My House of Horrors

Chen Ge knew that the ghost stories society was going to make their move, but he did not expect it to be so soon!

“That Doctor Chen is suspicious. I’ve seen that name in the letters written by the Third Sick Hall’s old president, but they were addressed to Linjiang New Schistosomiasis Control Station.” The surname Chen was very common, so when Chen Ge heard about Doctor Chen, he did not think much of it. After all, the letter was addressed to the control station, not Jiujiang’s Children’s Home.

“Jiang Ling has gone missing?” Captain Yan looked at the picture on the table; he was getting more intrigued by Chen Ge. The man not only had very powerful observational skills but also a special instinct and talent, one that Captain Yan felt the man himself did not realize.

“Three people have gone missing. Fan Yu, Jiang Ling, and the doctor, who was supposed to be with them.”

“The doctor is a patient in disguise?” Captain Yan could not believe a patient would turn up as a doctor years later.

“We still cannot confirm that doctor’s identity.” After hanging up, Chen Ge forced himself to calm down. Based on his analysis, of the remaining three society members, two were from the Third Sick Hall, and one of them had met him in real life before. The one who was familiar with him could be the chairperson!

He had met Doctor Chen once when he visited Jiujiang’s Children’s Home, so the chance of him being the chairperson was slim.

“Captain Yan, can you go through all the information on the workers here starting from five years ago; there might be a detail on the killer.” The letter at the Third Sick Hall was addressed to this place, so the old president’s correspondent should have working here back then.”

“Okay. I’ll get Ol’ Wei to follow you to Jiujiang’s Children’s Home. Go take a look around and leave the investigation here to me.” Captain Yan called Ol’ Wei over on the walkie-talkie. It was Ol’ Wei who had driven Chen Ge when they were saving Gu Feiyu. Chen Ge did not reject Captain Yan’s kindness. He might need to travel to many places that night, and being with Ol’ Wei would be more convenient.

“Captain Yan, you’re looking for me?” Ol’ Wei would retire in a few months. Normally, Captain Yan would not send him to the frontlines—he wanted to let the senior officer enjoy a few peaceful months before his retirement.

“You’ll be partnering with Chen Ge tonight, take good care of him.”

“Understood!”

When Captain Yan brought Ol’ Wei up to speed, Chen Ge was still trying to understand the connection between Jiang Ling, the ghost stories society, and the New Schistosomiasis Control Station.

Chen Ge leaned against the table. There has to be a reason the ghost stories society selected their last victim from this place, and several years ago, the old president was also conversing with someone working here. The key question is, what is the connection between the New Schistosomiasis Control Station and the girl from Coffin Village?

“Chen Ge, don’t waste time. Both of you move out immediately.” Captain Yan patted Chen Ge’s shoulders. He assumed that Chen Ge was worried about Fan Yu and Jiang Lin. “I’m sure the two kids are safe.”

“I’m thinking about something else.” Chen Ge suddenly turned around to face Captain Yan. “You told me before that Jiang Ling’s former caretaker was found inside an old home at Lin Guan Village.”

“Yes.” Captain Yan did not know where Chen Ge was going with this.

“That person bought blood before she died!” Chen Ge’s eyes sparkled. “There has to be a connection between Jiang Ling, this New Schistosomiasis Control Station, and the patients from Third Sick Hall, and I believe that connection is related to blood.”

“You misunderstood something; this New Schistosomiasis Control Station doesn’t have blood storage.” Captain Yan shook his head. “This place mainly deals with prevention of diseases contracted via blood. You can call it a specialist hospital.”

“Then could there be another possibility. They’re breeding a special kind of parasite that needs human blood to survive? Or it’s not a parasite but something else that need human blood to survive. The patients need this, and Jiang Ling has this!”

Chen Ge voiced his opinion, and it confused Captain Yan and Ol’ Wei. Chen Ge only explained half of his thought; Jiang Ling was Coffin Village’s final seed. Most of villagers from that village were born with abnormalities, and the rate of occurrence was too high to be explained by close marriage. Chen Ge now suspected that the abnormality was caused by this thing.

“Go to the Children’s Home first. I’ll have someone inspect the station closely. If there’s any update, I’ll inform you.” Captain Yan thought about what Chen Ge said, and he believed it could be a good opening.

“Be careful, it’s best if the investigation is done in groups.” Chen Ge was worried. The thing the society wanted might not be a physical parasite; it could be a curse or even a rare Specter.

The sky was dark when Ol’ Wei drove Chen Ge to the Children’s Home in the police car. When they arrived, the old guard and nurse were already waiting for them.

“We cannot find them, and the camera at the front door didn’t catch them. They should have slipped out through another channel.” The guard was feeling guilty.

“Bring us to the room where Fan Yu and Jiang Ling were last seen.” If this was really the society, then it was normal for them to miss the clues.

“Follow me.” The nurse led Chen Ge into the counselling room. The room was painted brightly and could make people feel relaxed as they walk in.

“At 4 pm, the two children were still playing in here, but when I came to take a look, they had disappeared,” the nurse explained as she fidgeted all over the place.

“Calm down.” Chen Ge did not touch anything in the room and just looked around. “There’s no sign of struggle, and everything is in its place; the two children probably left voluntarily.”

“Could it be Doctor Chen who brought them away? Impossible! Doctor Chen is a good man. He had saved many children here, giving them the courage to face life again.” The nurse’s voice turned loud; she refused to accept this reality.

“Sometimes a good person and a bad person is just a thought away.” Chen Ge walked to the table where he saw several weird drawings. In the first drawing, two black people were sitting in the middle, and a red person with a long body reached in through the window.

This should be Fan Yu’s; he’s leaving me clues. Chen Ge picked up the drawing. The black ones are people, and red ones, ghosts. Looks like the society has really targeted Jiang Ling.

He flipped over to the second picture, and a red woman shaped like a spider tore the ghost that was reaching through the window apart. She seemed to be feasting. Jiang Ling’s sister saved them. Of course, with Jiang Ling’s sister around, unless the society came with full force, they wouldn’t be able to hurt them.

Chen Ge turned to the third drawing. Under the protection of the spider lady, the two black people walked into a door, and beside the door was something written in red crayon—Going home.