Chapter 34

Yosemite National Park has recently seen seven cases of death and disappearance. Three cases involve deaths, and four involve missing persons.

As for what has been discovered, both the park security company and the local police are tight-lipped, and no information has been forthcoming.

"Can these cases be linked to this symbol?" Sarah pointed to the special cross symbol that Zhen Fan had drawn on the paper.

"No!"

Zhen Fan answered decisively.

"Then... what do we do now?" Sarah looked at Zhen Fan, somewhat expectantly.

"Don't count me in. I'll be getting my certification in a couple of days, and I'm resigning!" Zhen Fan smiled and raised his hand. "I don't really know what those cases represent, as there are no more clues, and they have already been closed. Do you have the authority to reopen them?"

"If there is solid evidence, we can!" Sarah argued.

"But there is nothing now, not even a connection." Zhen Fan stood up in front of Sarah. "Alright, I need to go back. Who will take me home?"

Everyone in the office immediately buried their heads, pretending to be busy, as if they had a lot of work to do. It seemed that people's loyalty was indeed not as strong as it used to be.

"Sarah—"

Zhen Fan drew out his voice.

"Me?" Sarah pointed to her nose. "No, no, sorry, Zhen. I just remembered, I have a case, someone was killed, I need to go to the scene!"

"Alright, alright, Rayne—"

"Boss, Lina and I are ready, we can leave anytime!" Rayne looked at Sarah with a serious face.

Zhen Fan couldn't help but point at Rayne.

"Alright, don't come to me anymore! Also, I suddenly don't like Chinese food anymore; I think steak tastes better!"

"Of course, I'd love to try it, right, Rayne!" Lina suddenly stood up with a smile, intimately linking her arm with Rayne's.

"No problem, how about we go there tonight?"

"Think again!"

Lina huffed and rejected it outright.

Rayne was taken aback. He had hoped that this opportunity would bring a change, but it didn't. He tried again, somewhat reluctantly.

"Or... there's a Japanese restaurant nearby..."

"Stop thinking, Rayne, I don't want to lie to you. Acting is just acting, there's nothing else to it. You need to be clear about that. It's like we are colleagues, not lovers!" Lina's tone was still firm, leaving Rayne speechless.

Damn, if I had known, I wouldn't have cooperated in this act. What a loss!

"Ha—"

Suddenly, a strange sound came from the door, startling everyone. Zhen Fan stood at the door with a bright smile, mimicking Lina's tone.

"Stop thinking, Rayne, I don't want to lie to you, acting is just acting! Is Hollywood's big production on? How did I do? Better than Lina herself?"

"Damn!"

Sarah cursed, not sure whether she was cursing Zhen Fan, herself, or Rayne and Lina.

"We need to talk, Zhen. I can't accept your resignation right now..."

Zhen Fan raised a finger and shook it. "No, Sarah, I have my own plans. Of course, if you ever need help, I might appear in front of you, like... your hero, Iron Man, Batman, Superman, or even the Hulk. Ha, goodbye, Sarah, it was great working with you..."

Watching Zhen Fan walk away, Sarah was furious. She had made him so angry, but now he had turned the tables. What was this?

"Damn—"

Sarah didn't know what to curse, but she could only sit down angrily, spinning her chair as if the chair was pressing down on that smug face.

"Boss, I'm sorry!"

Lina felt apologetic; it was her who had let it slip. She could only apologize.

"It's not your fault. He's smarter than all of us, a smart ass!"

"I agree!"

Rayne immediately raised his hand to show his support for Sarah.

"Isn't it because of you? If he's an ass, then you are too!"

Lina vented her anger on Rayne.

"Why me?"

Rayne looked at Lina, who sat at her desk, no longer looking at him, feeling very wronged. Yes, I did nothing, why am I always the one who gets hurt?

Zhen Fan went out to hail a taxi and didn't encounter Eddie. He hadn't seen the black kid for many days and couldn't help but think of him, but not every taxi ride would bring him to Eddie. Zhen Fan shook his head and smiled.

A taxi pulled up, and Zhen Fan got in. The driver was a black man in his thirties, wearing a decent jacket, a bit on the heavy side.

"Chaparral High School!" Zhen Fan gave an address, and the taxi started moving.

"Do you know Eddie? He's also a taxi driver!" Zhen Fan wanted to chat.

"Eddie? Eddie Rick?"

Clearly, the black man knew Eddie.

"Yeah, that guy!"

"Oh, unfortunately, he's not doing this anymore!" The black driver shook his head regretfully. "Are you friends?"

"Sort of!"

Zhen Fan wasn't sure how to define his relationship with Eddie.

"He got into trouble with the gang boss Jim, and his henchmen beat him up. After he recovered, he stopped driving taxis. He might be somewhere in Los Angeles, but I haven't seen him in a long time. Poor Eddie!"

"Thanks!" Zhen Fan didn't know what to say.

He felt sorry for Eddie, but who would go around provoking a gang boss? He had only been here for a short time and couldn't afford to get into trouble or have people harassing him. Besides, he and Eddie were just acquaintances, nothing more. Zhen Fan warned himself against the restless and uneasy feelings in his heart.

At the Chaparral High School dance practice room.

Brenda was preparing, stretching her legs. Her long legs looked even more sexy and alluring in tight pants.

On the other side, a group of people was also preparing. The lead girl was doing warm-ups with her male partner, trying out new moves. She kept giving Brenda and her group a challenging look, with a smug smile. That was Jennifer.

"What are you laughing at? What's so funny? Or are you the one who's funny?"

The black girl next to Brenda couldn't hold back and flipped Jennifer the middle finger.

"Damn!"

"What did you say?" Jennifer's face changed. "Watch your mouth, this isn't your business, get lost!"

"What do you want?" Brenda looked at Jennifer coldly. "I told you, if you have the skills, we can compete. If you want trouble, I'm ready!"

Jennifer seemed a bit hesitant and huffed. "Wait and see, you'll get what you deserve. When it's time for the final competition, we'll see who gets to go!"

Jennifer said, a smug smile appearing on her face again.

"Come on, girls, let's start practicing. Galen, come over, let's do it again!" Jennifer waved to a tall white boy, clearly her partner.

"Damn Ryan!" The white girl next to Brenda cursed, but her complaint was directed at Brenda's partner, Ryan.

"If possible, I don't want to practice in the same hall with such people!"

The white girl muttered, looking at Jennifer with dissatisfaction.

"Don't say that. What we need to do now is see if Ken can dance solo!" The black girl was angry but helpless. "It's a conspiracy, Jennifer must have planned it!"

"So what? We can't do anything about them. Ryan has his own issues too! Forget it, let's practice!" Brenda sighed. Although she spoke firmly to Jennifer, she was short a partner and lacked the confidence to compete.

"What time is it?" After practicing for a while, Brenda felt distracted and asked the black girl next to her.

"Almost three!"

"He should be here soon!" Brenda muttered, inviting Zhen Fan to the school as a dance partner was mainly to challenge Jennifer. Who knew if Zhen Fan could dance or had any talent. Even if he couldn't, as long as he had some talent and was willing to learn, he could be trained in time for the selection.

"Hey, handsome!" A sudden voice came from Jennifer's side, apparently one of the girls was greeting a handsome guy.

Brenda turned her head and saw a tall, handsome man standing at the door, smiling at her.