Beaten Black and Blue

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Beaten Black and Blue
General information
Season	1
City	Anbrusia
District	Aeropolis Airport
Case #	2
Initial release date	February 20th, 2021
Partner(s)	Kauri Maunga (All Chapters)
Case chronology
← Preceded by	Succeeded by →
Flying Colors	Burning Daylight

“	After your first week on the job, you're informed of the murder of a tourist in a local fight club! Get your fists pumped, partner, and find who beat this man black and blue!	„
	—Case Teaser

Beaten Black and Blue is a case featured in Criminal Case where it appears as the second case in Anbrusia. It takes place as the second case in the Aeropolis Airport district of Anbrusia.

Plot

A week after their first investigation, the player had already grown accustomed to the city and the team members themselves, most notably Ichika, who had admitted that she had found the player the most tolerable out of the members in the department. They had also learned about Christopher and Jordan’s life when they previously had been the head of the department while the two lovers shared affectionate kisses and embraces, before they were interrupted by Qasim, who informed the player of a silent alarm being triggered at a nearby fight club, sending them and Kauri to investigate. There, the two had found the body of a tourist by the name of Trent Conley lying near the lockers, his face bloody and bruised with brass knuckles right beside his body. Analyzing their clues, they had found out that the victim showed signs of struggle, but the killer clearly held their own, meaning they knew how to fight. The brass knuckles used in the murder also had traces of sushi on them. They then spoke to the victim’s wife Brittney Conley and professional fighter Axel Dante about the murder, although Dante had been confused at how a murder could have taken place there, as he made sure to lock up before he left. Furthermore, Brittney had told them that she and her husband had visited the local drive bar the night before, where Trent had gotten negative attention after a drunken rampage, prompting them to investigate there, where they discovered a purse and a cigarette pack. Kauri and the player found traces of gummy bears on the cigarette pack, and while it may have been confusing to some, Kauri knew where it had come from. He then went on to tell the player about a kid, Mark Quang, who has a habit of finding new ways to get himself high and had gotten busted before for dealing, and this brand of cigarettes plus the gummy bears happened to be one of his favorites. Mark of course though denied any involvement in the murder and of dealing, as it had been a part of his probation after Kauri had caught him a few weeks ago. Kauri asked if he had even been going to the rehabilitation center like he suggested, but he had kept quiet. They also questioned prostitute Penelope Vasquez, who shamelessly admitted to having been victim of Trent’s drunk harassment and nearly broke his wrist, saying that she knew how sleazy guys around these parts to girls like her and a woman should know how to defend herself in these situations, which she encountered more than she’d like to admit. Later, a sheepish Antonio with Safiya at his side approached the duo, mentioning he had something important to say.

Kauri had asked the clumsy coroner to spit it out already, though Antonio scratched his head and laughed it off, saying he had forgotten what he was about to say. Safiya told him not to worry, as that was what she was here for, and alarmed the investigators about finding a suspicious type of drug inside the victim’s system, and while it had not seemed important to the investigation, it was still something to consider. Kauri then suggested looking around an alleyway where drug exchanges had taken place a lot, only to find a bloody wristband and a badge belonging to police officer Eric Lawson, claiming to only have been stalking the alleyway for new lowlives to arrest, like perhaps that one kid who he had seen talking to a man matching the victim’s description. He wondered if it had been a drug exchange, but the kid had been scared off soon after, who was then identified to be Mark. Being as blunt as he is, Kauri had bluntly demanded for an explanation from Mark, who proclaimed his innocence. Trent had only been looking for something light, which Mark offered to give him only because it seemed like he wasn’t a regular user, but was scared off after Trent had taken a look at him and immediately spouted homophobic remarks. Although no actual crime had taken place and what happened to him was unfortunate, Kauri realized that Mark had broken one of the rules of his probation, and had no choice but to take him in despite the kid’s remarks. After learning of the killer drinking sports drinks from the drive bar, they searched there once more, suspecting hustler Oscar Ashridge after finding a broken glass, who had taken a whiff of his cigarette and claimed that he may have had an altercation with Trent, but the same could be said for everyone there that night, even his wife. Evidence supported this, given that the investigators found a note in a menu written by the victim, where he asked Brittney to behave herself. When asked to explain, Brittney revealed that she had been in an abusive and toxic relationship with Trent, who had done everything in his power to not allow her to escape, but she never wanted him dead, as he wouldn’t even get to pay for how he treated her. When all that was cleared up, Christopher had called the investigators to his office, but upon arriving, Jordan had been all over him. The blushing former chief playfully pushed his husband off and told him to save it for when they weren’t at work, before letting the player and Kauri know that he had discovered a lie in one of their suspect’s testimonies.

