Chapter 8 8

Dai Charlie and Dai Jiaoqin lived in a luxurious mansion covering an area of ​​half an acre in Hancock Park.Two rows of agaves flank the front walkway, surrounded by knee-high hedges.The geometric composition of the whole house shows the confidence and superiority of man over nature. Both Dai and his wife are doctors, the husband is a professional cardiologist, and the wife is a doctor of internal medicine and ophthalmology.They are well-known in the community because, in addition to their normal outpatient clinics, they also run free children's clinics in East Los Angeles. They lost their eighteen-year-old daughter Angela when the 747 crashed.

The person who answered the door was Dai Jiaoqin. Joe had seen her photo in the news about the crash in the Post.About forty years old, tall and thin, with shiny black skin, thick curly hair, flexible eyes like two purple-black plums, with a kind of wild beauty.She wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses and wore no makeup.Wearing gray trousers and a white blouse, it is a fashionable style nowadays. When Joe told her his name, before he could say that his family was also on Flight 353, she unexpectedly exclaimed, "My God! We're talking about you!" "I?" She took Joe's hand and led him across the threshold into the marble-floored corridor, slamming the door shut with her hip, ignoring Joe's surprised eyes.

"Lisa was telling us about your wife and daughter, how you left your job, how you went away, and now you show up and you're here." "Lisa?" Joe was a little confused. The plainly dressed and dignified female doctor couldn't hide the excitement in her heart. She put her arms around Joe and kissed him so deeply that he almost couldn't stand still. Then stared into his eyes face to face and said excitedly: "She also visited you once, didn't she?" "Lisa?" "No, no. It's not Lisa, it's Rose." An inexplicable hope slipped into his heart like a stone skipping water.

"Yes, but—" "Come, come with me." She took Jo's hand again, and walked down the corridor toward the back of the house."We're right behind here - me, Charlie and Lisa," she said. He had never seen a bereaved parent so happy while attending a "compassion and care" gathering.Parents who lose a child usually spend five or six years just to get over the idea that they should die in their child's place, that it's selfish, a sin, even a crime to outlive a child. kind of evil.The Dai couple lost an eighteen-year-old daughter, which is different from sixty-year-old parents losing a thirty-year-old child.The loss of a child is one of life's greatest tragedies at any stage of life.

But this Dai Jiaoqin was like a little girl, with flushed cheeks and bright eyes from excitement.She took Joe to the end of the corridor, through a swinging door.In just one year, she seemed not only to recover from the loss of her beloved daughter, but to be better than ever. Qiao's glimmer of hope was gradually being dashed, because in his opinion, Dai Jiaoqin was an extremely superficial woman if she wasn't mentally ill.Her happy appearance made Joe feel inexplicably chilled. The lighting in the kitchen is dim, but the space can still be seen to be comfortably furnished. Maple floors, cabinets and tan granite counters.From shelves overhead, copper pots, frying pans, and other kitchen utensils hung like temple bells, waiting for evening lessons.

She led Joe through the kitchen, "Charlie, Lisa, look who's coming! Quite a miracle, right? " Outside the window is the backyard and swimming pool, and the water in the pool is shining with golden light under the light.At the end of the oval dining table, near the window, were three decorative glass oil lamps with flickering flames at their wicks. A tall, silver-haired man stood by the table.A well-groomed man—Dr. Charles Day. Dina dragged Joe over and said, "Charlie, this is Joe, Joe Carpenter." Charlie looked at Joe in amazement, and shook his hand warmly. "What's the matter, boy?"

"I want to know what's going on, too." "Something strange and wonderful happened." He seemed to be infected by his wife's enthusiasm, too. Lisa, whom Dacchin had mentioned, stood up from a chair at the table, her blonde hair glistening even more in the light.She is about forty years old, with a smooth face like a schoolgirl and light blue eyes. Joe knew her very well, they were former colleagues, and she was a reporter who specialized in major crime investigations—serial killers, pedophiles, rapists, etc. They dig other people's privacy, force themselves to immerse themselves in crazy and bloody stories, and seek the truth from the most barbaric and boring behaviors of human beings.Joe knew that she had been sexually abused a long time ago and spent her childhood under the influence of tyranny. She couldn't forget this terrible memory, so she tried hard to work hard.

