The flashlight in He Xiaoru’s hand stopped flickering and the light shone on the shadowy figure on the ground.

​

It wasn’t Kitty, but a skinless monster whose blood vessels had burst as the red liquid poured all around it.

​

Xiaoru and I screamed loudly, running as fast as we could towards the street. The monster’s cry reached my ears, "Brother, you promised to help me find Kitty!"

​

I ran faster. As soon as I reached the end of the front yard I fell down on the street and felt blood pour out of my head.

The lights in the street began to flicker, making the whole street feel like a nightmarish scene. I felt pain everywhere. Blood got into my eyes, I couldn’t open them anymore, even though I tried many times.

​

Blue and red lights flashed alternatingly. There was a loud sound, but I couldn’t recognize it.

​

My vision blurred, my surroundings were noisy and were getting louder. I felt like I was being raised up by others. It was clear that I had failed to run away.

​

My whole body was in pain. I regained my consciousness faintly. I awoke to a familiar voice, "Are you awake?"

​

I tried to open my eyes. I was lying on a bed. The weather outside was sunny. Wu Jian was sitting by my side, smoking a cigarette.

​

I tried witting up with all my strength, while Wu Jian just watched instead of helping me. My forehead became sweaty.

​

"What's wrong with me?" I licked my dry, cracked lips.

​

Wu Jian flipped his cigarette, saying casually, "You’re fine; you just fell down. Then landed on a stone. You’re not dead..."

​

Obviously I wasn’t dead. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be in the hospital, or in so much pain.

​

"Why were you in Building No. 108 last night? Did you have another bad feeling?"

​

Building No. 108? Wu Jian’s word confused me for a while.

​

"Oh, I’m referring to the ghost house you often mentioned while you were out."

​

The memory of the ghost house came flooding back into my mind, making me shiver despite the warm sunlight.

​

"Are you frightened?" Wu Jian’s tone remained insipid.

​

I nodded silently, "What happened last night?"

​

"What a coincidence! That’s what I was about to ask you. Why don’t you tell me the beginning, middle, and climax? I can fill you in on the details of the end."

​

I hated the way he talked to me.

​

I hesitated saying anything, but I still replied. "Even if I do tell you, you won’t trust me."

​

"I trust you." Wu Jian’s words remained firm.

​

I had already heard "I trust you" many times from this guy. I wasn’t impressed.

​

Wu Jian noticed the silence. Putting out his cigarette, he began to speak.

​

Last night, some people called the police because several children had gone to the ghost house and never came back. As the guardians of the common people, we went out to find them. To our surprise, we saw you running out as if you were being chased by ghosts. Finally, you valiantly fainted after you fell onto a stone.

​

Did I mention I hate the way Wu Jian talks?

​

"What about Xiaoru?" I asked.

​

Wu Jian’s eyebrows curved inward to display a questioning look, "Who is Xiaoru?"

​

Now, I was also confused, "She’s the girl who ran out of the ghost house with me."

​

"My colleague said he only saw you running out of the ghost house."

​

"Only me? But where is Xiaoru? I remembered clearly that I held her hand as I ran out."

​

Wu Jian got serious, "You mean there was a girl who went inside the ghost house with you?"

​

I nodded immediately.

​

Wu Jian took out a pen and notebook. "Tell me everything you know."

​

Now that Xiaoru was involved, I explained everything, no matter how strange it was.

​

His face changed ceaselessly as I talked. In the end, his face was blank, yet baffled. That was the first time I’d seen that look since I’d met him.

​

For a long time, Wu Jian just stared at me with a strange look.

​

His eyes began making me uncomfortable, so I said, "Whether you trust me or not, it’s the truth."

​

"I trust you, we’ll take a break now. I’m going to step outside." Wu Jian stood up and went outside.

​

I didn't want to say any more anyway after hearing him say the word "trust" again. As he was stepping out, I shouted after him, "What about the others?"

​

Wu Jian opened the door and stepped out, saying without turning his head, "I’ll tell you about that later."

​

Although my head hurt, it wasn’t serious. My head was bound with gauze instead of stitches, and I looked like a patient.

​

Wu Jian returned the next afternoon. He lit a cigarette after he stepping into the ward.

​

I started getting concerned with his silence, "What's going on?" I asked.

​

Wu Jian didn’t look up, “What do you mean?”

​

"Xiaoru, Chen Kai and his friends, and… the ghost house.” I hesitated.

​

Wu Jian picked his eyebrows, "I’ve searched for He Xiaoru. She was an employee in a phone store across the street. However, we could not find her. As for those three children, they are all dead. There is a lot of gossip about No.108. It is said the government plans to destroy that building to control the situation.

​

"What do you mean?" Now it was my turn to ask.

​

Wu Jian stared at me with a sad look, "He Xiaoru hasn’t come to work for several days and there’s nobody at her home. I’m trying to contact her family now."

​

I fought an urge to slap his face. Why hadn’t he started looking for her relatives immediately?

​

Wu Jian seemed to know what I was thinking and continued, "Don't worry. My colleagues are already searching. By the way, do you know how those three children died? The forensics doctor believes the boys ate themselves to death. However, their stomachs were empty. The strange girl's body was riddled with bullet holes. She seems to have been killed by a machine gun.”

​

Hearing his words, I was stunned. The cause of death of those three, young, teenagers was beyond my imagination.

​

"Now, I’m curious as to how it’s possible that you stayed alive and where He Xiaoru is.” He sighed. “I hate these kind of cases."

"Are there many cases like this one?" I asked, kind of hoping I wasn’t alone.

​

"Not many, but strange cases like this one show up occasionally. Don’t change the subject! Tell me how you managed to stay alive."

I shook my head, because I really didn't know. Perhaps, it was because I had lit the paper money for them, or because I never went to the second floor on my own accord.

​

Wu Jian didn’t seem to hope for a good answer from me. He lit another cigarette with the smoldering butt of the first and puffed slowly, spitting out two smoke rings.