Chapter 26
Someone quickly cleaned up the body, leaving only a pool of blood left at the scene after someone dragged it.
But even so, the image of that man with his head exploded and his eyes open in death was like a revolving lantern, repeating over and over again, whether I opened my eyes or closed them, haunting me like a ghost.
As if to warn me that this is what happens if I try to resist them.
I think I might be sick. My head feels dizzy and my whole body feels cold.
But my clothes were too thin. There was no wind in the room, but I could feel the cold touch penetrating every corner. I was shivering all over and had no choice but to curl up in the corner.
This not only brings me warmth, but also a slight sense of security.
I started having nightmares in fragments -
It started when I was a child. I dreamed that I turned into a puppet that could only dance tirelessly. If I made a mistake in my movements or did not dance to the desired effect, I would be locked in a dark room. No matter how I shouted and struggled, no one paid any attention to me.
Then the scene changed, and I saw Masako Takahashi and Aunt Emi suing over me. They were arguing in the courtroom until their faces turned red, and I was sitting in the middle of the audience, listening to the audience in the courtroom pointing fingers at me.
"What a sin... I heard my father cheated on me and my mother remarried..."
"The child is still so young, how pitiful..."
“Poor thing…”
I covered my ears painfully, trying to prevent those rumors from entering my mind, but it was no use. Those voices were like devil's sounds lingering in my ears, intensifying my mental pain.
Next came a simple room with only four walls and a bed. Aunt Huimei, who had not been seen for a long time, was lying on the bed. She was wrapped in white gauze. Due to the poor medical conditions, the wounds were only treated with the simplest treatment, and many of the gauze were stained with large amounts of blood.
The air was filled with a strong smell of rust.
I walked over to her bed and realized that her face was terribly pale, like someone who had been dead for a long time, revealing a sense of despair that there was no way to save her.
As if she noticed someone coming, she struggled to open her eyes. When she saw it was me, she tried hard to force a smile.
But in my eyes, it looked more like a pretense of trying to remain calm even though he was clearly grimacing in pain.
She stretched out her hand tremblingly, and I immediately reached out and held her hand. It was as cold as ice.
Aunt Huimei seemed to want to say something, but she was too weak. The sound came out of her throat with difficulty and turned into a vague breath.
Even though I put my ear to her mouth, I couldn't make out what she was saying...
I had no choice but to stare at her, not wanting to miss any expression on her face or any movement she made when she spoke.
However, the next moment, the whole world became dark. The bed, the room, and Aunt Huimei all disappeared, but I didn't care. I was still trying hard to think about what Aunt Huimei was trying to say to me.
Until something cold pressed against the back of my head and I realized it was the muzzle of a gun. I froze in place, not daring to move, as if even my breathing had stopped.
I started crying bitterly and kept begging for mercy from the people behind me, thinking that they would let me go.
With a 'click' sound, the bullet was loaded.
Knowing that I had to die here and there was no way to survive, I stopped struggling. Strangely enough, at that moment I overcame my fear of inevitable death and instead concentrated on thinking about what Aunt Huimei wanted me to say.
I think, if I really have to die, I should understand Aunt Huimei’s last words, so that I can die without regrets.
And just as the gunshots rang out, I finally understood.
What she said was: "Nana, I hope you can live well."
This is indeed what Aunt Huimei would say...
*
I woke up from these nightmares and found that people were talking in English outside. I listened inadvertently, but when I heard Aunt Huimei's name, my confused mind suddenly woke up, and I became sober and began to listen to their words silently.
They seemed to be discussing the transaction with Aunt Huimei.
"Our people have already spread the word. That woman is well-informed and will soon know that the girl is in our hands. If she gets nervous, she will definitely do what we say..."
"Do we really want to trade that girl with her? What if she changes her mind? Or maybe that girl isn't that important to her... Then we'll fail. Now the Japanese police are also targeting us and are looking for us everywhere..."
"If that woman didn't care about this little girl, would the Japanese public security officers go to such great lengths to protect her? ... Just think about it and you'll know it's impossible!"
"That's right... So what should we do next? ... News has arrived from that woman... She demands to see the girl first before discussing the deal... She said that if the girl loses even a hair, then she guarantees that the evidence will be made public immediately and we will all be brought to the international court..."
"Looks like we made the right bet. That little girl is our final bargaining chip... When will the deal be completed?"
"Eight o'clock tomorrow morning."
"...Tell the people over there to get ready, and we need to arrange everything here as soon as possible..."
"...arrange everything? What do you mean?"
"...Notify the people left in Morocco and arrange everything. Wait for that guy to show up... Then capture her alive. You must capture her alive! She's very cunning... Once she hands over the things, kill her and silence her."
"...What about that girl?"
"Kill them all together to avoid future trouble. The organization has already arranged a ship for us to go to the Middle East... Once everything is over here, we can start over there..."
My head was buzzing and the world was spinning. The pale and cold image of Aunt Huimei in my dream, who looked like a corpse, appeared before my eyes again. For a moment, I couldn't even tell the dividing line between reality and dreams.
