Deadly Neighborhood

Max Stark was a detective in Sunrise Point.
He had been working with the police force for many years before he made detective. During that time, he had solved countless crimes and helped make the streets of Sunrise Point safer. He was driven, intelligent, and quick-witted.
But one case changed everything for him. It led to his arrest and imprisonment but also to his redemption. He was finally able to find peace after it ended.
Stark was born and raised in New York City. His parents were hardworking immigrants from Eastern Europe. They worked long hours in factories while their son spent most of his time playing sports or hanging out with friends.
As a young man, he dreamed about becoming a professional athlete or maybe even a musician. But life took him down another path. He decided to study criminal justice at college because of his fascination with crime solving and the law.
After graduating, he applied to join the New York Police Department and began training to become a cop. He passed all the tests with flying colors and was soon assigned to patrol duty.
His first few years on the job weren't easy. There were times when he felt overwhelmed by the challenges he faced as a rookie. He often struggled to keep up with the more experienced officers.
However, over the next few months, he grew into his role and learned how to best utilize his talents. Soon enough, he became one of the department's brightest stars. By age thirty, he'd climbed the ranks and was promoted to detective.
For the next several years, he investigated various cases including robberies, assaults, and homicides. Most of them were solved quickly, but some took longer than others. However, none were ever really difficult for him.
One day he had to solve the case of "Deadly Neighborhood" for a murder that occurred in an apartment building located just outside of Sunrise Point. The victim was a woman named Mary Lou. She was found dead inside her home, which was only two blocks away from where Stark lived.
The apartment building was an older structure situated at the end of a block. It was an unassuming gray brick building with white windows and a blue door. The only thing that stood out was its gated parking lot. So Max walked there for investigation.
When he arrived at the scene, the sun had already risen over the horizon. The sky was painted orange and pink. Everything was bathed in a soft glow. He could see the people walking along the sidewalks and the cars parked on the street.
It was peaceful and quiet.
There was only one other person at the crime scene. A man wearing a black suit and sunglasses was standing next to the entrance. He looked like he belonged there, but he didn't seem to know anything about the incident.
Stark approached him. "Excuse me," he said. "Do you have any information I can use?"
"I'm sorry, Detective," the stranger replied. "You're going to need to get a search warrant before I'll tell you anything."
"A search warrant? For what?"
The man leaned forward and lowered his voice. "This is a private property matter. Don't ask questions or you might catch something."
"Okay…"
"My name is Max Stark. I'm a detective with the Sunrise Point Police Department. How may I help you?"
The man stepped back and removed his hat. His dark hair was short and slicked back. He was clean shaven with brown eyes and a thick mustache.
He smiled. "I am very pleased to meet you, Mr. Stark."
"You are?"
"Yes. My name is Charles Corwin. I own this apartment building."
Stark nodded. "Nice to meet you, sir. Do you know a way in to the Appartment of Mrs. Lou?"
Corwin gazed at him for a moment. Then he turned around and went inside the building.
Stark waited patiently until he returned. When he came out again, the man gave him a key and told him to use it whenever he wanted.
He thanked Corwin and entered the building.
He followed the key to Apartment Three, which was on the third floor. The door was unlocked and he opened it without hesitation.
Inside, he found himself in the living room. It was dark and silent. All the lights were off except for the one over the couch.
Stark walked toward the couch. He noticed a trail of blood leading from behind the sofa to the kitchen.
There was a small pool of red liquid on the tile floor. It was still warm and smelled strongly of fresh blood.
Something was wrong. This wasn't the way the killer left the scene.
Stark followed the trail of blood through the kitchen and into the hallway. The body of the woman he was here to investigate was lying in the tub. Her head was resting on the edge and her arms were stretched above her. She appeared to be asleep, so she might've been killed while taking a bath. But why would the killer leave the bloody knife beside the tub and then walk away? Stark moved closer and placed his hand on the side of the woman's neck. She was cold. She had been dead for some time. No wonder the trail of blood led to this place. Someone had brought the body here.
Stark didn't believe the killer had simply walked away. Whoever did this must have stayed with the victim until she died.
As he studied the body, he realized the woman had been stabbed multiple times.
Then it hit him…
This was no ordinary murder.
The killer had left his weapon right next to the victim! He could have easily taken it with him, but he hadn't. That meant he knew exactly who he was dealing with. And whoever he was, he can kill again.
Stark continued searching the room. There were several books on the coffee table. The titles were mostly about serial killers. Some of the pages showed black and white photographs of their victims.
He also noticed a piece of paper lying on top of the desk. It was a list of names: Mary Lou, Charles Corwin, and Max Stark.
Why was Corwin on the list? The killer obviously had a personal grudge against him. But why didn't he kill him too?
He grabbed the list and started reading.
Corwin has money, power, and influence. He owns the apartment building where this tragedy happened.
I should start with him. If I can find him, maybe I can figure out what he knows.
Stark put the note aside and looked around. Nothing more of interest here. He took the knife for examination. He examined it closely, it was covered in blood.
Stark collected all the evidence carefully. He takes a last look around. Then he leaves the apartment and heads towards Corwin's office.

