Until Sha Qing's wrists were locked behind his back with alloy handcuffs, Rob still couldn't believe that they finally caught the mysterious serial killer, and felt a little dizzy.
"Hey, you're really a piece of work," He put his arm on Sha Qing's shoulder like they were long-time friends, then said with deep emotion, "Do you know I lost almost ten pounds in the past year or so chasing you? As for Leo, at least six of his dates got spoiled because of you. Fortunately, you were caught today, otherwise, there's no telling how long that guy is going to stubbornly chase after you."
"I'm honored to be your fitness instructor, as well as-" Sha Qing gave a meaningful look at the dark-haired agent with a gloomy face, "the third party between him and his future wife. For that reason, can I ask for the handcuffs to be loosened a bit? My wrists are getting sore."
"Add a fetter to him." Leo said coldly, "I don't want him to escape by breaking off his fingers again."
"Ha! You're holding a personal grudge, Leo," Rob said in a teasing manner, "Don't be too hard on our super killer. You know, someone at the Bureau has given him the nickname 'Special Extra Agent'."
Leo showed a that's-really-absurd,-simply-unreasonable expression in response.
"Moreover, I still have quite a few doubts waiting to be answered by him," Rob patted Sha Qing's shoulder and said in with a sincere tone, "Seriously though, there are a lot of things on the previous case that made me puzzled, so how about telling me about those? For example, none of your portraits on our records were the same. How did you do that? Did you wear a mask? Or is the legendary ancient oriental art of disguise a real thing?" He curiously poked his finger around on the other man's cheek, trying to decipher this mystery that had been bothering him for a long time.
Then, he yelled as if he had discovered new world: "Hey, there's a wound here, but not a drop of blood!" he pointed to a small wound less than two centimeters long on Sha Qing's jaw. It should have been cut by a knife blade unknowingly when he was tangled with several agents and soldiers earlier. The wound was split like a thin thread, but strangely, there was no bloodstain, and one could faintly see the flesh color inside when you poke it with fingertips.
"High simulation mask? It's too realistic. If it weren't at such a close distance, the skin color, pores, small spots, and even the faintly visible capillaries under the skin are all vivid!" Rob almost pressed his nose to Sha Qing's face. "Polyvinyl chloride resin ? Which high-tech company's handiwork is this? It's almost comparable to <<Mission Impossible 4>>!"
Sha Qing tilted his head back slightly to put distance between them: "Limited edition, not-for-sale item, keep your eyes and hands away."
He's still in the mood for jokes at times like this! Leo restrained his anger from the bottom of his heart and walked up to pull his partner, who he suspected is having a mental lapse, out of the way and said to the serial killer they just caught, "It's time to remove that mask and show me who you really are, Sha Qing!".
"I highly discourage that." The other side said expressionlessly, "Even if you have to reveal it, don't do it yourself, Leo, I mean it."
"Sorry but your suggestion is unacceptable. I think that out of all the people here, I'm the most qualified for the task." The dark-haired agent said in a deep voice, "Remember what I said last time? 'Sha Qing, you have hidden too much from me, it's like you're surrounded by a thick fog'-I must uncover this fog with my own hands. No matter how unpleasant what lies behind it, it's still the truth that I have always sought."
Sha Qing was silent for a few seconds.
Leo reached his fingers out and was about to touch Sha Qing's face when the latter suddenly whispered, "Let the others go out first! If you must insist, then I have only one request- let the others go out first."
Leo's fingers paused in mid-air. 'Request,' it was the first time that Sha Qing had ever spoken to him in such a low-profile word and tone.
For a killer who never shows his true face, exposing the true appearance that he tried so hard to hide is probably more unbearable than being completely naked, Leo thought.
Perhaps, there is a deeper meaning? For the first time they were truly honest with each other (this statement made Leo think of the scenes at the dark sea cave, but he immediately crushed the untimely reverie like putting out a dangerous flame). Sha Qing didn't want a third person present, and... so did he.
"You guys go out and wait for me." Leo said to the others in the room. The agents looked at each other with uncertainty and left the room on command.
"Rob."
"Me? I don't have to," Rob laughed dryly, "We are inseparable from each oth-" under Leo's fierce gaze, he subconsciously shrunk his neck and swallowed the last syllable.
"Well, this two-person-world is now yours." Rob said as he walked away.
The door was slammed shut, and there were only two people facing each other in the empty room, but the atmosphere was sticky and frozen, like a large clump of clay wrapped in dense air, sinking downward.
"You're going to regret this," Sha Qing said, "You're going to regret this afterwards."
Leo's gaze didn't flicker as he looked straight at him, "It's you who should regret all the crimes you've committed before."
He stretched out his hand. Starting from the hairline, he began to peel off the edge of the Sha QIng's mask that was as thin as a cicada's wings, bit by bit.
Until the face hidden behind the mask completely appeared in his eyes, he still held his breath and stared, as if he had completely forgotten to breathe--
It was a face of pure Asian descent, with dark irises, and light wheat skin. His upright facial features had soft and handsome lines, but the sharp and cold feeling exuding from the combination of his eyebrows and eyes polished the innate softness into a honed blade, sheathed, yet ready to cut anyone.