Christopher had informed them that Trent had been one of Penelope’s former clients, which the prostitute herself said that she only didn’t tell them because it didn’t concern them, and she had no shame in what she did. Furthermore, it was learned that Trent had tried to deal the drugs he had been taken to Axel and promised it’d make him stronger, he had bribed Eric into turning the other way, and scammed Oscar. The killer was then proven to be Trent's own wife, Brittney.

Once Kauri and the player gathered all the clues, the two confronted Brittney, who had been throwing away all of her husband’s belongings. They presented the evidence to her, and instead of denying it, Brittney fell on her knees and broke down in uncontrollable sobs, admitting to everything she had done. Kauri had been awkward at these type of things, so instead folded his arms and asked her why she had killed Trent, to which Brittney snapped and yelled out that he had made her life miserable. Trent had been horrible to her constantly and would spout insults at her, even go as far as to scold her harshly in public when she did something that would upset him. She had so many chances where she could have left, but didn’t, as all her life, she wanted a perfect and happy romance like she would recently see with Tech CEO Blaine Jefferson and his husband Christian plastered all over the media, and it all reminded her of something she’d never have, which drove her to confronting him once and for all. She had caught him at the fight club, where Brittney thought he would be as Trent would usually get up to shady deals, and she yelled at him for it and for being a terrible husband. However, things would take a turn for the worse, and upon hearing the news, Brittney recalled the terrifying feeling she had felt when Trent had rushed at her with nothing but the anger she knew all too well in his eyes, causing her to grab the brass knuckles on a nearby bench and proceed to beat him to death, unable to stop while she did nothing but punch and cry for all that he had done to her. Once Brittney had finished with her confession, Kauri himself had been at a loss for words, unable to form them, and he instead takes Brittney into custody. Once brought before Judge Malik, Zahra had shockingly been sympathetic with Brittney, and proceeded to tell her that she had to believe things would get better while sentencing her to mandatory counseling, despite the remarks and retorts of the other people in the courtroom, as Zahra waved them off and reminded him that it was her decision and she knew what her own judgment was, and if they had a problem with it, they should keep it in their mouths or take it up with those who appointed her judge, before dismissing everyone in the room.

After the trial concluded, Kauri had been quiet with balled fists, clearly upset at the case that they had just concluded. Given they had nothing else to do, he offered to further investigate whatever Antonio meant when he said the victim had been a possible dealer and taking something he couldn’t determine, as a panicked Qasim called the player to his office in a panic, saying his twin sons had gone missing.

