Fire(6)

Fire

            “My, this is really troublesome…”

            The fan on the ceiling spun noisily as William took out a small bottle. Camelia sat on the bed behind William quietly without saying anything. William opened the bottle and drank some water from it, then he turned to her and sighed.

            “Are you thirsty?”

            She shook her head, then she lied down on the bed.

            “Can I sleep now…?”

            “Yes, go ahead,” William said as he took a glance at his watch It shows 10 o’clock. He fished around the black travel bag again and took out a small blue alarm clock. He put it on the desk in front of him and fished for another thing in his bag again.

            “The mosquito repeller…” he whispered. “Where is it…”

            He could suddenly feel his hand held something soft, then he took it out. It was a pink tube with a few Chinese letters on it. He sighed in relief, then he turned back and walked to his sister.            

            “Camelia…”

            He shook her body gently, then she slowly opened her eyes.

            “What is it?”

            “Here, maybe you want to apply this,” he said as he put the tube next to her head. “Sleep well.”

            She nodded, then she rolled back to sleep without touching the tube. He looked at her for a while, then he sighed and turned away to his bag, then he started to fish for something again.

            “I don’t bring any food from the apartment…”

            He took out a small, black wallet, and put it into the breast pocket of his white shirt. He put the bag to the floor, then he turned to Camelia. She was deep in her sleep, making no noise. William looked at her for a while, then he walked to the door and opened it slowly as it screeched as it opened. He stepped out of the room, then he turned back into the room. It was just a small room with wooden walls and floor, and tere was only one bed in the room and one desk. He would have to sleep on the desk later that night. He then sighed and closed the door.

            “Going out?”

            He turned back and saw an old woman with white hair, which was formed like a bun. She was sitting on a wheelchair with a white chihuahua on her lap. William smiled and nodded.

            “Yes, I need to buy something,” he said. “Sorry to have bothered you…”

            “It’s alright, I need money from the rent,” she said. “But that room is always too small, even for college students…”

            The dog looked up to him, then she patted it with her wrinkly hands.

            “By the way, why do you move suddenly?”

            William felt something was stuck in his throat, then he forced a smile and shook his head.

            “It was just my little sister going to her friend’s wedding…” he said. “It’s holiday season. All hotels and motels were fully occupied…”
            The old woman raised an eyebrow, doubting his testimonies, but then she looked at him for a while and sighed.

            “Are you guys from somewhere far away?”

            “We went to Taiwan for work,” he said. “Then suddenly my sister’s friend is going to get married, so she rushed all the way here…”

            She looked at him for another while, then she sighed and nodded.

            “There’s no point in not believing you, right…” she said. “Go ahead, then. Don’t come back too late.”

            He smiled and nodded, then he bowed down.

            “If you want to go to the closest minimarket, try going to the AM-PM store a few minutes from here…”

            “Yes, ma’am,” he said. “Thank you for telling…”

            He turned back to the door, then he walked to it and opened it slowly. Of course it caused some loud screech. He turned back and smiled.            

            “I’ll buy some oil to reduce the sound,” he said. The old woman shook her head, but he smiled again.

            “It’s alright, ma’am…” he said, then he closed the door carefully. He sighed in relief, then he started to walk down the alley.

            RIIING           

            William took out his iPhone from his breast pocket, then he pressed the green button and put it near his ear.

            “Yes?”

            “It’s me,” a woman’s voice said. “We need you to track down someone for us.”

            William raised an eyebrow as he looked around, then he sighed again after making sure nobody else was around.

            “Who?” he asked. “And why me?”
            “Because you’re good, that’s why,” she said. “Her name’s Adeline. Adeline Hua.”

            “Where are the papers I’ll need?”
            “Let me e-mail them right away.”

            “How do you know my adress?”
            “From your friend, how else could it be?”

            He sighed, then he nodded.

            “Be quick.”