She was the kindest, most hated, funniest, most troublesome person Jo had ever met.She is fearless but also often troubles herself. Her literary talent is excellent, and her articles can shock the world and make Jo jealous.She was one of Joe's best friends, but when his heart was buried with his family in the grave, as with other friends, Joe left her. "Joe," she said, "are you here because you're back at work, or because you're one of the main characters in the story?" "Because I'm one of the main characters in the story, I work. But no more wagging the pen. Stop relying on the magic of words."

"I'm not superstitious about anything." "Then what are you doing here?" he asked. "We called her a few hours ago," Jiaoqin said. "We asked her to come." "I don't mean to offend you," Charlie said, patting Joe on the shoulder, "but Lisa is the only reporter we know and respect." "It's been ten years," said Jiaoqin. "She volunteers eight hours a week at our free clinic." Joe never knew it, but he was sure of it. She couldn't help but smile awkwardly with her mouth crooked and said, "Yeah, Joe. I'm a regular Mother Teresa. But listen to me, you pighead, and don't tell the Post colleagues to damage my reputation." .”

"I'd like a drink. Does any of you want a drink? Good whiskey," asked Charlie eagerly, overwhelmed by his wife's inappropriate good humor.It seemed that they gathered here to celebrate the crash of Flight 353. "I don't want to." Joe was a little dizzy. "Just give me a little," Lisa said. "Me too," Jiaoqin said, "I'll get the cup." "No, honey, sit down, you sit with Joe and Lisa," Charlie said, "Leave everything to me." Jo sat around the table with the two women while Charlie went to the other end of the kitchen.Jiaoqin's face was illuminated by the oil lamp. "It's unbelievable, Lisa, that Rose saw him too."

