Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

Chapter 525: Heart-to-Heart


Although Saint Thomas Island is distinct from the mainland of America, its public security is still quite good.

After the bespectacled girl called the police, the authorities arrived at the dock within 20 minutes.

The police inquired about the situation at the time, inspected the crime scene, took statements from the three of them, copied surveillance from the yacht, and then left.

Luke didn't hold much hope about whether they could catch the culprits.

One reason was the lack of clues, and the other was that there were no casualties or loss of valuable items on the yacht, so the nature of the case was not considered serious.

Because Saint Thomas Island is somewhat unique and different from the mainland of America, Luke didn't disclose his identity as an FBI agent.

The guide, Elsa Marin, got the message and arrived early at the dock to join the three of them.

Five in the morning.

The four of them had a simple breakfast and, carrying a mix of fatigue and excitement, embarked on their treasure hunt by yacht.

Before setting off, Luke checked his weapons again. This time, he brought three guns: two handguns—a Glock and a Beretta NANO—and a modified Benelli M4 shotgun.

The Beretta NANO was Luke's backup gun, compact with an eight-round magazine, a favorite among many agents.

Since he had already bathed and slept last night, Luke wasn't carrying the backup gun on him.

After returning the bespectacled girl's handgun, Luke equipped the backup handgun. As for the Glock, its barrel was damaged and temporarily unusable.

A shotgun plus a handgun, along with enough ammunition, should be sufficient to handle this treasure hunt.

Luke sat on the deck chair, sipping coffee while admiring the sea's beauty.

The scenery Luke admired was not the vast ocean but the myriad surrounding sea islands, each with its unique shape.

The surrounding sea has thousands of islands. Some are only the size of a football field and uninhabitable due to lack of fresh water, but for adventurers, that doesn't dampen their enthusiasm for exploring.

Lilith stood on the yacht's front deck, holding the brown-yellow map, her blue eyes occasionally glancing at the sea. Elsa Marin stood beside her, pointing into the distance now and then, whispering something.

Luke felt this way of hunting for treasure was pretty good. He was only in charge of security and didn't have to use his brain, usually just sitting on the yacht, enjoying the sea breeze and sun while sipping beer.

A vacation is just like that.

One hour later.

The yacht slowly came to a stop.

Luke yawned, got up and walked to the front of the yacht, asking Lilith, "Why did the yacht stop?"

Lilith pointed to the island not far ahead, "The island to the right seems to resemble the treasure island depicted on the map. We need to explore it."

Luke asked, "Should the yacht dock?"

Before Lilith could answer, Elsa Marin came out of the cockpit, "We can't dock. The water around the island is shallow, and there may be hidden reefs. Getting close could lead to running aground, which would be troublesome."

The bespectacled girl walked out holding a drone, "Why land on the island when this suffices?"

The bespectacled girl expertly controlled the drone to take off. The drone was equipped with a high-definition camera, allowing them to see the view beneath the drone directly on the screen.

The drone flew over the island, and Luke, Lilith, and the others looked at the panoramic view of the island through the monitor. The island wasn't large, roughly the size of an airfield. When the drone flew to a certain altitude, they could see the island's shape and topographical distribution.

Lilith observed carefully for a while and then said, "Retrieve the drone; it shouldn't be this island."

Luke asked, "Are you sure?"

"Yes," Lilith replied confidently.

Luke didn't respond and returned to the deck chair to bask in the sun.

Luke had seen the yellow map in Lilith's hand. It only roughly marked the treasure hunt range, sufficient to recognize it as the United States Virgin Islands, but certainly not precise enough to determine which specific island.

However, Lilith was able to accurately judge whether it was the treasure island just by the aerial imagery of the island. This indicated that besides the known treasure map, there must be other clues.

Since Lilith was keeping it a secret, whether out of distrust or for other reasons, in a situation of information asymmetry, he saw no need to waste his brainpower.

Even if they didn't find the treasure, the commission of forty thousand was still a gain for him.

The real loser would be Lilith, who not only had to pay for the three's commissions but also cover the yacht rental and travel expenses.

If she isn't anxious, why should Luke be?

The yacht sailed for an entire day, and Lilith identified dozens of suspected treasure island locations, but after drone reconnaissance, she dismissed them all.

By then, they were over one hundred nautical miles from Saint Thomas Island. That evening, the yacht did not return to the dock of Saint Thomas Island but anchored in a natural harbor with deeper water levels.

Luke and the others dined on the deck, the table filled with fresh seafood, vegetables, and fruits, all very healthy.

With a tablet in hand, Lilith reviewed the day's itinerary and aerial screenshots of suspected treasure islands, her elegant brows slightly knitted, "What are your thoughts on tomorrow's treasure hunting plan?"

Elsa Marin said, "We sailed for ten hours today, covering nearly two hundred nautical miles, traversing almost half the range marked on the treasure map.

I think today's journey wasn't slow, but we were a bit hasty in exploring the islands. Except for two islands with natural harbors where we landed, we didn't land on the other islands. We only explored from the air with the drone, so it's quite possible we missed some clues or even overlooked the real treasure island."

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