MM Racing Chapter 278 Sherlock Doing Volunteer Work
Chapter 278 Sherlock Doing Volunteer Work
Chapter 278 Sherlock Doing Volunteer Work
Seeing that Sherlock Moriarty had already stepped forward, Lorne quickly followed.
Following the suppressed sobs, the two arrived at a more secluded alleyway. In the dim light, they spotted two figures.
One was a middle-aged woman with wrinkles on her face and rough, peeling skin from years of hard work; the other was a girl of about seventeen or eighteen years old, dressed in tattered clothes, who was squatting helplessly on the ground, sobbing with her shoulders shaking.
"It's my fault—it's all my fault—I didn't keep a close eye on her—"
"I shouldn't have led her down this alley—otherwise Daisy wouldn't have—" The girl's voice choked with sobs, filled with self-reproach.
Upon hearing this, the middle-aged woman suppressed her sorrow and instead yelled fiercely at the girl, "What are you crying about? Go back and do the laundry!"
"Do you want to go hungry? Do you want to miss out on even free school?!"
After she finished yelling, she noticed that two strange men had appeared at the entrance of the alley.
"Who are you? What do you want?!" Upon seeing this, the middle-aged woman immediately became alert. She took a step forward, shielding her daughter behind her, and questioned loudly.
"Madam, we mean no harm." Before Lorne could speak, Klein stepped forward, removed his hat, and said in a gentle tone, "We heard the shouts and thought someone needed help, so we came to check."
"We don't need help!" the middle-aged woman's voice was loud, clearly indicating that she didn't trust Lorne and his companion.
"Has someone gone missing?" Lorne suddenly spoke up, breaking the silence.
"How did you know?" The middle-aged woman paused, a hint of surprise flashing across her face.
"Because recently, many people have gone missing in the East District," Lorne said calmly and confidently.
He glanced at Klein beside him and casually said, "And this detective is here specifically to investigate this matter."
He looked at Klein and gestured with his eyes, "Right?"
"Yes, that's right." Klein was taken aback at first, then immediately realized what was going on and nodded. "I'm investigating this matter, and perhaps—it might be of some help to you."
Seeing the two men singing in unison, their sincere demeanor making them seem less like bad people, the middle-aged woman lowered her guard slightly.
"Can you... really help us?" Hearing their words, the girl who had been squatting on the ground sobbing suddenly stood up. She wiped her tears with the back of her hand and said with a glimmer of hope, "Daisy... my sister... she... she's missing."
"Missing? What happened?" Klein pressed.
But before the sobbing girl could utter a sound, the middle-aged woman interrupted her, saying curtly, "No need to trouble you, we'll call the police ourselves."
Seeing the atmosphere freeze again, Lorne leaned closer to Klein and whispered, "Hey! Do you really want to help them? They seem so resistant. Besides, they definitely can't afford the service fee."
"I—" Klein paused, then gave a gentle smile, "Sometimes, I also do volunteer work."
"You—" Lorne didn't know what to say. He could tell that the other person wasn't lying; they were serious.
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Why is this detective, who's clearly extremely suspicious, suddenly acting all righteous? You're a member of a secret organization, where's your professional ethics?
Sigh... Oh well, if I hadn't run into them, so be it. But since I have, I'll lend a hand.
Lorne took a deep breath, stepped forward, and said in an almost coldly realistic tone, "Call the police?! Naïve."
He shook his head, his gaze sharp as he looked at the middle-aged woman.
"Do you really believe that the police in the East District would put in the effort to find the daughter of an ordinary worker? If they could really find her, what would be the point of having this detective?"
"Aren't you afraid they'll just take a quick statement and send you on your way?" Lorne's voice grew colder. "Aren't you afraid those kidnappers will come back? Do you want to lose another daughter after losing one already?"
Lorne's words were harsh, but incredibly effective. The middle-aged woman's coldness and wariness crumbled little by little in the face of this cruel reality. She opened her mouth, but couldn't utter a word, her eyes gradually reddening. Finally, she abruptly lowered her head and muttered in a pained and desperate voice, "I have no money—"
The surroundings suddenly fell silent, and even the girl's sobs stopped.
