Boom!
Accompanied by the driver's terrified screams, the black Volkswagen veered across the road at eighty miles per hour and slammed headfirst into the stone wall.
The massive impact instantaneously compressed the vehicle's length by a quarter.
Immediately following was a loud roar as the chassis transformed into a raging ball of fire right on the spot.
The pedestrians scattered along the road were utterly dumbfounded.
The next second.
Screams and panicked cries to God finally erupted in succession.
However, at the precise moment the black Volkswagen collided, Locke's Audi R8 and Cop up ahead had already navigated around a bend. Although they still heard some of the explosive commotion, it did not impede their progress in the slightest.
"It's done."
Carrie stared at her right hand, which had returned to its fair, natural complexion. Retracting it, she slipped it back into her pocket. "Aren't they witch hunters? Don't they possess any defensive skills at all?"
Locke's expression remained neutral. "None."
This made little scientific sense.
Carrie mused silently. After all, they were supposed to be witch hunters. If they couldn't even counter a witch's magic, how exactly did these witch hunters manage to hunt them down in the first place?
"Witches have varying degrees of strength," Locke said, casting a casual glance toward Carrie. "Furthermore, this crowd predominantly hunts the weaker ones—young, newly awakened girls who are still completely disoriented and muddled. Those are the ones they take the greatest pleasure in subjecting to their trials."
To put it plainly.
They bullied the weak and feared the strong.
Of course.
They had indeed eliminated genuine dark witches in the past, but that was typically accomplished by burying them under a mountain of human casualties.
Moreover, just because the faction had achieved it historically didn't mean the petty witch hunters gathered here had ever faced one themselves.
Directly put, the fact that witch hunters had slain dark witches historically did not mean all witch hunters had done so.
Carrie spoke in a heavy voice, "Just like Anila Katz."
Locke nodded. "Exactly."
This was precisely why Locke had not intervened to stop Carrie from dealing a lethal blow.
He required no concrete evidence; he already knew the outcome. The truth was that Anila Katz's body was at the bottom of Lake Lery, and since that lake belonged to the Dolan Church's witch hunting group, and those two tailing them belonged to that exact group, neither individual could be considered an innocent bystander by any metric.
When an avalanche occurs, not a single snowflake is innocent.
Therefore...
Those who live by the sword must be prepared to die by it.
Accomplices could be sentenced to second-degree murder in a court of law; in Locke's eyes, an accessory to a crime was entirely equivalent to the principal perpetrator.
Half an hour later.
Lake Lery.
At this moment, the local leader of the self-proclaimed witch hunting group, Jim Rhodes, had already lined up a faction of men at the entrance of the mountain path to receive them.
Although he didn't quite comprehend why those two subordinates had failed to intercept them, it was of little consequence.
Jim Rhodes stepped forward with a polite smile, shaking hands with Detective Captain Cop Thornton as he exited his vehicle. "Detective Captain Thornton."
Cop nodded in acknowledgement. "Rhodes."
Serving as the captain of the New Orleans Major Crimes Unit, it was entirely normal for Cop to be acquainted with Jim Rhodes, much like George was well aware of Wilson Fisk, the kingpin of Hell's Kitchen.
But acquaintance and familiarity were two entirely separate concepts.
Cop retrieved the newly signed search warrant for Lake Lery from his breast pocket, presenting it to Jim Rhodes. "Would Mr. Rhodes care to place a call to his associates to verify the authenticity of this search warrant?"
Scanning the contents of the warrant, Jim Rhodes chuckled softly before looking up at Cop. "That won't be necessary. Coordinating with the precinct's investigations is our duty. However, didn't this young girl head out of town with her relatives on a camping trip?"
"Mr. Rhodes is aware of this?"
"Naturally!"
Jim Rhodes spread his hands. "Mrs. Katz is a devout follower of our church. Yesterday, after you inquired with me, I placed a call to her out of concern. On the phone, Mrs. Katz was highly exasperated, stating that this was absolute nonsense. Would she not know herself if her own daughter had gone missing? I heard that even after she returned, she was continuously harassed by a young girl."
Saying this.
Jim Rhodes's gaze settled upon Locke and Carrie.
The next second.
Jim Rhodes looked directly at Locke. "I recognize you. You're the couple who visited the town café yesterday and subsequently headed down toward Lake Lery, correct?"
"Siblings."
Locke corrected Jim Rhodes's grammatical error with a smooth smile. "Since Mr. Rhodes claims that Katz is not missing, perhaps you could explain why you felt the need to manipulate a forged piece of surveillance footage to deceive the New Orleans Police Department?"
"Forged?"
"Yes. The technical craftsmanship was decent. Unfortunately, it fell entirely short in front of me. The next time you intend to fabricate something, remember to pull your copy-paste frames from a slightly earlier date. Don't sacrifice quality merely for convenience..."
The corners of Locke's mouth curled upward slightly. His gaze then locked firmly onto a nerdy individual standing within the ranks behind Jim Rhodes—a young man wearing spectacles who, upon hearing Locke speak, guiltily adjusted his thick lenses.
"Keep up the effort next time."
The nerdy tech guy couldn't resist looking up at Locke, a flash of pure panic flitting through his eyes.
Right at that moment.
Jim Rhodes cleared his throat, casting a deep, piercing glance toward Locke before turning back to Cop. "Detective Captain Thornton, I have no idea what occurred with the surveillance footage, but I will investigate the matter thoroughly. Didn't you wish to inspect Lake Lery? I shall escort you over personally."
