Chapter 3

My back was pressed hard against the wall, and I didn't dare even breathe, my eyes locked on the gap in the master bedroom door.

Footsteps came in, soft, but there was definitely more than one person.

The moment the door was pulled open from the outside, I nearly sprang off the wall.

When I saw it was my father, everything I'd held in broke loose, and I threw myself into his arms and started to cry.

I didn't dare cry loud, terrified of alerting the robbers in the fire stairwell.

I cried for maybe ten or twenty seconds before I lifted my head off his shoulder and wiped my face with my sleeve.

Then I saw there were people standing behind him.

Five men.

All of them in dark clothes and sneakers, standing in the living room.

Their waists bulged, like something was tucked there, and not one of them made a sound. They just waited, quiet.

I quickly stepped back out of my father's arms, wiped my eyes again, and sniffled.

He reached out and pressed my shoulder, his palm warm, full of safety.

"You're not too shaken, are you? Tell your dad everything you know."

Before I could speak, the danmaku in front of me exploded, packing the whole screen edge to edge.

【Holy crap, look at this setup! Six plainclothes cop uncles!】

【The crooks are still chitchatting in the fire stairwell, no idea the place is already a cop den!】

【Delivery's about to arrive right to their door hahahaha!】

【Little sister, tell your dad the headcount, the tools, the positions, all of it!!】

Watching the danmaku scroll past, the stone that had sat on my chest all night finally sank a little.

I took a deep breath and poured out everything from the danmaku in one go.

"Three of them, all carrying knives, and they know how to pick locks. One of them came earlier to case the place, pretending to be building maintenance and knocking on the door."

"They're all in the fire stairwell now, splitting up the tools. Someone's going to come knock to test us. If we don't open up, they'll pick the lock straight off."

My father exchanged a look with the man beside him.

"Matches the crew we've had a warrant out on."

He pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

"Leave four downstairs, two at the fire stairwell and two at the stairwell entrance, seal off the exits. The rest stay in here with me and move once they're inside. Remember, they've got knives."

He hung up and started positioning the men in the apartment.

Two of them hid behind the doors on either side of the entryway, backs to the wall, their breathing so soft you could barely hear it.

Another slipped into the kitchen and stood in the shadow beside the refrigerator.

The rest went with my father, all of them pressed just inside the master bedroom door, only three steps from the living room.

The moment everyone was set, the danmaku lit up again.

【Everyone in position! Hardest-core home defense line in history!】

【Crooks' POV: isn't this place just two little kids??】

【They're still smoking in the fire stairwell, no clue the inside is already a cop den!】

【Can't wait to see their faces the second they push that door open hahahaha!】

【Cut the laughing! The ringleader's got a knife in his pocket! Don't get careless!!】

I wasn't laughing.

I leaned against the master bedroom doorframe, my hands still shaking.

The apartment was full of cops, but I was still just a kid.

All I could hear was my own heartbeat, pounding, each beat heavier than the last.

Right then, a sound came from outside the door.

The scrape of shoe soles on the hallway tile, someone coughed and was instantly hushed by another lowered voice.

The footsteps stopped at the door.

The danmaku exploded.

【Here they come! Here come the criminals!!】

【All three are here! The one in front with the black hat is the ringleader! Knife tucked in the back of his waist!!】

【They're signaling each other with their eyes!! Getting ready to knock!!】

The next second, a voice came from outside the door.

"Hi, your food delivery's here, could you open the door?"

My hand clenched hard.