stonecrandall Chapter 190 Reencounter with the "Phantom"
Chapter 190 Reencounter with the "Phantom"
Lin Feng glanced at her noncommittally, smiled, and didn't respond to the conversation, refocusing his attention on the patrol.
Evelyn also forced herself to stay alert and leaned over the observation window to check the prisoners' conditions, glancing at Lin Feng's records every now and then.
The two of them maintained their silent rhythm in tacit understanding as they moved forward along the prison doors.
Until they stood in front of the alloy door of cell number 7.
According to the manual, prisoner number 7 was listed as a high-priority guard:
Prisoner number 7 is deaf and mute and cannot speak. If he speaks to you, regardless of what he says, immediately close your eyes and count to 30 silently.
The observation window was dimly lit.
A thin, human figure could be vaguely seen sitting with his back to the door, motionless, like a statue embedded in the darkness.
The food at the food delivery port has been removed.
Lin Feng picked up the "Prison Situation Inspection Record Form," his pen hovering above the "No Abnormalities" option, ready to strike.
Just then, the humanoid figure with its back to them twitched its shoulder very slightly.
Then, a clear, steady baritone voice, devoid of any emotional fluctuation, pierced through the thick alloy door without warning and crashed directly into their ears:
"Evelyn, your father did not die in the car accident three years ago."
"He has simply lost his memory and is now living a peaceful life in a small town in the Fog City."
That short sentence struck Evelyn's mind like a thunderbolt.
Evelyn's face drained of all color instantly, her emerald eyes widened abruptly, her lips trembled, and she froze on the spot, forgetting even to breathe.
Her father's "car accident" has been a persistent obsession for her for the past three years.
From receiving a vague report, to the police suggesting she obtain a death certificate based on physical evidence at the scene, to her solo interviews with witnesses and reviewing incomplete road condition reports...
Every futile pursuit is like adding new sand to an old wound.
It causes pain and hardship, but it also makes it an indispensable part of the body.
She refused to sign the papers, firmly believing that her father was simply missing, not a cold, hard death certificate.
At that moment, a strange prisoner, with a single, understated sentence, precisely rekindled the flame of hope that was about to be extinguished.
That voice was like a beam of light, piercing through the gloom of her three years of fruitless searching, instantly confirming all her perseverance—
Father is really not dead!
The immense shock made her tremble, her heart filled with the excitement and elation of "I knew it!" The warnings in the manual had long been forgotten.
Lin Feng's gaze swept over Evelyn's distraught appearance, and he immediately realized that she had completely forgotten the procedure.
At the critical moment, Lin Feng suddenly reached out and covered Evelyn's eyes with his palm.
At the same time, he lowered his voice and said urgently in her ear with a forceful tone, "Don't think about it! Silently count to 30 right now!"
Evelyn's body trembled violently, and she was suddenly jolted awake, her mind, which had been disrupted by the enormous impact, regaining some of its clarity.
She bit her lower lip hard, forcing herself to banish the thoughts churning in her mind, and began to mechanically count in her head.
Lin Feng kept covering his eyes, and he also kept his eyes tightly closed, while tensing up all the nerves in his body.
The terrifyingly steady baritone voice continued in my ears, with a seductive power, trying to penetrate deep into my eardrums.
But he held his mind firmly, refusing to listen or think, focusing solely on silently counting the numbers.
"...Twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty!"
The moment they counted to the last number, Lin Feng and Evelyn opened their eyes almost simultaneously.
Lin Feng slowly withdrew his hand, his palm already damp and cold.
Before them, through the observation window of cell number 7, the gaunt human figure remained motionless, his back to the door, as if the words he had just spoken were merely a shared illusion.
The only sounds in the corridor were the slightly rapid breathing of the two people.
Lin Feng calmed himself and began ticking off the "abnormalities" on the "Prison Patrol Record Form":
Cell number: Δ-7
[Behavioral state: Sitting still (with slight shoulder movement during the period, possibly indicating a pre-existing movement)]
[Appearance/Status: Unobservable (always facing away from the observation window)]
[Plate Status: Eaten]
[Special Circumstances: Contrary to the "deaf and mute" label on the records, they actively used clear human voices to engage in psychological manipulation, and the content involved the privacy of the patrol personnel's relatives, demonstrating a high degree of targeting and inflammatory intent.]
【Remark:】
[The incident triggered the response clause. We have followed the procedure by closing our eyes and silently counting to 30 seconds. No further contact has been made.]
[It is recommended that the prisoner's risk rating for mental pollution be raised.]
Evelyn looked up at Lin Feng, the shock in her eyes not yet completely gone, but her voice was much steadyer: "Thank you."
"It's nothing." Lin Feng put away the patrol sheet, his tone calm. "Continue the patrol."
The two walked side by side, and the sound of their military boots hitting the ground became regular again.
The subsequent inspections of the cells went exceptionally smoothly until, as they crossed the metal door of cell number 36, an overly rich, sweet fragrance wafted over without warning.
The fragrance, like an invisible vine, silently crept into the nasal cavity, winding around the nerve endings with each breath, carrying a touch of alluring stickiness.
"It's the Phantom from cell 37!" Evelyn's voice tightened instantly, her eyes fixed warily on the closed alloy door in front of her.
Lin Feng's gaze darkened slightly, and he simply uttered, "I'll be careful."
As soon as he finished speaking, he strode over.
Through the observation window, he saw that warm yellow light was shining in room 37, softly enveloping a graceful figure.
The woman wore an ordinary, plain white prison uniform, yet she wore it with the grace and elegance of a long dress.
Her long, jet-black hair was loosely tied back, with a few stray strands falling beside her neck, swaying slightly with her light breaths, adding a touch of fragile gentleness.
As if sensing the gaze from outside the door, the woman slowly raised her eyes.
A pair of almond-shaped eyes, brimming with moisture, met Lin Feng's gaze precisely.
Those eyes were extremely beautiful, with slightly upturned corners, but instead of a sharp, vibrant look, they conveyed a softness that was three parts aggrieved and three parts timid.
Like a frightened fawn with nowhere to hide, she made one's heart tighten and almost instinctively want to protect her.
"Officer..." Phantom's voice came through the alloy door, soft as cotton soaked in honey, "It's too quiet here...it's eerily quiet, there's no one to talk to. Could you...stay with me a little longer?"
As soon as he finished speaking, the scene inside the observation window suddenly distorted.
The warm glow enveloped the woman's figure, making it even more hazy.
Her plain white prison uniform seemed to fade away like water, replaced by a black silk slip dress, the hem barely covering her upper thighs.
She raised her hand and let her loosely tied long hair fall completely, the black strands reaching her waist. Her fingertips traced her collarbone, and her voice changed from a soft plea to a breathy whisper:
"Officer~" She leaned closer, the neckline of her nightgown slipping down slightly with the movement. "I...I feel so cold...Could you...hug me?"