            He pressed the red button, then he looked at the phone for a while. The wi-fi logo was off. He sighed as he put it back into his pocket, then he noticed a bright shop standing next to him. He looked up and saw the name of the shop – ‘AM-PM’. He sighed in relief and walked into the shop from the open door. He could quickly feel the cold wind touched his face as he entered her room. There was almost nobody in the shop, then he quickly looked around the shop. The walls were painted in white, making the room bright, and there was only one cashier standing for his job. He quickly walked to the large fridge at the side of the shop and opened it. He took out two big bottles of mineral water, each has the volume of about 1 litre, then he looked at the price. It was 5 dollars each. He sighed in relief, then he put it on the black basket next to his foot and strolled around the shop as he took a few things. Bread, apples, oranges, eggs, a few packs of graham biscuit, and of course – instant noodle. He looked at the expiry date for a few products. He put them in the basket, then he carried it and walk towards the cashier. The man greeted him with a smile, then he took out all the things from the basket and scanned it.

            “That will be 102 dollars…”
            William took out his wallet, then he put a 100 dollar bill and a few coins.

            “Do you know an internet café around?”

            The man looked at him, surprised, then he smiled and nodded.

            “Just walk to the right when you go out,” he said. “It’s not very far away…”

            “Thank you,” he said. The cashier nodded with a smile. He took the plastic bags the man packed, then he walked out of the store.

            “I’ll have to go home and sleep early…”

            William looked around, then he walked to the right, just as the man instructed. He then noticed a storehouse with small posters of online games, like Warcraft, and a few other games. He put down a bag and took out his iPhone. He tapped it a few times, then he sighed and looked away.

            Ïabcnet

            He then looked at his iPhone for a while more, then he smiled and tapped it a few more times. And after that, the wifi logo was on. He smiled in satisfaction.

            “The best place to his secrets is really in the public,” he said. He then noticed something on his mail icon. He tapped it once and saw rows of words.

            Name            : Adeline Hua

            Age            : estimated 52

            Goes to the 7^th alley in Po Lam, 1000 hours. Follow her from there…

            Download attachment: imgah.jpg

            He sighed and put back the phone. He then carried the bag again and started to walk home.

•••

            “What is it?”

            “Nothing,” the deep voice answered. “Just things have gotten a bit more interesting…”
            “What do you mean?” another voice asked. A white smoke puffed out in the darkness, followed with an evil laugh.

            “What’s funny?”

            “Nothing, really,” the deep voice said. “Things has gotten fun, that’s all…”

•••

            The next day

            William stood on the platform in his disguise – a black shirt with brown jacket and jeans. He was holding an Export backpack, there were some weapons inside. He would look around every few minutes, as if someone was watching him from behind.

            “The train in platform two has arrived, boarding passengers may board the train. Zai di er de cheng ke shang xia ping tai de huo che dao le…”

            Something rushed behind the doors, then it slowed down and stopped as the announcement ended. The doors opened, then William stepped into the train and sat on a vacant seat near the door. A few more passangers boarded the train before another announcement about the doors closing was announced. He looked around and noticed a woman standing next to him. She looked around her forties, and she was holding a few plastic bags that looked really heavy plus a black travel bag. William looked at her for a while, then he smiled and stood up as the train left the station.

            “You can sit here,” he said. The woman looked at him, surprised, but then she smiled and sat down.

            “Thank you,” she said. William smiled as he held a railing near him. He looked at the woman for a while, who was busy with her belongings.

            Have I seen her somewhere?

            He looked away and took out his iPhone from his breast pocket without her knowing. He took out a white earphone from his pocket, then he plugged them into his ears – pretending that he was listening to some music. He tapped the screen a few times, then a picture appeared – the picture he downloaded from the e-mail he got last night. He looked at the picture for a while, then he turned to the woman and felt like something was stuck in his throat. He quickly turned back and put the phone into his breast pocket again, still pretending as if he was listening to music.