Kauri and the player spoke to Antonio to learn more about what Trent had been taking, and the coroner grumbled something about losing his notes, where Safiya had arrived to help him out. Together, the coroner duo had suggested to try to look around the dark alleyway where most drug exchanges had happened, and by a string of luck, they managed to recover a drug baggie, which Antonio analyzed after. He was able to confirm that it had not only been the exact same thing in Trent’s system, but it definitely wasn’t something he had seen before. After cross checking, he determined it to be a new street drug by the name of “Anvil”, and he had found that there had been multiple reports of overdoses by the very same drug. Kauri pondered over looking over the fight club since Trent had snuck in there to attempt his dealings and possibly grilling Axel or Mark further, and while Antonio mentioned that the latter had been unnecessary as at the very least Axel had solid alibis, something still didn’t sit right with him. At the fight club, with the discovery of a burner phone belonging to Trent, they not only found that Trent had been talking to an unanimous person about the dealings of the drug, but also that they would manipulate an innocent Mark into taking the fall if they were to get caught. Approaching his holding cell and asking him about what they found, Mark had admitted that Trent did blackmail him with something he refused to say, but what he hadn’t realized was that Trent had slipped a baggie into his backpack. Given the circumstances, Kauri decided to let Mark go as long as he agreed to not get himself in anymore trouble, and he accepted the deal with a huff as he walked out the station, annoyed. Before he left, Kauri called out to him and reminded him that he didn’t have to go through it alone and there were other ways to let go of all the pent up emotions he had inside, and while Mark stopped in his tracks, he simply muttered a thanks and walked out without turning to look behind.

Meanwhile, Kessie helped talk to a worried Qasim about what happened to his children, and Qasim let them know that he had been walking by the park with his sons, Aarav and Ishaan, and while turning away for a few minutes to get the two some ice cream, it appears that they had ran off somewhere. Kessie then remained calm and asked Qasim if he had tried tracing them by their smartwatches, the chief thanking her for the idea, and they had pinged one of the watches to the drive bar they had been at before, the connection cutting off soon after. They wasted no time going to said bar, only to see that the watch had been broken in pieces, and judging by the blue strap, it had been Aarav’s. The young investigator wondered what could’ve happened but thought nothing good would have come from worrying, and helped repair the watch, which they then sent to Carlos. Carlos explained that using the watch, he could attempt to ping the signal of the matching one Ishaan wore, and with multiple attempts, he did just that, and they were able to track down the twins. Qasim hugged his sons tightly and asked the two what had happened, Aarav placing his hands in the sleeves of his blue hoodie and quickly blaming Ishaan for wanting to go off and explore around the bar. Ishaan had retorted with an insult of his brother being a wimp, where Qasim had angrily told them to knock it off already, and anything dangerous could have happened to them. The twins apologized to their father, where they then let him know that a strange man approached them at the bar, and he attempted to give something to the twins, Qasim worriedly asking if they took it. They told him that they remembered what Qasim taught them about avoiding strangers, and when the man touched them, they kicked at him and ran away as fast as they could. With the chief growing emotional, Kessie stepped in and ruffled the kids’ hair, asking them to go wait in the car and that they would go stop and get burgers for remember such important advice. With Qasim going back to the station, Christopher helped the player talk to the stressing man, who they had found softly crying. He explained that he didn’t want his kids to see him this way, but it had been hard to take care of the twins at this age, especially after dealing with his divorce to his wife, and Christopher offered him support, remembering when his son, Wilbur, was at that age. He reminded Qasim that the team would always be there to help with the kids, and he would definitely be able to take the kids off of his hands when he needed a break, the chief thanking them for everything they had done for him and the boys.

Afterward, Kauri had been with the player, and he suddenly began to mention about how he had been worried about what Mark had been getting up to. He told the player that the department had been dealing with the kid for a long time, and everyone knew that he came from an abusive household situation with his father. In order to escape from it, he had been hanging out with the wrong crowd, where he met some shady guy who really only took advantage of Mark in order to manipulate him into taking the fall for what he had done with his crew, something similar to what Trent did. Even after getting busted, the kid still refused to name the crew, and Kauri believed that Mark thought that the guy still loved him. Their conversation was interrupted Qasim calling everyone for a rollcall, where he explained the new party drug, Anvil, and mentioned to keep an eye out for where it could possibly be coming from. It had been spreading fast, and so it was their job to try to rid it off the streets of Anbrusia, and told everyone to do their best in what could possibly a messy few weeks now that everyone had gotten a new source to get high.

