“He’ll come… for me.” 

A sentence stated with out feelings.  However in Jian Yao ears, the phrases are just like the sound of struggle drums hitting her coronary heart. 

She turns round and appears at him. Within the dim gentle, she will be able to faintly see him.  His good-looking face appears calm and picked up.

Jian Yao remembers the scars that lie on his again.  What kind of expertise and ache does he carry with him? 

And when he first returned to China, Jian Xuan stated he was so skinny he seemed like a strolling skeleton.   

Have been any of this stuff associated to the Flower Cannibal?

Fu Ziyu talked about it was the final case he labored on earlier than returning to China.  He caught the infamous legal, who’s now serving a life sentence in the USA.

However throughout the course of, did he put himself in peril?

This good, naive and smug man that’s subsequent to her….  Did he undergo unmentionable cruelty and abuse? 

……

“Train him a lesson.” Jian Yao says softly.

This man got here within the title of the Flower Cannibal.  He should be both a follower or an confederate of the hideous monster.

Bo Jinyan is trying by way of his binoculars.  He stares out of the window, shifting his lips: “You don’t should remind me.” He solutions haughtily. 

Jian Yao asks: “He arrived at Solar Yong’s home earlier than us.  If he turns up as we speak…. how does he discover out what you’re as much as and the place you’ll be?”

Bo Jinyan places down the binoculars.  He says with a chilly smile: ”That’s apparent.  He stalks me.” 

Jian Yao suspects that may be the case.  Nonetheless, it’s nonetheless creepy to listen to it. 

He continues: “Each the FBI and Chinese language police have despatched their males to surveil me.  But, they failed to note his presence.  He should be superb at lurking within the shadows.”

Jian Yao stays silent for a second, then asks: “? So ……  Was our workplace bugged?”

Bo Jinyan: “Sure, it was.  The listening units have been beneath our chairs.” 

Jian Yao is astounded.

When did Bo Jinyan find out about this?  So he used it to his benefit to arrange this entice?  However he pretended he didn’t know something about it.  

“Why didn’t you inform me earlier?” She whispers softly.

Bo Jinyan glances at her: “Let you know?  Would you be capable to act ‘usually’?”

“After all. And I’d have been extra ready.”

“I’m right here.  What different preparations do you want?” 

–

Darkness nonetheless covers the sky.  The damp paths resulting in the residences are quiet. Apart from Bo Jinyan and Jian Yao, there are two different policemen within the monitoring car.  There are additionally quite a few officers hiding within the space.  The streets are empty, besides for 2 cleaners who’re sweeping the streets within the early morning hours.   Every thing appears regular.

Jian Yao feels heavy headed and dizzy.  Her nostril begins to run, and her throat is dry.

A chilly.  Most likely from being chilly and moist within the rain earlier.

Nicely, a minimum of she is ready.  She takes out some flu remedy.  She additionally has a small field of tissues.  She blows her nostril.   

Bo Jinyan turns to have a look at her briefly after which returns to his monitoring. 

Jian Yao may be very drained.  She faucets on his shoulders :”I’m going to take a nap.  Name me if something occurs.”

“Okay.”

–

Their automotive is without doubt one of the upkeep automobiles of the Orange Hill resort.  So it’s not conspicuous when parked on the facet of the highway.  The again of the automotive is kind of roomy, however there aren’t any in-built seats.  The chairs Bo Jinyan and Jian Yao are sitting on are added quickly.

It’s 4am.  No indicators of the person they’re after.

After some time, Bo Jinyan feels some weight on his shoulders.  He turns his head and finds Jian Yao leaning in direction of him.  Her head rests on his shoulder.  Her eyelids closed in opposition to the dim lights contained in the automotive, and her respiratory deep and relaxed.  

Bo Jinyan frowns.  He adjusts her sleeping place so she is leaning on the again of chair as a substitute.  But it surely solely takes a couple of minutes for her to flop on his shoulders once more.  

