Short, Light, Free

Chapter 73: Choice (Part 2) I

The sky was already brightening by the time Xiaohong got up and walked into the kiosk.

Under the dim light, he picked up the bag of money Xiaohuang had prepared.

He moved it into the front seat of his car with much effort before walking over to the pumping station and pulling out two fuel guns.

He stretched them to the maximum and got as close to the room as possible.

He started spraying the fuel onto the ground and did not stop until the guns ran out.

He dropped the guns, a big pool of oil spreading across all corners of the gas station.

The thick fuel smell made him cough. He returned to his car and drove about ten meters away.

He turned on the cigarette lighter in the car.

A ding broke the peace.

He wound down the window and threw it toward the gas station.

A few seconds later, all he saw was rising flames.

He drove away.

...

Three years later in a bar.

“Isn’t the weather getting colder?” a customer commented after taking a shot of vodka.

“Yeah, winters are getting increasingly unbearable,” the barman sighed, the breath he exhaled showing up in a puff of mist.

“Aren’t you going to drink? It’s such a cold day!” The customer pushed his empty shot glass toward the barman.

“Nah, I’m at work. I’ll get in trouble with the boss for getting drunk and messing up the accounts,” he declined. He took out an opened bottle of vodka from a small fridge under the counter, swirled it a little before refilling his customer’s glass.

A man in a leather jacket entered the bar.

“A customer? How rare. A new one at that...” the barman smiled as he looked up, only to fall silent the next instant.

“What? Is that your boss? Why have you gone mute?” the customer asked before turning around.

The barman’s silence was due to the black head mask the man in the leather jacket was wearing.

The man took out a shotgun from his back pocket and aimed it at the customer.

Before the customer could process what was going on, a loud bang echoed.

The barman noticed that the shotgun was specially made.

The front part consisted of a series of black membranes. When the trigger was pulled, a black net shot out.

The customer’s face had been wrapped around by at least three black net layers.

And just as he was about to reach up and remove them, the newcomer pounced.

The man held the customer down onto the ground and held his gun above the customer’s neck.

He used his legs to spread open the customer’s hands, putting him in a deadlock.

“Know the tooth fairy?” he asked, using his right hand to cover the customer’s face.

The customer remained motionless and silent.

The newcomer pointed his fore and middle fingers at the customer’s eyes.

“Know the tooth fairy?” he tried again.

“Yes,” the customer answered.

The barman smashed the vodka bottle he was holding onto and the alcohol splashed all over himself.

Using the sharp edges, he aimed the bottle at the man in the leather jacket, getting ready to attack.

Before the barman could make a move against him, the man in the leather jacket gave him an intense look and he felt his body losing strength. He collapsed behind the counter.

The alcohol over his body disappeared and he was unable to move. It felt like blood wasn’t circulating within his body. He could only maintain bare consciousness and breaths.

“When did you meet him and where?” the newcomer asked.

“Will you let me go if I answer?” the customer asked with a shaky voice.

“I’ve let many people go, but even more people suffered because of my impatience,” he stated dully.

“I can’t remember the date but it was about 20 years ago when I was still a kid. The northern region, Kangning road. The tooth fairy gave me the power to make liquid disappear,” the customer shouted.

“Have you used it to kill anybody?”

“No, never ever,” the customer answered confidently.

The man in the leather jacket poked his fingers through the black net and blood started pouring out as the customer screeched.

“It hurts, doesn’t it? But at least you’re still alive. Blame it on the tooth fairy if you have to. He gave not only you but all of us a lasting nightmare.” He loosened his hands and kept his shotgun.

He took out a brochure and a pen from his pocket.

On the map, he drew a circle on Kangning road and added a horizontal line on the next page.

He looked at his glove. The fresh blood that had just been on it moments ago was now gone.

The man in the leather jacket left the bar and returned to his sports car.

He removed his mask and threw it onto the passenger seat along with the brochure.

Xiaohong drove toward a distant place.

The brochure left on the seat contained a map of the whole northern region.

Red circles covered the map and there were a total of 25 strikes on the next page.

Below the strikes were time and dates.

While the times were more or less different, the dates remained constant.

Xiaohong was very certain that it was that very day that he had met the tooth fairy as well.

He drove through the street where he came from, made a turn, and stopped his car.

He sighed before taking out his mobile and making a call.

“Any more leads?” he asked upon connecting.

“No more. I’ll call you if there’s any, so don’t be impatient. You have to give me time,” the voice on the other end replied.

“I gave you so much money. Why have you only found me these few people?”

“The information you provided was clear – the ability to make liquid disappear – but this isn’t something they would display for no reason, is it? I do, however, have some trails involving the person you’re searching for specifically.”

“You found the tooth fairy?” Xiaohong’s voice was evidently livelier at this point.

“How can I possibly find something out of a fairy tale?” the voice asked, frustrated.

“Who then?” Xiaohong sounded helpless.

“You mentioned something about the deputy mayor. If not for him, your friends might still be alive. Remember?”

“Deputy mayor? You found him?”

“He’s not living the life everyone thinks he is. He’s dirt broke and living as an elementary school teacher in a slum area.

“That scum, a teacher? Send me whatever information you have.”

“I can do that but stop chasing me for a month. I treat you as a friend so don’t threaten me with your superpower,” the voice said nervously.

“Haven’t I given you enough money?” Xiaohong asked faintly.

“No, you gave too much. Much more than what I can offer you, but you must understand that this is really a challenging task.”

“I know. You’re doing a great job – I just need more. Who knows how many more of these people there are,” Xiaohong said.

“There might not be any left, you know. I haven’t found any leads in four months. 25 sounds like a good number. Could that be it?”

“Continue searching. You said the same thing when you reached 20 numbers. I’ll find you tomorrow. Prepare an overcoat for me. The weather’s really turning colder day by day.”

Xiaohong hung up.

A message came in shortly after.

It was the address of the slum area in Sanshui district with a remark at the bottom: He will be preparing lesson plans at home from seven p.m. onward.

Xiaohong put his phone down and started driving toward his destination.

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