The investigation begins

Max Stark knocked twice and opened the door. Inside, the room was even more dark than the rest of the building. An old, worn-out couch sat in the center of the room.
It was hard to make out details in the dim light, but it looked like there was an empty bottle of whiskey on the table. Several newspapers were scattered across the floor. They were all torn in half.
Stark walked slowly toward the desk. "I have some questions about your tenant, Mary Lou."
Charles Corwin was sitting at the desk. His face was hidden under his hands.

"Mr. Corwin. What happened here?"
"She wouldn't listen!" Corwin cried. "I tried to warn her, but she didn't want to hear it! She had to learn the hard way! She deserved everything she got!"
"What do you mean?"
"How many times did I tell her not to trust that bastard? She didn't listen! She trusted him and now she's dead! I told her how dangerous he was! I tried to stop her from seeing him, but she wouldn't listen! I warned her, but she didn't care! She kept going back to his place and now she's gone! She's dead because of him!"
"Who is 'him'?"
"The guy next door! The one who killed her!"
"What is his name? Who is he?"
"His name is Felix Wilson. He lives in Apartment Ten. He's a computer technician. He'll never talk. He's a sociopath. He's a monster! I warned her about him! He's a murderer! A psychopath! He's sick in the head. He's evil! He's twisted and depraved!"
"What is your relationship to him?"
"A long time ago we were friends. We used to work together. But then he quit. He doesn't belong here. He belongs in jail. I tried to tell her that, but she wouldn't listen!"
"What did you do, Mr. Corwin?"
"I worked for this company. My job was to keep the building safe. I had to make sure that nobody broke the rules. I did my best to enforce them. I made sure everybody paid their rent on time. I had to make sure the tenants knew that if they broke the rules, there would be consequences. But Mary Lou never listened! She always disobeyed me! I was trying to protect her! But she just couldn't let go of that fucking loser!"
"And what did she do?"
"She decided to see him again. She ignored everything I said! She kept going back to him! She didn't understand! She didn't care! She was blinded by love! He promised her things! He lied to her! She believed him! She thought he was different! He's a liar! He's a manipulator! He's a killer!"
"Did you ever try to stop her?"
"Of course I did! Every time she went to his place, I told her to leave him alone! I told her to stay away from him! But she wouldn't listen! She kept going back to him and now she's dead!"
"Do you know why your name stands on a list on a piece of paper in her appartment?"
"No. I don't know anything about that!"
"You're lying."
"I swear! I don't know anything about any list!"
"Do you know where Mr. Wilson is now?"
"Wherever he is, it isn't here!"
"Can you describe him to me?"
"He's tall and skinny. He has brown hair and blue eyes. He wears glasses. And he has a scar on his cheek."
Max turned around. "Thanks, Mr. Corwin. You've been most helpful."
"Please, call me Charles! Don't worry about Mary Lou. She will be avenged!"
Stark closed the door behind him and headed towards the elevator. "I'm sorry, Mr. Corwin," he muttered to himself. "But I think you're wrong. I don't believe your story. I don't believe it was Felix who killed Mary Lou. It wasn't him who killed anyone. I don't believe it was him at all."