Maintaining a stoic expression, Cop shook hands with Jim Rhodes. "Thank you."
Locke and Carrie smoothly followed along.
As for the nerdy tech guy Locke had singled out, he did not accompany them. The moment Locke withdrew his gaze, that miserable coder was already being heavily surrounded by two imposing, fierce-looking brutes.
Tsk, tsk.
A severe thrashing was almost certainly unavoidable.
En route to Lake Lery, Jim Rhodes, who had been conversing with Cop and Kaynor up front, deliberately slowed his pace. Once Locke drew level with him, he extended his right hand like a completely harmless, good-natured gentleman.
"Rhodes. Jim Rhodes, head of the Dolan Church in New Orleans."
Locke cast a brief glance at Jim Rhodes, smiling subtly as he accepted the handshake. "Broughton. Locke Broughton!"
With that.
Locke released his grip. Observing the moisture slicked across his palm, he extracted a clean tissue from his pocket and began to deliberately wipe down his right hand, looking directly at Jim Rhodes.
"Mr. Rhodes seems to be perspiring quite heavily. What's the matter, is your conscience bothering you?"
Jim Rhodes let out a hearty laugh, casually rubbing his right hand against his trousers to shift the topic.
"Mr. Broughton, I am well aware of who you are. Yes, Mr. Locke Broughton of New York—the man who fought a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security and even went so far as to sue London's MI5 and MI6 right in New York."
He isn't a witch?
The moisture on Jim Rhodes's hand just now had not been sweat; it was a specific chemical solution.
It was a solution designed to distinguish whether an individual was an ordinary human or a witch. Had it been a witch, the solution would have instantaneously blackened the moment their hands met.
But...
Nice try.
You're the witch here, your entire lineage is.
Although Locke hadn't known exactly what Jim Rhodes was plotting initially, walking behind him had allowed him to observe Jim Rhodes's hand movements inside his pocket perfectly. Correlating that with Jim Rhodes's background, it wasn't difficult to surmise his intentions.
A pity.
I am no witch.
Uh...
At least not in my current state.
Furthermore, frankly speaking, he would much rather manifest as Caine than ever transform into the Witch.
As for Jim Rhodes's remarks?
Locke smiled smoothly, looking back at him. "The New York media frequently asserts that I enjoy turning a profit through lawsuits, but I truly don't. I have no fondness for litigation. I sincerely hope I won't have to engage in a lawsuit against you, Mr. Rhodes."
Jim Rhodes laughed heartily once more. "The feeling is entirely mutual, Mr. Broughton. Your elite legal squadron is highly renowned across the entire world."
Assisting their employer, they had initially triumphed over the FBI, securing an out-of-court settlement payload, followed by a victory against the Department of Homeland Security that netted nearly ten million dollars in damages.
Subsequently, right on domestic soil, they had backed London's MI5 and MI6 into a corner where they had no choice but to pay their way out of the disaster.
Although the exact figure of London's settlement remained undisclosed to the public.
But...
Locke had previously broadcasted his bank balance on social media quite casually. Consequently, conservative estimates dictated that London had paid out at least a staggering one hundred million dollars.
Once the media deduced this piece of information, the domestic press erupted into a frenzy, while the London media completely exploded with outrage, unleashing a barrage of vitriol against MI5 and MI6.
Yet MI5 and MI6 harbored grievances they couldn't voice. Even after parting with the funds, they were still compelled to convene a press conference to formally apologize to Locke and express gratitude for his immense generosity.
This development caused the citizens of London to explode further, with masses petitioning to simply dismantle MI5 and MI6 entirely, viewing them as utterly useless institutions.
Because of this, Attorney Laun's TNT Law Firm had likely surged to become the undisputed number-one legal establishment in the world in terms of sheer popularity.
Locke shrugged. "I would prefer it that way as well. Yet, there are always people who harbor the illusion that they are powerful enough to challenge me."
Jim Rhodes smiled subtly, lapsing into silence.
Because...
They had officially arrived at Lake Lery.
Surveying the surroundings, Jim Rhodes turned to Cop. "Detective Captain Thornton, I fail to see exactly where anyone could possibly hide a person along this empty, barren stretch of Lake Lery."
Cop turned his gaze toward Locke.
Locke spoke up calmly, "Mr. Rhodes."
"Mr. Broughton."
"Mr. Rhodes, would you care to know why we are so absolutely certain that Anila Katz is located right here?"
"I am indeed quite curious."
"Because..."
Locke reached out and accepted the miniature signal tracker from Carrie's hand.
Observing the device in Locke's palm, Jim Rhodes's expression shifted slightly.
But...
Jim Rhodes didn't panic in the slightest. "A signal tracker?"
Locke nodded. "Precisely."
As he spoke.
Locke stared at the miniature tracking indicator on the screen, pointing a finger directly toward Lake Lery.
The corners of Jim Rhodes's mouth curved upward in a well-concealed smirk.
The next second.
Locke suddenly froze, raising an eyebrow. "Oh?"
Cop walked over immediately. "What is it?"
Locke raised his head, locking his eyes onto Jim Rhodes standing before him.
Seeing his reaction, Jim Rhodes felt his heart skip a beat.
Locke spoke softly, "Someone has relocated Anila Katz. She is no longer inside the lake."
"What?"