This isn’t Jian Yao’s fault.  The flu remedy comprises antihistamine which helps the taker to sleep extra soundly.  It’s uncomfortable to sleep on the chair, particularly when it’s not padded.  Bo Jinyan’s shoulder is sort of a snug ‘pillow’ compared.  Ladies, even of their sleep, have an intuition for selecting the higher various.         

Bo Jinyan appears down at her.   Her hair is touching the facet of his face.  It’s mushy and fairly snug.  However as she breathes, he can really feel her heat breath on his neck.  It’s ticklish.

A couple of minutes later –

Bo Jinyan rubs his arms collectively and does a fast stretch.  He sits again on his chair, picks up the binoculars and stares out of the window. 

The younger workplace appears at him and asks hesitantly: “Professor Bo.  Assistant Jian is sleeping on the ground!  Are you certain that’s okay?” 

Bo Jinyan takes a look at Jian Yao.

He discovered a strip of skinny blanket.  So he unfold on the ground and moved Jian Yao to put flat on prime of it. 

“Sure, it’s alright.” He replies, “I’m certain she doesn’t thoughts a little bit of grime on the ground.” 

One other half an hour has handed.  There’s nonetheless no signal of ‘him’. 

Bo Jinyan places down the binoculars.  His rubs his eyebrows along with his finger as he appears down. He stops what he’s doing.   

Jian Yao has rolled over, curled up right into a ball, like a cat.  Her lengthy black hair spreads out on the assume blanket.  She is cuddling up subsequent to him.  She should be feeling chilly.  

And ……

He frowns once more.  As a result of she rolled to the facet, her face is outdoors of the skinny blanket. Her lips are so near the ground it appears like she is about to kiss the grime.  

–

Jian Yao wakes up after a brief nap.  When she was half asleep, she might feels somebody tickling her face and nostril with a feather.   

She opens her eyes and takes a go searching.  

She is mendacity on the chairs.  Two chairs put collectively facet by facet.  When did she lie down?  And the place’s Bo Jinyan?  

He’s sitting on the ground. 

He’s again is barely hunched, knees bent, in a cross legged place.  One hand is holding the binoculars, nonetheless staring out of the window.  The opposite hand is resting causally on the knee.  

What a gentleman.  Jian Yao is happy, that he will be so considerate.  

Jian Yao appears at his good-looking face.  Simply as she is about to talk, she sees his hand that was resting on the knee reaches out in direction of her.

– What does he wish to do?

His hand is getting nearer.  It stops in entrance of her face. Then he picks up a number of strands of her lengthy hair that’s resting on the chair, and begins to circle them round his fingers. 

And when the hair is strapped round his fingers, he lets go of the hair by flicking his finger.

Lengthy hair falls from the sky, some strands brushes over her cheeks.  No surprise she felt somebody was tickling her.

Earlier than lengthy, he does it once more…..

He appears to love taking part in along with her hair.  He does it for some time, then his hand will relaxation on his knee, then he comes again for her hair once more… as he’s looking of the window with the binoculars in his different hand.  

Jian Yao can’t imagine it.   

Taking part in along with her hair? How infantile can he be?  He’s Detective, for goodness sakes!   

She sits up and use her fingers to brush the hair that’s tousled by him.  Bo Jinyan hears motion behind him and turns round.  

“You’re awake.”  He says briefly and continues to watch what’s occurring outdoors. 

Jian Yao is about to choose up her binoculars when she hears the policeman in entrance says: “Somebody is right here.” 

There’s a person using a bicycle, coming nearer in direction of them.  He’s sporting a purple uniform, with a store emblem within the entrance of the shirt.  It’s a 24 -hour restaurant. 

Meals supply? However not one of the residences are occupied.  Apart from, who would order takeaway presently of the day?  

Everybody, together with the cops within the different monitoring automobiles prepare for motion.  

When the person reaches an intersection.  He stops.  He will get off his bike and begins strolling uphill with some supply field in his hand.

“Professor Bo, go away it to us, we are going to strategy him now.” says one of many officers from one other car by way of a Walkie-talkie.  

“Wait.” Bo Jinyan says, “Simply maintain observing for now.”

