The female police officer next to Gordon inserted the USB flash drive into the computer.
"It's already being read...it'll be fine in a moment. Let's slow it down...and look at it frame by frame."
"Coming."
Gordon sat in the lift seat of the Gotham Police Station and adjusted his glasses.
"That was a few hours ago, and that was John Peterson, the murder victim. There."
The screen gradually lit up, and the black-and-white, blurry picture with signal interference from time to time had a sense of absurdity and panic like a mime.
"Our victim usually takes the subway home, but that day he decided to take a taxi."
"Now look to the left."
Jim Gordon narrowed his eyes.
"That's the Riddler. When the surveillance camera caught him, he had already pulled out his gun. Did you see it? On his left hand. I remember the Riddler is not left-handed."
"In fact, things happened in a flash, without hesitation...or any other action."
The female police officer's voice was ringing: "It's unclear whether he spoke - we looked carefully and it didn't seem like his lips had moved, so based on what we know so far, we infer that he probably didn't speak." Gordon had already guessed what would happen next, but he couldn't believe it.
"This is the moment of firing."
Director Gordon pursed his lips.
He saw the Riddler in the picture raising his pistol to the back of the innocent victim's head.
Bang!
The gunshot seemed to ring in Jim Gordon's ears, although there was no sound in the surveillance video, as silent as a tombstone.
"One shot to the head, killing him on the spot. The crowd started to panic and ran away from the place where the noise was coming." The female police officer said: "The Riddler put down his gun and did not aim at or attack anyone else."
"The crowd was still running away in panic. He threw the gun next to the victim's body, and he never touched it again until we arrived at the scene."
"Very calm, no screaming or other similar actions, very professional, until now...he has not said a word."
"This was the first patrol car that came in a hurry. We happened to have a police officer named Sean half a block away. He got out of the car... and was yelling at the Riddler."
"He heard it," Gordon said. "There's no doubt about it."
"This is all the information about the case of the Riddler shooting John Peterson in the street."
Commissioner Gordon saw the Riddler in the picture turning to look at the camera, taking out a card with the Batman logo on it from his arms. He smiled softly, and then said——"
"Where is he?"
Interrogation room.
The desk lamp was turned on, and the Riddler turned his head slightly to avoid the dazzling light.
Commissioner Gordon sat down across from the Riddler.
"He won't come. Edward isn't worth wasting his time."
"Do you know what the oldest riddle is? It was in ancient Sumer about 4,000 years ago."
He slightly raised the shackles on his hands:
"I am everywhere, but you can't see me. I often get away with it, but I never escape. I will find you at the intersection, or even chase you to the next corner. What am I?"
"Death."
"I can be broken, spoken, made, and played with. What am I?"
"I don't have time to play riddles with you."
Commissioner Gordon interrupted: "Nigma, you shot poor John Peterson in the head in broad daylight and then waited for the police to arrive."
"Is there a reason you're doing this? He owes you money? You owe him some money? You lost to him at poker or something? Maybe he slept with your girlfriend-"
"Do you have a girlfriend?"
"The answer is a joke."
"So...about girlfriend, does this mean negative?"
"Don't you like jokes?" said the Riddler.
He smiled gently, as shyly as a student answering the teacher's questions at school, and even his eyes seemed to have clear stupidity.
"Would you like to guess another one?"
"How did the clown know that Xiaoba was at home that day? How did he know where you lived? How did he get past your security system? We both know him. He is a strange guy - crazy and complicated, but not good at making plans.
."
"..."
The Riddler made a gesture of making a phone call, imitating the Joker and his call:
"Hey, dear Ed, how's the plan going? I want to have a 'bad day,' but I have no idea where to start."
"Well, here, Jack—how about starting with the Sheriff and his daughter? I've got it all planned out, but it's so simple that I'm bored. Sing me a song and I'll do it.
Here you go."
"Wow, that would be perfect, Ed. Listen, I'll give you another free dance."
"Ha, ha, ha, ha!"
The Riddler spoke lightly, and a girl's fate was viciously smeared like a black stain on the wall.
Gordon slowly clenched his fists.
He reminded himself repeatedly that the Riddler was just trying to piss him off.
He cannot let his emotions be so easily mobilized by the other party, which means a complete loss of initiative and a complete shake of the mind. When facing the Riddler, this is an extremely dangerous situation..."
"You *##%%@#*bastard - how dare you?" Gordon suddenly jumped up from his seat and strangled the Riddler's neck: "How dare you *##%% in front of me
@#*!"
But the next second Gordon forcibly controlled himself and did not continue to vent his anger.
"Cough cough cough cough!" The Riddler coughed heartbreakingly behind him: "Are you okay, Godot? You don't look happy."
"Oh no... did everyone find out about Sergeant Sarah? How did you... you know, *##%%@#* rape her and then force her to transfer?"
"So you can hide your affair from your pregnant wife?"
"She was your subordinate, man. She once had her own career, and then... well, we know what happened next, don't we? Poor woman."
Jim Gordon calmed down. His anger was gradually replaced by shame. Just when he was about to immerse himself in it, he suddenly realized that in front of the Riddler, his emotions were molded as easily as ceramics.
So he turned around and no longer faced his prisoner.
But this is not normal. Over the years, no matter which time the Riddler commits a crime, riddles will be left at the scene.
Passion killing without puzzles? This is contrary to the Riddler's crime model. Edward Nickema should be the one who looks down on such low-end crimes the most.
Gordon had a vague feeling: Something seemed wrong. The Riddler... seemed to be no longer the Riddler he used to be.
But no matter what, he has been caught now.
Gordon said: "You will be transported to the rebuilt Arkham Asylum. You can wait there, maybe Batman will have time to interrogate you."
He looked at the Riddler, and his pupils reflected the stern smile on the other person's face:
"Do you believe it?"
He heard Edward Nygma say: "It only takes 20 seconds to escape the prison."