            RIIIIING

            He could still hear the phone rang despite having the earplugs in his ears. He turned to the woman and saw her picked up a Blackberry. She put it near her left ear, then she smiled.

            “Ah, it’s you… Yes, I think I can’t make it there…”

            He listened to them carefully, then he pretended to look away again.

            “I’ll just get down at the next station. It’s Mong Kok…”

            William didn’t say anything.

            “Yes, yes, ok…”
            She pressed a button and put the phone back into her travel bag. She turned to William, then she smiled.

            “Sorry to have made you troubled…”

            “It’s fine…” he said. “I’m going to Mong Kok, too.”
            She looked surprised, but then she smiled and laughed a little.

            “Really?” she asked. “What a coincidence…”

            The train slowed down, then it stopped and everybody aboard was greeted by te familiar sight of crowds.

            “Mong Kok Station. Please mind the platform gap…”

            The door opened and a few people walked out, including William and the woman. She carried all her belongings as she left the train. William looked at her for a while – she put down all the plastic bags and the travel bag on the floor, then she touched her shoulder and punched it a few times with her hands. William sighed, then he walked to her again.

            “Do you need a hand?” he asked. She turned to him, surprised, but before she could say anything, he took some of the bags. She smiled again, then she carried the rest of the plastic bags.

            “Thank you,” she said. “Sorry, I caused you a lot of trouble…”
            “It’s fine,” he said. “By the way, why are you here?”

            She sighed and looked away.

            “Oh, that…” she said. “My niece told me to buy her a few things, so here I am, bringing her her things…”

            She looked at the bags they were carrying, then she smiled.

            “She was doing some research for her study,” she said. “She had to do it in the depth of the woods…”

            “That sounds good,” he said as he put down the bags in front of the gates. “What is she studying about?”

            “I don’t know,” she said as she put down hers, too. She took out her wallet and took out a card from inside as William took out his card from his breast pocket. He pressed it against a circle and the gate in front of him opened. He took the bags again and walked out of the station.

            “Thank you for helping me a lot in the morning,” she said as she walked out of the station. William smiled to her, then they walked again. A few minutes later, William noticed a girl wearing a brown fedora hat and blue overall with red shirt waved to them. The woman smiled, then she started to walk to her. He looked at her for a while, then he followed her.

            “Auntie!”

            She ran to her and smiled. She then turned to William and smiled.

            “Wow, you must’ve helped my aunt a lot,” she said. “Thank you. Let me carry those…”

            She took the plastic bags from his hand, then she smiled and turned to her aunt.

            “Thank you for bringing me these, auntie…” she said. The woman sighed and made a sour face.            

            “This is the last time I’m doing this for you,” she said. The girl giggled as they became further from William. He watched them leave, then he took off the earphones and put them in his pocket.

            “That one?”

            “Yes, obviously,” the woman said. The girl turned back and looked at William for a while, then she sighed.

            “What now…?”
            “You don’t have to worry at all,” she said. “Everything is going perfectly as I want…”

            She turned to the gril, then she looked forward again.

            “Where’s Ariel?”
            “After her, of course,” she said. “Why do you ask?”

            “No, just…”
            She looked back and saw William started to follow them. She smirked, then she turned to the girl.

            “Devina,” she said. “Let’s be a bit faster.”

            The girl turned back, then she smiled as she turned to the woman.

            “Roger…”

•••

            “He left already?”

            “Yes,” the old woman said as she kept stirring the noodles in front of her. She turned back to Camelia and smiled.

            “What’s wrong?”

            “No, it’s nothing,” she said as she put er hands on her lap. The old woman smiled and turned back.

            “The fried noodle is almost done,” she said. “My, that brother of yours didn’t even eat breakfast before he left…”

            “That’s typical of him,” she said. “But I’m surprised he left that early…”

            “He said he needs to see someone,” she said as she put the noodles in a white plate. She then put it on the table and smiled.

