by Mi Lei
Inside was a modest one-bedroom home. One year ago, Fang Mu's aunt had to move to Hangzhou City with her family. His parents had decided to buy this property from her. They had then given it to Fang Mu so that when he married – obviously in the very near future, they hoped – he could move in with his wife and start a family. Fang Mu had no desire to condone this hardly subtle gesture, so he rarely even visited the place. In his current situation, however, his parents' gift had become a real lifesaver.
Inside, all was still. He flicked the light on and had a look around. The living room was a little bit of a mess. The dining table in particular was covered in used bowls and chopsticks. However, not a single crumb of food could be seen anywhere. He quietly walked into the kitchen and deposited the shopping bags he'd brought with him. Then he went to the bedroom.
Nothing had changed. The girl was still lying under the blanket, sleeping tightly. At first, she seemed completely oblivious to his return, but when Fang Mu reached down to tuck her in better, she curled into a tight ball. He froze.
After a moment of silence, he quietly said, "I brought some food." He stood and headed back to the kitchen.
He had little practice when it came to preparing meals and his menu was pretty much limited to the rice cooker and tomato omelets. Instead of risking his hand at the stove, he had decided to pick up a few ready-made meals on the way home. After he had washed the rice and put it into the rice cooker, he got the meals out of their packaging and put them into the steamer above the rice. With the rice cooker plugged in and heating away, he turned his attention to the tomatoes. His hands were occupied, but his mind was busier still.
Needless to say, caring for the girl took its toll on him, but he hardly had a choice. With her identity a complete mystery, he had no way of finding her guardians. Telling the Bureau was out of the question as well. There simply was no way to explain why he had been at the Baixin Bath Palace without damaging the investigation. And most importantly of all, the girl was a crucial witness. Her life would probably be in very real danger the moment she came out of hiding. For now, he could keep her there. It was a temporary solution at best, but it would have to do.
The smell of food slowly drifted from the kitchen and through the home. Before long, Fang Mu heard movement from the bedroom. He turned to see the girl standing in front of the dining room table, head hung low. Her right hand was already tightly wrapped around a pair of chopsticks. She seemed so determined, yet so heartbreakingly miserable.
With a gentle smile, Fang Mu said, "Relax. Dinner is almost ready."
The girl ate with incredible speed and absolute focus. Her eyes never once left her plate. The only thing that appeared to matter in her world was food. Watching her wolf down the meal, Fang Mu found himself thinking of the night he'd first met Mi Nan. What was she doing now? he wondered as a sudden sensation of loss washed over him.
Back in the here and now, the girl had already cleaned half her plate. Fang Mu noticed that he'd barely touched his own bowl of rice. He was about to dig in when he heard the girl cough. It was a hacking, pained sound. Looking up, he saw that her face was flush red. Another violent cough shot barely chewed food out of her mouth and onto the table. Fang Mu quickly gave her back a few strong pats as she continued to wheeze and gasp. With a final retching sound, the girl spat almost everything she had just devoured back onto the plate and table in front of her.
A foul smell immediately began to spread through the small living room. Flustered, Fang Mu handed the girl a glass of water and then went about cleaning up the stinking vomit. As he wiped the table, he felt a mounting sense of irrepressible irritation. Before he could really think about it, he growled, "Why the hurry, eh? No one's going to steal your food!"
The girl remained seated. Grasping her glass, she was vacantly staring down at the table. She seemed to shrink with every angry word.
The girl was dressed in one of his sweaters and looked ready to disappear into it. Fang Mu immediately regretted his temper, but he had no idea what to do or say to make it better. So, he just sat back down. For a while they both stared at the table in miserable silence. The smell of the vomit had begun to dissipate, but with it gone, Fang Mu could pick up another, rather unpleasant odor. It was coming from the girl. With a small sigh, he got up and went to the bathroom.
Fang Mu gave a quick check to his rarely-used bathtub before he decided that it would do. He opened the faucet and let the tub run full of hot water. Then he got the girl.
