Sand Town

My eyes went wide, and my ears rang wildly. Someone was dead. The female owner I had planned to spend the night with was a murderer. The instant she fired, she didn’t even blink.

She aimed the gun at my head again, and by then, the barrel had turned scorching hot. I couldn’t breathe.

In my world, only the pounding thud of my heartbeat remained… “Have you calmed down?” Seeing that I didn’t scream or run away in panic, the female owner put away the shotgun and poured me a glass of strong liquor.

She downed a glass herself, smacked her lips, and said, “Remember this.

From now on, you are Victor Kane, the leader of this gang of bandits, with fifty men under you.” “Your men call you Boss, and the ones close to you call you Vic.” “I’m Vivian Hart, the boss’s woman, the number three in the gang, and I handle the money.” “The number two is called the Strategist, and your first task is to fool him, because if he notices anything wrong, you will definitely die.” “Now you have a day and a half to learn every detail about Victor Kane…” After drinking the liquor, some of my fear was numbed, and I regained the ability to think.

But my entire body was still trembling nonstop. I realized I couldn’t run. The female owner, Vivian Hart, had killed her man. Her man was a bandit, and so was she.

Now she sat beside a calendar marked June 17, 1992, and spoke to me as casually as if we were chatting at home, asking me to play the leader of a gang of bandits.

I didn’t even dare ask why. There were two dark shadows in the hallway outside the window, and judging by their silhouettes, they both had guns and were probably Vivian’s men.

If I dared refuse her, I would die right now. “I… I’ll do it.” “Heh, smart boy.” “Help me bury the body, and I’ll teach you how to play him.” “After this is done, I’ll give you enough money to last the rest of your life…” But I wanted to stay alive more than I wanted money.

I agreed only to keep her steady for the moment, then find a chance to escape and call the police. The yellow, sandy ground in the town was especially hard.

I dug for a long time, but still couldn’t dig a pit deep enough to bury the body, and my strength had long since run out.

I looked around desperately at the barren wasteland, and even if someone let me run now, I probably wouldn’t be able to move.

And Vivian still had a gun, a pickup truck, and two helpers hidden in the shadows. “What are you thinking about?” “Want to call the police?” Vivian suddenly leaned close.

Her lips brushed my ear as her warm breath spilled over me. “I won’t stop you.

Go ahead.” “There are only three cops in town and two guns, and their phone lines and telegraph machine have already been destroyed, so right now, this whole town can’t contact the outside world.” “And we have fifty people and fifty guns, so do you think the police can protect you?” “Vic, if you want to live, your only choice is to behave.”

Vivian told me that the fifty bandits would arrive in town six hours before the sandstorm hit.

She and Victor Kane had come to the town half a year in advance and rented out the entire Crown Hotel in order to scout the place.

Although the town looked desolate now, there had been a mine here a few years earlier, and every household in town had money.

They planned to loot every home when the sandstorm arrived and the town was cut off from the world.

With their communications severed, the three cops in town wouldn’t be able to stop them at all. Now.

I lifted Victor Kane’s mangled corpse and threw it into the pit, burying my hope along with it. When we returned to the hotel, Vivian poured me another glass of liquor.

The liquor spilled by accident, and I was so scared that I hurriedly wiped it clean with my sleeve.

Vivian grabbed my arm, narrowed her eyes, and let out a cold laugh. “Vic, wrong move.” “If one of your men spilled your liquor, you’d lose your temper and beat him up.” “Remember, you are an inhuman bandit.” “If you aren’t crueler and crazier than everyone else, who’s going to fear you?” I quickly nodded. “Got it.” At dawn, Vivian and I slept in the same room.

She held me in bed and soon began snoring. But aside from fear, I had no other feelings or thoughts at all.

I dug my nails hard into my palm until the skin broke, forcing myself to calm down as much as possible. I had seen how ruthless Vivian was.

Victor Kane was her man and her boss, yet she killed him without blinking, so why?

The only reason I could think of was that she wanted to keep all the money from looting the town for herself. After she got the money, would I still be alive? No.

I was only a tool she was using. And once the other bandits arrived, whether Vivian’s plan succeeded or failed, my ending would be certain death.

My only way to survive was to contact the police before the bandits arrived. Thinking of that, I gently pushed Vivian away and climbed out of bed. Luckily, she didn’t wake up.

But when I reached the door, I found it had been locked from the outside and couldn’t be pulled open at all.

In the darkness, one of Vivian’s hidden men spoke in a hoarse voice. “Stay put.

You trying to die?” My heart lurched in fear, but I still gritted my teeth and forced myself to say, “Fuck you.” “Did you forget I’m Vic now?” “You dare talk to me like that?” I was gambling.

I was betting that I was still useful and that, for now, they had to humor me.

After a moment of silence, the man on the other side replied, “What are you doing?” “I’m taking a piss.” The door opened, but there was no one in the hallway.

They had to be watching me from the dark. I gathered my courage and went to the bathroom.

After closing the bathroom door, I took out a sheet of drawing paper as fast as I could, hastily wrote one line on it, and tossed it out the window.

There were three cops in town, and the youngest was named Luke Parker. He had a habit of jogging in the morning, and he had been very friendly to me.