Lisa's face was half in the light and half in shadow. "When, Joe?" "Today, at the cemetery, she was taking pictures of Michelle and the children's graveyard. She said she wasn't ready for a long talk with me...and walked away." Joe decided to hold back until he heard their story.On the one hand, he was eager to hear what they would say, and on the other hand, he wanted to make sure that what they said would not be influenced by him. "That couldn't be her," Lisa said. "She died in the plane crash." "That's the official word." "Then describe her." Lisa said. Joe described Rose's characteristics in detail, but he spent a lot of time trying to express the unique temperament of this woman. She has a charm that captivates all living beings. When Lisa listened to Joe's description, her eyes were full of emotions. "Rose has always had this kind of charismatic charisma that inspires crowds, even in college." "You know her?" "It was a long time ago. We went to the University of Los Angeles together. We were roommates. We were very close in those years." "That's why Charlie and I decided to call Lisa a while ago," says Djochin. "We knew she had a friend on Flight 353, but that was an hour after Rose left here, around midnight. Charlie suddenly remembered that Lisa had a friend named Rose, and we Knowing it must be the same person. We spent the day trying to figure out what to tell Lisa." "When did Rose come here?" asked Jo. "Yesterday evening," Jiaoqin said, "we were about to go out to dinner when she came suddenly and asked us to promise not to tell anyone what she told us... until she had a chance to see some of the residents again." Only after the families of the victims in Los Angeles. But last year Lisa was so depressed when she heard the news of the crash, and because she and Rose are good friends, we thought it shouldn't hurt. " "I'm not here as a reporter," Lisa told Joe. "You've always been a reporter." Jiaoqin said: "Lisa give us this." She took out a photo from her pocket and put it on the table. It was a photo of An Yanla's tombstone. Jiaoqin asked with anticipation in her eyes, "Joe, what do you see in here?" At the other end of the kitchen, Charlie Dai was rummaging through boxes and boxes and giving a fat look, "I'll tell you when Charlie comes over." Lisa said: "It's really weird Joe, I can't explain what they told me, I just know that I was scared to pee my pants." "Scares you?" Joe wondered. "Lisa, dear, what in this world can scare you?" "Just wait and see," Lisa said to Joe.This woman is usually bold and bold, but now she trembles like a reed in the wind. "But I assure you, Charlie and Della are clear minded people, and you'll have to keep that in mind when they get started." Lisa sighed and began to tell her story. "About this mystery: I'm also going to add something weird about my experience, Joe. I was at the Los Angeles airport tonight, a year ago, waiting for Rose's plane to land." Jiaoqin raised her head and said, "I didn't hear you say that." "Just as I was about to tell you," said Lisa, "Joe rang the bell." From the other end of the kitchen, there was the crisp sound of the cork being pulled out of the bottle. "I didn't see you at the airport that night, Lisa," Joe said. "I try not to stand out. On the one hand, I am worried about Rose, and on the other hand, I am also... afraid." "Are you going to pick her up?" "Rose called me from New York and asked me to wait for her at the Los Angeles airport with Hannette." Hannette is a photojournalist for the Post, and his disaster works hang on the wall of the Post's reception hall. Lisa's light blue eyes hinted at concern, "Rose is very depressed, she needs to talk to a reporter, and I'm the only reporter she knows and trusts." "Charlie," Dina said, "you should come and listen." "I can hear it, I can hear it," said Charlie, "I'm pouring a drink, it'll be fine in a minute." "Rose also gave me a list—six people she wanted to be there," Lisa said. "Old friends I haven't seen for many years came back, and I tried my best to inform five of them to come with me that night. They are all witnesses." Joe burst into ecstasy, and he asked, "Witness what?" "I don't know, she's tight-lipped. But excited, something that's got her so excited and terrified. She said she's going to step out of the plane with something that's going to change us all forever, change the world .” "Changing the world?" Joe said. "Every politician and entertainer thinks they can change the world." "Oh! But in this matter, Rose is right." With tears of excitement and joy in her eyes, Jiaoqin handed him the photo of the tombstone again. "It's really amazing." The flame of the oil lamp, which had been flickering steadily in the glass dome, suddenly rose a lot, but Jo didn't notice it.When Lisa turned her head to look at the lamp, the yellow firelight illuminated half of her originally dark face.Her eyes were as bright as the full moon hanging on the horizon. Pretty soon the flames were down again and Lisa said, "Yeah, that's right. That sounds a bit outrageous, but Rose isn't a big talker, and she's been involved in a huge job with six or seven For a long time, I believed her." There was a sound from the swing door between the kitchen and the downstairs hall, and De Charlie walked out without saying hello to the people in the house. "Charlie?" Dina stood up from the chair. "Where did he go? I really don't want him to miss this." Lisa told Joe: "I spoke to her on the phone a few hours before she boarded flight 353. Rose told me they were looking for her. Rose thought they didn't want her in LA. But just in case One, they'll figure out which flight she's on and wait for her. Rose