            “Wait, I’ll bring you a plate,” she said. “You can eat as much as you want. I’m an old woman, so I don’t eat that much…”

            She turned back and opened a cupboard. Camelia looked at her breakfast – the noodles were golden brown and there were a lot of other toppings – shrimp, garlic, a white straight food she never saw, and scrambled eggs.

            “What’s these white thing…?”
            The old woman turned back to her, surprised, then she sighed and took out two plates.

            “My, young people nowadays don’t know anything,” she said. “That’s beansprout. You can get those by planting green beans…”

            She put the plates on the table with four plastic chopsticks.

            “Then, pick it up after 3 days,” she said. “I plant these by myself.”

            She put a plate in front of her, then she smiled.

            “Come on, eat,” she said. Camelia nodded obediently, then she took the chopsticks and started to eat.

            “Food are very expensive nowadays…” she complained as she took some noodles. “But this is better. In my country, it was way more expensive. And they differ it into a lot of vegetables. Organic, hydrophonic, and so on…”

             She looked at Camelia and noticed that she hasn’t done anything with her plate. She sighed, then she stood up and put some noodles into her plate.

            “There, eat,” she said. “You don’t have to worry. It’s clean…”

            Camelia nodded, then she took the chopsticks and started eating. The old woman watched her eat, then she sighed as Camelia was eating very slowly.

            “Is it good?”
            She nodded slowly as she ate. The old owman looked at her for a while, then she smiled, as she knew what was going on. After all, she’s gone through a lot.

            “You’re the quiet type, huh? Kind of introvert?”
            Camelia didn’t say anything, then the old woman started to eat her breakfast.

            “Can I go for a walk after this?”
            Camelia put down her chopsticks, then she looked up to the old woman. The old woman smiled and nodded.

            “Of course, my dear…” she said. “There’s also an internet café nearby. You can go there and play.”

            Camelia nodded, then she ate the rest of her food a bit faster. The old woman watched her eat with a smile.

            A few minutes later

            “I’m done.”

            Camelia put down the chopsticks on the table. She then stood up and bowed down.

            “Yes, don’t be late for lunch,” the old woman said. Camelia nodded, then she turned back and walked out of the house.

            He watched her walked out of the house. She was wearing a black knee-length dress and black stockings. He lit his cigarette and waited for her to walk past the alley.

            Camelia looked around, trying to make sure everything was safe. But nobody was around her, neither a cat or dog or even a bird – everything was eeriely silent.

            The man looked up to the sky and saw a dark cloud passed above him. He smiled, then he lowered his head and spitted out the cigarette. It fell on the ground, then he stepped on it.

            “Good,” he whispered. “I can feel the tension going up.”

            Camelia sighed, but she could still feel her heart pounding faster.

            No. Something wasn’t right.

            But what wasn’t right?

            She sighed again, then she started to walk quietly down the alley. The man looked out to the alley for a while, then he took out a Chinese flying star from his flap pocket and hid it under his sleeves.

            The girl he saw, wearing a black dress and stockings, passed in front of him. She didn’t notice the danger standing right next to her. He could kill her at that distance, but as the star slid into his grip, he hid it back again. He could feel his heart pounding quickly in excitement.

            Cameli walked past a dark alley. She stopped at her place and looked back back as she could feel an eye following her steps.

            “Who’s there?”

            The man bit his lower lip in disappointment – that she could hear him breathe even in the darkest place. He stepped out of the alley, then he wore a smile.

            “Hello, there,” he said. The girl was looking at him as he took out another cigarette and lit it.

            “What are you doing here?” she asked. “Trailing me?”
            “Your steps are always clear and clean,” he said. “That makes it easy to trail as you leave no traces. It’s too perfect.”

            They could suddenly hear a boom far away. The man put the cigarette in his mouth, then he could see black smokes puffed up to the sky.

            “My, my. Look at that.”