Summary

Victim

• Trent Conley (found beaten to death in a fight club)

Murder Weapon

• Brass Knuckles

Killer

• Brittney Conley

Suspects

Axel Dante

Brittney Conley

Mark Quang

Penelope Vasquez

Eric Lawson

Oscar Ashridge

Quasi-Suspects

Antonio Hernandez

Aarav & Ishaan Bhargava

Qasim Bhargava

Killer's Profile

• The killer knows how to fight.
• The killer eats sushi.
• The killer drinks sports drinks.
• The killer wears a coin necklace.
• The killer has brown hair.

Crime Scenes

Fight Club	Fighting Arena	Fight Club Bonus
Local Drive Bar	Bar Counters	Local Drive Bar Bonus
Dark Alleyway	Alleyway Dumpster	Dark Alleyway Bonus

Steps

Chapter 1

• Investigate Fight Club. (Clues: Victim’s Body, Boxing Gloves, Brass Knuckles, Broken Pieces)
• Examine Boxing Gloves. (Result: Nametag revealed; New Suspect: Axel Dante)
• Question Axel Dante about the murder. (Prerequisite: Nametag revealed)
• Broken Pieces. (Result: Keychain; New Suspect: Brittney Conley)
• Inform Brittney Conley about her husband’s death. (Prerequisite: Keychain repaired; New Crime Scene: Local Drive Bar)
• Investigate Local Drive Bar. (Prerequisite: Brittney interrogated; Clues: Cigarette Pack, Purse)
• Examine Cigarette Pack. (Result: Substance)
• Examine Substance. (Result: Gummy Bears; New Suspect: Mark Quang)
• Talk to Mark Quang about being at the drive bar. (Prerequisite: Gummy Bears identified)
• Examine Purse. (Result: Explicit Photo)
• See if Penelope Vasquez had seen anything suspicious. (Prerequisite: Explicit Photo found)
• Analyze Brass Knuckles. (03:00:00; Attribute: The killer eats sushi)
• Autopsy Victim’s Body. (18:00:00; Attribute: The killer knows how to fight; Profiles updated: Axel Dante knows how to fight; Penelope Vasquez knows how to fight)
• Go to Chapter 2. (No stars)

Chapter 2

• Investigate Dark Alleyway. (Available after unlocking Chapter 2; Clues: Badge, Bloody Wristband)
• Examine Badge. (Result: Department identified; New Suspect: Eric Lawson)
• Ask Eric Lawson why he had been in the alleyway. (Prerequisite: Department identified; Profile updated: Eric Lawson eats sushi)
• Confront Mark Quang about meeting the victim in the alleyway. (Prerequisite: Eric interrogated; Profile updated: Mark Quang knows how to fight and eats sushi)
• Examine Bloody Wristband. (Result: Blood)
• Analyze Blood. (12:00:00; Attribute: The killer drinks sports drinks; Profile updated: Mark Quang drinks sports drinks; New Crime Scene: Bar Counters)
• Investigate Bar Counters. (Prerequisite: Blood analyzed; Clues: Glass, Menu)
• Examine Broken Glass. (Result: Fingerprints)
• Analyze Fingerprints. (12:00:00; New Suspect: Oscar Ashridge)
• Question Oscar Ashridge about the broken glass. (Prerequisite: Fingerprints analyzed; Profile updated: Oscar Ashridge drinks sports drinks)
• Examine Menu. (Result: Flakes)
• Examine Flakes (Result: Nail polish identified)
• Talk to Brittney Conley about the note. (Prerequisite: Nail polish identified; Profile updated: Brittney Conley knows how to fight, eats sushi, and drinks sports drinks)
• Go to Chapter 3. (No stars)