wants us to be there so we can surround her as she exits the gate so they don't get muzzled. She'll tell me at the exit The whole story." "They?" Joe asked. Jiaoqin was going to follow Charlie to see what Charlie was doing, but after hearing Lisa's story, she sat back on the chair with great interest. "Rose is talking about the people she works for," Lisa said. "Tennok Company?" "Joe, you are not idle today." "I'm not idle in order to know the truth," he said, all but a hypothetical possibility, a very ugly one, in his mind at the moment. "You, me, and Rose are all involved. It's a small world, isn't it?" It made Joe sick to think of those people who had killed three hundred and twenty-nine innocent people for just one of their goals.He said, "Lisa, you don't think that plane will go down because Dulos is on it." Looking at the golden swimming pool outside the house, Lisa thought for a while, "I really thought so that night, but later, the investigation showed that there was no sign of a bomb explosion, and there was no conclusion in the end. If there was, it would be the mechanical parts." faults plus human negligence." "At least that's what they told us." "I spent some time undercover looking into the NTSB and it turns out they have a clean record. They're clean, good people, way better than the politicians." "But I believe Rose's claim that she is solely responsible for what happened. She firmly believes that everything happened because of her," Djochin said. "But even if she's directly responsible for your daughter's death," said Jo, "why do you still think she's wonderful?" Giovanni showed her charming smile again when she greeted Joe at the door, "You want to know why, Joe? Because by the time we know it, it'll be the end of the world." Joe asked Lisa angrily, "Who is Dorothy? What does she do for Technoco?" "She's an expert in genetic engineering, and top notch." "She has a specialization in DNA recombination research." Jiaoqin picked up the Polaroid photo again, and seemed to think that Joe should immediately understand the relationship between the tombstone photo and genetic engineering. "What the hell is she working on for Technoco?" Lisa said. What I told Gina and Charlie yesterday... I can sort of guess it. I just don't know how to believe it." Jo wondered at the way she used it—not "if" to believe it, but "how" to believe it. "What kind of company is Tenok?—what kind of company does he seem to be?" Lisa smiled faintly. "You have a good nose, Joe. A year has passed and it hasn't dulled your sense of smell. From what Rose has said over the past few years, I think you're on to something that is characteristic of the capitalist world—a company that can never be beaten. " "Can't be defeated?" Jiaoqin asked. "Because he has a generous partner behind him, who bears and covers up all failures." "You mean the military?" Joe asked in surprise. "Or some units of the government, certain organizations that are richer than any individual company in the world. From Rose, I have a feeling that the funds spent on research and development in this plan are by no means just a few million , they are in the billions.” At this moment, a gunshot was heard upstairs. Although the sound was covered up by the compartment a lot, the gunshots were absolutely correct. The three of them stood up at the same time, and Jiaoqin called out, "Charlie?" Maybe he had only met Bob and Claire not long ago, and Joe immediately thought of Fan Luola sitting naked on the chair in the backyard, holding the butcher knife in both hands, the point of the knife pointed towards her abdomen. The gunshots echoed through the house, and Jiaoqin yelled out in alarm, "Charlie!" When Jiaoqin was about to leave the table, Qiao stopped her and said, "No, wait a minute, I'll go, call 9-1, I'll go." Lisa said, "Joe—" "I know what it is," he said preconclusively. He wished he was wrong, he didn't know what was going on. Fan Luola's suicide has nothing to do with this.But if he's right, he can't let Jiaoqin be the first to arrive at the scene, in fact she shouldn't see this kind of scene, neither now nor in the future. "I know what's going on, call nine-one," he repeated as he crossed the living room and opened the swing door into the downstairs hall. Chandeliers in the hallway.The light flickers on and off, like the flickering lights in the torture chamber in old prison movies, because the governor's call came too late, and the condemned prisoner was scorched in the electric chair. When Joe ran to the stairs and was about to go up to the second floor, he was slowed down by the horror of seeing the expected terrible scene. The only ones who kill themselves are the ones who are out of their minds and think the mayor is a robot and evil aliens are watching us every second.What he couldn't understand was that Darich would go from being happy to being depressed and then committing suicide in just two minutes - just like when Lola died, she also went from a happy breakfast and a joke page of the newspaper to committing seppuku without even Leave a few words to explain her behavior. If the judgment is correct, the doctor still has a chance.Because a bullet might not kill him, maybe it could be saved.So the idea of ​​saving someone's life prompted Joe to overcome his fear, and went up two steps to the second floor. He passed several dark rooms, and he always opened the door to take a glance and left. Finally, at the end of the corridor, a A dim red light shone from behind a half-closed door. DeCharlie was lying on his back on the bed, and across his body was a short twelve-shot self-loading shotgun.Because of the short barrel, he could point the muzzle to