Pointing his finger, he instructed: "Take a bath… This is for your hair… You can use that towel…and the washcloth is over here. Give yourself a good wash. And…" He retrieved a tube of topical ointment Yang Min had given him. Somewhat embarrassed, he continued. "After you're done, rub this..." He did his best to pantomime what she should do with it. "...Do you understand?"
The girl didn't answer. She only blankly stared at the curling wisps of vapor, forming above the hot water.
With another sigh, Fang Mu turned and left the bathroom. He went back to the living room and got himself a cup of tea and a cigarette. Then, he sat down and slowly smoked and drank his tea. After every sip, he sat absolutely still for a moment, carefully listening for any noise from the bathroom. At first, all remained quiet. It took about 10 minutes before he heard the first soft splash. Judging by the sound, she was carefully testing the waters. Then the splashing and sloshing grew louder. She had probably decided that it was safe and was now frolicking in the bathtub. It conjured a small smile on his weary face. A crushing weight seemed lifted off his heart. But the moment was fleeting. It only took one look at the medicine Yang Min had given him to bring the heavy burden right back down.
She was not their first victim and she would almost certainly not be their last. There was no knowing how many girls had been sold out of the Baixin Bath Palace. And if he did not put a stop to it, there would be many more still. Xing Zhisen was in prison and Ding Shucheng had given his life; Zheng Lin and his men had tried to force the case, but because of it, they were now off the investigation. Once again, he was standing alone on the battlefield. His smile turned bitter.
Just as well. Over the years, he had become used to it.
Alone. It seemed he was always alone. His comrades-in-arms changed, but in the end, there was never anyone but himself.
The door to the bathroom opened. With the soft footfalls of small feet, the girl emerged, still toweling her hair. The sportswear he had bought was a size too big, but even so, with her washed, damp hair over her shoulders, she now looked no different from any other school girl around the country, getting ready for bed. The girl noticed that he was looking at her and blushed. As she returned his gaze, Fang Mu saw that the spark of life had returned to her eyes.
He picked up the medicine bottle and motioned her to take a pill. The girl offered no resistance. As she seated herself next to him, she placed the tube of ointment on the table. With some relief, Fang Mu noticed that the seal of the tube had been peeled open and that the amount of its contents had decreased.
She quickly swallowed the medicine and then returned to towel-drying her hair. After a few moments of silence, Fang Mu gently asked again, "What's your name?"
The girl continued to rub the towel across her head. She did not seem to have heard him at all.
"Where do you come from?" he tried, but again he received no answer.
"Who took you to the Baixin Bath Palace?" Fang Mu gave it a third shot.
The moment he had spoken the words, the girl's body began to shake and her breathing grew fast and shallow. He could see the life leave her face as her eyes glazed-over and lost all focus.
He sighed quietly, then stood up and walked to the bathroom. He took the hair dryer from the bathroom cabinet and called the girl. She immediately obeyed, but her downcast face was full of anxiety. She positioned herself next to the bathtub and slowly looked up at him. When she saw her own reflection in the bathroom mirror, however, her gaze immediately dropped to the floor.
Fang Mu picked up a handful of her hair and gently began to dry it with the drier. The girl had frozen completely. Her entire body had gone rigid as goosebumps rose across the back of her neck.
Fearful, she instinctively recoiled from his touch.
He recalled what Yang Min had told him earlier. During the gynecological examination, the girl had suddenly begun to struggle. It had taken all three doctors to restrain her, but what would haunt them all, she had said, was the howl of utter hopeless despair that followed.
The idea of a strange man holding her hair from behind could hardly be called caring. In fact, it was more akin to torture. At first, Fang Mu hadn't noticed what he'd done, but as he felt her entire body begin to tremble, he released her hair. Instantly the girl made a run for it. Fang Mu had barely realized what had happened when he heard the lock of the bedroom door snap into place.
