In a corner of suburban New York City in the 1950s, there was an unremarkable small building where the detective lived. Below his residence was a bar, which kept the area lively at night, with pedestrians still passing by on the streets.
That evening, a cocktail party was held at the bar. During the event, some guests discreetly left their seats, and in the alley behind the bar, a violent confrontation sparked by emotional entanglements occurred. The sheriff witnessed the murder but chose not to apprehend the culprit; it seemed that the two were already acquainted...
That day, the usual food of detective‘s cat was ate up, while none of the nearby stores carried that brand’s food, so he had to switch to a new brand. However, the kitten didn’t like the new cat food and ran out through the window. Although being a private detective doesn’t pay very well, the detective is willing to spend his earnings on expensive cat food for the kitten. Additionally, he enjoys drinking, so besides the cat food, most of his money goes toward the alcohol, so his is a regular at the bar downstairs. And almost all of the cases was accepted in the bar, it became his go-to place for taking on new assignments.
After the kitten ran away, the detective originally planned to search for it, but he coincidentally received an invitation to a party at the bar and could only hope the kitten would find its way home. The party gathered many dignitaries, and the detective encountered Sheriff Terry, an old acquaintance. The detective admired Terry’s character; unlike other sheriffs, Terry was refined, polite, and exhibited a gentlemanly demeanor. Terry's wife, the daughter of a local wealthy businessman, was also invited to the party. During the dinner, the detective and Terry enjoyed a pleasant conversation, bidding farewell to each other late into the night. However, the kitten's missing kept the detective distracted all the night, and despite the party being quite abnormal, he failed to notice the subtle changes in emotions among a few attendees...
At the party, the bar owner‘s wife recognized her former lover Sheriff Terry who had gone missing ten years ago while serving in the military. They exchanged a few casual words, and the old feelings from a decade ago resurfaced. However, they had both married, and the bar owner‘s wife had to accept her fate. She couldn’t understand why the sheriff had married the daughter of the wealthy businessman. She was notorious for her promiscuity and was the only one at the party dressed in striking red. The bar owner's wife decided to leave the party and take a moment to be alone in silence.
While taking a stroll in the dimly lit alley behind the bar, the bar owner’s wife accidentally discovered two person having a secret meeting. She hid, and in the dim light of the streetlamp, she realized that one of them was her husband, while the other was the sheriff's wife, the daughter of the wealthy businessman! Her initially surprised, then quickly turned to fury. She has had resigned herself to her fate originally, but to her fury that both of her men had been stolen by the same woman. In a fit of rage, she emerged from her hiding spot, picked up a bottle from the ground, and hurled it—only to accidentally strike her husband, killing him instantly.
Seeing her lover fall lifeless, the sheriff’s wife screamed in terror and attempted to flee. Yet, despite the bar owner‘s wife fear, her had no intention of letting the sheriff’s wife escape. Overwhelmed by the fear of murder and emotional turmoil, the bar owner‘s wife blamed the sheriff’s wife for everything and, in a moment of reckless desperation, killed her too. Little did she know, a pair of eyes in the darkness witnessed the entire scene unfold...
The next morning, the detective was awakened by a knock on the door. It was his good friend Terry, who had come to say goodbye. Terry mentioned that he was moving to Mexico and hoped the detective would see him off. After escorting Terry to the border, the detective returned home to find it nearly dark and was dismayed to discover that his kitten still hadn’t returned. He could only continue the search.
As the detective went out to search for the kitten, he spotted a wanted poster on the street implicating Terry in the murder of his wife and suggesting he had fled to avoid prosecution. Remembering Terry's sudden farewell that morning, the detective couldn’t help but feel some doubt. However, he ultimately chose to trust his friend’s character, believing that Terry was not a murderer. He resolved to investigate and clear his friend's name. Yet, with the incident happening so suddenly and lacking any leads, coupled with the lost kitten, the detective felt utterly frazzled. At that moment, he thought only a bottle of strong liquor could calm his nerves.
The detective went alone to the tavern downstairs to drown his sorrows. Unusually, the owner, who would usually greet him upon entering, was absent this time, leaving only the owner’s wife. She told the detective that her husband had not returned since leaving after last night's party and asked for his help in finding her missing husband. The detective agreed, thinking he might also find his missing cat.
Following the clues, the detective made his way to a nearby alley behind the old kitchen. There, he noticed a broken door with blood seeping through the cracks. Peering inside, he discovered a woman's corpse. From her clothing and appearance, it was clearly Terry's wife. “Did Terry really kill his wife!? Is the wanted notice true?” The detective was shocked, and his gaze shifted to an open sewer grate nearby.
He quickly moved forward, climbed down an old maintenance ladder into the sewer, and found the bar owner dead. On the graffiti-covered wall behind him, the words “She doesn’t love me” were written in blood. After a preliminary examination, the detective concluded that the owner had died from blood loss, and the words were likely written in his own blood. But why write that particular phrase? The detective couldn't make sense of it. With these questions lingering in his mind, he cautiously navigated around the clues and bloodstains as he exited the sewer.
At that moment, a familiar voice caught the detective's attention. He was surprised and asked, "Terry?" He was standing right in front of the detective. "This is quite the place for a private meeting," came a voice from the rooftop. The detective and Terry looked up to see the owner's wife, holding a gun...
At this point, the detective seemed to piece it together. He asked, “So last night at the party, you recognized Terry as your lover from ten years ago. By coincidence, when you arrived here, you saw your husband and the sheriff's wife meeting secretly. Out of anger, you lost control and ended up killing them, didn't you?"
“She’s already rich and powerful, why did she have to steal my old love and seduce my man? She’s the one who deserves to be punished! And then there’s Terry. He clearly saw me kill them, yet he pretended it was him who committed the murder, hoping to cover it all up with money and run away with me. If he truly loved me, he wouldn’t have married that woman out of greed for wealth. His hypocrisy is so staggering; he has abandoned his true self for money and power. He is no longer the Terry I once loved. Look at the true colors of your old friend. We’ve all been deceived, and I will never trust anyone again!" With these words the bar owner'wife shot herself without hesitation. The detective was shocked by the bar owner'wife's decisiveness. Regaining his composure, he pointed the gun at Terry and said, “Even if the killer just committed suicide, you’d better come with me to the station now.” "This case is considered closed." Terry said as he turned and walked outside...
At that moment, the little cat the detective had been searching for all day sprang out from a nearby pile of garbage. Terry glanced at the dirty little cat and said, “Poor little thing, do you want to come with me? You won’t have to go hungry anymore.” The cat dodged his hand and ran towards the detective. Terry gave it a quick look but didn’t pay it any further attention as he continued to walk away. The detective tucked his gun away and picked up the returning cat, casting one last glance at his friend as he walked away to bid him farewell.
