Chapter Four: The Name in the Empty Pod

“Shen Zhiwei!” Lu Yao shouted outside. She pressed the bloody phone to the iris reader. When the door opened, Lu charged in with his gun raised and immediately aimed past her at Gu. “Record first,” she said, handing him the phone. “Use only this camera.” Lu looked at the pods on the screen, then at the empty room visible to his naked eyes, and swore. He asked no questions. He began recording every name and reading. That was why she trusted him: confusion never stopped him from preserving evidence. The second door opened to the code 1. There was no master valve behind it, only a child-sized kitchen. Gas stove, flowered tablecloth, old refrigerator—it was the home where the sisters had grown up.