Suspects

Max went back to the appartment building for interrogating Felix Wilson. He knocked on his door and opened it after receiving no answer. Inside, Felix was sprawled over the couch. There were empty beer cans scattered across the floor. On the table was a half-empty bottle of wine. Max looked around and noticed that there was a note on the kitchen counter. It read:
Don't bother knocking. I'm out. If I come back, turn off the lights. I like the darkness.
Max walked to the couch and stood in front of the man. "Mr. Wilson, I need you to tell me everything you know about Mary Lou. Everything you know about her death."
Felix sat up straight. "Tell me who you are first."
"My name is Detective Max Stark. I'm a police officer."
"A cop? That must be nice."
"It's not. I'm a private detective. Do you know Mary Lou?"
"Yes. I met her once or twice before. Why?"
"Because I want to ask you a few questions. Did you kill her?"
"Are you nuts? Of course not! What kind of dumb question is that?"
"Have you seen her recently?"
"Why should I lie to you? Are you stupid, or something?"
"This is a simple question. Have you seen her recently?"
"Yeah, I saw her last night. She came to my place for about half an hour."
"What did you two talk about?"
"We talked about whatever. She wanted to hang out. I guess she was lonely. So I took pity on her and invited her in. I guess she felt comfortable around me. I liked her. She was a sweet girl. But I was too late. She died yesterday."
"What happened?"
"I don't know. Somebody killed her."
"Who?"
"Nobody knows yet. Maybe you will find out soon enough."
"Did you kill her?"
"Of course not! I don't know what you're talking about. I haven't done anything wrong. You can check my apartment for yourself. I'm sure you'll find nothing. Just because she's dead, doesn't mean I killed her. I don't know why you'd even think that."
Max looked around. "You're telling the truth, aren't you?"
"Sure I am. Why would I lie?"
"Do you have any enemies?"
"I don't know. Maybe."
"Can you tell me your phone number?"
"Why do you want to know?"
"I might call you later."
"OK. Call me."
"Thank you, Mr. Wilson. That will be all for today. But I may need to talk to you again. One last thing, do you know Charles Corwin?"
"Yeah, I know him. Who doesn't?"
"Is he an enemy of yours?"
"If you say so. But I don't really care."
"Good, because we're going to look into his connection to Mary Lou. But don't worry, Mr. Wilson. Nobody will think badly of you. We won't charge you with anything. We're just looking for information to help us solve the case. OK?"
"OK. Good luck."