his mouth and pull the trigger with ease.In spite of the dim light, Jo could see that there was no need to take a pulse.The farther of the two celadon vase lamps, the only source of light in the room, glowed dark red because the lampshade was sprayed with blood. On a Saturday night ten months ago, in the course of a news report, Joe visited the municipal morgue.Dead bodies wrapped in body bags on stretchers, and bodies lying naked on the autopsy table waiting for forensic examination circled Joe.Suddenly, hallucinations appeared in his mind, and all the bodies turned into the bodies of Michelle and the children.And from the stainless steel refrigerated mortuary, more dead climbed up, pleading with Joe to release them and return them to the world of the living.The assistant coroner beside him unzips a body bag. Jo saw a woman's pale face, her lipsticked mouth like a leaf fucked in the snow.The lifeless blue eyes were like two mirrors, from which Joe saw Michelle, Chris and Nina.He rushed out of the morgue and immediately tendered his resignation to his editor, Mr. Santos. Now, he turned quickly away from that bed, so as not to repeat the past, and the dead doctor became those lovely faces again.Joe heard a strange gasp, and at first he thought it was DeCharlie sucking in air from his battered face, before he realized it was his own gasp. The green numbers of the digital alarm clock on the bedside table are blinking, and the time on the clock face is jumping like crazy. Every blink is ten minutes, and the time is going backwards, jumping back from the evening to afternoon time.Apparently the alarm clock has been hit by a shotgun shot, but Joe has a crazy idea that this malfunctioning alarm clock has some kind of magic that can restore what happened to the time and space before it happened. De Charlie will be resurrected, the bullet will return to the barrel, and the body will heal from the shot.And Joe himself returned to the sunshine of the Santa Monica beach, and then returned to the apartment of that room in the moonlight, talking on the phone with Beth in Virginia.Time kept going back, back, until Flight 353 didn't crash in Colorado. At this time, the screams from downstairs shattered his fantasy.Then there was another scream, which he thought was Lisa.A woman as strong as her may have never screamed in her life, but this is indeed like the terrifying cry of a frightened child. He was out of the kitchen for at most a minute, what could happen in such a short time.Joe reached out to take the shotgun from the dead body. There should be a bullet in the chamber. "No, it's a suicide scene, the weapon is moved, it looks like murder, and I'm a suspect." So he decided not to move the gun.It's useless to take the theory, and he doesn't dare to bombard anyone with it.Besides, who else would be in the room besides Giovanni and Lisa? No one will. He sprinted down the stairs two steps at a time, holding on to the handrail of the stairs to keep his balance.His palms were sweating coldly as he slid along the mahogany railing.When he arrived in the downstairs hall, Joe heard a messy noise. He passed through the swing door and saw copper pots, frying pans and other kitchen utensils hanging on the shelves above his head, shaking from side to side and bumping into each other. The kitchen lights were still as subdued as when he left them.The overhead halogen lights seemed to be dying out.At the other end of the room, Lisa stood at the table, three oil lamps behind her cast flickering light.She clenched her fists and pressed her temples tightly, as if she wanted to crush her skull.Instead of screaming, she sobbed, moaned, and kept whispering to herself, "Oh, my God. Oh, my God." But what about Gina? Joe hurried to Lisa, and he caught a glimpse of the open bottle that DeCharlie had left on the counter, and the three whiskey glasses.Each glass radiates color like a jewel.A thought flashed through Joe's mind, could there be poison in the wine, or hallucinogens? When Lisa saw Joe approaching, she released her fist and lowered her hand from her temple.Sweat dripped down from her fingertips which had been painted with Hongdan.She let out a heart-piercing scream of horror that could not be described in words. On the floor at the end of the central counter, Dianqin lay sideways in front of Lisa.Her body was slightly bent, not like an unborn baby ready to face life, but like she was about to embrace death.Her two hands were still gripping the handle of the sharp knife stuck in her abdomen.Her tear-filled eyes were wide open, and her mouth twisted like a silent scream. The smell of blood brought Joe to the brink of panic again, and the familiar feeling of falling hit him again, a feeling of falling from a very high place, if Joe was defeated by it, he would not be able to help Lisa and the others. I am busy. Joe struggled to take his eyes off the horrible floor, trying to bring himself back from the brink of schizophrenia.He turned and walked towards Lisa, wanting to hold her in his arms for comfort, but Lisa turned her back to him. A sound of broken glass startled Joe, who thought it was the murderer who had entered the kitchen through the window.The result was not the window, but the two oil lamps in Lisa's hand. She grabbed the lampshade and broke the two spherical bases at the same time, causing the lamp oil to splash everywhere.In an instant, the desktop turned into a sea of ​​flames.Joe grabbed Lisa, trying to drag her away from the lingering flames, but she broke free from Joe's hand and grabbed the third lamp. "Lisa!" The photos of the Anyanla cemetery were also engulfed in flames, and the photos were burned up like