The Devil’s Cage

The scream shook McRose, her face turning for the worse.

Instinctively, she ran towards the little lake.

When McRose arrived beside the lake, the workers and the nurses from the sanatorium were already forming a crowd and whispering among themselves. Their topic was the body floating in the lake.

Anyone could tell with a single glance that the swollen body had been dead for a while.

One of the people in charge of the sanatorium gave orders to two strong male workers to bring the body back to land.

When the body was successfully brought back in, McRose ran over for a check.

Based on her experience and the swelling of the body, the person has been dead for at least 3 days.

McRose had just finished a call with her teacher, so it wasn’t who she thought it was!

She heaved a breath of relief.

“Call the police! Leave the body here and nobody touches it from now on!” McRose said quickly.

Her professionalism made her remind the person in charge of the sanatorium.

The person in charge, a middle-aged woman, obviously knew McRose, so she did not hesitate and called the police from her phone.

After the call was made, the woman told the male workers to stand guard by the body before she walked towards McRose.

“Rose, are you here for Adams?” asked the woman as she took a peek at Kieran.

Her little peek was judgmental, not the kind of a stranger but the invasive kind that would happen when her daughter brought a boy home.

It seemed mild but was actually sharp and slightly offensive. Coupled with her formal attire with a hair bun tied up top, she looked like she had done this before many times and it increased the ‘offensive’ aura of hers.

After she realized Kieran was calm, or as far as dull, she was slightly stunned.

She then showed a satisfied smile.

“Who is this gentleman? Are you going to introduce him?”

“2567, a friend. This is Lady Hennessy, the person in charge of Water & Sunshine Sanatorium and my teacher’s friend,” McRose simply introduced the two.

However, her vague description made this Lady Henessy think even more, retaining her smile and extending her hand for a shake.

“Hello, 2567.”

“Hello, Lady Hennessy.”

The hands split quickly after the shake and instead of leaving, Henessy asked, “How old are you? What field are you in? Do you have a house in Moon City?”

She wasn’t fast or slow, her tone rather kind but persistent. When she asked all the questions, Hennessy glued her eyes on Kieran, trying to spot any kind of expression on his face.

“27, a psychologist, and bought a semi-D on Elm Street Street,” Kieran replied without any expression, because what he said was the truth.

The age was his current identity’s age, so was the occupation and the house. He did not lie.

When Hennessy heard Kieran’s reply, her eyes glinted and looked even kinder.

A perfect age, a proper occupation, and a decent income, an excellent choice!

“Stay for some afternoon tea, we do have some good pastries here…”

“Lady Hennessy, we are here for my teacher.”

Before Kieran could reply, McRose stopped Hennessy before she dragged Kieran to the main building.

They left quickly and managed to enter the building’s corridor. McRose was looking embarrassed and apologetic.

“I’m sorry, Lady Hennessy means well. S-She’s just worried about me,” McRose stuttered.

Kieran on the other hand was baffled by the situation.

He did feel something unusual from Hennessy but for a 17 years old who had to hustle his way out of life from the day he was born, what’s a blind date?

Was it edible? Was it delicious? Could it be refilled?

Kieran had fought countless battles and overcame many kinds of danger, running into many kinds of enemies but a blind date still baffled him. He had never encountered such things before and had no memories he could take reference from, so he had no idea what McRose and Hennessy meant with their words.

Speaking from a certain angle, Kieran couldn’t even understand feelings, but it didn’t stop him from dealing with it in his own way.

“Is it? If you both are close, remember to pack some pastries for me when we leave,” said Kieran.

“Sure! That won’t be a problem! The pastries here are really good!”

McRose thought Kieran provided her a flight of stairs for her to step down, an embarrassed smile hanging over her face while she nodded repeatedly. She then strode further inside the building.

She didn’t go up the elevator but the stairs.

While they were going up the stairs, the embarrassment on her face was quickly replaced by doubt.

“Do you think teacher is related to this incident?”

Troubled, McRose asked Kieran the question that lingered in her mind.

“What do you think?” Kieran asked back.

McRose went quiet.

Shortly after she called her teacher, inquiring about the secret slaughtering, a man appeared in the morgue, strapped her on the operation chair, and tried to eat her alive.

She’d rather die than believe the incident and her teacher were unrelated, but at the same time, she didn’t want to believe her teacher, who had been so good to her in the past, would do such things.

There is a good and a bad side in humans, it’s like a tossed coin with two different sides.

It kept spinning in the air, showing off either of its sides and before it truly landed, no one could tell whether it was heads or tails.

In the place of answer was nervousness, waiting for it.

McRose was feeling nervous right now.

Standing before room 404, she hesitated for a while before knocking on it.

Knock, knock knock.

“Come in.”

A weak voice sounding, McRose entered with clenched teeth.

The room behind the door was around 30 square meters big, looking like a living room rather than a ward. There was a sofa, tea table, book racks, study desk, and a tv. If it wasn’t for that sick bed, it would look like a cosy family hotel.

“Rose.”

The middle-aged man on the sick bed saw McRose enter, placing his book aside and showing a smile before he tried to sit up.

“Teacher, you don’t have to get up,” McRose ran over and persuaded her teacher.

Kieran could tell the man was missing a leg underneath the sheets.

“2567?”