Chapter 3

• Demand an answer from Penelope Vasquez for sleeping with the victim. (Available after unlocking Chapter 3; Profile updated: Penelope Vasquez eats sushi and drinks sports drinks)
• Investigate Fighting Arena. (Clues: Syringe, Locker)
• Examine Note. (Result: Writing revealed)
• Analyze Writing. (06:00:00)
• Ask Axel Dante about the victim trying to deal to him. (Prerequisite: Writing analyzed; Profile updated: Axel Dante eats sushi and drinks sports drinks)
• Examine Locker. (Result: Envelope)
• Confront Eric Lawson for taking bribes from the victim. (Prerequisite: Locker unlocked; Profile updated: Eric Lawson knows how to fight)
• Question Oscar Ashridge about the victim scamming him. (Prerequisite: Eric interrogated; Profile updated: Oscar Ashridge knows how to fight)
• Investigate Alleyway Dumpster. (All tasks above must be completed; Clues: Camera Lens, Victim’s Backpack)
• Examine Camera Lens. (Result: Gold Shrapnel)
• Analyze Gold Shrapnel. (09:00:00; Attribute: The killer wears a coin necklace)
• Examine Victim’s Backpack. (Result: Bandages)
• Analyze Bandages. (15:00:00; Attribute: The killer has brown hair)
• Take care of the killer now!
• Go to At Square One 2. (No stars)

At Square One (2/6)

• Learn more about the drug from Antonio Hernandez. (Available after unlocking At Square One 2)
• Investigate Dark Alleyway. (Prerequisite: Antonio interrogated; Clue: Drug Baggie)
• Examine Drug Baggie. (Result: Drug Sample)
• Analyze Drug Sample. (09:00:00)
• Investigate Trash Bin. (Clue: Trash Bin)
• Examine Trash Bin. (Result: Burner Phone found)
• Question Mark Quang about the new drug. (Prerequisite: Burner Phone found; Reward: Gay Pride Makeup)
• Investigate Local Drive Bar. (Clue: Broken Pieces)
• Examine Broken Pieces. (Result: Watch)
• Analyze Watch. (06:00:00)
• Track down where the Bhargava twins had run off to. (Prerequisite: Watch Unlocked; Reward: Burgers)
• Help Qasim Bhargava feel better. (Prerequisite: Twins interrogated; Reward: 20,000 coins)
• Go to a new case! (1 star)

Navigation

Cases in Anbrusia
Aeropolis Airport	Flying Colors • Beaten Black and Blue • Burning Daylight • Flying the Coop • In the Doghouse • Drug on the Market
Chorus Carnival	The Curtain Falls • False Note • Sharp Wit • Music to My Ears • Two Can Play at That Game • The Night the Clown Cried
Alluring Avenue	Drop Dead Handsome • Between Your Heart and Mine • A Kiss Goodbye • The Apple of My Eyes • Light Up the Night • An Affair to Remember
Cedarwood Cinemas	Flash a Smile • Through Your Looking Glass • Beyond Wildest Dreams • In Black and White • Run a Tight Ship • A Dark Horse
Utopian University	School of Thought • Lessons Learned • Spoilsport • Curve Ball • As the Sun Rises • The Queen Has Fallen
Frosty Forest	Hit the Mountain Trail • Shivering With Fear • Bearly Alive • Forever Frozen in Time • Saw You in the Flesh • Monster of Them All
Innovation Isle	In For a Shock • Blinded with Science • Not Science Fiction • Brain Power • No One Lives Forever • Game Plan
Cassiopeia Canyon	Trained to Kill • My Way or the Highway • In Space and Beyond • Alien Territory • Laser Precision • Murder Sixty One
Crescent Capital	Tip the Balance • Locked and Loaded • Dead Eagle Eye • Riot Act • Venom in Our Veins • A Stab in the Dark
Poshley Place	At Death's Doorstep • The View From the Balcony • Lost in the Stars • A Reign of Terror • The Last Goodbye • To the Stars