            Camelia kept looking at the man. He was smiling in satisfaction, then he spitted out his cigarette.

            “Geez, and they call it a cigarette,” he said in disgust. “I’ll never buy menthol cigarettes from now on.”

            He looked up to the girl, then he smiled.

            “Sorry,” he said. “Can you guess our oaths I’m going to tell you?”

            She didn’t say anything as she could fell her heart pounded faster. She clenched her fist, trying to prevent her hands from trembling, but it still trembled.

            “Can you?”

            He walked towards her as he took out a box of cigarette. He opened it and took out one of it.

            “I know you know.”

            “I shall not betray my brothers and sisters, or I’ll be killed by five thunderbolts,” she said as she could feel her hands trembled even more. “Am I right?”

            The man smiled again in satisfactio. The black clouds now passed above them, and he looked up.

            “I like the rain,” he said. “You know why?”

            She didn’t say anything as she slowly turned back.

            “Because myriads of water fall down to the earth when it rains…”

            “If you want to kill me, kill me,” she said. “I don’t care about Lau or father.”

            He turned to her, and he could see her hands trembled. He smiled, then he slid out the star into his grip.

            “Too bad,” he said. “Tea are the most wonderful thing in the world…”

            She didn’t say anything as she could feel death beckoned to her. She stepped forward and forced out a smile.

            “Any last words?”
            She stopped at her place, then she took his hand and closed her eyes.

            “I want to be wih gege again, someday…”

            She fell down to the ground as she felt her life left her. She smiled in relief as she could see darkness covered her slowly.

            “Then…” The voice sounded like it was from somewhere far. “Someday is never, you know?”

•••

            William followed the woman and the girl to an alley. The woman turned back and noticed William was still following her. She smiled, then she turned to the girl.

            “Where are you taking me to?” she asked loudly, loud enough to be heard by William. The girl smiled as she looked at the woman.

            “Let’s eat first,” she said. “It will be on me, don’t worry…”

            William stopped at his place as he watched the two women talk.

            “No, I’m your aunt…” the woman said. “I can pay for you…”

            William could suddenly feel a hand reached out to his shoulders. It grabbed him firmly, then he slowly looked back and saw a man with long black hair tied like a ponytail. He was wearing an olive coat and black trousers. William smiled, then he turned back.

            “Can I help you…?”

            He could see a man with a scar on his left cheek that looked like it was from a sword.

            “Forget it. She’s forgotten you, either.”

            He could feel his heart stopped as the man looked up to him. His eyes were still as brilliant as before, despite the wrinkles that have appeared under his eyes. His eye quickly stabbed deep into him. William stepped back, then he could feel something behind him.

            “You’ve grown.”

            William didn’t say anything as he touched his backpack and took out a pocketknife from inside. The old man looked surprised upon the development.

            “Why…” he said. “I don’t think I ever taught you that…”

            William didn’t answer as he kept on stepping backwards. The old man didn’t say anything as William stopped a few steps later. 

            “Why, you…”

            “There’s no getting out of this,” the old man said. “Decide what you want to do.”
            RIIIIIING

            The old man picked up his phone and turned away.

            “What?”

            William walked closer to him as he saw the momentum. The old man still had his back facing William – nothing less than a pitch perfec chance to kill him. William could feel his heart beated faster – either of excitement, anxiety, or hesitation. He could just finally feel really alive once again.

            “Yes, I know…”

            He kept walking quietly towards the old man as he touched the knife with his finger. His finger started to bleed, then William put it into his mouth.

            “I see,” the old man said. “So at the end, that was her decision…”

            William could feel his hand trembled. He pulled his hand out of his mouth and aimed the knife to the old man’s back.

            “So, ‘Tea’ is out of the game…”

            William stopped at his place as he could feel something was choking his throat. The old man turned back to him and grabbed his throat in a flash.

