S.C.I. (Volume I) - Case 5: Chapter 6

The Doppelganger Killer 06 - Hint 

Led by the director, Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang stepped out of the office to tour the orphanage. Because renovations were still underway, things looked a bit chaotic, but the once-dilapidated buildings had taken on a brand-new appearance, which was still a cheering sight. The director eagerly explained to the two men what the new dormitories were like and pointed out the various areas set aside for the children to play in. As he listened, Bai Yutang kept glancing back at Zhan Zhao; ever since receiving that text message, Zhan Zhao hadn't uttered a word, as if something weighed heavily on his mind.

Before long, the three of them reached a courtyard behind the buildings where quite a few children were gathered together, playing, reading, drawing, and having a wonderful time. Several volunteers were looking after them. The children's attire didn't look bad at all, and everyone was clean and tidy—after all, this was an orphanage in a major metropolis.

Seeing the director approaching with visitors, the kids grew a bit reserved. When the director told them that these two were police officers, curious gazes swept over the pair. At that moment, a little girl suddenly asked Bai Yutang, "Are you a police officer? In that case, can you chase away that really fierce dog outside the yard?"

Bai Yutang was momentarily stunned, turning to look at the director. "What dog?"

The director gave a helpless, wry smile and replied, "A family living outside the courtyard walls keeps a dog—it's a stray mix, very fierce. Sometimes when the kids are playing and wander over to the edge of the yard, it chases them all over the place."

"Oh..." Bai Yutang nodded with a smile, raising his eyes to spot a rather small white dog outside the courtyard's iron railings not far away. Judging by its size, it could easily slip right through the gaps in the fence, and right now, it was sprawled out sleeping near the wall.

"Why not tie the dog up?" Zhan Zhao asked. "What if it bites a child?"

"Talking to them is useless," the director waved a hand and said. "I've already told the construction crew; in a little while, we'll just build a solid brick wall all the way up so it won't be able to run over here anymore."

Just as they were speaking, a tiny figure appeared outside the courtyard, peering inside through the railings.

Bai Yutang took a cold glance and was startled. The child was pitch-black from head to toe, looking just like a little lump of coal, and was pressed against the perimeter wall, watching the children inside.

"Who is that?" Zhan Zhao spotted him as well and turned to ask the director.

"I'm not sure either. This fellow frequently comes around here, hanging out until dinnertime before heading off. He never speaks to me, but he gets along really well with the kids, and everyone calls him Loach."

"Loach?" Bai Yutang chuckled. "Quite a fitting nickname."

They watched as the child called Loach peered inside for a few moments, waved at a braided little girl sitting near the outer edge, and pulled a brand-new doll from behind his back. The little girl immediately scampered over happily, treading carefully as she approached the wall for fear of waking the sleeping dog.

Reaching the perimeter, Loach passed the doll through the gaps in the iron railings. The girl accepted it with a beaming smile, and just as the two of them were about to chat, a burst of fierce barking rang out.

At this point, Bai Yutang had been planning to bid the director farewell and leave, but upon hearing the barking, he quickly spun around. He saw that the dog had woken up at some point and was now barking ferociously at the two people standing not far away.

Loach didn't seem afraid of it at all and kicked it. The dog was quite small and whimpered as it was sent tumbling aside by his kick. But it quickly scrambled back to its feet and barked even more viciously.

The little girl on this side of the wall grew frightened, hugging the doll and backing away. Seeing that she seemed afraid of it, the dog lunged straight through a gap in the courtyard railings and leaped directly at the girl.

All the children in the courtyard cried out in alarm. Bai Yutang rushed forward in a flash, wanting to help chase the dog away, but right at that moment, he witnessed an utterly unexpected sight.

The child known as Loach behind the wall suddenly thrust his hands straight through the railings, grabbed the dog by the neck, and dragged it back. Ignoring the dog's miserable shrieks, he grabbed its two hind legs and literally ripped it apart in two clean halves right before their eyes...

Everyone present in the courtyard froze in place. Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao stood rooted to the spot in a daze, watching as the boy disgustedly flicked his hands, tossing the bloody carcass of the dog onto the ground. His shirtfront was completely soaked in blood.

