novelraw Chapter 460: Richard's Hideout
Chapter 460: Richard's Hideout
About ten years ago, the reins of the Old Rom gang had passed to Elder Rom—the eldest son of the leader known as Old Rom.
However, due to a brain illness caused by a fever in his childhood, Old Rom still managed the gang’s affairs with the help of his younger son, Younger Rom.
When Golden, beaten half to death with a bloodied face and two broken fingers, led Lu Li into the second-floor bedroom, Old Rom was sitting by the fireplace, wrapped in a blanket, while his younger son massaged his feet.
“So you’re the one who caused all that commotion downstairs?” Old Rom, a pipe clamped between his teeth, squinted, watching Lu Li and his battered henchman through the clouds of smoke.
“Senior Investigator Lu Li.”
Lu Li revealed his badge, the one with the three-eyed black crow. Old Rom was sure to recognize the symbol.
“If you’d shown this earlier, my boys wouldn’t have dared to touch you,” Old Rom sighed. Puffs of smoke drifted upward.
“Meat,” he said to his henchman, “go downstairs. Tell the ones who offended our guest to patch up their wounds, strip naked, and stand outside for an hour!”
“Yes, sir...”
Golden limped out of the room.Old Rom nodded to one of the thugs by the door, who stepped out of the bedroom and closed the door behind him.
Old Rom rose from the soft woolen blanket, and Younger Rom dutifully took the pipe from him. “Esteemed exorcist, to what do we owe the honor of your visit?”
“I’m here about Richard,” Lu Li replied.
“It’s been a while since I’ve heard that name,” a thoughtful expression crossed Old Rom’s old, wrinkled face.
Lu Li remained impassive and stated calmly, “Not so long that you’ve forgotten it. And, if my memory serves, you helped him recently.”
“Just a small... favor,” Old Rom offered a casual smile.
“Tell me more.”
“Of course... of course. Little Richard practically grew up right before my eyes. When he decided to try his luck elsewhere, I let him go. Later, I heard he was beaten until he went mad in the Sentry Post? The poor kid...”
Old Rom recounted much of what Lu Li already knew. Lu Li listened quietly, waiting for more important information.
“...Not long ago, Richard fled the mainland and returned to the Allen Peninsula. He asked one of the gang members to help him hide, since the police were looking for him. You know, the slums have always been synonymous with chaos and lawlessness; it’s easy to hide anything dirty and ugly here. So the guy found him a place to stay.”
“Where is he?”
“One of those boys you taught a lesson to downstairs should know where Richard is hiding. Meat!” Old Rom called out hoarsely toward the door.
The thug returned and listened to Old Rom’s order. “Go down and bring Golden here.”
“Right away.”
The thug left, and soon approaching footsteps were heard in the hallway.
A skinny young man was brought into the room, his face also bloodied but without any serious injuries.
He shot a terrified glance at Lu Li and scrambled into a corner, as far away from him as possible.
What happened downstairs had been a complete nightmare for him—assuming, of course, that nothing worse awaited him in the future.
Old Rom looked at Golden. “Tell the exorcist where Richard is hiding.”
Golden didn’t dare look Lu Li in the eye, stealing timid glances at him as he mumbled, “He... he was my best friend...”
Old Rom shook his head. “If the police came to you, Old Rom would have your back. But this is an official exorcist. I think you understand what that means.”
An exorcist?
Golden finally understood where Lu Li’s strange, terrifying power came from.
He stammered, “In the Black Cat District, number 138... To the west is the Ruin District. If the police try to grab him, it’ll be easy for him to escape.”
“Thank you for the information.”
Lu Li gave a nod and, without lingering, headed for the exit.
“Y-You’re welcome...” Golden muttered, then snapped back to his senses and looked at Old Rom.
Old Rom waved a hand at him, and Golden hurried out of the room.
“He was lying to you,” Younger Rom said, handing the pipe back to his father.
“I know,” Old Rom took the pipe between his teeth and, gesturing to Younger and Elder Rom, said, “Remember this, my sons. Just as you admired and respected the police when you were children, you must now admire and respect the exorcists. They are doing everything they can to save our world.”
“So treat these moths flying into the flame with respect.”
“Yes, Father...” Younger Rom, already in his twenties, replied earnestly.
“I will respect exorcists as much as I respect you, Father,” added Elder Rom, who had been silent until now.
The pipe in Old Rom’s teeth trembled.
...
“I don’t think Richard is still there.”
Back in the carriage and taking the reins, Lu Li heard Anna’s voice. “He knows we’re looking for him, and he knows that sooner or later, we’d find Old Rom.”
“Yes,” Lu Li answered curtly, guiding the carriage away from the tavern and past a line of frightened, half-naked men who stood against the wall, not daring to meet his gaze.
“You think so too?” Anna asked, surprised.
“We have to check,” Lu Li replied. “If he’s still there, it will save us a lot of time.”
...
A while ago, Lu Li had passed through the Black Cat District on his way to the Ruin District to collect the inheritance left by the Masked Figure.
The Black Cat District, located next to the Ruin District, had been severely damaged by the fire that had once engulfed the entire street and had yet to recover. Only half of the houses were occupied.
It wasn’t just the Black Cat District; the neighborhoods adjacent to the former Warm Street had all suffered the same fate. Recently, rumors had spread that after midnight, the Ruin District was shrouded in an acrid smell of burning and an ash that fell like snowflakes, making the surrounding streets even more deserted.
Anna carefully picked up one of the “snowflakes” that had landed on the carriage. A drop of rain landed on it, turning it into a dirty smudge of water.
“It seems the rumors are true.”
Anna looked at the ruins visible at the end of the street.
It was indeed much more deserted here than on the streets they had passed through earlier. There were almost no passersby to be seen.
“If there’s a problem, the exorcists will handle it.”
The Exorcist United Organization would not allow anomalies to appear in Belfast.
Number 138 was on the edge of the Black Cat District, very close to the Ruin District. Upon arriving, Lu Li stopped the carriage and signaled to the plainclothes police officers following him to surround the building.
Richard was an ordinary man; the police could easily apprehend him.
Bang!
The floorboards trembled as the wooden door splintered into pieces. Lu Li, shielded by Anna, entered number 138 and looked around.
Embers still glowed in the fireplace. On the table next to a simple bed lay a telephone and scattered notes. A suitcase stood beside the bed, and the window was wide open.
It looked like Richard had left only moments ago.