Decrypt evidence

Max looked at his watch. It was five o'clock p.m. He hadn't slept the whole night after interviewing Felix. He decided to stop for a quick lunch before returning to the police station. He called a nearby bar and ordered a sandwich. A few minutes later, he exited the restaurant and headed back to the office. He couldn't wait to see the file containing all the evidence collected at the crime scene.
Max entered the building and got into the elevator. He pressed the button for the basement and waited for the car to arrive. The elevator stopped and opened its doors. When he stepped inside, he saw a young lady standing in the corner. He recognized her immediately. It was the girl who had been working in the cafeteria last week. Her name was Monica. She looked very different today. She wore a black dress and had her long hair tied up in a ponytail. She was very pretty. She smiled and waved at Max. He nodded and walked toward her.
"Hi," said Max.
"Hello. How are you?" she replied.
"I'm doing well. Thank you for saying hi."
"Would you like to have a coffee?"
"That sounds great."
"Follow me."
She led him to a little cafe right beside the elevators. They sat down at a table near the window.
"So, how are you?" asked Max.
"Oh, I'm fine. Thanks for asking. How about you?"
"I'm good."
They drink their coffee. Max was impressed with the way Monica served him. She seemed like a very friendly person.
"I work here sometimes," she explained. "When I'm not busy."
"Really? Do they pay you well?"
"Not really. I get paid for the hours I put in, but they don't give me extra money for overtime. But I don't mind. I don't want to waste my time working somewhere else. I like it here."
"Me, too. I like this place."
"What do you do?"
"I'm a detective with the Sunrise Point Police Department. I investigate crimes."
"Wow. How exciting. What kind of cases do you work on?"
"Everything. Murder, rape, burglary…you name it. Anything that happens in Sunrise Point, I try to solve it. So then, i hope we will see again, thanks for the coffee."
"No problem. See you around, Max."
Max returned to his office and spent the rest of the afternoon reviewing all the evidence found at the crime scene. He was particularly interested in the photo of Mary Lou. It showed her lying in the bath tube in a large pool of blood. Next to her was a bloody knife on the floor nearby. Max had already scanned the picture but now he studied it in detail. He concentrated hard to make sure he didn't miss anything. As he looked at the picture, he noticed something strange. There was no blood on Mary Lou's hands. He zoomed in the picture and examined it carefully. It appeared that Mary Lou did not defend herself. Was she dead before she was stabbed? Max looked at the knife on the ground next to her. It was covered in blood. But there was no blood on Mary Lou's hands.
"How could this be possible?" Max wondered aloud.
He looked at the picture again. Mary Lou was wearing gloves. And she never removed them until her death. Where were the gloves? Did she drop them? Or did someone remove them from her body after she died?
Max thought about the crime scene photos. Mary Lou may be was dressed for a party. But in the bathroom, she was naked. There was no sign of her clothes anywhere. Did the killer take them away? Max checked the autopsy report and confirmed that there was no evidence of sexual assault. He kept looking at the picture. There was something very strange about it.
"Where are her gloves?" he mumbled.
He searched through the file and found the photo of the knife. He enlarged it and studied it carefully. The knife was stained with red liquid. He tried to zoom in the picture to get a closer look, but it was too small to read the labels. The liquid looked familiar. He knew exactly what it was.
"It's Mary Lou's blood," said Max.
Max left for home at nine o'clock p.m. He didn't feel tired, but he decided to rest anyway. He was planning to get a search warrant for Mr. Wilsons Appartment the following morning.

