57: Chapter 57 Eyes in the Dark

Song Tianhao's voice was kept very low, but in the silent, dim corridor, it felt like a cold stone thrown into the hearts of the three women, stirring up turbulent waves.

Park So-yeon felt a chill shoot from the soles of her feet straight to the top of her head, making the hair on her body stand on end. She subconsciously gripped the flashlight in her hand, the cold touch of the metal casing pulling back a bit of the sanity she had almost lost.

She opened her mouth to say something, but found her throat dry, unable to utter a single word. At this moment, the sound of the wind and rain outside seemed infinitely amplified; every raindrop tapping against the glass felt like it was striking her heart, bringing waves of constricting chill.

"An intruder? Not one of our people?" Countless terrifying thoughts flashed through her mind.

"A robber? A stalker? Or... those anti-fans who attack T-ara crazily on the internet? In this kind of weather, in this isolated place..."

She dared not think any further, her body trembling uncontrollably, but the hand holding the flashlight exerted immense force, her knuckles turning white.

Im Yoona reacted more directly; she slammed her hand over her mouth, forcing back the exclamation that almost escaped, her already large eyes wide open, filled with pure terror.

Her free hand unconsciously grabbed the arm of Jessica Jung beside her, her fingertips digging in painfully.

Under the dim green light of the emergency lamp, Jessica Jung's face was pale to the point of transparency. Her lips trembled slightly, and her eyes flashed with extreme fear at first, but immediately, that fear was quickly replaced by another, stronger emotion: anger, and a sense of desperate determination.

Taeyeon was still lying inside with an injured leg—an injury she sustained just to get water for everyone. If there really was a dangerous intruder outside...

Jessica Jung dared not imagine the consequences. She gripped Im Yoona's cold hand, as if seeking strength from the other, and also as if offering support. Her gaze remained locked on Song Tianhao, waiting for his next words, waiting for him to make the call.

Song Tianhao took in their reactions. Fear was natural, but no one screamed or lost control; this was already better than the best-case scenario he had anticipated. What he needed were people who could remain basically calm and follow instructions.

"Listen," Song Tianhao said, his pace not fast, but every word was clear and powerful, carrying a strange, interwoven strength of reassurance and command. "The earthquake has stopped, there are no major aftershocks for now, and the main structure of the Villa should still be considered stable. This is the only good news we have for the moment."

He paused to give them a moment to digest the information, then continued: "But the bad news is, we might not be the only 'guests' here. Moreover, this 'guest' is clearly ill-intentioned; at the very least, he doesn't want us to discover him."

"Right now, we don't know where he is, how many people there are, or what his purpose is. But we must find out." Song Tianhao's gaze swept over the three. "I suspect he might still be in the Villa, perhaps even... somewhere downstairs."

Park So-yeon's heart tightened once more.

"We cannot keep hiding in this room forever. Eunjung needs observation, Taeyeon and Hyomin's wounds need treatment, and so many of us need food, water, and a safer environment. Moreover, we must figure out what that 'thing' is, otherwise, none of us will be able to rest easy."

"So, I need the three of you to come with me to do a rough inspection of the Villa, at least to confirm there are no hidden dangers on the first and second floors. Focus on checking if the doors and windows are intact and if there are any signs of abnormal intrusion. Manager Jang and the others are sealing the windows, but there might be oversights. Do you understand?"

Park So-yeon nodded hard, despite her heart beating like a drum. Im Yoona also released her hand from her mouth, took a deep breath, and tried to make her voice sound less shaky: "U-understand, President." Jessica Jung didn't speak, just nodded heavily, the fear in her eyes replaced by a steely determination.

"Good." Song Tianhao took back the high-beam flashlight from Park So-yeon; it was his most reliable weapon and tool for now. "Follow me closely, stay quiet, and listen for any abnormal sounds. Yoona, you take this."

He handed the phone with the cracked screen, which he had taken from Taeyeon, to Im Yoona, setting it to the brightest level. "Follow behind me to the side, and help me illuminate the side and back. Jessica Jung, Soyeon, pay attention to both sides and our rear. If you find anything, tell me in a whisper immediately; do not act on your own, and definitely do not approach anything suspicious. Clear?"

"Clear!" the three women replied in unison. Although their voices were still a bit shaky, the initial panic was gone.

Song Tianhao wasted no more words. He took a deep breath, adjusted his breathing, and let his heartbeat and thoughts settle. Then, he gripped the flashlight and clicked it on.

