My House of Horrors

The space inside the bus became cold and oppressive like something was standing next to Chen Ge, but he could not see it clearly. The middle-aged woman slowly removed her hands from the pocket, and her body was shaking. Without waiting for another order from Chen Ge, she moved the boy to the seat next to the aisle.

Chen Ge picked up the boy from the seat. He still had some warmth, and Chen Ge could hear the heart beating. The boy was alive.

Why would the woman bring the child to Eastern Jiujiang? Is it because they believe a child has an easier time to become a door-pusher?

Having witnessed many tragedies in Eastern Jiujiang, Chen Ge had noticed that the main characters of these stories were mostly children, but he still had not figured out why yet.

Chen Ge walked to the backdoor. He did not get off nor did he hand the boy over to the woman in the raincoat directly. He had heard Fan Chong say that one of the endings of the game was Xiao Bu being taken by the woman in the red raincoat. The woman was not Xiao Bu’s mother, but she had still taken Xiao Bu with her and treated Xiao Bu as her child’s replacement.

Chen Ge was unsure whether this ending was good or bad. Compared to death, it was better, but this was unfair to Xiao Bu. This situation that he was facing then was similar to the game. The boy was unconscious, and no one could tell whether he was the woman’s child. If he handed the boy to the woman in the raincoat, she would not reject it and would probably treat the boy as her child’s replacement.

Touching the boy’s face, Chen Ge asked the woman outside, “Is he your child?”

The woman’s gaze softened. She did not answer Chen Ge’s question but took one step forward.

“Looks like he’s not.” Chen Ge had been staring at the woman. A mother who would stand in the heavy rain to wait for her child would definitely not act so calmly if the child that she had lost had been found. Chen Ge took one step back and placed the boy on the seat next to him.

When the woman in the red raincoat saw that, her mouth that was sewn shut by red threads started to growl. The gentleness in her eyes disappeared instantly, and blood poured out from her eyes. It looked scary.

“I only promised to help you find your child—I did not say I would give you another person’s child.” If this was one month ago, Chen Ge definitely would not have been brave enough to tell a Red Specter off, but things were different now. He was on the hearse, and he had Xu Yin. Even though Zhang Ya was injured, she was not asleep. She could be summoned anytime.

“You don’t look that happy.” Chen Ge held the hammer and looked the woman in the red raincoat up and down. “I’m curious, since you know your child might be on the bus, then why don’t you come in to inspect it yourself? What are you afraid of?”

The lips that were sewn together could not speak. The lips moved, and the blood started to twist. The woman’s emotions were agitated. Chen Ge could see her pain and anger.

“You’ve been standing at the bus stop to look for your child, so did you get separated from him at the bus stop? Your body is injured. After you lost your child, what happened to you when you were searching for him?”

Chen Ge’s words reminded the woman of the past, and the painful images flashed across her mind. The rain fell on her body, and the droplets turned into blood when they hit the floor. In the rain, the woman stood alone at the bus stop, and blood pooled around her.

A dark blood vessel was popping on the pale face. The woman lifted her head. She wanted to open her mouth, and the threads on her lips were slowly being pulled taut. Her face was torn by the action. She took deliberate steps toward Chen Ge. Standing at the door, Chen Ge stood in front of the boy, and he looked at the woman silently. “You’re afraid—I can see the fear in your heart. It’s not that you don’t want to get on this bus, but you’re afraid to do so. You’re fearful of the real owner of this bus, aren’t you?”

A living person was speaking to a Red Specter so calmly about the fear in her heart. This was a very scary thing for the other passengers. The woman ultimately stopped before the door. She knew that the bus belonged to something else, and stepping onto it would be a violation of that something’s rules.

“Your child disappeared on this bus, but for some reason, you lack the courage to even step on this bus. How do you expect to find your child like this?” With the other passengers watching him, Chen Ge extended his hand toward the woman. “Get on, we’ll look for your child together.”

The blood soaked the platform. The woman stopped at the door, and her expression was conflicted. She was a Red Specter in Eastern Jiujiang. If she got on the bus, she would break the contract that she had with another being, and they would end up in an opposing situation. Chen Ge could see the anxiety and pain within the Red Specter; he took a step forward and placed his hands lightly on the woman’s shoulders.

The rain drenched his clothes, but he ignored it. He looked right into the woman’s eyes. “Stop hesitating. I’m sure when your child wakes up from his nightmare, the first person that he’ll want to see is you.”

The driver stared at the backdoor through the rearview mirror. His heart raced as he watched the interaction between Chen Ge and the Red Specter. His leg was hovering over the gas pedal. If they got into a fight or Chen Ge left the bus, he would leave this place immediately. However, what happened next was outside his expectations.

The Red Specter, who was losing her control, started to calm down. She raised one hand to reach into the bus; this was something that had not happened before. The Red Specter had been watching outside the bus, and she had never once touched the bus before.

“Another one is getting on?” The driver’s Adam apple shook. He suddenly realized that the lives of all the passengers were on his shoulders, and the pressure was huge.

Under Chen Ge’s persuasion, the woman finally made a decision, but just as her hand was about to reach into the bus, the sound of children crying came from both sides of the road. Hearing this, the woman seemed to be reminded of something incredibly scary. The hand that reached out immediately pulled back. Her bloodied eyes looked at Chen Ge. She stopped for several seconds before turning and leaving the bus stop.

“What happened?”

The door closed, and the bus continued to move. Chen Ge looked at the empty bus stop and felt quite confused.

He walked to the driver’s seat while dragging the hammer. Before he said anything, the driver quickly said, “I don’t know anything, I’m just the driver. I swear!”

Since the driver had said that, Chen Ge did not give him more trouble. He put the hammer back into his backpack. He hugged the boy and took his seat next to the doctor.

Well, at least the relationship between the woman in the red raincoat has improved.

Chen Ge turned and saw the doctor looking at his backpack with fear, like he had not recovered from the things that happened earlier.