Who is the perpetrator

Max woke up early in the morning. He had barely slept the whole night. He showered, shaved and brushed his teeth. He was feeling uneasy about visiting Wilson. He wanted to think things through before he went there. He decided to eat breakfast first. He grabbed some cereal and milk and sat down on his couch. When he finished eating, he took a shower and got ready to go out. His phone rang. It was his partner, Detective Gomez.
"Hey, Gomez. What's up?"
"Good morning, Stark. I just came from the morgue. We've got a lot of interesting stuff in our lab. Let me tell you…"
Max was getting impatient. He hated listening to his partner talk about boring details.
"Okay, okay. Go ahead."
"There's some evidence that suggests that the victim was either unconscious or asleep when she was stabbed. In other words, she wasn't attacked by a stranger."
"And that means who?" asked Max.
"We're still investigating that part."
Max sighed. He didn't want to hear about the investigation process. He had been through this many times before. Detectives always seemed to take forever to solve each crime.
"Gomez, do you know what time it is?"
"Sorry, I forgot."
Max hung up the phone and glanced at his watch. He didn't have much time to spare. He went straight over to Wilsons Appartment. Max knocked on the door and waited for an answer. There was no reply. He knocked again but this time louder. Still no response. He called the man's cellphone and heard nothing. Max decided to break the door open with a lock pick set. He inserted the picks into the keyhole and twisted one handle clockwise and the other counterclockwise. The door opened easily. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him.
He walked through the living room and into the kitchen. He saw a note on the table. It was the same list from Mary Lou's apartment the day before, but with one more name on it "Felix Wilson". Max headed toward the bathroom. Then he stopped dead in his tracks. A large pool of blood was scattered all over the floor. Two red gloves were lying next to the bathtub.
"This doesn't make sense!" exclaimed Max.
He stepped closer to the tub and stared at the body. It was Felix Wilson. His head was covered in blood. He used his foot to move some of the debris on the floor. Felix Wilson was obviously dead. Max bent down and touched his face. He had a big wound on her neck and his eyes were wide open.
Max took his phone and contacted his superior at the police station.
"Gomez, come here quick! You have to see this!"
Max heard a loud noise coming from the bedroom. He ran out of the bathroom and headed toward the bedroom. Then he stopped dead in his tracks.
A man was leaning against the wall next to the doorway. He wore a black suit and a black hat. He was holding a gun in his right hand and pointed it at Stark.
Stark knew who the man was. He recognized him instantly. He was Charles Corwin! The owner of the apartment building.
"Get out of my house!" yelled Corwin. "I don't want to hurt you. Just leave!"
Corwin pushed forward and aimed the gun at Max. Max stood frozen in place. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. He suddenly remembered the conversation they had yesterday afternoon.
"If you're going to kill me, do it already," said Max. "Don't torture me like this."
Corwin laughed. "You're not dead yet. It's only a matter of time."
Max slowly turned around and headed toward the hallway. He passed by the kitchen and went into the living room. He noticed the broken window. The front door was open. He walked into the living room and saw a trail of footprints leading outside.
"What happened here?" asked Max.
"I'm taking my revenge!" shouted Corwin. "Now get out of my house!"
Max felt like screaming. This was the last straw. He was fed up with being threatened. He rushed toward Corwin and punched him hard on the nose. Corwin fell backward and hit the floor. Max kicked him in the stomach and pinned him to the floor.
"Get off me!" screamed Corwin.
Max pressed his knee against Corwin's back and held him in a tight grip. He grabbed the gun with his free hand and pointed it at Corwin's forehead.
"You're under arrest," said Max.
"For what? I haven't done anything wrong!"
"You're under arrest for murder."
Corwin laughed again. "Murder? I didn't kill anybody!"
Max took his handcuffs out of his pocket and placed them on Corwins wrists.
"What are you doing?" said Corwin. "You don't have any proof that I did anything."
Max ignored him and dragged him to his feet. He pulled him across the floor and threw him over the sofa.
"But may be we find some evidence in your office or at your appartment."
"Ha ha!" laughed Corwin. "That won't happen. I'm not stupid enough to let you enter my home. You'll never find a thing there!"
Max picked up the phone and dialed 911. He told them that he needed help immediately.
"Look, Stark, give up now. It's useless. You can't win this case."
Max ignored him and continued talking to the operator.
"Hello, hello…yes, please hurry."
After 10 minutes the police arrived to arrest Corwin. They led him out of the apartment. Max followed them downstairs and spoke with the officers. They told him that they would need to search the entire building and every room. He agreed and then went back upstairs to continue searching.
Max's phone rings, it was Gomez: "Our lab found a suspicious poison in Mary Lou's blood, but we can't identify it yet."
Then Gomez added: "Any idea why the killer took Felix's head?"
Max smiled. "Maybe he wanted to take revenge on him for killing Mary Lou."
Max thought for a moment. Maybe Corwin did kill Mary Lou after all. He had a motive, and he had the means to commit the crime. But why kill Felix Wilson? And how did he know where to find them?