The bright beam pierced the darkness once again; this time, it was a weapon for exploration and defense.

Song Tianhao led the way, Im Yoona followed closely half a step behind him to the side holding the phone, and Jessica Jung and Park So-yeon followed slightly behind on the left and right. The four formed a small, back-to-back mobile formation, walking down the stairs slowly and silently.

The stairs from the third floor to the second were still relatively intact, with only scattered wall plaster and dust. But the situation in the second-floor corridor was worse than what Song Tianhao had seen when he hurried down earlier. Several decorative paintings had fallen to the floor, their glass frames shattered, and shards were scattered everywhere.

The door to a guest room seemed to have been warped by the tremor and was left ajar, the inside pitch black. The sound of wind and rain crept in through the gaps in the broken windows, wailing, like the whisper of some monster.

Song Tianhao did not check the room immediately; he carefully swept the flashlight beam across the corridor floor. There was a lot of dust and debris, but other than their own messy footprints from hurrying up and down earlier, there seemed to be no other particularly fresh traces. He signaled for the three to stop and listened intently.

Other than the sound of the wind and rain, and their own suppressed breathing and heartbeats, there seemed to be no other sounds.

"Continue, go to the first floor." Song Tianhao whispered, keeping his voice extremely low to ensure only the three behind him could hear.

They carefully bypassed the debris on the floor and walked down the stairs leading to the first floor. The further down they went, the heavier the moisture and chill in the air became, and the stifling atmosphere characteristic of a damaged building—a mix of dust, rainwater, and a faint musty smell—became even more pronounced.

The scene in the first-floor living room was even more chaotic than the second floor. Although the huge floor-to-ceiling windows had been barely sealed from the inside by Jang Se-hoon and the others using plastic sheets and tape they found, the fierce wind still pulled at the plastic sheets, making them rustle and bulge inward, as if they would be torn open at any moment.

There were pools of water scattered across the floor, mixed with shattered glass and leaves and sand blown in from outside the window. The furniture was overturned, and that expensive grand piano had even shifted from its position, crashing into the sofa next to it.

"Manager Jang?" Song Tianhao called out in a low voice.

No response.

Song Tianhao frowned. Jang Se-hoon and the two assistants should have been here sealing the windows just now; even if they finished and went to check elsewhere, there shouldn't be a complete lack of movement. Unless...

Alarm bells rang in his heart, but he didn't show it on his face. He signaled for Im Yoona to sweep the flashlight beam across the corners of the living room to confirm there was no one there.

"Let's go check the utility room," Song Tianhao said in a calm voice. "There might be more handy tools there, and we can also check the situation at the back door."

The utility room was at the end of the first-floor corridor, near the kitchen and the back door. It usually held some cleaning tools, maintenance tools, and spare items.

The four maintained their formation and moved slowly toward the utility room. The flashlight beam flickered on the dim corridor walls, casting twisted, elongated shadows, and every step they took on the slippery or debris-strewn floor made a slight, but exceptionally clear, sound in the silence.

A few meters away from the utility room, Song Tianhao suddenly stopped, his flashlight beam focusing on the door handle of the utility room.

The door handle was brass; at this moment, under the flashlight beam, one could clearly see several fresh, muddy, and wet fingerprints on it. And the door to the utility room was currently ajar, leaving a black gap.

This wasn't right. Even if Jang Se-hoon and the others had come to get tools, they wouldn't leave the door open, let alone leave such dirty fingerprints.

Song Tianhao raised his hand, signaling the three behind him to stop, and turned off the phone's light source. He adjusted the flashlight beam to its most focused setting and slowly approached the ajar door.

[part:gemini-3.5-flash]

He listened closely, but there was no sound from inside the door. However, a strange scent—a mix of earthy smell and a faint metallic rust—drifted faintly from the gap in the door.

Song Tianhao motioned with his eyes for the three women to step back. Then, he suddenly raised his foot and kicked open the ajar door!

"Bang!"

The door slammed against the wall with a loud bang. The beam of the flashlight instantly cut into the dark utility room, illuminating everything inside clearly.

The utility room was not large, about ten square meters. A few iron shelves stood against the wall, holding buckets, mops, and some toolboxes. A few spare light bulbs and rolls of wire were piled in the corner. Everything seemed to be in order.

But Song Tianhao's gaze immediately locked onto the narrow window on the inner side of the utility room, which led to the small garden behind the Villa.

