Volume Six: Quicksand Enigma

Vileness and greatness, malice and kindness, hatred and love can coexist in the same heart without excluding one another. – Maugham

In the city, it was a drowsy afternoon.

Everything seemed unchanged from the usual days.

Although it was already afternoon, the crowd was still bustling. On bus route 104, it remained crowded. The vehicle swayed as it pulled out of the station. Some people were engrossed in their phones, some gazed out of the window, and others leaned back in their seats, yawning.

The bus made few stops along the way, with long distances between each stop. The atmosphere inside the bus became unusually quiet.

Suddenly, a middle-aged man changed seats and moved closer to a young girl.

The girl was wearing a white windbreaker-style dress and black stockings. She had lowered her head, her long hair cascading down, and two earphone cords converged in front of her. She was completely absorbed in listening to music, oblivious to the man’s actions beside her.

Silently, the middle-aged man approached the girl, inching closer to her, as if closing in on prey. They were so close that they could hear each other’s breaths. Then, taking advantage of a sway of the bus, he leaned against the girl from behind…

Startled by the sudden intrusion, the girl looked back with surprise.

The man seemed unconcerned and calmly met her gaze, his eyes greedily fixed on the girl’s face…

The intensity of his gaze immediately confirmed to the girl that the man’s actions were not accidental but deliberate.

The girl chose not to make a scene but moved backward. However, the persistent man started following her, step by step, like a wild beast tracking its prey.

Inside the bus, only the two of them were moving backward.

Feeling panicked, the girl accidentally stepped on the foot of an elderly lady, who complained, “Can’t you watch where you’re going?!”

“Sorry, I’m sorry…” The girl hastily adjusted her hair, bowing her head in apology. Tears welled up in her eyes as the middle-aged man continued to pursue her from behind…

Glancing at the man, the previously assertive elderly lady fell silent and turned her head, pretending not to see anything.

The man quickly caught up to the girl again. This time, instead of remaining silent, she mustered up courage and tremulously asked, “What do you want?!”

The middle-aged man didn’t respond at all. He just stood behind her, staring at her intently.

He moved closer as she took a step back.

Like a lingering ghost, like an unshakable stain.

Everyone on the bus witnessed this scene, and the girl looked at them pleadingly, helpless and afraid. However, the people averted their gaze, lowered their heads, and continued with their own business, feigning ignorance.

“If you come any closer, I’ll call the police!” The girl took out her phone, threatening him.

The man remained silent, neither retreating nor responding, his eyes fixed on her.

Someone finally couldn’t hold back and said, “If you want to argue, go do it somewhere else!”

“Yeah, we’re in a hurry!”

Another person quietly advised the girl, “Forget it. Even if the police come, they’ll just criticize you at most. Consider it being bitten by a dog.”

There is also an older woman who whispered to her, “Girl, are you alone? What will you do if he retaliates against you?”

Among the young couple, the man couldn’t hold back and wanted to stand up. The girl beside him pulled his hand and whispered, “Don’t get involved.”

More people kept silent.

The girl’s face turned pale, and no one spoke up for her.

The driver, seeing this, rolled his eyes, glanced at the back of the bus, and reluctantly pressed the signal.

“The vehicle is turning. Please hold onto the handrails.”

Such incidents are too common on buses, thefts, perverts, and it’s impossible to catch them all. He had seen that man before, a repeat offender who would ride all the way to the vicinity of the terminal.

Even if she called the police, and they took him away, in a day or two, that person would still show up on the bus.

It was said that the man had some kind of proof, claiming to have mental issues, a lunatic who might not do anything extreme.

Today, the girl’s luck was just not good.

The girl turned her head and looked at the people on the bus, her gaze becoming complicated. She felt a surge of disgust, not only from the man’s proximity but also from the indifference of these people.

At the next stop, the girl couldn’t take it anymore and escaped from the bus. Meanwhile, the middle-aged man turned his head, scanning the crowd, searching for his next prey…

The bus continued for a few more stops, and finally, it quieted down. Then, the bus entered an underground tunnel.

The interior of the bus darkened, and orange-red lights illuminated the bus. The tunnel stretched ahead, crossing the widest lake on the west side of Huadu City. It was over four kilometers long, and it would take at least ten minutes to drive through, due to the slow speed limit.

Once inside the tunnel, people heard a gust of wind. Although there were vehicles passing by on all sides, everything felt eerily quiet. This underwater tunnel seemed cut off from the outside world.

Just as the bus was about to exit the tunnel, two police cars suddenly chased after it, honking their horns at the driver.

The driver was puzzled and slowed down. He didn’t know what was happening. Did the girl from earlier report something?

He turned his head in confusion.

The police cars blared their sirens, and someone waved at him, seemingly trying to get the bus to stop.

The bus couldn’t stop in this section of the tunnel, but the driver still reduced the speed. The passengers in the bus were all bewildered by the situation.

Suddenly, someone asked, “Whose bag is this?”

“Bag?!” Upon hearing this word, the driver abruptly looked back. There was a black backpack, and he suddenly remembered that the police had come earlier, saying that someone had placed a timed bomb on a bus. The bus company had issued a notice, intensively inspecting all vehicles in the city.

The driver’s hairs stood on end, his face changed drastically. He slammed on the brakes, reached for the door handle, but in that split second, people didn’t have time to escape.

