Chapter 12 Maple Street

At 5:30 PM.

 

Alexander, Eric, Richard and another two members from Afrovia had already finished eating in the cafeteria when John brought the others back.

 

"Went out?" Alexander asked from his seat.

 

John gulped down some water and casually responded, "A guy was giving my family trouble, so I took the guys to check it out. No big deal, it's all sorted."

 

Alexander was silent for a few seconds, then nodded with a smile. "Alright, let's talk about the case."

 

"Are we all working overtime tonight?" John put down his cup and lazily walked over to Alexander, asking, "Got any smokes left? Give me one."

 

"None left.We've finished the whole pack," Alexander said.

 

"You guys go through those fast. You should pace this good stuff!" John opened his drawer, took out an e-cigarette, and took a puff, asking, "So, are we working late tonight?"

 

"Yeah, William instructed us to expedite this case." Alexander nodded. "Tonight, we'll push through and gather some intel on the drug dealers."

 

Before anyone could respond, John sat on the desk and said, "No need for an investigation. All the dealers operate on Maple Street. We go there to catch them for sure."

 

Alexander was taken aback. "We can find them just by going there?"

 

"If it weren't for orders, who would bother with these dealers?" John counted on his fingers. "They openly sell drugs on Maple Street. I've run into them many times."

 

"William told me the district has strict drug control policies. Did they dare to sell like that?" Alexander asked.

 

"The Ninth District is different from others," Eric explained, "It's newly established and uniquely diverse, so it's more complicated. Last year, during the governor elections, Pine City and Stardust City had military conflicts. It was chaotic."

 

"Alright," Alexander nodded, then asked, "Is it feasible to investigate directly on the streets?"

 

Eric was about to respond when John interrupted, "Of course, we should strike while the crackdown news hasn't spread. Catch a few leads now, and the case will be easier to solve."

 

Alexander felt John was unreliable and a bit foolish, so he asked Eric, "Do you think it's appropriate to check directly?"

 

"I'm not familiar with that area." Eric scratched his head.

 

"Eric?" John laughed and mocked, "You always avoid work, especially dangerous places, so you know nothing about that area."

 

The comment was harsh, but Eric just laughed without a word.

 

"Alexander, you're new, but trust me on this. We'll go out tonight, catch a few leads, and the rest will be easier." John, not knowing his place, shouted, "Everyone get ready. I'll go sign out the guns."

 

Everyone was used to following John's orders, so they all stood up.

 

Alexander sat in his chair, eyes fixed on John, without stopping him, and said , "Alright, let's go check it out."

 

John jumped off the desk, slapped Alexander's arm with a smile, and said, "Alexander, you're lucky to join our team. Our guys aren't troublemakers. You do your job well, and we'll support you."

 

Alexander gritted his teeth after being slapped, looking down at his arm.

 

"I forgot, you're injured," John paused and quickly asked, "Are you okay?"

 

Alexander glanced at him. "I'm fine. Go get the guns."

 

"Alright, I'll go." John turned and left.

 

Alexander watched John's back, frowning and deep in thought.

 

"Alexander, John is different from David. He's just carefree and likes to joke and mess around," Eric said, "Don't take it to heart."

 

Have you ever met someone like John in your life? They didn't care about your personality and often made excessive jokes. They acted overly familiar and inconsiderate. When you got mad, they shamelessly laughed it off, saying it was just a joke, calling you petty, and never changed.

 

In an ordinary circle, you might avoid such a person, but Alexander couldn't. John was his colleague, and they had to work together daily. He couldn't avoid him. John's overstepping and issuing orders in front of regular officers undermined Alexander's authority as a leader. Moreover, the team was all John's friends. If Alexander angered him right away, it could cause internal conflicts.

 

'What to do?' Alexander thought.

 

While Alexander was pondering, Eric was also observing. He wanted to see when this new guy would clash with John and if he could still hold his position as team leader afterward.

 

At 8:30 PM.

 

Two police cars stopped at the entrance of Maple Street. Alexander and the others, in plain clothes, got out and strolled into the street.