            “Yes, I’ll settle it down later,” he said. “I have something to settle with here, you know…”

            He put the phone into his pocket, then he smiled as he lifted William from the ground a few inches. William grabbed the old man’s hand as he could feel his chest were tight.

            “It’s too bad,” the old man said. “You just missed the very good moment to kill me…”

            William could feel his chest became tighter. He tried to breathe through his mouth, but in vain.

            “You’ll have to go with us now,” the old man said. “Chuan An…”

            William didn’t say anything as he couldn’t feel his feet. He wanted to move his foot, but they wouldn’t.

            “You…” he whispered in agony. “Killed Xiao Li…”

            The old man didn’t say anything as he grabbed William’s throat even more. William let out a little scream, then he struggled to see the old man as his vision started to blur.

            “What are we to you?”

            The old man looked at William for a while, then he smirked and grabbed his throat even tighter.

            “Nothing…” He paused. “Just dolls to help me get what I want.”

            He could feel William’s grip loosened, then he opened his hand. William fell on the ground – his eyes closed.

•••

            The white ball bounced off the red rectangle on the wall, then it bounced back to the green table. Tracy skillfully hit the ball, then it hit the red rectangle again.

            “Tracy…”

            She hit the ball again, then she looked back and saw a man wearing a blue shirt and beige shorts. His short black hair was wet, and he was holding a green bottle.

            “I think it should be enough for today,” he said. “Don’t you want to have a break or something?”

            Tracy caught the ball, then she turned back and smiled.            

            “I will in a few minutes…” she said. “You can go and eat if you want to. You don’t have to wait for me.”

            She threw the ball down to the green table, then it bounced up and she hit it again. It hit the red rectangle again and bounced back.

            “You’re not tired?”

            “Not at all.”

            She hit the ball, then it hit the area just outside the red rectangle. Tracy gritted her teeth in disappointment as the ball rolled on the floor.

            “You distracted me,” she said. The man smiled playfully, then he drank some of his water.

            “Are you waiting for someone?” she asked as she picked up the ball. “If you are, wait somewhere else.”

            The man smiled as she turned back and walked past him. He turned back to her, then he closed his bottle.

            “Do you want to go somewhere fun?” he asked. “Maybe the theatre, or the bowling alley…”

            “Not interested,” she said as she put back the ball into a cardboard box. “Besides, I have to meet someone after this…”

            RIIIIIIING

            “Excuse me,” she said as she opened the cabinet in front of her and took out her red sports bag. She fished for something for a while, then she took out a red phone and picked it up.

            “Hello…?”

            “It’s me,” the girl said. “Feel like going somwhere today?”

            Tracy turned back and noticed the man was still looking at her, then she put her hand in front of her mouth.

            “Where are you…?”

            “Going to the squash area you’re usually at,” she said. “It’s Sunday, after all…”

            Tracy pressed a red button, then she sighed and put her phone back into her bag.

            “My friend will be here in a minute,” she declared as the man walked to her. “I’ll have to go…”

            She took her back, then she opened the door and walked out.

            “See you next week,” the man said. Tracy didn’t say anything as she slammed the door behind.

            “There you are…”

            Tracy looked up and saw a girl standing in front of her – she had short auburn hair and she was wearing a blue striped dress. She was leaning against the wall and was chewing something.

            “You lied,” Tracy said. “You said you were still on the way.”

            The girl giggled, then she blew up a pink bubble from her mouth. Tracy wlaked past her, then she quickly caught up as the bubble popped.

            “Let’s go somewhere hot,” the girl said as she chewed her bubblegum again. “A place packed with hot guys…”

            “I don’t know any place around here with that description,” Tracy said. “Unless you’re talking about somewhere quite far…”           

            “It’s far,” the girl said playfully. “But I don’t think distance is the main trouble right now.”

            They walked out of the building, then they could see a white GTI R32 parked in front of them. The girl got into the car, then Tracy walked to the other side and got in.

            “I’d like to do whatever the sport you’re doing,” she said. “What is it called?”