Regret and pain suddenly flooded my heart.
I think, if I hadn't been so headstrong and insisted on arguing with Takahashi Masako right there, if I hadn't been so headstrong and ran away on my own, if I hadn't been so gullible... then I wouldn't have been caught, and at least Aunt Emi wouldn't have been threatened...
I will let Aunt Huimei die in vain!
This realization made me feel incredibly guilty.
I owe her so much, she shouldn't have to bear such a burden as me...
If I had not been taken from America, she would not be threatened by these terrorists at this moment...
if.....
No! I made the mistake, and I must do my best to make amends!
At least... I will try my best to keep Aunt Huimei alive!
Thinking of this, my fighting spirit was rekindled. I was still terrified. I was afraid of those guys outside, afraid of the guns in their hands, afraid of the pain, but I was even more afraid that Aunt Huimei would lose her life because of me...
There is absolutely no chance of winning if I confront those criminals head-on. I am too weak. They can easily take me out with just a few moves.
Got to find a way to escape!!
But I haven't eaten for almost a day... Although I have forgotten about hunger, the feeling of weakness in my limbs is real. If I want to escape, I must find something to replenish my energy.
I need food!
No, that's not right!
The criminals had left food for me before, but I was too scared at that time and did not accept it.
food....
I looked around and finally found the food they had left behind outside the iron fence at the door. It looked like porridge, but it had become a disgusting solidified food because it had been left for too long. It also had a faint sour smell due to the room temperature.
My stomach suddenly started to churn.
I suppressed my nausea, picked up the bowl and started to eat voraciously.
At the same time, I kept telling myself in my heart that this was a necessary sacrifice and endurance to maintain my physical strength...so it all made sense!
Having the energy to escape isn't enough; you also need a way to escape...
But this room was clearly visible at a glance: the cold walls on all four sides, the iron door locked with a chain, and the narrow square vent. Although there was an iron frame, it had been in disrepair for a long time and was already rusted. If you pull hard, maybe you can open it... But the hole was so narrow that even a child like me, with the endurance and flexibility trained by years of dancing, it was a bit difficult.
But if you don't try, your chances are zero...
I clenched my hands, ready to give it a try.
*
At first, I only felt the piercing pain in my hands. The rough rust was embedded in my skin and blood, but I didn't dare to make any screams. I was afraid that any extra noise would attract the attention of people outside.
I had become numb to the passage of time. I didn't know how long I had been doing this, until my hands were bloody and numb, and I finally pulled out the last screw of the crumbling iron frame.
I couldn't wait to try to get out of the hole, but just as I expected, the hole was too narrow and my hips were stuck inside...
I can't care less. If I delay any longer, it will be too late...
I almost endured the heart-wrenching pain, and finally broke free from the restraints in one go, and fell out of the hole.
Suddenly, my vision opened up to a seemingly endless forest, winding and undulating, with mountains stretching out in the distance behind. The air was filled with the unique, damp smell of the forest and the strong smell of blood emanating from me.
Not daring to stop for a moment, I almost crawled to my feet from the mud and stumbled towards the depths of the forest.
The sun had already set, and the moonlight streamed down, casting shadows on the trees. It looked eerie and strange. With every step I took, I felt intense pain radiating from all parts of my body, and I couldn't hold back my tears.
But I didn't dare stop, I was afraid that if I stopped, those people would catch up with me.
Then all my efforts will go to waste...
But things don't always go as planned. The more I fear something, the more likely it is to happen.
I heard footsteps coming from a distance in the forest.
If I were taken back by those people, they would use me to threaten Aunt Huimei. If that were the case, I might as well just... die. Thinking of this, I immediately made a decision.
I came to a small earthen slope covered with gravel and bushes. Hearing the sound of footsteps and conversations getting closer, I jumped down almost without hesitation.
Then I was fortunately plunged into unconscious darkness.
I'm sorry, Aunt Huimei.
I still don't seem to be successful...
*
When Rei Furuya led the search and rescue team to the place where Koizumi Na fell, there was no one there.
But he was absolutely certain that he heard a sound here. That sound could not have come from an animal, it could only have been made by a human... If it wasn't an enemy, then it could only be...
"Mr. Jyouya, look down!"
One of the team members suddenly cried out in surprise.
"Oh my goodness!"
Furuya Rei looked in the direction he pointed, shining the flashlight in his hand, but he saw a scene that made him gasp.
All I saw was the girl's thin body. Her clothes were stained with large amounts of blood, and the original color could no longer be seen. Her hands were a mess of blood and flesh, with no intact flesh left. She lay on the thorny bushes like a rag, so light that it seemed as if she didn't have the weight of a living person at all.
Even adults would shudder when they saw it, as if their bodies began to feel phantom pain.
The search and rescue team member who discovered Koizumi was stunned for several seconds before stammering:
"Is she...still alive?"
Should I say, can she still be alive?
"Go down and save them!"
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