Chapter 93 - With The Waves

While Qing Chen was sleeping peacefully in his bed and Wuming was already in the bas.e.m.e.nt again trying to tire himself for a few hours of sleep, two hardworking men were sailing along the coast in search of a floating body.

"This would be all for nothing if we don't find that body," said Badger, the flashlight in his hand emitting a thick strip of yellow light.

"We're going to find it," said Fox. "It's going to wind up somewhere."

"Not if the fish get to him first."

Fox shivered at the thought of a school of fish taking apart a body. "There are no big fishes in this part, right?"

As most of their work had been done in land, both were pretty much clueless with the matters of the sea. "I don't know," Badger shrugged but a slow feeling crept on his forearms as he made his eyes wider as if it would help him see if there were sharks in the water. Crocodiles are mostly around rivers… right?

The Fox sighed as the boat swayed a little with the waves. It was nighttime and they should not be here as it could get dangerous. But better that they die here than in the hands of The Zookeeper. It was freezing and their breaths come out as small puffs of white. It had only been half an hour but they were both already shivering.

"I hate this job," The Badger, tucking a hand under his arm. "Why does the boss have to do this? He's so obsessed with the Qings."

The Fox gave it a thought. "Not the Qings."

The Fox suddenly remembered the impenetrable fortress of the CEO. They had tried to intercept the signals that were coming in and out of the house but their IT expert tried and failed again and again.

"He has a blocker." The IT expert went on a little monologue about the blocker and how it could only allow chosen signals to pass. "I think it can even know if someone was trying to intercept it."

The Fox's hand chopped at the nape of the IT expert. "You didn't think of that before you had attached all these wires to your stupid laptop?!"

The IT expert scratched his head. "I didn't think he would have a blocker. I thought it would be easy."

"He's one of the richest men in Chengshi! He probably has access to technology not yet released to this world!" The Fox ran a hand through his hair. This was The Zookeeper's fault. As much as he wanted to hide and stay in the shadows, the thing that was lacking in their organization were professionals. They only got the strays from the road. The unknowns.

The Fox slid down the side of the boat, trying not to get seasick. He closed his eyes as he was trying to figure out what was going on in The Zookeeper's mind. Surely, he would be able to get the girl somehow. But how were they supposed to get rid of the Qings? Would they be able to end a mafia legacy? They seemed to have added a new wall around them. 

Multiple excited taps touched his shoulder. "I see it!" said The Badger like he could jump up and down with joy. For an old man in the business, it was great that he could keep his spirits alive at a time like this.

The Fox stood up and turned his own flashlight on. Something floating about forty feet away from them. It did not look human at first, but it sure was a piece of cloth they were seeing.

He steered the little boat near the body. "Is it him?" 

"I would be horrified to find another body that wasn't his," said The Badger, poking it with a thick stick to get it closer to them.

They hauled the drenched body and turned it upwards. The face was drained of color and was swollen. The Badger made a disgusted sound as he reached down and closed the eyes. "It's him, right?"

The Fox had gotten a look at the picture earlier. "Yeah, definitely him. Let's get out of this hellhole."

**

It was a long night still for The Badger and The Fox. After putting the body in the trunk of the car, they went to Mr. Zhang's house.

"I. Hate. This. Job," Badger said as his shovel hit the ground. "How many are there already?" he wheezed.

The Fox looked at the bodies covered in white blankets above ground. "We need one more." The air was cold but he was sweating. He wiped a hand on his forehead.

They had been here a couple of hours already and it was so much of a relief when they saw another white sheet under the ground. The Fox cursed under his breath, "I have to give it to the Qings," he said while handling the upper body of the corpse out of the hole. "That man is horrendous, killing six girls, huh? I would've kill him myself."

"I would too," said Badger, straining. With one final pull, they were able to to haul it next to the other bodies.

The Fox stretched first. "Come on, we have to move them to the front of the house."

"No," the older man breathed out, hands on his knees and looking pale. "I can't do this anymore. Let's just bring the man here."

The Fox touched his facemask, wanting a breath of the cold air. But the corpses stink. He would surely vomit if he got to smell it. "Okay. The important thing is that they find the man here."

Twenty minutes later, the man was propped to a sitting position at the grave with a sign hanging on his neck: I killed these women.

The Badger spoke when they were in the car, "We keep owning up to these murders."

"The boss wants to send messages like this. It's a way for the Qings to know we really are keeping an eye on them." Fox started driving. "It's a long night. Do you want a drink?"

"When we get back to the headquarters. I am going to sleep. I might drop dead right now. Wake me up, kid." Two minutes later, Badger was already snoring.