A wind rose out of nowhere, whipping up the yellow sand on the ground until it was impossible to keep one's eyes open.
When the wind died and the sand settled, Yin Chao looked toward the fence again. The little girl was gone.
Perhaps Andy noticed his concern.
Andy gently reassured him, "Don't worry, Officer. Elena has always been looked after by a charity in Small Town."
"A charity?" Yin Chao asked. "What about her parents?"
"Elena's parents died in a fire. She was the only survivor..."
Andy sighed. "Come to think of it, there really was something strange about that incident."
But Andy didn't say anything more about what made it strange.
Andy merely said something urgent had come up, then hurriedly said goodbye.
The dusky yellow glow on the horizon remained unchanged as time passed. Yin Chao held the little boy's hand and waited outside the school.
Static crackled from the walkie-talkie.
Yin Chao raised it to his ear but heard no voices.
He had no choice but to press the transmit button and try to contact the others.
"Can you hear me? Why aren't you here yet? Did you run into trouble?"
No one answered.
The walkie-talkie was as silent as a broken ornament.
And it wasn't just the walkie-talkie. Their surroundings were quiet too.
The little boy said nothing, obediently letting Yin Chao hold his hand.
At last, a voice came through the walkie-talkie.
"Hello? Hello? Can you hear me? I'm at the school entrance. Where are you guys?"
It was Lin Erba's voice.
He no longer sounded as timid as he had when they first met. There was an irritating edge to his tone now.
Yin Chao raised the walkie-talkie. "I'm at the school entrance too. Why can't I see you?"
Lin Erba said, "No