The police officer on the opposite finish hesitates for a second. He orders his males to be on standby. 

The person walks towards one of many residences.  It’s the one Pei Zi stayed in.  

He stops in entrance of the door.  He takes a number of containers out from the supply field and leaves them in entrance of the doorway.  Then he took a fast look by way of the window and walks off.  

Jian Yao feels her heartbeat accelerating.  

“Motion?” Officer on the opposite finish checks once more.

Bo Jinyan offers a mocking snicker: “No. It’s not him.”

Everyone seems to be shocked by his comment.   He continues: “This isn’t proper.  It’s the flawed residence.”

Everyone seems to be much more confused.  

She thinks to herself :”Why is that this the flawed home?  Final time, he left a notice in Solar Yong’s home, This time, he’s leaving a notice in Pei Ze’s residence.  On each events, he appeared on the killer’s home.  That’s routine.  It’s a trait of a psychopath.”

Bo Jinyan explains: “No, he ought to seem within the sufferer’s residence.  For psychopath, the second of demise is of essentially the most significance.”

– So he ought to be leaving a notice at Wang Wan Wei’s home. 

The supply man has walked down the hill. The Police officer anxiously asks: “Professor Bo, this particular person is suspicious.  Ought to we not arrest him first?”

“No, let him go.” Bo Jinyan says, “He’s despatched by the person to check us.”

Because the supply man disappears from their sight.  Everybody quietly waits. 

This is sort of a silent chess sport between ‘Him’ and Bo Jinyan.  One flawed transfer, and it’s throughout. 

–

As minutes and seconds proceed to float away,  the policemen are getting increasingly more anxious.  They don’t absolutely belief Bo Jinyan’s evaluation.  Have they missed their alternative?  They don’t seem to be certain.

The darkish sky is slowly getting brighter.  A skinny fog covers the bottom. Visibility remains to be low.  

One other man comes on the scene.  

One of many cleaner. They noticed him working additional away earlier.  

He’s sweeping the leaves on the highway.  He slowly makes his means nearer to the residence.

Jian Yao appears by way of the binoculars- A small man.  He appears fairly sluggish and his tempo is gradual.  He’s sporting a hat which blocks most of his face.  There’s gray stubbles round his chin, and his pores and skin is wrinkly.  He ought to be a minimum of fifty years previous.  His garments are previous, and so are his footwear. 

With one hand holding the broom and a dustpan on the opposite, he’s sweeping leaves and rubbish.  When he sees an empty bottle, he picks it up and throws it into the garbage bin.  His actions appear pure, like a activity that he does on a regular basis.  

Everybody stares at him.

He slowly approaches the slope subsequent to the residences.  

He continues to brush and clear garbage within the space.

Everybody has the identical question.   – Is he going to Wang Wan Wei’s residence?

He didn’t.  He left.

He takes the broom and walks again to the primary highway. 

“One other false alarm.” says a policeman.  

“Quickly, first gentle will seem.”  One other policeman says.

Jian Yao notices Bo Jinyan’s binoculars are nonetheless following the cleaner.  He’s getting additional and additional away from them.  

… One thing will not be proper

“The cleaner. One thing tells me he’s not only a cleaner……” she murmurs.

Simply as she completed murmuring, she feels  heat protecting her again.  She lifts her head.  Bo Jinyan has put his arm in opposition to the glass.   He’s standing proper behind her and searching by way of the identical glass panel to the surface.  His chest touching her again.  

“What’s flawed?” He leans in and whispers.

She is actually in his arms.  She will be able to really feel his breath brushing previous her ears.  Each his pose and the itchiness from the breath is making her very uneasy.  However she is aware of Bo Jinyan will not be conscious of how bodily shut they’re.  He’s so centered on the case he is not going to be desirous about anything.  So she turns round and says to him: “Take a look at his…”

She stops.

The second she places down her binoculars is identical second he places down his binoculars and leans down to listen to her reply.  

Their faces are solely inches other than one another to begin with.  A second of overlap.  She feels  her lips grazes cross a patch of soppy pores and skin, then it lands someplace on his face that’s barely damp.   