A loud explosion suddenly erupted from the bus.

Boom!

With the package as the epicenter, a massive fireball erupted, and the force of the explosion shook the entire tunnel. Rocks rained down from the tunnel ceiling, and all the bus windows shattered.

The bus lost control, overturned, and collided with nearby vehicles.

The police car behind immediately made a decisive move, turning sideways and blocking the path between the bus and other vehicles, preventing the bus from gaining momentum and averting greater casualties.

However, in that instant, the police car was engulfed in the sea of fire, and the people inside had little chance of survival.

Within this tunnel, the raging flames burned, cries and screams filled the air, creating a scene resembling hell on earth.

The news of the bus explosion quickly spread throughout Huadu, and the headquarters received the information immediately.

The accident resulted in a total of four deaths and multiple severe injuries.

Among the severely injured was Captain Xing Yunhai, who was sitting in the driver’s seat at the time.

Upon receiving this news, Director Tan was overcome with anger and fainted, being rushed to the hospital for treatment.

Within the headquarters, everyone retreated after such a major incident, and several deputy directors were unable to take charge of the situation. The leaders in the city appointed a temporary director named Mr. Zou to take over the various tasks of the Huadu Headquarters.

As soon as Lu Junchi received the news, he was called to attend a meeting.

While holding a tablet in his hand, Qiao Ze hurriedly briefed the situation, saying, “This accident is similar to the bomb we discovered last time. It was also placed on a bus, but this time the discovery was not timely, resulting in an explosion. The police station received a phone call ten minutes before the accident, with someone claiming to have seen a suspicious person on this bus. Captain Xing immediately tried to contact the driver through the bus company, but the driver had already entered the underwater tunnel where there was no signal. Captain Xing made a prompt decision to intercept the vehicle, but it was too late…”

The onboard recorder of the rear car captured the complete process of the bus exploding, catching fire, and overturning, as well as colliding with the vehicles behind.

Lu Junchi also watched the footage of the accident, and he asked, “How is Captain Xing?”

Qiao Ze replied, “Based on the information we received, four police officers were injured in this incident, including Captain Xing… He is in critical condition, with severe injuries from the impact and burns. He was unconscious when he was taken to the hospital, and he is still in danger.”

“Has the origin of the phone call been confirmed?” Lu Junchi speculated that this incident was extraordinary.

Why would someone make a phone call when no one on the bus knew what was happening? This fact reminded Lu Junchi of the Fine Sand case from two years ago; the methods used by the perpetrator were almost identical.

Qiao Ze anxiously replied, “The call was anonymous, made from a public telephone near a train station. The caller was male and didn’t say much before hanging up.”

“Can we retrieve the video footage from the bus?” Lu Junchi asked. If there was footage available, it could provide some leads for the investigation.

Qiao Ze said, “Although the rescue was timely, the bus was burned, so it’s unlikely that we can find the recording…”

The corridors of the city bureau were bustling with noise.

Lu Junchi furrowed his brows, Captain Xing Yunhai was critically injured and hospitalized, Director Tan suddenly fell ill, and the investigation results of the case were unclear.

Director Zou, who had been transferred, took over hastily, and the current situation was very unfavorable for the police.

Qiao Ze added, “The forensic team just arrived and sent over some pictures. They found some fine sand at the scene.”

Lu Junchi paused in his steps, looking down at the photos on Qiao Ze’s tablet. He recalled his recent conversation with Captain Xing Yunhai and what Su Hui had told him.

It was indeed fine sand…

In these types of bombs, fine sand was used as an isolating layer inside because it was lightweight and could be blown outside the blast radius by the wind. Although it would be partially damaged due to the explosion and burning, there would still be a small amount of uncontaminated sand remaining.

During the forensic examination, they always carefully collected and gathered these sands, storing them in glass bottles.

Those delicate colored sands, almost identical modus operandi, were equivalent to the signature of the original perpetrator.

Was it the resurrection of that killer from years ago, or had the police not yet seen through the truth?

Lu Junchi focused his gaze and furrowed his brows slightly.

Qiao Ze tentatively asked, “Should we send this information to Professor Su?”

Since it was a high-level meeting within the police bureau, Su Hui, as an advisor, couldn’t attend this time. He had rushed over to record the meeting. Qiao Ze had a premonition that this case might be handed over to the Major Crimes Unit.

Lu Junchi hesitated, and they stood outside the meeting room.

In a deep voice, he said, “Send it to him.”

If this incident was indeed the work of Fine Sand, then Su Hui would definitely want to be the first to know about the situation.

Qiao Ze was waiting for his words and swiftly sent the information with a few taps on his fingers.

Su Hui was sitting in his office, feeling somewhat nervous. He tightly held the new cane that Lu Junchi had bought for him.

Upon hearing about the explosion case and learning about Xing Yunhai’s severe injuries, he anxiously awaited updates. Suddenly, he heard a beep, indicating a message from Qiao Ze.

He opened it and found several pictures inside.

The last one was a photo of the sand found at the scene.

Today’s sand was in a shade between blue and green, a pure and deep blue. People gave this color a beautiful and fitting name – Peacock Blue.

Su Hui sent a message to Lu Junchi: “If possible, I’d like to take on this case.”