a leaf on fire. Lisa poured lamp oil on the front of her clothes, and Joe was stunned on the spot.Flames blazed across the table, and lamp oil sizzled on the floor.Joe tried to approach her again, but Lisa picked up a handful of flames on the table with her palms like water from a basin, and wiped it on her chest.As Lisa's oil-soaked clothes caught fire, Jo drew back her outstretched hand and shouted, "No!" There was no scream, no moan, not even a sob, and she stood there with balls of fire churning like the goddess Diana, with a flaming moon in each palm.Lisa raised her palms to her face, hair.Jo staggered back away from the burning woman.Avoid the haunting sight and the stench, the mystery that frustrates his hopes. Lisa stood there miraculously, as calm as in the rain, and she turned around, seeming to be watching Joe through the smoke and flames, but luckily he couldn't see her face at all. This terrible sight shocked him, and Joe knew that he would be the next to die.He will not die from this fire, but will die by his own hands in weird ways such as swallowing a gun, cutting belly, and self-immolation.The plague of suicide hadn't reached him yet, but Joe knew there would be a moment.Lisa had already passed out, and she collapsed into a ball on the floor, but he still couldn't move. A burst of flames blew, and she seemed to turn into a luminous ghost and a shadowy ghost, climbing around the walls and ceiling.Some shadows are shadows, others are bands of ash. The piercing siren from the smoke detector in the kitchen pulled Joe from the trance back to the real world, and he escaped from this purgatory with ghosts and ghosts.Go through the turnstile and follow the hallway to the door.Joe felt that something was following him besides the blaring of the siren.Maybe a killer was hiding quietly in a dark corner of the kitchen before, but he didn't notice.As he reached for the doorknob, Joe expected a hand on his shoulder, turning him around, and he was stabbed to death amidst the murderer's grin. But there was no expected hand behind him.There was no explosive heat, but there was a hint of coolness that made his hair tremble.The coolness penetrated his spine and penetrated his forehead. He was so panic-stricken that he forgot how he had opened the door and left the house, only to find himself fleeing through the porch. Along the brick wall, he sprinted between the flower beds on either side.The huge flowers of the agave, like white monkey faces, watched him from among the thick leaves.Joe looked back and there was no one following him. The street was very quiet, despite the sirens of Dai's smoke detectors.But there wasn't a single car to be seen on the street, and no one was out for a walk on this hot August night.And no one stepped out onto the porches or lawns to see what the commotion was.The stately mansions in this neighborhood are all solidly built, and the high walls prevent screams, even gunshots, from reaching the ears of neighbors. Joe considered waiting for the fire brigade and the police to arrive, but he couldn't imagine how to describe what had happened in the house during the three or four fatal minutes.Moreover, the fire will destroy most of the evidence of suicide, and he will definitely be detained by the police for questioning, or even regarded as a suspect.What they saw was a man in deep distress, lost after the loss of his family.No job, living alone in an apartment over the garage.He was emaciated and thin, and his eyes were glazed.Hide 20,000 yuan in cash in the spare tire in the luggage compartment of the car.His circumstances and state of mind absolutely did not convince them of his story. And before he is released by the police, Techno Company and its partners will definitely find him and try their best to kill him.Just because Rose might have told him something Techno didn't want outsiders to know. Thinking of the huge power of Techno Company linked to the government or the military, if Joe goes to jail, he will definitely be killed by other bribed prisoners.If he escapes prison, he will be followed after his release, and he will be removed at every opportunity. To avoid being noticed, Joe didn't have to run.He walked across the street to his car.The window of Dai's kitchen exploded with a bang, accompanied by the sound of glass falling to the ground.The smoke detector siren is louder than before. Joe looked back towards Dai's house and saw flames rising from behind the house.Lamp oil fueled the flames, and flames had spread through the downstairs walls through the front door he had left open. He got into the car and closed the door.Blood was found on the right hand, but not his blood.Heartbroken, Joe grabbed a stack of tissues to wipe her hands, then crumpled up the wipes and dropped them into the bag that had held the burgers. "Evidence!" he thought to himself.Although he did not commit a crime. The world has been turned upside down. Lies are taken as truth, and truths are taken as lies.The impossible is seen as possible, the innocent is seen as guilty.He reached into his pocket for the car keys and started the engine. Not only the siren of the smoke detector came from the broken window of the rear seat, but also the yelling of the neighbors, yelling in horror in the summer night.Make sure that their attention is focused on the Dai family mansion, and no one has noticed his departure.Joe turned on his headlights and drove slowly up the street. Lovely old Georgian house, now the house of the dragon.Flames burst from every room, and the dead inside were wiped out.At this time, the sound of sirens came one after another in the distance, which seemed to be a mourning for them.