He wanted me to draw a sketch of him so he could mail it home, so his fiancée would have something to hold on to whenever she missed him.

Compared with a photo, he thought a drawing was more romantic. Bang! A sudden loud crash startled me so badly that I jerked, cutting off my thoughts.

It sounded like something heavy had hit the ground. I hurried out and saw that Vivian was already awake.

In the lobby downstairs, two dark figures were carrying something and heading outside.

Vivian yawned and waved at me. “It’s fine.” “A little guy had promised to join me, but at the last minute, he betrayed me and tried to send a message to the Strategist.” “My people found out, so they threw him to his death.” “Vic, you won’t betray me, will you?” I nervously shook my head again and again, hurriedly saying I wouldn’t dare.

Another person was dead. When the bandits looted the town, how many more people would die? I couldn’t sleep at all.

When I endured until daybreak, Vivian had someone bring over beer and grilled meat, then continued training me in Victor Kane’s aura and mannerisms.

Vivian said the underlings were easy to fool, and the key was not showing fear in front of the Strategist. When she mentioned the Strategist, I could sense fear in her tone.

It was as if, in her mind, the Strategist was even more terrifying than the bandit leader Victor Kane. “Vivian, something happened.” Someone suddenly knocked on the door and reported, “A cop is here, and he specifically asked for the artist.” The next second, I shouted excitedly, “The police don’t know about you!” “The cop coming to see me must be Luke Parker.” “He asked me to draw a sketch of him, and I already finished it.” “The sketch is in my room, so he must be here to pick it up.” Vivian smiled. “I didn’t even suspect you, so why are you so nervous?” “Besides, didn’t I tell you?” “I don’t care if you call the police or not.” “Dragging them into this only means a few more people die.” “Go see Luke.” “I won’t stop you.” I forced out a faint smile. “I really didn’t call the police, and I don’t have any other reason for seeing him.” “I’m just worried Luke might get suspicious.” “Vivian, I’ll behave.” “I want to make some money too, so I won’t have to worry about making a living later.” I said this to dispel Vivian’s suspicions as much as possible.

My only chance to survive lay with Luke. If he had seen that note, then he must have come this time to test the situation.

As long as he sensed danger at the hotel, he would immediately contact reinforcements and get help before the sandstorm arrived.

But if he had only come to pick up the drawing and hadn’t seen the note, how should I hint at it?

Vivian’s people were definitely watching. “Bigshot artist, this looks way too much like me.” After getting the sketch, Luke grinned from ear to ear. “I’ll treat you to a good meal to thank you.” “Let’s see what good dishes the hotel has, and you can order whatever you want.” I picked up the menu, but I had no idea what to order.

All I could think about was the note I had hurriedly thrown out at dawn. “The owner of the Crown Hotel is a bandit, and she destroyed the police station’s radio and phone lines, intending to loot the town when the sandstorm comes…” I wasn’t sure whether Luke had seen the note or not.

He had a habit of jogging in the morning, would pass by the hotel, and could recognize my drawing paper. “What are you spacing out for?” Seeing that I still hadn’t ordered, Luke snatched the menu from me and ordered several of the most expensive signature dishes.

And I let out a long breath of relief. Because when Luke’s hand touched mine, he slipped me a scrap of drawing paper. That meant he had seen the note. Help was coming.

Luke was very smart, and after realizing how dangerous my situation was, he didn’t try to rescue me recklessly. Until he left, he didn’t reveal any flaws.

Vivian didn’t know I had made contact with the police and continued teaching me the details of impersonating Victor Kane, so my chance of survival grew a little bigger.

As long as I left the Crown Hotel and made it to the police station, I could live. But right now, I had no way to leave.

Last night, someone had tried to send a message to the Strategist, and he had been discovered immediately. Before I even finished taking a piss, he had turned into a corpse.

I didn’t dare take the risk. I could only wait to be rescued. Luke and the others had three cops and two guns, so they would definitely come save me, right?

I waited with my heart full of hope. But until night fell, and then until dawn came again, they never appeared. Even worse, Vivian said the fifty bandits had arrived early.

They had already reached the town and were hiding in an abandoned mining factory, demanding to see their boss, Victor Kane.

Vivian took me there. “Remember, you can only live if you are Victor Kane, so don’t fantasize about anyone saving you.” “Every single one of them has killed before, and every one of them is more vicious than I am.” “If you betray me, maybe you can get me killed, but you will definitely die before I do.” As she spoke, Vivian pressed her whole body against me. “And if the plan succeeds, you won’t just get money.” “When you first saw me, didn’t you want to sleep with me?” Thinking of the dirty jokes I had made to Vivian before I knew who she really was, I felt an uncontrollable chill spread through my body.

Aside from nodding and promising loyalty, I didn’t dare say anything else. When we reached the abandoned mining factory, I smelled a suffocating odor from far away.

It was an indescribable stench made of sweat, blood, rust, and all kinds of other things mixed together. Bang! A sudden gunshot made my legs tremble in fear.

Then loud laughter came from inside the factory. “Buy medicine?” “Who the fuck is buying medicine for a cripple?” “If you die, the rest of us get more money, and I’d love it if you just dropped dead from illness.” Bang!

Bang! Two more gunshots rang out. “Anybody else sick?” “Anybody else want medicine?”