 

Maple Street was the most chaotic place in the entire Black Street District. It was home to thousands of low-income residents without stable jobs. On both sides of the street, every shop with pink lights had at least seven or eight women standing outside, trying to attract customers. In the dark alleys, drug addicts with vacant eyes and runny noses wandered aimlessly. These people were homeless, stealing and robbing to get food and drugs. A bit of happiness for them could be wiped out by a heavy snowfall, burying them in the cold alleys.

 

Alexander had seen too many such people and environments in the anarchic district, so he walked forward with a numb expression.

 

After walking nearly a miles, they stopped in front of an unmarked shop.

 

John scratched his nose and whispered, "This place sells drugs."

 

"Doesn't seem to be anyone around," Alexander glanced around and whispered, "I'm not familiar with this area. If we arrest them directly, can we take them away?"

 

Eric thought for a moment and replied, "Wait for someone to come buy drugs, then we go in."

 

Alexander stood by the roadside, frowning in thought for a long time. He finally said with uncertainty, "If they dare to trade openly here, they must have precautions. I'm afraid we might not be able to catch them and instead alert them."

 

Upon hearing this, John immediately showed impatience, "I've already told you, nobody cared about this before. If you want to clean it up, you need to be sudden. If you investigate secretly and understand the situation, they'll hear the news by then, and it will be much harder to solve the case."

 

Indeed, Alexander had no experience living in the Ninth District and had no experience in case detection. After pondering for a while, he turned to Richard and asked, "Richard, do you think we can catch them?"

 

Alexander stood by the roadside, frowning and thinking for a long time.

 

"This kind of thing wasn't managed before," Richard replied honestly, "But if we investigate for a long time, the news will leak. There are no secrets in the department."

 

After a few seconds of silence, Alexander immediately instructed, "The police cars are too conspicuous. We can't drive them in... Richard and Thomas, move the cars to the back street. As soon as we catch them, we'll get in and leave."

 

"Got it," they replied.

 

"Everyone else spread out and check your guns, ammo, and bulletproof vests," Alexander ordered again, "Once someone enters the shop, we go in."

 

"You even brought a bulletproof vest? You're really cautious," John mocked, "These drug dealers are nobodies. I used to beat them up when I was on patrol. They're afraid of trouble..."

 

Alexander glanced at John and cautiously said, "Let's get to work."

 

Half an hour later.

 

Two young men led an old man into the shop. Alexander, hiding in the alley, asked on the radio, "Check through the glass to see if they're getting drugs."

 

After a while, Eric replied, "Yes."

 

"Everyone move," Alexander ordered, "We're going in."

 

At his command, eight people rushed to the shop from three directions, pulled open the wooden door, and stormed inside.

 

In the dark hall, the two young men and the old man were at the counter, packing drugs, while a burly guy with an e-cigarette looked at the door in shock.

 

John stepped forward, gun in hand, and shouted, "Police, hands up and stand aside!"

 

The guy, startled, backed away, inadvertently revealing a gun at his waist and not raising his hands immediately.

 

In such a chaotic environment, suspects might do anything when confronted by police, so John, seeing the gun, grabbed the guy's collar and hit him on the head with his gun repeatedly.

 

John hit him six or seven times, but the guy still struggled. Frustrated, John grabbed his hair and slammed his head on the counter corner.

 

Blood flowed from the guy's head, his eyes rolled back, and he collapsed.

 

Meanwhile, footsteps thundered upstairs as a bald man in a military coat hurried down, looking shocked at the scene, and yelled into his radio, "Shop 2 is raided. Everyone out!"

 

After a brief silence.

 

Suddenly, deafening footsteps echoed through the street. From the bungalows and buildings on both sides of the road, dozens of people rushed out in an instant.

 

Armed with knives, steel pipes, chains, and guns, they blocked the front of the storefront like a tide.

 

Alexander, seeing the crowd, was instantly reminded of the food riots in the underdeveloped area. He instinctively released the safety on his gun.

 

John, sweating as he looked through the glass at the crowd, gulped and muttered, "When did they have so many members? This is a lot of people here..."