            “Squash,” Tracy answered shortly. “You’re done with Lau?”

            The girl didn’t say anything as she spitted out the bubblegum into a piece of paper. She then crumpled the paper and smiled.

            “At the end, it was Darren himself,” she said. “They met in a very unfortunate coincidence, and there they go…”
            Tracy didn’t say anything as she looked out of the window. Her body was still sweating.

            “Something wrong?”

            “Where are they?” Tracy asked. The girl took out a blue bar and pressed a button as she opened her mouth. A small pill-like food popped into her mouth.

            “Want some?” she asked as she started chewing again. Tracy shook her head.

            “I don’t like that kind,” she said. “I like the long ones.”

            “Bigger portion, surely!” the girl said. “I don’t know, but looks like Darren’s taking him back into the place he was supposed to be…”

            She turned to Tracy, and noticed she was looking at her phone. She sighed, then she turned back to the road.

            “Don’t get too deep into it,” she said. “I’m sure Lin Xian Sheng (Mr. Lin) has prepared someone better…”
            “No, it’s not that.”

            The girl sighed.

            “Come on, don’t be ridiculous,” she said. “I know you’re worried about him.”

            She sighed again, then she pressed a button on the steer. A song started to play from somewhere.

            “Deai ni iro wa nakute

            Monokuro fukinukeru

            Itami goto kimi yudenamashou…”

            The girl smiled happily, then she turned to Tracy.

            “Do you know this song?”

            Tracy didn’t say anything.

            “It’s Sid’s ‘Kiss of Monochrome’,” she said. “The band I’m very fanatic about…”

            Tracy didn’t say anything as she put her phone back into her bag and took out a small plastic bag.

            “You want some rice crackers?”

            “I don’t like rice crackers.”

            She looked at Tracy, who was chewing her crackers, then she sighed.

            “Forget it,” she said. “You’re only pretending, but at the end you take it as the real deal.”
            “It’s not like that, either,” Tracy said. “I just don’t like the idea of it.”

            “You mean, you just don’t like being used.”

            “Do you have any other Japanese songs?” Tracy asked. “I like Japanese songs as much as you do, but I don’t like Sid.”

            “I only have Sid here,” the girl said. “I can turn on other Sid songs if you want to.”

            Tracy sighed as she looked out again. The girl smiled playfully as she pressed another button.

            “You like ‘Laruku’, right…”

            Tracy didn’t say anything as another song played.

            “You lied to me again.”

            The girl giggled, then she turned to Tracy.

            “Xiao Li’s dead.”

            Tracy could feel her heart stopped in surprise, then she turned to the girl.

            “It wasn’t me,” the girl said. “It’s Ariel. He’ll be doing the dirty jobs, and your man will be doing the cleaning. Don’t worry.”

            Tracy touched her forehead as she closed her eyes.

            “My, you mean, you killed her?”
            “He.”
            “You mean, he killed her?”

            The girl didn’t say anything as she stopped the car in front of a small stall. She smiled and got out of the car.

            “Come on, Trace…”
            Tracy noticed her friend was already outside, then she sighed and got out of the car. She walked to the girl, who was busy with her Blackberry.

            “Lau wants you to do the rest of the job,” she said. “She said, ‘I’m something like sure Tracy can do it well...’,”

            Tracy didn’t say anything as she put her Blackberry back into her pocket.

            “Whatever,” she said. “Let’s eat something before we go on. You just played that ‘squash’ thing, you must be tired.”

            Tracy didn’t say anything as her friend walked into her stall.

            “And about William…”

            She turned back and smiled.

            “That old man’s going to be tough on him,” she said. “Not to make him shapeless, but he told you to ‘just watch’.”

•••

            “You’re just a kid…”

            William slowly opened his eyes. His sight was still blurry, but he could clearly see a man wearing a black tangzhuang standing not far away from him.

            “Don’t you think so…?”