That’s……

His lips.

As she realises what has occurred, her cheeks begins to burn.  He appears a bit of shocked too.   They’re again to their unique distance earlier than their lips touched.  Simply inches aside. Quietly one another.  

……

“What’s flawed?” Bo Jinyan breaks the silence by repeating his earlier assertion, as if nothing has occurred.

“Uh ……” Jian Yao instantly replies, “Low earnings cleaners.  I see them on a regular basis.  They often maintain the empty bottles to allow them to promote them later. However he threw them away….” She decides to faux as if nothing has occurred too.

Bo Jinyan grew up overseas, he’s not aware of Chinese language cleaners’ normal observe.  Instantly, he picks up the walkie talkie: “Motion!”

The officer on the opposite finish hesitates: “Professor Bo, are you certain?  He didn’t even get near the residences….?”

One other police interrupts him: “Professor Bo, have a look at the partitions of the residences!”

Everybody appears as much as the partitions.  

A chilling message has appeared on the wall.  

The English phrases with meandering handwriting in blood purple is projected onto the wall.  

“I miss U a lot, buddy”

Then they hear a loud bang.  There’s an explosion on the grass space the cleaner went previous.  

“The projector used to point out us the phrase.” says Bo Jinyan

Jian Yao appears round and see a silhouette of a person disappearing into the bushes.   

All of the police workplaces come out of their hiding.  They’re operating in all instructions and protecting all of the grounds.  They’re decided to seek out the cleaner.  

Two policemen are about to go away when Bo Jinyan asks considered one of them to remain behind: “You keep right here. I’ll go.” 

Jian Yao is shocked – Did he not say arresting is the duty of the police?  That he’s solely chargeable for the mental stuff? 

——-

Jian Yao’s may be very anxious.  The policeman senses her anxiousness and comforts her :”We have now knowledgeable the Resort Securities.  No automobiles or particular person shall be allowed to enter or go away the Resort tonight.  He can’t get away….”  

Jian Yao coronary heart settles.  Regardless of how crafty the person is, Bo Jinyan will be capable to search him out.  

They may win the sport in spite of everything.

–

Nonetheless, the resort may be very massive. It’s simpler stated than carried out to trace down an individual. 

Dozens of police have dispersed, and Bo Jinyan has joined them to seek out this cleaner.  There’s not sufficient policemen to cowl all of the areas, so the sides of the Resort is left within the arms of the Resort securities.   

Half an hour later.  The sky has brighten up right into a pale blue because the solar begins to rise.

Bo Jinyan is standing outdoors a small forest.  He walks by way of the timber.  After a number of metres, he finds a purple uniform at his toes.  He walks a bit of sooner, taking quick and lightweight steps.  

After some time, he sees a pair of pants, a brush and a pair of footwear.  

He frowns.  

He sees a dwelling in entrance of him.  It’s the villa Yin Ziqi’s is staying for the night time.

That is no coincidence.  The person intentionally got here by way of this fashion.  

He instantly takes out his cell phone: “ Inform the Resort Securities to not let any automotive out of the resort.  Not even Yin Ziqi’s automotive.”

Instantly, the opposite facet replies: “Professor Bo, a couple of minutes in the past, Chairman Yin’s automotive left from the west gate.  The guards didn’t cease it….”  

Bo Jinyan swears loudly.

The others are confused: “Professor …… What are you speaking about?”

Bo Jinyan didn’t reply them.  He places his cellphone away and walks in direction of the timber.

Yin Ziqi is sporting a skirt, with a scarf over her shoulders.  Her eyes are shut and her face is pale.  She is mendacity unconscious on the bottom.

Yin Ziqi is meant to be staying within the Luxurious Suite.  Quite a few bodyguards have been along with her.  It ought to have been idiot proof.  Maybe she left the suite for some motive, and was attacked by the person.  He stole her automotive keys and drove away in her automotive.

Bo Jinyan checks her pulse to verify she is alright. 

He exhales a protracted sigh.  Then he bends over and carries her in his arms.