"Ah——!" The children in the courtyard screamed in terror. The little girl standing by the wall turned around, hurled herself at Bai Yutang—who had just hurried to her side—and wailed bitterly.

Loach cast a cold glare at Bai Yutang, then turned on his heel and strode away.

"Stop right there!" Bai Yutang handed the weeping girl over to Zhan Zhao, who had just run up, and gave chase at a sprint. He vaulted over the low wall and looked around—Loach had vanished without a trace! He pressed forward a few steps only to find himself facing a labyrinth of intricate alleys, making it completely impossible to tell which way the boy had fled. With no other choice, he had to vault back over.

The volunteers and the director were busy comforting the terrified children, while Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao exchanged a look of deep perplexity and bid their farewells.

Once out of the orphanage and back inside the car, the two sat in silence with lowered heads. As he started the engine, Bai Yutang sensed the heavy atmosphere and smiled at Zhan Zhao. "What's wrong, Cat? Were you scared out of your wits?"

Zhan Zhao raised his head and shot him a side-eye. "As if..."

"Then what is it?" Bai Yutang drove back toward the police station, asking casually, "You've been acting weird ever since a while ago."

Zhan Zhao hesitated for a moment. Falling back into his old habit, he simply couldn't bring himself to lie to Bai Yutang, and his face flushed red before he even spoke. "I... I want to go home first."

Bai Yutang felt somewhat puzzled. Seeing Zhan Zhao's poor complexion, he frowned and asked, "Are you feeling unwell?"

"Drop me off at home," Zhan Zhao said in a low voice. "Then you can head back to the precinct and handle your work."

Bai Yutang remained silent for a moment. Keeping one hand on the steering wheel, he freed up his other hand and reached out to feel Zhan Zhao's forehead.

Zhan Zhao was startled, slapped his hand away, and glared at him. He heard Bai Yutang chuckle, "Good, you don't have a fever." With that, he made a U-turn and headed home.

After dropping Zhan Zhao off, Bai Yutang drove away without asking a single further question about why.

Once Bai Yutang left, Zhan Zhao found himself feeling rather restless inside his apartment. There was still some time before six o'clock, and he sat around on pins and needles. What occupied his mind wasn't really Zhao Jue, but Bai Yutang.

Finally, consumed by mounting anxiety, he simply pulled out his phone and dialed Bai Yutang's number, but strangely enough, nobody picked up. Didn't he hear it? He tried dialing a few more times, but still got no answer... Something was off.

Panic rising within him, Zhan Zhao snapped his phone shut, bolted toward the front door, and yanked it open, startling himself so much he almost cried out... There stood Bai Yutang, the man who should have already returned to the police station, leaning against the wall directly across from the doorway with his arms crossed, watching him with an amused smile.

"You!" Regaining his composure with some effort, Zhan Zhao shot him a fierce glare and tried to slam the door shut. Unfortunately, Bai Yutang stepped forward, blocked the threshold with a raised hand, squeezed his way inside, and kicked the door shut behind him.

"What is it?" Bai Yutang pulled Zhan Zhao into his arms. "Didn't you have something you wanted to tell me?"

Zhan Zhao stared at him for a moment, pulled out his phone, brought up that text message, and handed it to Bai Yutang to read.

After reading it, Bai Yutang handed the phone back to Zhan Zhao, pressed a light kiss to his forehead, and said, "Be careful. I'll be keeping watch nearby, so just call out if anything happens."

Zhan Zhao nodded. The gloom on his face vanished, and his heart instantly calmed down.

Afterward, the two of them had dinner and made their preparations. As six o'clock drew near, Zhan Zhao stood up and walked toward the cafe located directly across from their apartment building.

Stepping into the cafe, he spotted Zhao Jue sitting in the innermost booth, dressed in a black sweater. Catching sight of Zhan Zhao entering the door, Zhao Jue tilted his head, smiled at him, waved, and pointed to the chair opposite himself.

Zhan Zhao walked over with composed grace and seated himself across from him.