            “You…”

            He could suddenly feel something pushed his stomach in. He coughed, but then he fell on the floor again – the cold stone floor hit his face.

            “Both of you are such naughty kids…”

            He didn’t say anything, as he could feel something heavy pressed his back. He started to regain his clear sight, but he would prefer not to see anything.

            “Do you really understand something?”

            He could hear footsteps became loud fron the area below him. He tried to look up, but something pressed his head down.

            “Lau.”

            The footsteps stopped, then he could smell something around him.

            “How is it going?”

            William snapped out from his half-conscious state, then he tried to look up, but that something was still stopping him from looking up.

            “As you see,” a man’s voice said. “Mei Xi only gave me these useless fools…”

            William could feel his head heated up. He tried to stand up, but something was keeping him from standing up. The smell became heavier as time passed.

             “Don’t say that about women.”

            William could see a pair of foot in front of him, covered with a white fabric, possibly from clothing.

            “You remember me, young man…?”

            The figure knelt down in front of him, then he could feel something choked him.

            “You…”
            “The woman you helped,” she said. “You gave me a seat and helped me carry my stuff.”

            “Really?” a man’s voice asked. “That’s very kind of him, but kindness could be a disease.”

            “Come on, Darren,” she said as she stood up again. “Be some kind of soft, will you? I’ve watched too much of your ‘training’ or whatever.”

            There was a sudden silence, but then William could feel that something has been took away from his head. He quickly turned back and stood up as he clenched his fist, but the old man sighed.

            “My, my.”

            He grabbed William’s wrist with his hand, then he slammed William back to the floor. William coughed again, then the man stepped on his head again.

            “When will you start to watch your manners…”

            William could feel a hand grabbed his collar, then suddenly, his body was lifted from the ground, but this time, it didn’t touch his throat. He could see the face of an old man very clearly – he was aged around 50 and he had a scar on his left cheek.

            “Looks like you’ve aged.”

            The man didn’t say anything. He could see the woman standing next to the old man, she was wearing a white cheongsam, and her black hair was loose. She fitted the picture he received last night.

            “I don’t want to see anyone like this,” the old man said. “Listen, Chuan An.”

            William turned back to the old man, then he gritted his teeth as he could feel pain in his head.

            “Come back when you’re ready,” the old man said. “Show me the vengeance you’ve been keeping inside yourself.”

            The old man smirked as William could feel something rushed up to his head, either of excitement or anger.

            “When the time comes,” the old man said. “Yes, when the time comes…

•••

            William opened his eyes and felt the bright sun on his face. He stood up and touched his head, then he looked around.

            “What was that…”

            He rubbed his eyes, then he looked around again. The sight was still the same. He gritted his teeth in anger, then he bit his lower lip. He looked back and found his backpack was gone. He sighed, then he touched his breast pocket and felt something hard inside. He took it out and saw his iPhone, still in its state. He smiled and started to walk down the alley.

            “Maybe it was just my too high imagination…”

            He walked past a dark alley, then he stopped at his place and looked at the alley behind him. He could feel something went across his body, and it made him bit his lower lip again. He gulped, then he walked to the dark alley and peeked in. He could feel his heart stopped upon the sight in front of him.

            “Xiao…”

            He covered his mouth in surprise, then he looked around and saw nobody. He quickly walked into the alley, then he touched the face of a girl in front of him. Her eyes were closed, and she was wearing a thin smile.

            “Camelia…”

            He could feel his hand trembled, then he moved his hand very slowly to his neck. He closed his eyes, trying to concentrate, but he couldn’t feel anything but coldness. His hand trembled even more as the feeling started to get into every single of his nerves. He opened his eyes very slowly, trying not to see the truth in front of him.

            “So ‘Tea’ is out of game…”

            “Camelia sinensis….”

            He fell on his knees, then he grabbed his head as he could feel tears well up in his eyes.

            “Xiao Liii….!!!”