Night had fallen and Fang Mu was tossing and turning on the living room couch. The old sofa was hard and creaky, but that was not what kept him awake. What was troubling him was the future. He could not even begin to figure out his next move. Ding Shucheng's sacrifice had meant that his only remaining line of inquiry had come to a brutal and final end. Where could he pick up the investigation now? Xing Zhisen's deadline was looming.
Perhaps, he could still hope for a breakthrough at the Bay City Hotel. But the opposition was alert and all too aware of the police's attention. The chance of uncovering any direct evidence against Jing Xu or Jin Yongyu was slim at the very best. Too much time had been allowed to pass. The woman's body would now probably never be found.
Fang Mu had to admit to himself that it would take a miracle to overturn the case against Xing Zhisen. Even so, he could not give up. Not after seeing Xing Na. He might not be able to exonerate Xing Zhisen, but he could not let those monsters get away with what they had done.
In the dim light of the moon, Fang Mu's mind began to drift. He lay on the sofa for what seemed like hours, never really asleep, but certainly not fully awake. Suddenly, his mind was jerked back into the waking world by a small sliver of light. He sat up and saw that the refrigerator in the living room stood open. A frail silhouette was crouching in front of it, chewing away at something.
She could have easily filled her belly at dinner, but she had vomited it all out again. And considering her appetite, the little girl was probably famished. Fang Mu quietly threw on his clothes and got off the couch. He'd boil two eggs for her.
He suddenly realized that he could think of nothing in the refrigerator that should be eaten raw. He quickly rushed over to the girl to stop her. As he closed in, Fang Mu could see that she was holding a plastic container. She was eagerly stuffing her mouth with the green fruits she was taking from it.
It was that specialty Xiao Wang had brought with him from Suijing City: The kiwi berries. He had put them in the refrigerator and forgotten all about them a few days ago during a very brief stop at the house. Fang Mu watched her with a frown. Eating fruit like that on an empty belly was sure to upset her stomach. In an effort to perhaps prevent the worst, he attempted to take the container away from her. The girl, however, would let no one steal her prize. All he managed to achieve was to make her gobble down the fruits even faster. Seeing her cling to the plastic, her face in the kiwi berries, he couldn't help but smile. Instead of harassing her further, he picked out two eggs from the refrigerator.
Before going to the kitchen, he turned back to the girl. "Are they yummy?"
She remained fully engrossed in her rapid chewing and didn't even seem to notice him. He stood in silence and watched her. Only now did he notice how skillfully she plucked the fruits from their stems.
"Have you had them before?" he asked.
Again, she didn't answer.
But Fang Mu was certain anyway. This girl had grown up around kiwi berries.
And in that instant, he knew where he would find his answers.
CHAPTER
14
Lu Village
It had been barely over a year, but Eldest Sister Zhao looked like she had aged an entire decade. Fang Mu watched her pick up the girl and lift her out of the jeep. As always, her smile beamed with a rare kindness, almost radiant enough to cover the furrows age had relentlessly dug into her face. To his amazement, the girl just let it happen. Even when the older woman stroked her back, the girl barely trembled at all. Soon the girl was firmly attached to Sister Zhao's hand and the two were on their way to the kitchen.
Shortly after Master Zhou's death, the Angel Hall had moved to the current welfare home on the outskirts of town. Sister Zhao now acted as caretaker, continuing to look after the orphans. By now, some had found adoptive parents and some had been transferred to other welfare homes. Angel Hall Orphanage had gotten smaller. Even so, Sister Zhao looked as unimaginably exhausted as ever.
Fang Mu carried the rice noodles and oil from his jeep to the kitchen. As he washed his hands, he saw the girl sitting at the long dining hall table, quietly eating a steamed bun. Occasionally, she looked up at the other children playing a game of tag nearby, her face alive with a newfound energy.
Sister Zhao came through the door. Handing Fang Mu a towel, she motioned him to wipe the sweat from his neck.
"Lu Lu doesn't really like to talk, does she?" she noted.
