sheriff!"

“Inside…” A police officer opened his mouth, as if he wanted to describe something, but in the end he couldn’t say it, and just swallowed hard.

Edwin didn't speak, but simply nodded with a stern face. An officer quickly pulled out his key and laboriously turned the heavy iron lock.

The heavy creaking sound was particularly jarring in the empty passageway.

The iron gate was pulled open forcefully, causing Edwin to instinctively frown. The smell here wasn't pleasant.

The temporary morgue was small, with only a cold stainless steel stretcher placed in the center.

At this moment, a human-shaped silhouette lay quietly on the stretcher, covered with a rough linen cloth stained with dark brown dirt.

A stark white incandescent bulb hung from the low ceiling, the only source of light in the room. A forensic assistant, dressed in a police-grade medical gown and wearing gloves, stood nervously to the side. When the sheriff entered, his body involuntarily tensed up.

"What's going on?" Edwin's voice sounded somewhat abrupt in the quiet place.

The forensic assistant's Adam's apple bobbed, his voice tinged with suppressed fear: "Preliminary identification: adult male. Time of death estimated to be between 7 and 8 a.m. this morning. Cause of death... the cause of death still requires careful examination, but... the most... the most unusual thing is the right arm..."

His gaze involuntarily drifted back to the cloth covering the corpse, as if he could see through it to what lay beneath.

Edwin took a deep breath and approached the stretcher. "Uncover it, let me see."

The forensic assistant swallowed hard, his movements stiff. He carefully grasped the rough edge of the linen, held his breath, and slowly peeled it back to the side…

First, a pair of bare feet, calloused and filthy, were revealed. Next, the faded legs of ordinary work pants were exposed. Then, the deceased's face, frozen in extreme pain, was revealed under the stark white light—eyes wide open, bloodshot, pupils dilated and lifeless, mouth slightly agape.

As the fabric continued to move upwards, the most horrifying part was finally fully revealed to Edwin.

The deceased's right arm!

Starting from the middle of the forearm, the color and texture of the skin undergo a terrifying change. Dark brown, tough scales, resembling those of some cold-blooded reptile, completely replace human skin, densely covering the entire forearm, palm, and fingertips.

This entire arm looks like the limb of some ferocious beast forcibly grafted onto a human body!
Edwin remained silent for a long time, and finally, in a hoarse voice, he commanded with difficulty:

"Record...take photos...make initial records. Protect the scene and all related items..."

His gaze was fixed on the mutated arm, and he added, "Also... I feel that someone else will take over this matter soon. At least for now, it seems that this is no longer something that ordinary police officers like us can handle."

(End of this chapter)