59: Chapter 59 Returning to the Police Station

Fiona was stunned.

She asked back in disbelief, "Frank, what are you saying?"

Frank said seriously, "I'm going back to Chicago. You're doing fine here, and I'm just causing trouble. If I leave, you'll have peace of mind."

As he spoke, he turned and headed toward the driveway.

Fiona shouted behind him, "Frank!"

Frank didn't stop.

"Frank Gallagher! Stop right there!"

Frank still didn't stop.

Fiona rushed up and grabbed his arm.

Frank was pulled around by her.

The two stood face to face.

Shaun could see that Fiona's eyes were turning red.

"What crazy talk is this?" Her voice was trembling. "Who told you to leave?"

Frank looked at her and said calmly, "Fiona, let go."

"I won't!"

"Let go."

"I won't!"

Frank looked at her, a hint of determination in his eyes.

After a long while, he finally said slowly, "Fiona, in my entire life, I've never done a single right thing for you. This time, let me do one."

As Frank spoke, he gently pried Fiona's hand away and continued, "You being well here is better than anything. Me staying here is just trouble!"

With that, he ignored Fiona's reaction, let go, and turned to walk toward the taxi.

Fiona stood in place, motionless.

The taxi driver had already opened the trunk, and Frank put his suitcase inside.

He immediately got in and closed the door in one smooth motion, leaving in front of the two of them.

Actually, Shaun highly doubted Frank had any money to pay the fare, but thinking of his ability to survive anywhere, he wasn't worried.

However...

Fiona's expression was a bit downcast; clearly, Frank's sudden departure was not in her plans.

After seeing off Ballard and Frank, it was also time for Shaun to return to the police station.

...

Shaun stood at the entrance of the Second Precinct and took a deep breath.

When he pushed open the glass door and walked in, he didn't expect to see such a scene.

Seven or eight colleagues were standing in the reception hall. Seeing him enter, they suddenly went quiet for a second.

Then Gray was the first to start clapping.

Clap, clap, clap...

The applause echoed in the empty hall, and others followed suit. Shaun stood frozen in place, not knowing where to go.

Gray walked over, slapped him on the shoulder, and smiled, revealing those somewhat uneven teeth. "Shaun! Good job!"

Shaun was slapped into a stagger. "What?"

"The White case!" Gray said. "Ballard's side reported it. They said you found the killer and took him down alone! Brother, you're famous now!"

Someone nearby chimed in, "It's spread all over the Fifth Precinct. They say the New Orleans Police Department has a tough guy who took down a cop-killer single-handedly."

"Exactly. Deputy Chief Brown called personally to express his thanks and said he's going to issue you a commendation."

Shaun stood there, his mouth twitching. Regarding the Bat Monster, Ballard definitely didn't call it a Bat Monster when she reported it; she probably called it an 'unknown creature' or just kept it vague.

But in the ears of these colleagues, it had turned into him taking down the killer alone.

Although... in a way, it was true.

But he didn't feel like he had done anything extraordinary.

"Officer Sean!"

A young voice came from the side.

Shaun turned his head and saw a young policewoman with a ponytail standing at the breakroom door, holding a cup of coffee, her face a bit red.

Her badge had a name on it: Emily Chen.

She walked over and handed him the coffee, her voice a bit nervous. "Um... I heard you didn't sleep last night, so I brewed this for you."

Shaun took the coffee. "Thank you, Officer Chen."

Emily's face turned even redder, and she waved her hand. "Just call me Emily..."

Then she turned and ran off, her ponytail swinging in an arc behind her.

Gray winked from the side. "Shaun, your luck with women has been great lately."

Those words... where had he heard them before?

But Shaun ignored him and took a sip of coffee.

Hmm... the taste was average, but it was warm.

He walked toward the office. Along the way, every colleague he met nodded at him; some gave a thumbs up, and some said 'good job.'

Shaun nodded back at each of them without stopping his pace.

When he walked into the Chief's office, Chief Brown was sitting at his desk looking at documents.

Seeing him enter, he looked up, and a rare smile appeared on that old face.

"You're back?"

Shaun nodded. "I'm back."

Brown stood up, walked over, and patted his shoulder. "The White case, well done."

He paused. "Even though Ballard's report was vague, I don't care what the truth is. The killer is dead, and the case is closed. That's enough."

"Don't worry, the precinct will commend you."

Shaun didn't particularly care about commendations, but he thanked him anyway.

Brown shook his head. "Don't thank me; you earned it yourself."

He pointed to the coffee in Shaun's hand. "Finish that and write a report. Ballard's report was too brief; you provide a detailed one."

Shaun knew this would happen and responded without hesitation, "Okay."

Brown nodded and sat back down.

Shaun walked to his workstation and sat down.

A few days' worth of documents were piled on the desk. He flipped through them; they were all trivial matters.

He pushed the documents aside and turned on the computer, the blue light of the screen reflecting on his face.

Just as he was about to start burying his head in the report, a familiar sound of footsteps came from the end of the hallway.

Slow and steady, unhurried, as if the whole world had nothing to do with him.

Otis appeared at the door holding a coffee, looking the same as ever.

His belly was a size larger than the last time they met, his shirt buttons were straining, and his face wore that 'no rush even if the sky falls' expression.

He saw Shaun, smiled, walked over, and sat in the chair next to him.

He said, "I heard you're famous."

Shaun stopped typing and looked at him. "You heard?"

"The whole precinct is talking about it," Otis said, taking a sip of coffee. "They say Officer Sean went in alone, entered the lion's den, killed the criminal, and avenged a colleague. It sounds like a Western movie."

Shaun gave a bitter smile. "It's not that exaggerated."

Otis looked at him. In those eyes that had drifted through twenty years of service, a rare bit of seriousness appeared. "The White case wasn't easy to handle, was it?"

Shaun shrugged and said noncommittally, "It wasn't easy."

Otis nodded and didn't press further.

He leaned back in his chair, looking at the sunlight outside the window. "You've lost weight."

The sudden concern gave Shaun goosebumps, but he still smiled. "Really?"

"Yeah," Otis said. "Your face is a size smaller. Haven't been eating well lately?"

Shaun thought about it; he really hadn't had a proper meal in the last few days, so he replied, "Busy."

Otis stood up, went to the water dispenser, filled a cup for him, and placed it on the desk. "No matter how busy you are, you have to eat. Don't just drink coffee; it's bad for your stomach."

Shaun looked at the cup of water and suddenly felt like laughing. "Otis, since when did you become so good at taking care of people?"

Otis sat back and shrugged. "My wife taught me. She said I've been rough my whole life and need to learn to be a bit more delicate."

Shaun laughed. "So how's the learning going?"

"Not great," Otis laughed too. "Last time I cooked porridge for her, I burnt the pot. She scolded me for three days."

The two of them laughed together.

After laughing, Otis looked at Shaun and said, "Shaun, to be honest, I really wasn't used to you not being around these past few days."

"Driving alone, responding to calls alone, eating lunch alone. Without a young guy chattering next to me, it's quite lonely."

Shaun was taken aback. "When did I chatter?"

"You chatter all the time," Otis said. "From the first day you arrived. Complaining the car is junk, the seat is too low, the coffee in New Orleans tastes bad."

Shaun opened his mouth to argue but realized he actually had said those things.

Otis stood up and patted his shoulder. "We'll patrol together this afternoon. You haven't been in the field much lately, so get familiar with it first..."