This really must be Sha Qing's face, Leo thought. He was relieved, but at the same time, he was also in a trance- but why does it seem so familiar... If the skin color was fairer, the expression was milder, and the eyes were softer....
He abruptly took a step back!
This is clearly Li Biqing's face!
He stiffened for several seconds in shock and great panic, but suddenly, he figured something out- he must be tricking him again.
Upon thinking like this, a strong feeling of anger at the blatant offense swept through his body-
"This second mask you're wearing, it's his face!" Leo furiously said, "How could you! You obviously know how innocent and kind he is, and that isn't from the same 'world' as yours, yet you're deliberately using his visage while committing murders, dragging him into this foul wind and bloody rain ! Sha Qing, you are more narrow-minded and vicious than I thought!"
"He, innocent and kind; I, narrow-minded and vicious." The corners of Sha Qing's mouth pursed up into a gloomy and somewhat twisted smile "That's great, Agent, please go on."
With an ashen face, Leo tried to tear off the face that was causing stabbing pain in his chest; he kept on digging on the corners of Sha Qing's face-in the forehead, the ears, the jaw-leaving bloody marks, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find the edges, as if the said mask had grown in the man's face, stuck in there firmly...
A tiny stream of blood trickled down from Sha Qing's forehead, and it continued to flow down through his unblinking eyes, just like a scarlet tear on the corner of his eye, and a cold, malicious, and mocking laugh slowly came out from his mouth, "This is not a mask, it's my face. Otherwise, how was I able to stay with you most of the time without blowing my disguise? I know I disappointed you, agent, and for that, I'm deeply sorry."
Leo stared at him as if he were digesting the meaning of his words. A terrible speculation emerged from the bottom of his heart, but he refused to accept this fact that was increasingly becoming clear as if he wanted to shut out a cold winter blizzard that was storming his way. He strongly wanted to lead the situation back to the right path and suppress it within his control.
"It's a coincidence!" He said with a stern voice, more like persuading himself than refuting the other man, "There are so many people in the world who look somewhat alike... Maybe you have an unknown blood relationship with him..."
"Don't deceive yourself, agent." Sha Qing cruelly pierced his wishful thinking, "If he and I were two different people, I wouldn't know that the first book we discussed was Bedside Whispers; that the first dish I cooked for you was Fish Fragrant Eggplant; the first time I got scolded by you was because of three stupid robbers; the first time we shared a bed together was in a small town hotel while we were on vacation; and that the first time we kissed was after your panic attack -Oh! Does that CPR you gave me after I nearly drowned count?"
Every time he said one word, Leo's face turned pale, and upon reaching the last sentence, he was already miserable.
"That's impossible ..." the dark-haired agent tried his best to calm his skyrocketing emotions, his lips trembling uncontrollably. He grabbed the other's lapel and pushed him hard against the wall "How can you be the same person as him... He is Molly's boyfriend and just came to the US just three months ago. I checked the passport, all of his documents, and they are all real ...... Li Biqing can't be Sha Qing!"
Sha Qing endured the pain of his shoulders hitting the wall and showed a sarcastic smile, his eyes as dark as the starless sky. In a tone as if he was just jesting among his friends, he uttered a phrase that caused Leo to fall into utter despair: "My dear, has anyone ever reminded you that punctuality is a good habit, especially when you have to pick someone up from the airport?"
Leo was thunderstruck.
He finally realized that things had gone wrong from the beginning, even before they met. It was like a train on the wrong track, running all the way towards the dead end, and he never had any idea of it, until now!
Countless memory fragments from the depths of his mind rolled up. Starting from the first piece, they scrambled to piece together, and finally, a huge, long-term intricate puzzle gradually took shape...
"My dear brother, don't tell me you forgot to pick up my boyfriend from the airport. The plane landed at 10:30, can you tell me what time it is already?"
"Of course I didn't forget. There's still time before-" he raised his wrist to look at his watch and replied awkwardly, "50 minutes ago ......"
--When he arrived at the airport, he was already one hour and fifty minutes behind the scheduled time, which was enough for Sha QIng to replace with the real Li Biqing and pretend that he was waiting for him the whole time.
"The Li Biqing who appeared in front of me was not the real Li Biqing..." the dark-haired agent muttered.
"Yes, I took that guy as soon as he got off the plane. Oh, by the way, my name was Leo Lawrence at that time. Although the $300 FBI ID could not trick a professional eye, it was more than enough to fool a layman. By the time he realized that something was wrong, he had already walked into the residence I had prepared for him. Don't worry, someone is specially responsible for taking care of him. He won't die of hunger."
"Then you came back and disguised yourself as him to deceive me."
"In fact, there is no need to disguise, his looks are already three points similar to mine, and the ID photos are often distorted so much that I just need to dye my hair, cover up my skin tone, adjust my temperament, and I can easily become a person you have never met, right?"
"What about the call with Molly? You can mimic his accent, but how do you know the intimate things between them?"