Chapter 1151: A New NCIS Case (Patreon)

"Are you guys performing some kind of dark magic?"
As soon as Hannah walked in, she saw Jack and the adorable Alexis from the Castle household wearing wizard robes just like the ones from the Harry Potter series, busying themselves in the kitchen.

"Alexis wanted me to help her recreate a few dishes from Hogwarts."

Jack waved the cake spatula shaped like an Elder Wand in his hand. Alexis, standing next to him, had a bit of cream on her cheek, giving her a charmingly mischievous look.

She set down the official Harry Potter cookbook she had been holding and presented a cup of oddly colored drink to Hannah like it was a treasure. "Try the butterbeer I made."

Hannah hesitantly accepted the supposedly "butterbeer" drink, which was ice-cold to the touch. The cup itself was quite distinctive—white bronze metal at the base with the Hogwarts crest embossed in relief.

The body of the cup was made of glass and detachable from the base, with measurement marks on the side. Hannah recognized it as the same type of cup Madam Pomfrey used to serve Skele-Gro to Harry and his friends.

Upon closer inspection, the somewhat suspicious amber liquid inside was still bubbling slightly, with a layer of cream floating on top.

"Ginger beer mixed with cream sauce, it's safe to drink," Jack explained, putting Hannah at ease. She took a tentative sip, found the taste acceptable, and then drank several more gulps.

It wasn’t that the drink was particularly delicious, but rather that she had just returned from outside and Alexis’ "butterbeer" was nicely chilled.

Ginger beer contains no alcohol; it's basically carbonated soda water with added ginger. When chilled, it's quite refreshing.

On the stove nearby, a certain soup was bubbling away, giving off a rich aroma of chicken and mushrooms.

"Is this some kind of stew?" Hannah tried to recall if she had seen it in the Harry Potter series, but came up blank.

"No, this is the filling for the Hogwarts Great Hall's chicken pie. I added bay leaves and dragon thyme."

Seeing that the liquid had reduced enough, Jack turned off the stove and retrieved a pre-prepared dough for making puff pastry from the fridge.

Watching him skillfully brush oil into a baking tray marked with black magic symbols, Hannah, intrigued, turned on the faucet to wash her hands. "I'll help too."

Jack tossed her two lemons. "Grate some zest and squeeze the rest for juice."

Compared to JJ, who could barely manage two dishes, Hannah’s cooking skills were only useful for simple tasks like this.

Of course, if it were outdoors and she had a grill or a Texas smoker, that would be a whole different story—there’s no such thing as a Texan who can’t barbecue.

The Harry Potter-themed kitchenware Jack was using had all been brought over by Alexis from her home.

This included a cast iron pot with a golden Snitch handle on the lid, a set of silicone baking utensils shaped like wands for making desserts, a Deathly Hallows spoon holder, and several Polyjuice Potion mugs.

"What’s this for?" Hannah handed Jack the lemon zest and juice.

"It’s for Dumbledore’s favorite lemon snow pudding."

With a clap, Alexis propped up a miniature standee on the table that read “Charming Citrus Flavor” like a product ad.

And so, on this leisurely summer morning, Jack successfully played the role of a wizard—or more accurately, a house-elf—accompanying a big and a little girl who both retained their childlike innocence to complete a lunch full of Hogwarts charm.

"This Great Hall chicken pie is absolutely perfect. I think it’s changed my long-held opinion of British cuisine." The richly flavored chicken and mushroom filling paired with the flaky pastry crust left Hannah very satisfied.

"Uh..." Jack hesitated for a moment but ultimately decided not to ruin Hannah’s rare good impression. British-style chicken and mushroom stew with baked crust... well, it did taste pretty good.

At that moment, Jubal walked in with a slightly bewildered look on his face. "Guys, can someone explain to me why NCIS is sending us a request for assistance?"

Seeing Jack and Alexis dressed in wizard robes, he looked even more puzzled. "Isn’t it a bit early for Halloween in June?"

Jack smiled and took the file folder from his hand. As expected, the cover bore the name of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service.

"Rossi just informed me about it yesterday. I haven’t had a chance to tell you all yet."

He briefly explained what Rossi had asked him to do, but to his surprise, what caught Jubal and Hannah’s interest more was the bombing incident at the Navy compound.

"A terrorist attack?"

Seeing Alexis had obediently put on her headphones and sat on the living room couch, Jack shook his head, indicating he didn’t know the full details either.

"Apparently it was a lone actor, seeking revenge on behalf of his son who had served in the Navy—kind of similar to General Hammer’s motive."

"This is the ripple effect, huh?" Jubal casually helped himself to a hot slice of pie while talking.

What he referred to as the "ripple effect" is also known in social psychology as the "copycat effect." It refers to individuals who, under the influence of uncontrolled social stimuli, unconsciously and spontaneously develop similar actions, viewpoints, and emotions.

Those who closely follow the news often notice this phenomenon: certain heinous crimes tend to trigger a chain reaction, such as a series of mass school shootings happening one after another in a short period of time.

This is partly due to concentrated media coverage, but it’s undeniable that sometimes, seemingly unrelated cases may actually have some internal connection.

In any society or group, there will always be individuals with latent criminal tendencies. When a particularly egregious crime gets exposed—especially one that receives extensive media attention—

It’s notable that alongside voices of condemnation, there will also be a considerable number of “rational neutralists,” and even those who cheer and express support.

These collective voices can form a kind of public opinion force.

To ordinary people, this force has no real impact. At most, they might argue about it online or join in the public discourse.

But for individuals who already harbor criminal intent, this force acts as a perfect catalyst, reinforcing their criminal mindset.

And when they happen to encounter a triggering event, that mindset can instantly turn into actual criminal behavior.

"Probably not... but then again, who knows?" Jack wasn’t entirely sure. The VX gas incident on Alcatraz wasn’t public knowledge, but within federal law enforcement and the military, there were probably some rumors.

After all, it involved a considerable number of personnel—just within the Joint Operations Command Center, there were nearly a thousand agents and soldiers.

Jubal polished off his pie in a few bites and packed up the rest. "The NCIS case is in the Lake Rich area near Richmond. I’ve already notified the others to regroup."

"Let’s just meet directly at the airport. Someone else is covering the gas money anyway," Jack said with a smile.