Money—Lorne pursed his lips.
"We're investigating similar cases too, so we can help you out while we're at it." He softened his tone and looked at Klein, saying, "This could be considered a new lead for us, right?"
"Yes." Klein nodded immediately. "I sometimes volunteer, so this is a rare opportunity."
"Volunteer?" The girl named Freya raised her head, chewing on the unfamiliar word.
Klein nodded slightly and said, "Yes, this commission is free of charge."
"It's free! Why not give it a try?" Lorne chimed in from the side.
The middle-aged woman remained silent for a long time. She raised her hands, wrinkled and swollen from being soaked in cold water for so long, and vigorously wiped her eyes. In a hoarse and low voice, she said, "Thank you—thank you, you are such kind gentlemen."
She then recounted what had happened. Her name was Liv, and the woman beside her was her eldest daughter, Freya; the missing woman was her youngest daughter, Daisy.
At noon today, Freya brought Daisy back from outside. In order to get back to lunch in time, they chose this quiet alley. But in the blink of an eye, she realized that Daisy, who had been following behind, had disappeared.
She retraced her steps to search, but never found her, and Daisy never returned.
It seems they really have been kidnapped—Lorne frowned slightly, looking at Klein beside him: "Great Detective, what do you say?"
"I plan to look around the area first to see if I can find any clues. For example, footprints, signs of struggle, or something that doesn't belong here," Klein gave a professional response.
"Okay, that works too." Lorne nodded, then looked at Liv and her daughter. "I'll go with you to the police station first. It might not be of much use, but we still have to go through the motions."
He said to Klein, "Great Detective, you search around here, we'll be back in a bit."
"Okay, you guys go find the police first." Klein agreed to Lorne's arrangement. In any case, kidnapping was something that definitely needed to be reported to the authorities.
"Well then, ladies, let's go find the police first—"
Before parting ways, both Lorne and Klein had the same thought flash through their minds.
This guy—he doesn't seem so bad after all—
Lorne led Liv and her daughter to the nearest small, rather shabby police station.
"Officer, that's it—" Liv was anxiously explaining the situation to a tall, thin, and lazy-looking police officer.
But the policeman just picked at his ear and said impatiently, "I know, I know, missing persons cases, there are plenty lately. Register this and go home to wait for news."
"But, officer, Daisy—" Freya couldn't help but step forward, wanting to plead a few more times.
"Ahem!"
Lorne stepped forward, turning his back to the mother and daughter so they wouldn't see his actions.
Seeing the tall, thin policeman's nonchalant demeanor, Lorne suppressed the urge to punch him in the face, took out a few sous notes from his pocket, stuffed them into the officer's hand, and chuckled, "Officer, after all, a child has been lost, and the family is very worried. Please take good care of them."
The policeman squeezed the banknotes in his hand, skillfully stuffing them into his pocket. His impatience was instantly replaced by a false enthusiasm. He smiled and said, "No problem, no problem, I will definitely do my best to help you solve this matter."
"However—sir," he changed the subject, his tone carrying a hint of genuine helplessness, "there have indeed been many similar cases recently. I can only say I'll do my best, but I can't guarantee anything specific."
"I understand, I understand."
To be honest, Lorne really wanted to force the other man to take things seriously with his fists. But, well, the other man was a police officer, in charge of this area.
He could walk away if he offended him, but Liv and her daughter couldn't. They still lived here, and if they offended him, their situation would only become more difficult.
Moreover, it's a fact that there have been so many kidnapping cases recently; some things can't be forced.
There was nothing he could do; since he'd run into this situation, he might as well go all the way. Although he was short of money lately, he still had plenty of it.
Looks like I need to find a way to improve my social standing; this guy has absolutely no respect for me.
After taking the statement and registering the information, he turned to the mother and daughter and said, "Alright, let's go back and see if the detective has found any clues."