The man waved at McRose, stating that he’d like to get up to look at Kieran before he called out to his name.

“Do you know him, teacher?”

“The youngest winner of the Fervon Psychology Prize, it sounds like thunder in my ears. He…”

“Aaaaaah! Someone died!”

Before the man finished, a scream stopped him.

McRose’s face turned bad when she heard the scream.

‘What is going on? Someone died again?’

Although she was a pathologist and worked with corpses all day long, running into the dead outside her lab was quite rare, probably near zero.

This kind of situation where she’d encounter two deaths consecutively was a first in her life.

“Rose, can you go have a look? Maybe Hennessy can use a helping hand,” said the man to McRose.

She did not argue with her teacher, throwing a meaningful gaze at Kieran before she left.

Her gaze was like saying ‘I’ll leave this to you’, and Kieran could tell McRose was a little bit grateful when she closed the door.

It was a relief for McRose for not asking that kind of question to the teacher that she respected.

Running away was part of human nature.

Shameful in the eyes of the strong but sometimes it worked efficiently, for a time.

When the door was shut, Kieran was left alone with the teacher.

“Allow me to introduce myself. I’m Adams.”

His voice was kind and he tried to extend his hand for a handshake but since his hands were supporting his body, he could not spare any more energy for the action.

“I’m sorry, I guess my body is worse than I thought,” said Adams, apologetically.

“You are doing great even as a common man. It’s good enough,” Kieran’s words had a double meaning.

“Is it? But what’s good in doing great? Things happened, and it’s irreversible.”

Adams mocked himself and his voice started to sound slower; his eyes were looking at the ceiling, as if he was reminiscing about something.

He then turned to Kieran, “It’s hard to understand right? Or should I say, you are in pain? Believe me, I’ve been through that as well, we shared a similar fate.”

Adams sighed, it seemed like he was prepared to reveal everything but his words took a sharp turn at the next moment.

“Sorry, I tend to say weird things as I get older, hope you don’t mind. I’m a little tired, I’d like to rest now, can you close the door when you leave,” Adams requested.

“Sure.”

Kieran had a good, deep look at the man before he nodded.

He turned around and left without any hesitation. After the door was closed, he didn’t leave but stood at the entrance, waiting.

A few seconds later, Inspector Gredith showed up and looked at Kieran with a weird look.

“Are you the grim reaper?” Gredith asked seriously.

“I’m not,” Kieran too replied seriously.

“Then can you explain what is going on? Why is death following you like your shadow? You are really like your ex-wife!” Gredith purposely lowered her volume but her eyes were sharp, as if it’d pierce Kieran’s heart.

“Maybe it’s all a coincidence?” Kieran replied.

“Coincidence? Do you believe in coincidence?” She asked.

“No,” Kieran replied firmly.

“If you don’t, then can you tell me why all these ominous things happen around you?” Gredith couldn’t help as her voice got louder.

“Maybe it’s fate?” Kieran replied.

“Fate?!” Gredith coldly grunted, she looked at Kieran and said, “I thought I was overthinking before, but now it seems like you are much more dangerous than I thought! I hope you are not playing a role in all these, otherwise I’ll get you!”

Gredith then knocked on the door.

With Adams’ permission, Gredith entered the room.

The door shut again. McRose, who followed Gredith back here, was quiet throughout the conversation, thinking she ought to defend the inspector after this. It was then that she saw a meaningful smile on Kieran’s face after the door closed.

McRose felt a little bit creepy at Kieran’s smile, feeling like the smile shared similarities to the fangs the predators showed before a hunt in a documentary show.

Not just ferocious but spine-chilling.

“Gredith doesn’t mean it, she’s just anxious. Just now… Come with me and you’ll understand.”

McRose wanted to hold Kieran’s hand but Kieran avoided her quickly.

“Lead the way,” he said.

McRose ran back down the stairs and Kieran followed her back to the little lake.

A yellow police line was set up around the death scene.

An officer was standing outside the line, preventing the crowd from going near.

In fact, the crowd did not even get near, a single glance at the scene would strike fear in their heart because there were 7 bodies lined up behind the officer.

The bodies were covered in white cloths as it blocked curious gazes.

If a single body appeared in the lake, it may still be explainable by saying it was an accident but 7 at once?

Murder! And not just any murder but a planned one!

If that was the case, will there be an 8th?

A serial killer was hiding in the dark, fear starting to spread in the common hearts.

Fear wasn’t the plague but it’d spread quicker than one.

When Kieran arrived beside the lake, no matter how hard Lady Hennessy explained, some of the tenants had decided to leave.

“Lady Hennessy, this is too scary! I can’t sleep well here!”

“Yes! Yes!”

“I don’t want to die in my sleep!”

“Please! Let us leave!”

The scared voice sounded in succession among the crowd.

One person started it and it could not be stopped.

Lady Hennessy’s voice was overpowered.

Just when the crowd decided to leave forcefully, the inspector’s assistant shouted.

“No one leaves the scene! Before the investigation is over, everyone here is a suspect!”

The officers at the entrance even put their hands on their holster.

The powerful action scared the crowd back, those who caused the scene starting to retreat.

Kieran glanced over the crowd. While they were being distracted by the police, he walked over to the 7 bodies in white cloths.

A quick check later, he furrowed his brows tightly.