"Lu Lu?" He was at a loss. "Who is Lu Lu?"
"The girl you brought." It was now Sister Zhao's turn to stare in confusion and shock. "You didn't even know her name?"
"What...?" For a moment he was too amazed to speak. "She talked to you?"
"Why, yes. When I asked her name, she didn't really answer, but she managed to press out two syllables. They sounded like Lu Lu," she explained.
"Well that is… I've been with her for days and she hasn't spoken a single world. Then she meets you and a few minutes later she's telling you her name." There was almost a bitter tone to Fang Mu's words. "I should have known from the start to bring her to you."
"Of course I'm better with children than you are," Sister Zhao replied, a little bit proud of herself.
"That is one weight off my shoulders." He then told her the real reason for his visit: He was planning to leave town for a few days and he was hoping that she could look after Lu Lu while he was gone. Sister Zhao immediately agreed. Fang Mu, however, had another request that he was less certain would meet her approval: Lu Lu had to be kept in the welfare home, hidden away from all outside eyes.
"Where did you take her from?" she asked bluntly.
"Don't ask." He looked straight into her eyes. "Do you trust me?"
"Of course." She nodded without hesitation. "Don't worry; you can leave her with me."
As Fang Mu left the welfare home, he called the Bureau to request a week of leave, and then went to the train station to buy a ticket to Suijing City.
Kiwi berries were a specialty of Suijing City. Considering how familiar Lu Lu seemed to be with them, it stood to reason that she had grown up in or around the city; at the very least she must have spent some time there. Maybe, he could uncover a new lead there.
The train was largely empty and most of the passengers were dozing away in their seats. Fang Mu took his seat across from a deeply-tanned young man who was busily playing around with his cell phone. As the train departed, Fang Mu turned his attention away, focusing on the world passing outside his window. Winter had started to creep in and a cold haze hung over the city. The sun remained hidden behind a thick layer of clouds. Perhaps it would snow soon. Fang Mu was hoping for rain, a storm that would wash away the city's filth.
The train left Changhong City. It sped away from the buildings and into the fields, opening a wider vista to Fang Mu's view. Even the sky seemed to clear.
Feeling his stomach grumble, he took a fried chicken and hamburger from his bag and began to slowly eat them. The smell of the food drew the gaze of the youth. He stared up at the plastic wrappers in Fang Mu's hand with obvious appetite. Fang Mu offered him a friendly smile.
It mad
e the young man cringe. "KFC. I had that too," he said, clearly embarrassed.
Fang Mu took a closer look at him. He was maybe 22, perhaps younger. His rough skin was browned from the sun and his hands were as crude as they were stubby. He had haphazardly clipped his fingernails, but Fang Mu could still spot large splotches of black dirt embedded deep in the nail-bed. The youth's hair too was coarse and dyed predominantly an unflattering shade of yellow with a few strands dyed a bright red. Everything about him seemed to exude raw passion, mixed with an air of crude ignorance.
He was obviously a country boy who had come to the big city. What struck Fang Mu, however, were the youth's clothes. Everything he wore, from the shoes up, was name brand and even his cell phone was one of Nokia's latest models.
The young man soon became aware of Fang Mu's attention and began to nervously shift about in his seat. Fang Mu felt somewhat contrite. Professional habit had gotten the better of him. The youth had probably just nabbed some of his parents' money—hardly his problem.
Fang Mu did not want to cause further discomfort and turned his attention back to his food. A few mouthfuls in, he heard his cell phone beep. Fang Mu quickly popped the last piece of chicken into his mouth before pulling the phone from his pocket. It was a text from Xiao Wang:
"Why aren't you at work? You're not still mad at me?"
Fang Mu smiled as he typed a quick response: "I'm not that petty. Running a fever. Will stay home and rest for a few days."
Seconds later, he had another text from Xiao Wang: "You all right? I'll swing by."
Fang Mu hurriedly replied: "No need. I'll call if there's anything."