Zhou Bin did not disagree. “Besides reviewing the footage, we should find out whether the security chief is here today.”
The guard shook his head. The chief had not come to work and had not requested leave. He was simply absent.
The timing was too convenient. Guan Qingyun strongly suspected that the man was connected to what had happened.
“Where does your chief live?” she asked the guard who had spoken.
He answered at once. “Tianya Residential Complex nearby. Building Five, Unit One, Apartment 303. But that’s only one of his properties…”
“Security must pay well,” Zhou Bin joked from beside the surveillance monitors. “Who knew a security chief could own several homes?”
The guard gave an awkward laugh. “It isn’t my place to talk about the chief’s family affairs.”
Guan Qingyun could not help a cold laugh, but quickly returned to the case. “Assign some officers to review the footage. Send the others to the chief’s residence.”
“I’ll go to the apartment. You and Xiaoling stay here with the footage.” Zhou Bin took the field assignment for himself, then tossed her a spare radio. “I’ll contact you if anything happens.”
Guan Qingyun knew Zhou Bin was better suited to that kind of work, so she nodded and began reviewing the recordings with Xiaoling.
They checked footage from the last three days. Guan Qingyun skimmed through it once and found the same person appearing again and again, but his face was never visible. There was no more detail than in today’s recordings.
“Xiaoling, copy all of this. We’ll examine it at the station.”
“You got it, Sister Guan.”
Guan Qingyun raised her wrist and checked the time. Too much time had passed. Zhou Bin should have reported back by now.
Had something happened?
Her stomach tightened. She strode out of the surveillance room and spoke into the radio. “Zhou Bin, what’s your situation?”
No answer.
She repeated the call, her pace quickening. Just as she was about to leave the supermarket, her phone rang. Zhou Bin’s voice finally came through. He was breathing hard, as if something had just happened.
“The security chief is definitely involved. He even tried to kill me before he ran.”
“I didn’t anticipate it, and we hadn’t secured the perimeter. The bastard got away!” Zhou Bin’s fury mounted. He spat before adding, “I sent people after him.”
“He knows the neighborhood. They probably won’t catch him.” Guan Qingyun stopped beside a window and studied the street below. “Have records check his identity.”
“Already done. The results should be back soon. I’ll keep working this side and send you everything together. What have you found?”
Guan Qingyun described everything in front of her and explained what she wanted to do next.
“Zhou Bin, we have almost nothing to work with. The culprit planned this in advance. This will be extremely difficult to unravel.”
Zhou Bin exhaled as she spoke. “Qingyun, the director gave us a brutal deadline. The bombing has caused a terrible public reaction.”
“Urgent or not, they can’t force an answer out of us!” Guan Qingyun frowned, her voice sharpening with frustration.
As she looked up, a figure below caught her eye. His silhouette looked almost identical to the person in the surveillance footage.
The build and the way he walked were nearly a perfect match.
Guan Qingyun ended the call and pressed the radio button. “Team One, intercept the man with the backpack and cap heading for the east exit. Stop him and question him.”
The officers stationed near the east exit moved in. Guan Qingyun saw something go wrong and immediately sprinted downstairs without losing a second.
“What happened?”
“Captain Guan, he has a stun baton! Two other officers and I are pursuing him now!”
“Keep reporting your position in real time!”
“Understood, Captain!”
Guan Qingyun raced out of the supermarket. At the east entrance, she found an officer lying on the ground after being shocked. She ordered the others to carry him away, then followed the reported route. The suspect and his pursuers had entered an alley with no surveillance cameras.
She advanced slowly and cautiously. As she approached another corner, a dark figure suddenly leaped out. Moonlight flashed across the knife in his hand. Guan Qingyun’s expression changed, but she dodged in time.
“Don’t move, or I’ll kill him!” the man shouted wildly. He seized one of the detectives with one arm. “Let me go!”
Guan Qingyun took a step back and tried to negotiate. “All right. I can let you leave, but first you need to release him. Can you do that?”
“I’m not stupid! How am I supposed to escape if I let him go?” The man had not completely lost his reason, but the knife was already pressed to the detective’s throat.
Guan Qingyun opened a path. The officers arriving behind her saw the hostage and stopped immediately.
She ordered everyone to back away and give the suspect a clear route. Then she glanced at Xiaoling.
Xiaoling gave a small nod. She understood at once.
The blade pressed harder against the detective’s neck, almost piercing the skin above his artery. The suspect threatened both teams as he edged past Guan Qingyun. The instant he crossed in front of her, she lunged, grabbed the back of his jacket, and yanked. As the knife slipped in his grip, Xiaoling seized his wrist, twisted his arm behind him, and forced the weapon to the ground. Another officer kicked it away.
Guan Qingyun tore the handcuffs from her belt and snapped them onto the man. Then she planted a knee against his back until he was fully restrained.
Xiaoling checked the hostage first. When she confirmed he was unharmed, she helped him away.
“I’m afraid you’ll have to come to the station with us.”
...
Back at the station, Guan Qingyun brushed the dirt from her clothes and immediately began questioning the suspect.
Zhou Bin had also returned from the security chief’s neighborhood, his injuries streaked with dust. He tried to join Guan Qingyun in the interrogation room, but she refused.
He was not angry. He sat outside instead, listening and waiting for details.
The suspect’s file lay open in front of Guan Qingyun. “Zhao Lin, thirty-five years old. Jinghai native. Unemployed. Released from prison a few weeks ago…”
She paused. “Did you start the fire at the supermarket?”
Zhao Lin said nothing.
“Planning to sit there and waste our time?”
He smiled. “Officer, of the twenty-four hours you can hold me, only twenty-three hours and forty-five minutes remain.”
The brazen provocation did not frighten Guan Qingyun. She tapped the table. “You don’t have to speak. But if we find that security chief, this may go beyond the point of no return.”
“No return?” Zhao Lin burst out laughing. “And what exactly do you think finding the security chief will accomplish?”