Chapter 1

After graduation, I came to Hai City for work.

To save on rent, I contacted my brother and asked if I could stay at his place.

He was away on business.

He told me to bring my bags and move straight in.

And look after his puppy while I was there.

“A little black dog I just got. He’s wary of strangers, so I’ve tied him up at home.”

“He’s a little menace. Hit him if he misbehaves.”

I arrived at the old apartment building. I’d visited once a few years ago, so I soon found the key hidden under a flowerpot.

I opened the door. The layout hadn’t changed.

I made kissing noises to call the puppy.

Hearing movement in the bedroom, I pushed open the door with a smile.

“Who’s a naughty little puppy? Want a pat from your big sister?”

The room was gloomy, its curtains half drawn.

A man stood by the window in a thin shirt, a monitoring band around his ankle.

A pair of unfocused eyes turned toward me.

Black hair shaded his pale face. His beautiful features had a remote, untouchable air.

“Who are you?” he asked hoarsely.

I shut the door.

And reread my brother’s messages.

A new dog.

Black hair.

Tied up.

Everything checked out.

It took me thirty seconds to accept that my brother was a lunatic.

He had imprisoned a grown, blind, beautiful, fragile man.

But he was still my brother.

And I’d already accepted a job in Hai City.

Leaving wasn’t an option.

I decided to look after the poor man on my brother’s behalf.

As the kidnapper’s sister, I didn’t dare reveal who I was. I said I was the new housekeeper.

He told me to get out.

A bad temper.

Then again, how could anyone stay cheerful after being abducted and locked up here?

I phoned my brother.

What was his guest’s name? I’d take good care of him.

“Are you out of your mind? He’s just Dog. You’re treating him like a person now? I call ‘Dog’ and he comes running, wagging his tail. You idiot.”

I sucked in a breath.

He’d even been stripped of his name?

My brother had studied his way out of our small town and into the big city. How had it warped his mind so badly?

Was life here that oppressive?

When he got back, I’d arrange for a doctor to take him away and straighten him out.

Choking up, I asked him,

“He has his dignity! How can we call him a dog?”

My brother hung up.

Then told me to feed the puppy and stop being crazy.

I couldn’t bear to call a human being “puppy.”

So I searched the cupboards, and actually found the man’s ID.

In the photograph, his eyes were bright and alert. He looked distinguished.

His name was Shen Yan.

His ID number showed he was from Jing City.

And he’d been dragged all the way to Hai City?

Thousands of kilometers. My brother was ruthless.

After I said I was the housekeeper, Shen Yan asked no more questions. He just sat in his bedroom for hours at a time.

Utterly lifeless.

I wanted to cook, but the fridge was empty.

Only red wine remained.

No wonder he was so thin. His bones stood out beneath his shirt.

His cheeks were sunken, his cheekbones prominent.

There was none of the confidence and vitality in his ID photo.

I covered my face and went to the supermarket for supplies.

I avoided the cameras the entire way.

Fortunately, the old apartment blocks had plenty of blind spots.

If my brother ever got arrested, maybe I could stay out of sight too.

Back home, I cooked three hot dishes and a soup.

I invited Shen Yan out to eat.

He looked grim. Red flashed on his ankle band, displaying his mood: Irritated.

“Didn’t they explain the rules? I didn’t tell you to cook. Get out.”

“…They?”

Shen Yan’s unseeing gaze settled on a corner of the room. He said nothing.

Apparently, the question was too stupid to merit an answer.

The hand holding his meal began to shake.

My brother had joined an organized gang?