Interrogation

Corwin was taken to the police station and locked in a cell.
"You have the right to remain silent…"
"I'm not going to talk to you."
"Anything you say can and will be used against you…"
"I don't care. I've done nothing wrong."
The police officer left the room and closed the door behind him.
Max sat down in his chair and began reading the newspaper. He looked at the headlines. There was an article about a new hot spot in Hollywood. The reporter described the area as being 'the next big thing'. Max turned the page and read an article about a kidnapping in London. A wealthy businessman was kidnapped by a group of masked men dressed in black. The kidnappers took the businessman to an old castle located in the middle of nowhere and threatened to kill him if their demands were not met. They demanded a ransom of one million dollars and threatened to release a video showing him getting tortured to death unless the money was paid within 24 hours. The news shocked everyone. Nobody had ever seen such a terrible act of terrorism before. It was a big deal. The police were looking for leads.
Max put the paper down and checked his watch. It was almost 11 o'clock. He headed toward the interrogation room to check if anything had changed. When he entered the room, Corwin was sitting on a chair with his hands tied behind his back. He was wearing a white shirt and a pair of khaki pants. He stared at Max with cold eyes.
"Do you have any questions for me?" asked Max.
"No," replied Corwin.
"In that case, I think we should start our session."
Max turned on the recorder.
"Did you kill Mary Lou?"
"Why do you keep asking me this question?"
"Because I want to know the truth."
"Truth? What truth are you talking about?"
"About how you killed her."
"She died because of her own stupidity. She shouldn't have gotten involved with Felix."
"Felix? Why not Mr. Wilson?"
"I am, i mean i was in a relationship to Felix. We weren't married or anything like that, but we were together for several months. Then he met Mary Lou."
"How did you two meet?"
"We met through a mutual friend. His name is Mark. He introduced us. I wasn't looking for a relationship at the time. I just wanted to have some fun. But I guess I got caught up in it all. I started to care for Felix and then I fell in love with him. He made me feel special and protected. He saved me from myself. And then I found out that he was seeing Mary Lou behind my back."
"So she had to die?"
"That's right. I wanted him to be with me and only me. So I decided to end everything between them. Mary Lou was the best thing that ever happened to him. I could see that he was falling in love with her, so I had no choice but to kill her."
"But why did you kill Felix Wilson?"
"He was the reason why I killed her. He knew too much about me and my life. He even saw me kill Mary Lou. He was planning to expose me for the murderer I really am. That's why I killed him."
"But how did you know he had a connection to Mary Lou?"
"I heard him talking to Mary Lou on the phone. He called her to tell her that he loved her and wanted to spend his life with her. Then they met in secret. That's when I became suspicious. I found out that they were meeting in secluded places and spending most of their free time together. They were growing closer every day. I couldn't take it anymore. I had to stop them. But that wouldn't have been enough. I needed to make sure they never met again."
"So you planned to kill both of them."
"Yes. I needed to get rid of them forever. I knew that if I killed Mary Lou first, then Felix would never forgive me. So I waited until I knew that Felix was safe and secure. Then I came up with a plan to kill them both. I poisoned Mary Lou's drink and brought her home. She drank the poison and died. I watched her die before my eyes. I felt guilty about it, but I didn't let it bother me. She deserved what she got."
"Why did you stabbed her if she was already dead?"
"I was afraid that she might wake up. If she woke up, then it would be obvious that i tried to killed her. So I decided to finish her off. I cut her throat and dragged her body to the bathroom. Then I took her clothes off and filled up the tub with water. I wanted her to drown in her own blood. I wanted to show everyone what kind of monster she really was. I dropped her body in the bathtub and closed the faucet. I cleaned up the mess and hid her clothes somewhere."
"And now you go in jail for a long time."
"That's right. I deserve to be punished for what I did. I'm sorry that I caused so much pain and grief."
"What about you? Are you ready to accept your punishment?"
"It's okay. I have nothing to hide. I'm willing to pay the price."
"Thank you for your cooperation."
Max left the room and returned to his office.
He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He rubbed his forehead and smiled.
"Everything is going to be alright."

The end

A few days later, Max was finishing up his report. He had finished the investigation and found the killer. His name was Charles Corwin. He will spent 15 years in prison for stabbing Mary Lou and Felix Wilson to death. He had a history of violence and he hated women with a passion.
"Well this case was interesting. It was certainly different than the others. I hope I don't get another one like this anytime soon. I would prefer to solve cold cases rather than open ones."
Max stood up from his chair and stretched. He went to the fridge and grabbed a beer. The night breeze blew through the window and cooled him down. The rain was coming down hard outside.
He opened a drawer and pulled out a bottle opener. He pressed a button on top of the opener and it slid across the metal cap of the bottle. He twisted the opener and it popped off the bottle. He sat down at his desk and looked out the window. The rain was still pouring down.
"This is nice," he said to himself. "It's good to relax after a long day at work."
He took a sip of his beer and sighed.