Doubt

As Lin Li blankly watched the three of them devour all the food, feeling deeply that he was going to starve, Barry was having a heart-to-heart talk with Joe.

In the battle earlier that day, Barry and Joe had already forgiven and understood each other.

In Barry's lab, three pizzas lay on the desk covered in documents.

Barry tore off a slice of pepperoni pizza, took a bite, and said, "Joe, thank you."

Joe leaned half his body against the desk, watching Barry eat pizza, just like he did when he was a child. He said emotionally, "Barry, you've grown up. You should have your own ideas. You're right, you're not my child, I..."

Barry stopped eating, a piece of pizza halfway to his mouth, and interrupted, "NO, Joe, you are my father."

"You are the father who made sure I was fed and clothed."

"You are the father who sat by my bed every night because I was afraid of the dark, waiting for me to fall asleep."

"The father who taught me how to do my homework, how to drive, and how to shave."

"The father who paid for my college and taught me all the good qualities in life."

"Everything you did, everything, made you a father. You are my father, and I'm so glad you became my second father."

Joe was so moved he was speechless. He wiped his face, his eyes watering, picked up a slice of pizza, and clinked it against Barry's in a toast. They smiled at each other.

After each of them ate a slice of pizza, Joe said, "Barry, I don't approve of you being The Flash, but you have your own ideas, and I can only support you silently. However, you must accept my supervision and be completely honest with me."

Barry understood what Joe meant and was so happy he started dancing, exclaiming, "Joe, that's great! I've always wanted to work alongside you to fight crime."

Joe raised an eyebrow and said, "From now on, we can have no secrets?"

Barry paused, his expression hesitant, and said, "YES... YES."

Joe looked at him again with that familiar expression, as if to say, Kid, I see right through you again. You're lying, but this time I'm going to expose you.

Joe turned and unrolled a world map on a blackboard, revealing hidden information behind it.

This was something Joe had stumbled upon when he came to Barry's workspace after arguing with Barry at STAR Labs that day. It made him inexplicably sad because he had been involved in the judgment of Barry's father's case. He had also concluded that Barry's father was the murderer. No one had believed Barry or his father's account back then; they all thought it was an attempt to shirk responsibility. It wasn't until Barry gained super-speed that everything, everything, matched what Barry had said as a child, even with a fourteen-year gap.

On the blackboard were newspaper clippings about the murder of Barry's mother, with headlines about a doctor killing his wife, footage of Barry's father being arrested by the police, and many strange notations, numbers, and dates, all meticulously organized.

"Joe..."

Barry stammered, various excuses flashing through his mind. In the end, he just called out Joe's name and said nothing more. He knew Joe strongly disapproved of his actions, which was why he had always kept it a secret.

Joe had initially believed Barry's father was the murderer. Because he was good friends with Barry's father, he adopted Barry. He had also privately investigated Barry's father's murder case for a long time, but without any results, he had let it go.

He believed Barry shouldn't be affected by his father's situation; at the very least, he should have had a healthy environment to grow up in. Therefore, from the very beginning, he strongly forbade Barry from getting involved with his father's murder case. At any time, the knowledge that his father was a murderer, that he had killed his mother, hanging over his head, was a cruel psychological burden and a source of cruel stares from outsiders for a child.

Of course, this was Joe's perception. Until Barry displayed super-speed, witnessed the terrifying artificial tornado, and Lin Li's control over electricity and other strange abilities, and then discovered what he had found in Barry's workspace that day, he had a strong intuition that perhaps his judgment fourteen years ago was wrong.

Joe looked at Barry very seriously and said, "Barry, you are absolutely right. Fourteen years ago, I made a mistake. I also bear some responsibility for your father being wrongly imprisoned. This mistake must be corrected. Your father should not be in jail. I believe what you've said. I will thoroughly investigate this case. Son, your father will be alright."

Barry's eyes welled up with tears, and he said emotionally, "Joe, thank you, thank you for believing me. But it's no use. I've already searched all the evidence, all the items, and anything related to it more than a hundred times, with no success. There isn't a single angle to approach it, no clue to follow up on. I've been going in circles."

As Barry spoke, he became disheartened. It was too difficult to overturn the case; there was simply no evidence. He couldn't even find a starting point to investigate. This was also why he had been paying attention to various supernatural phenomena, hoping to help his father clear his name. But even though he had become a supernatural phenomenon himself, he was still clueless and didn't know where to start.

Joe tapped his fingers on the table and said confidently, "Barry, I've been a police officer for many years and have dealt with countless cases. My accumulated experience and intuition tell me we should investigate the source of your abilities."

"Me?"

"NO, Harrison Wells."

"He picked you up from the hospital, and after you woke up, you gained superpowers."

"He gave me the impression that he knew everything, knew about your abilities."

"Moreover, your abilities, according to your description, are the same as they were on the night your mother died."

"My experience and intuition tell me we need to investigate Harrison Wells."

After hearing Joe's words, Barry frowned in thought. He recalled the scene on the night his mother was murdered, the red and yellow electrical arcs swirling around, and how he was instantly transported several kilometers away from his home. He also remembered his performance when saving people, which was strikingly similar.

Barry wasn't the same as he would become later; he hadn't spent much time with Wells yet, hadn't received Wells' dedicated teaching and guidance, and hadn't formed that trusting teacher-student relationship with him.

As of now, Wells was just a physics expert whom he deeply respected and admired. Regarding his mother's murder, Barry didn't immediately dismiss Joe's view.

In the TV series, because he had spent time with Wells and was grateful for his teachings and guidance, coupled with Wells' Oscar-worthy acting as a cover, Barry had deeply trusted Wells and had immediately dismissed Joe's suspicions about him. It wasn't until later, when Wells murdered a journalist and left behind clues, that Barry began to suspect Wells and eventually investigated him thoroughly.

Barry's dejected expression vanished, and he looked at Joe with hope. Joe's words had given him a new lead. Although it wasn't definitive, it was still a glimmer of hope. Having a lead meant there was a path, and if he kept walking, there might be a chance to clear his father's name.