You're a US police officer, what are you thinking about going back to the East for?

coming

Sterling closed his eyes, his heart pounding. This guy was finally going to take the bait.

"I'm bringing my partner, Torres."

Sterling: "...?"

Your mom

The ambiguous atmosphere froze instantly.

Sterling's previously dazed eyes instantly became clear and filled with astonishment.

She even doubted whether she had misheard.

I've already lowered my price to this extent, and even prepared to sacrifice something, but this guy is only doing this to mentor a newbie?

"What did you say?"

Sterling asked instinctively.

Leon straightened up, a smug grin on his face, and pointed to Mia in the corner, who was shrinking back and pretending to be invisible.

"I said, I want to bring that typewriter with me."

"Torres is a newcomer, but she... well, she's very talented in some areas."

"Since I'm the one who brought these people in, I have to take full responsibility for them."

"Wherever I go, she has to go too, yes, that's it."

"And their benefits and compensation should be the same as mine, though overtime pay can be calculated separately."

That's it?

After all that buildup, complaining about the danger and asking for more money, all you wanted in the end was to bring along a burden?

Sterling looked at Leon's composed demeanor, then at Mia's innocent face.

The anger that had been stirred up inside him instantly turned into a feeling of absurdity that made him both laugh and cry, followed by the embarrassment and annoyance of being played.

Is this guy... really messing with me?

Sterling took a deep breath, forcibly calming his still-pounding heart, and tried his best to maintain the authority of the branch chief.

But the lingering blush on her cheeks completely betrayed her earlier panic.

"Okay... that's settled then."

She gritted her teeth and straightened the slightly disheveled collar of her trench coat. Although her voice had regained its composure, it was noticeably more hurried than before.

"As long as you can do the job well, I have no problem bringing a monkey along."

"Bring her to my office tomorrow morning to pick up the transfer order."

After saying that, she didn't linger any longer. Turning around, she quickly walked out of the shooting range, her ankle boots clicking on the ground.

Mia, who had been frozen in place, only jumped in front of Leon after confirming that Sterling was really gone.

"Boss, boss, wake up!"

She stared at Lyon with the same look she gave him, as if he were a critically ill patient who had just escaped from a mental hospital. This time, she didn't even bother calling him "sir," opting instead for a more江湖-sounding title.

"Did the gunshot damage your brain?"

"That's Chief Sterling! The Queen of the West Precinct!"

"In that situation just now, she was already... she was already like that!"

"That look in her eyes, that gesture! If you just nod along, or even just be a little bolder, she could practically give you her heart as a signing bonus tonight!"

"That's something so many people wouldn't even dare to dream of! A meteoric rise, boss!"

"So after all that buildup and dragging things out, all you did in the end was mention 'take me with you'?"

Mia pointed to her own nose, a look of utter absurdity on her face:

"Although, but"

"I'm really grateful that you didn't abandon me, and I really wanted to earn that overtime pay."

"But... for someone at her level, this kind of thing is just a matter of a word, right?"

"Even if you bring it up the next morning after you've slept, she probably won't refuse!"

"You're giving up such top-tier resources and insisting on exchanging this precious bargaining chip for me? What kind of cost-effectiveness is that?"

"You've ruined your business... I feel sorry for you!"

Lyon couldn't help but laugh when he saw Mia's eager expression, as if she wanted to agree to Sterling's request for him. Instead of being angry, he revealed a mysterious smile.

"That's why after two years in insurance you're still just a 'no payout' specialist, while I can completely outmaneuver her."

Leon tossed the empty magazine back onto the table with a crisp sound.

"Torres, you're way too inept at this kind of thing."

Have you heard of the "abandoned cat effect"?

"The abandoned cat effect?"

Mia paused, then shook her head. "What the hell is that? Is it related to stray cats?"

"More or less."

Simply put, if you want to keep someone's interest in you at its peak, you must never let her feel that she has completely controlled you.

Lyon held up one finger and waved it in the air:

"Who is Victoria Sterling? She's the local tyrant of the West Precinct, with countless powerful figures backing her."

"From childhood to adulthood, I've never failed to get what I wanted."

"To her, there are only two kinds of men: one is a piece of trash she looks down on, and the other is a lapdog who will kneel down and wag its tail at her high heels if she beckons with her finger."

"If I had gone along with her wishes, acted impatiently, or actually kissed her as she suggested."

"So, guess what will happen?"

Lyon gave a cold laugh.

"Indeed, I might sleep with her."

"But after that night, I became a cheap commodity, bought with power and money, captivated by her charm. The novelty would last at most three months before she completely drained me."

"Once I'm labeled as interested in her, my attraction to her will plummet."

"From now on at ACU, I'll just be an obedient high-level thug. Whoever she tells me to bite, I'll bite. I want to negotiate with her? No way."

Mia listened, stunned, her mouth slightly agape, clearly shocked by this theory about scumbag men.

"But now I'm pushing her away first, and instead want you, who she sees as a worthless add-on."

"Do you know what kind of chemical reaction this will create in her heart?"

"She will start to doubt her own attractiveness."

"She'd think, 'Does Vance really think that I, this glamorous bureau chief, am inferior to a rookie whose face screams 'I want to go home'?'"

"This sense of frustration will drive her crazy. She'll feel like she hasn't bought me yet, hasn't completely conquered me, and that I could leave at any moment."

"The more unattainable something is, the more she wants to prove herself by increasing the stakes."

"This is the abandoned cat effect; what you can't have always seems more desirable."

"My current worth hasn't decreased because I rejected her; on the contrary, it has skyrocketed because of this uncontrollable sense of distance."

"That's why I chose you instead of her."

After hearing this long string of theories, Mia was completely stunned.

She opened her mouth, but in the end, all she could do was roll her eyes dramatically, giving off a "I should have known you were an idiot" look.

"Wow... Boss, you've got a plan so good I could hear it from the next street."

"So all that emotion I felt just now turned out to be nothing more than catnip in your script?"

She tugged at her tie indignantly, her tone sour:

"Am I that capable? Am I really that powerful? Enough to make her feel threatened?"

"That's Victoria Sterling. If I were her, I'd definitely think you have terrible taste. Why would you skip a fancy dinner and insist on eating a roadside burrito?"

"Don't underestimate yourself, Torres."

Leon smiled and reached out to tuck the strands of hair that had become disheveled from her excitement behind her ear.

"If you have a beer belly like Bob, then this trick really won't work."

Sterling would just think I've lost my mind.

"But precisely because of you... well, those who know, know."

"These roadside stalls can sometimes be more addictive than fancy French restaurants, can't they?"

Mia was momentarily speechless at this twisted logic, and her expression softened slightly. Although she was still muttering "What a ridiculous analogy," she couldn't hide the smugness in her eyes and the hint of praise she was receiving.

Looking at her somewhat arrogant little expression, Leon leaned forward slightly, closing the distance between them to a dangerously close level once again.

"Does the matter of being interrupted earlier still count?"

"Um?"