Zhao Jue didn't speak immediately. Instead, he tilted his head and scrutinized Zhan Zhao in detail. At the same time, Zhan Zhao was examining him back.

Having not seen him for days, Zhao Jue seemed to have grown even younger. Aside from that faint nasolabial fold at the corner of his mouth, the man before him looked to be right around thirty... Zhan Zhao suddenly got the distinct impression that, much like his own father, time seemed to leave no trace upon him whatsoever. His hair was much longer than when they last met, casually tied back behind his head with the ends of his locks brushing against his shoulders.

After a silent mutual appraisal, Zhan Zhao took the initiative. "What did you want to see me about?"

Zhao Jue picked up his cup, took a sip of coffee, signaled a waiter over, and asked Zhan Zhao, "Would you like some coffee? My treat."

Zhan Zhao shook his head and told the waiter, "Just a glass of water, please."

Watching the waiter bring over the glass of water, Zhao Jue looked somewhat aggrieved as he gazed at Zhan Zhao and muttered, "This coffee is actually very good."

Zhan Zhao studied him for a moment before saying, "My stomach isn't great. I can't drink coffee."

Zhao Jue looked up with a smile. "Ah, I see. You're just like Qi; that stomach ailment must be genetic."

Hearing Zhao Jue bring up his father, and recalling their previous mention of his own background, Zhan Zhao knitted his brows slightly and demanded, "What is this really about?"

Instead of answering, Zhao Jue complained with a hint of reproach, "I specifically told you to come alone."

Zhan Zhao smiled. "I did come alone."

"Mm—" Zhao Jue wagged a single finger and said, "I can sense that tiger from the Bai family lingering right around here."

After a brief silence, Zhan Zhao nodded. "I tell him everything."

"Oh—" Zhao Jue lowered his head to take another sip of coffee and murmured softly, "He treats you so well."

"What is this about?" Zhan Zhao gazed directly at Zhao Jue. "You surely didn't drag me out here just to chat about trivial domestic matters."

"Save the number from that text message I sent you earlier." Zhao Jue gently stirred the coffee in his cup with a silver spoon. "Call me whenever you need help."

Zhan Zhao locked eyes with Zhao Jue for a long moment before asking, "Do you think I'll need your help with something soon?"

Zhao Jue chuckled, nodding. "At the very least, this time around, you're definitely going to need my assistance."

"What do you mean?" Zhan Zhao frowned in thought, then realization dawned on him. "I see... You're involved in this case. Catching the culprit benefits you, but you can't nab them right away yourself, am I right?"

Zhao Jue paused for a second, then slumped over the table and laughed without a sound, as if he had just heard something immensely amusing. After laughing for a while, he stopped, sat up straight, and stared right into Zhan Zhao's eyes. "You only look like Qi. You're nothing like him anywhere else."

Far from being annoyed, Zhan Zhao leaned forward and asked in a low voice, "Then who do you think my personality is like? Yours?"

Zhao Jue widened his eyes, staring at Zhan Zhao's face sitting mere inches away, and asked softly, "Don't you think so?"

Leaning back into his seat, Zhan Zhao shook his head and replied indifferently, "Is there anything else you wanted to say? If not, I'll be taking my leave."

"Wait, stay a while longer." Zhao Jue reached out as if to take Zhan Zhao's hand, but met only empty air as Zhan Zhao pulled his hand back, stood up, and prepared to leave.

Seeing Zhan Zhao about to depart, Zhao Jue grew slightly anxious and blurted out, "What if I... what if I never actually harmed anyone back then?"

Zhan Zhao came to a halt. He turned back, exchanged a lingering look with Zhao Jue, and laughed softly. "Don't try to use that trick on me. I believe you when you say you never harmed anyone—because in your eyes, the people you hurt weren't even considered human to begin with, right?!" With that, he slid some money under his teacup to cover the bill and turned away.

Zhao Jue gazed infatuatedly at Zhan Zhao's retreating back. After standing frozen in a daze for a long while, he clutched his stomach and laughed silently once more, muttering to himself between laughs, "Such a vicious personality, and you claim you're not like me... What a bad boy."