Chapter Four: The Arsonist in the Camera

Listening to metal scream inside the wall, Shen Yan found an old water pipe and split it with an axe. Water flooded the darkroom and ruined most of the files. The arsonist escaped, leaving half a silver-antler cuff link. Hearing Rust identified it as a cheap imitation, deliberately sawn apart that morning. Luo surrendered the brass key. “Three years ago, Xu Kui brought that camera to your father. I took them into the Gallery once. The door doesn't open onto a place. It opens onto a locked piece of the future. Anyone without an exhibit number is erased.” “Why lie?” Xu Zhi demanded. “Because Xu Kui made me promise not to tell you until the camera returned.”