Chapter 51 A Little Fish
Instead, there was a low, continuous humming sound of the tide.
Amid the buzzing sound, there was also a faint, indistinct cry, like a solitary bubble bursting in the sea.
Her head began to ache again.
The voice tried to get into her ears and into her mind.
"Mom...don't go..."
A blurry shadow, like a small fish trapped in a transparent net, struggled desperately.
**
In the early morning, sunlight shines through the gaps in the carved curtains.
An Zhi sat on the dining chair with a small handful of berries and a piece of bread with burnt edges in front of him.
An Zhi used his fork to intermittently poke the soft center of the bread.
After dreaming all night, she really had no appetite.
"An An, what do you want to eat today?" Gu Jinyan handed her a cup of hot chocolate milk.
An Zhi held the cup and drank it in small sips. She blinked her big eyes, suddenly put the cup down, and spoke softly, her voice very serious:
"Brother... Last night An An dreamt of... a little fish."
"Oh? Did you dream about the underwater world?"
He thought An Zhi was just having an ordinary fairy tale dream and didn't take it to heart at all.
"No..." An Zhi shook his head, pouting his little mouth as if trying to organize his words.
"It...it was in a black box. Such a small box...it was crying..."
An Zhi gestured with his little hands, trying to describe the feeling of smallness and crowding in his dream.
Gu Jinyan and Gu Changfeng's smiles froze slightly, but soon returned to normal.
Officer Emily's warning last night did make them alert, but how could a child's wild dreams be connected to reality?
"Silly child, that must have been a nightmare."
Gu Changfeng picked up a piece of soft pancake and placed it on An Zhi's plate. "Dreams are all fake, don't take them seriously."
"Yes, An An, look, here is the pudding you like."
Gu Jinyan also tried to divert An Zhi's attention and pointed to the desserts on the food cart.
An Zhi shook his head seriously, his big eyes filled with grievance and a hint of stubbornness:
"It's not a nightmare... It's really crying... It said... It said it doesn't want to leave... It wants to find its mother..."
An Zhi turned around and looked around, pointing in the direction of the restaurant leading to the hotel's internal corridor, which connected the guest room area and the elevator.
An Zhi is rarely so persistent.
Gu Changfeng raised his eyebrows. He looked in the direction An Zhi pointed, then looked at Gu Jinyan.
Although he thought it was ridiculous, the police officer's reminder last night and the inexplicable "wave sound" that An Zhi had heard in recent days still made him feel uncertain.
He thought for a moment and finally decided to be cautious.
Gu Changfeng quickly made a phone call.
“Hello, this is room 2301. I need to report a situation to your hotel.
My...child...she seemed to have seen something suspicious just now. Although it may sound a little bizarre, I think, considering the recent situation, it is best to report it to your security department."
He paused, his tone becoming more serious. "She mentioned the sound of crying inside the hotel and pointed to the corridor leading to the guest room area."
The receptionist was obviously confused by the sudden report, but the guest's tone left no room for doubt, so she immediately responded and said she would notify the security director immediately.
A few minutes later, several hotel security personnel and a police officer rushed to the restaurant.
One of them was Officer Emily from last night.
When she saw Gu Changfeng, surprise flashed in her eyes.
"Mr. Gu, what's the matter?"
Although she was puzzled by this nonsensical report, her professional ethics made her remain polite.
Gu Changfeng simply repeated An Zhi's words and pointed in the direction An Zhi pointed.
"I don't know if this is related to the disappearances you're investigating, but I hope you'll keep an eye on it."
Officer Emily looked at An Zhi, who was seriously poking a berry, as if what she had just said had nothing to do with her.
This naivety was so different from what she had just reported that she felt she didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
"Little sister, are you sure you heard this?"
Officer Emily squatted down, her tone coaxing a child, obviously not taking it seriously.
An Zhi stopped, looked up and nodded seriously:
"Yeah! The little fish said it was scared!"
Officer Emily smiled helplessly, stood up and turned to Gu Changfeng, her tone apologetic:
"Mr. Gu, we will send someone to check the direction your child mentioned. However... the child may just have had an uneasy dream."
Although she said this, she still gave the order through the communicator:
"Pay attention to the exit from the guest room area to the lobby, and watch out for any suspicious individuals carrying large luggage."
After receiving the order, the police officers began to move, some went to the guest room area, and some patrolled near the restaurant and elevator entrance.
At this moment, the elevator door at the end of the corridor leading from the restaurant to the guest room area opened with a ding.
A tall man in a black hoodie emerged from the elevator, dragging a large black suitcase.
His hat was pulled down low, almost covering half of his face, and he was walking hurriedly, trying to walk through the restaurant and towards the hotel door without making any noise.
An Zhi was taking a sip of chocolate milk when he heard the noise of the elevator and started coughing.
She pushed away Gu Jinyan's hand that was helping her to calm down and almost stood up.
"Brother! That's it! That little fish! It's in that black box! It's going to be taken away!!"
This scream cut through the original noise in the restaurant.
Everyone's attention was drawn over there.
Officer Emily originally just casually glanced at the man who hurried away, but when she heard An Zhi's almost instinctive exclamation, she immediately realized that something was wrong.
"Stop!" Officer Emily yelled and rushed out reflexively.
There have been frequent disappearances on Halo Star in recent days, and the police officers' nerves are stretched to the extreme.
Several security personnel rushed out right after him.
The man's body stiffened, he accelerated suddenly, threw down the suitcase and tried to escape.
"Catch him!"
The man was no match for the well-trained soldier and was quickly subdued to the ground.
Gu Jinyan rushed to the suitcase, and Gu Changfeng followed closely behind.
The huge black suitcase abandoned by the man had several strange scratches on the edges.
The moment the box was opened, everyone present was shocked and speechless!
Inside the box, there was a little boy curled up with his mouth sealed with tape and his hands and feet tied!
His eyes were filled with tears, his body was stiff from being curled up for so long, his little face was flushed red, but because his mouth was sealed, he couldn't make any sound.
There was an uproar in the restaurant, and diners stood up and screamed in fear.
Officer Emily looked at the child in the suitcase, her originally calm face now filled with disbelief and shock.
She suddenly turned her head to look at An Zhi. This child's dream... was actually real?!
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