Case Files 013

Chapter 138: Caught

I closed the yard door and followed the rest. Soon 2 more figures joined us, they were Er Xiao and Ol' Xia. The team had all gathered. Er Xiao and Ol' Xia came with bundles of comforters, they were prepared to hunker down for the night.

The five of us crouched low. Gu Chen briefed us, "I've checked the village layout, this place is higher on the west and lower on the east. I'll be on the lookout for the western side. On the roof, I should be able to take in the entire village. I'm the most physically capable here and I can move fast. Ol' Xia, you'll guard the eastern end because you're tough and buff. With the 2 of us guarding the village exits, there is no way the killer will be able to slip away." Ol' Xia nodded.

Gu Chen continued, "Okay, Wu Meng, you will be on the rooftop 3 houses down from Ol' Xia. When we came up with this plan, I had taken a quick lookout. The fence of that particular house has two holes on it, it's perfect for someone small like you to climb up."

Gu Chen was a true professional. He had already scoped out the entire village, he was sharp and clever with his assignment. He even took into account my size. Then Gu Chen told Chief Zhou and Er Xiao, "Chief Zhou, you'll be stationed in the middle of the village and Er Xiao, you'll be several houses down from me. The five of us will be able to cover the entirety of the village." Gu Chen's arrangement was flawless. "Let's move out." Gu Chen ordered, "It's now 9 pm. The villagers are going to rest while the killer should be preparing to head out." Then the five of us split up to move towards our designated location.

I headed north as per Gu Chen's direction. I found the holes that he spoke of. Holding the edge and using the holes as a purchase, I climbed up the fence easily. Then with a kick, I slipped up to the rooftop of the house. The snow on the rooftop had been swept. When I arrived, there was only a thin dust of snow.

I lowered my body. Thankfully I had put on layers of clothing or else my body would be freezing. I laid low on the roof and watched the movement around me. Based on my prediction, the murderer wouldn't come out so early in the night. We had to wait at least until midnight. Lying up there, if not for the weather, I could fall asleep. I wondered if Ol' Xia and Er Xiao would just doze away wrapped in their comforters. After all, there was nothing else better to do. Eventually even my lids started to get heavy.

After who knew how long, a cold draft shivered me awake. I glanced at my watch and realized it was already 1 am. However, the killer probably hadn't arrived since I didn't hear any update from the rest of the team.

The dim lights gave a creepy atmosphere to the village. The snow landed on the dried branches and the trees creaked noisily, like they were whispering. The temperature dropped further. I knew there were others scattered through the village but up there, in the dim darkness, it felt like I was alone in the world.

At that moment, I saw someone stagger in from the eastern side of the village. They were too far for me to tell their identity, but who else but the murderer would come out so late at night? The person came closer and closer until I finally saw the face of the individual. This was an honest man. Under the dim streetlights, the man slowly approached the eastern village entrance. There was something wrapped up in his embrace. A hand was poking out from the bundle, this was the victim's left arm!

The arms that held the bundle had no hands, instead they ended with Gu Duo's. This person was none other than the witness who reported the crime, Lee Danan, the person whom we were so sure wasn't the killer!

Lee Danan moved very slowly as he turned his head left and right. Clearly, he was looking to see if he was watched or not. When Lee Danan reached Chief Zhou's hideout, we would all jump out to surround Lee Danan. I held my breath, fearing that Lee Danan might hear my voice. Lee Danan was about to pass by Ol' Xia. At that moment, a man's voice boomed like thunder in the sky. "Stop!" Ol' Xia's sudden order startled not only me but also Lee Danan. The bundle dropped to the ground and revealed a broken arm. The snow fluffed into the air. Lee Danan turned and started to run like a rabbit away from the village. I cursed Ol' Xia internally and hurriedly jumped down from the roof.

Then I heard Chief Zhou shout from behind me, "Lee Danan, stop running. We've all seen you, what's the point of running?" Clearly Lee Danan didn't care, he continued to run. When I got down from the roof, Gu Chen was already by my side. He dragged me down and I fell to the snow. Thankfully the snow cushioned the impact and I felt no pain. As Gu Chen raced ahead, he said, "Hurry up, with your speed, the killer will be gone when you catch up." I crawled up and hurried after Gu Chen. Lee Danan was a surprisingly fast runner.

Soon even Er Xiao passed me by. I was the last one of the group. Try as I might, I was unable to keep up with the rest. Soon all I was able to see was their backs as they flew down east. The half an hour of running took a deep toll on me. I had no idea how these people managed to run for so long without feeling tired. I was already drenched in sweat. I stopped and lugged my weakened body forward.

There was no streetlight outside the village. The ground was purely white and the sky was purely black. The wind made the trees creak and howl. When I reached the village entrance, I was already left behind. I couldn't see the rest anymore. Walking down the road, I felt quite frightened. I couldn't run anymore, so I followed their footprints slowly. I walked for about 20 minutes before I arrived at Er Xiao's convenience store.

I looked around with alertness. There was nothing, no screams, no footprints, only the wind. I checked again. The footprints trailed into Er Xiao's convenience store and none moved towards the highway. In other words, the group had chased Lee Danan to the convenience store. However, if they were all inside the convenience store, why was it so quiet?

The convenience store had its lights on but looking in from outside, I saw no one. I looked around and again spotted nothing. These people appeared like they had disappeared from the face of the earth. I resisted the fear and slowly moved to the door. The door was left half open. Someone went through it in a hurry. I placed my hand on the door and slowly pushed it open. I took another look and there was indeed no one around, only rows of shelves. However, this convenience store only had this one door, so where was everyone else?

I closed the door and walked around the small store. The stove in the middle had gone out. The inside of the store was as cold as outside. I looped down the shelves. There was really no one. Could they have disappeared?

I squatted down to examine the snow prints on the ground. I followed the trail of snow and realized they disappeared behind one of the shelves. I frowned and examined the space under the shelf. Suddenly, I heard a tingling sound, like someone hitting against hollow steel pipes. I leaned my ears against the shelf and realized the sound came from underground. As I was about to sigh in relief, something scary came to me.

The village head told us that Er Xiao would go to the city to renew his stock every month but so far I had not spotted his storeroom. In other words, the storeroom could only be underground. However, Er Xiao had limited interaction with the villagers so how would Lee Danan know about the existence of this underground storeroom?

Instantly a chill ran from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet.

A scary thought appeared in my head, my only hope now was Guan Zhenglin who was still back in the village. If something happened to her too, then it was over for us. Looks like I had underestimated the people here.

"Ha ha." A chilling voice said. The voice appeared mysteriously behind me. I turned around and saw Lee Danan standing there. Seeing my surprised expression, Lee Danan guffawed. He used the bone of his arm to knock against the shelf lightly, it was he who was behind the tingling sound.

Lee Danan asked me with nonchalance, "Officer Wu, I hear you're looking for me?"