That window was wide open at this moment!

A freezing gale carrying rainwater was pouring wildly through the open window, forming a small puddle on the floor.

On the edge of the window frame, there were obvious, fresh pry marks! The metal window frame showed signs of being bent and deformed by a hard object, and the latch had been violently broken, hanging limply to one side.

Several clear, wet muddy footprints were left on the windowsill, extending all the way down and leaving a conspicuous, muddy trail across the dusty floor of the utility room!

The intruder had entered through here!

Park So-yeon gasped and covered her mouth. Im Yoona and Jessica Jung also turned pale, instinctively drawing closer to each other.

Song Tianhao's heart sank, but at the same time, he felt a slight sense of relief. At least the source of the threat and the point of entry were clear. He motioned for Im Yoona to turn her phone's flashlight back on, while he cautiously stepped into the utility room, avoiding the muddy footprints on the floor, and walked over to the window.

He leaned out to look. Outside was the backyard of the Villa, pitch-black, with only the raging storm. The window was not high off the ground, and below it was soft soil, making it very easy to climb. Under the washing rain, the footprints outside had already become blurred, making it impossible to tell if the intruder had left or where they had gone.

He stepped back into the utility room and carefully traced the muddy footprints on the floor with his flashlight. The footprints were clear, about size 42 or 43, the sneaker prints of an adult male.

The footprints extended from the window, looped around the utility room slightly as if searching for something, and then... walked straight out of the utility room and into the hallway.

Song Tianhao turned immediately and followed the footprints out of the utility room. Im Yoona and the other two followed nervously.

The muddy footprints became less obvious on the cleaner floor of the hallway, but they could still be barely tracked. They followed the hallway, entered the living room, and then... disappeared.

The living room floor had water stains, dust, and shattered glass. The footprints were mixed in, making them hard to distinguish.

"He came into the living room..." Jessica Jung whispered, her voice tight.

Song Tianhao did not answer. He carefully swept his flashlight over every corner of the living room. Behind the sofa, under the piano, behind the curtains... any place where someone could hide.

Suddenly, his gaze locked onto the edge of the huge, thick wool carpet in the center of the living room. The carpet had shifted slightly due to the earthquake earlier, and one corner was slightly upturned. Beneath that upturned corner, a black object seemed to be exposed.

Song Tianhao walked over and carefully flipped the carpet open with the tip of his foot.

Lying quietly beneath the carpet was a black, professional DSLR camera with a telephoto lens.

The camera's strap was broken, and there were obvious scratch and dent marks on one side of the body, but overall it looked intact. It was stained with a few mud spots and water stains.

"A camera?" Im Yoona gasped, then immediately covered her mouth, her eyes widening.

Park So-yeon and Jessica Jung also leaned in, both of their faces showing expressions of shock and uncertainty.

Song Tianhao squatted down. Instead of touching the camera directly with his hands, he carefully illuminated it with his flashlight. This was a relatively common professional-grade DSLR on the market. The model was... He squinted, looking at the label on the side of the body.

The label seemed to have been violently scratched. The letters of the model were blurred, but traces of "C" and "N" could be faintly seen, along with a serial number below. It was a high-end Canon model, usually used for photojournalism and commercial photography, and it was quite expensive.

Who would leave such an expensive camera here? And at a time like this?

An ominous premonition welled up in Song Tianhao's heart. Without hesitation, he pulled a few tissues from a scattered tissue box nearby, and through the tissues, carefully pressed the camera's power button.

The camera screen lit up; the battery was still more than half full.

Song Tianhao was a bit unfamiliar with the controls, but he understood the basic functions. He opened the playback menu.

Photos appeared clearly, one by one, on the camera's small screen.

The first photo was of the private beach in front of the Villa during the bright afternoon. Members of T-ara and Girls Generation, dressed in cool swimsuits or short skirts, were laughing and playing in front of the barbecue grill. Song Tianhao's back was to the camera as he flipped the skewers on the grill.

The photo was well-composed and brightly lit, capturing the exact moment Im Yoona was sneak-attacked with whipped cream by Kim Hyoyeon and screamed as she dodged, making the scene lively and amusing.

In the second photo, the lens zoomed in on Park Hyomin, who was drinking juice. She was facing sideways to the camera, with the sunlight spilling over her face, outlining her beautiful profile. She was smiling brightly at Park Ji-yeon next to her. In the blurred background of the photo, Song Tianhao's figure happened to be in the frame, seemingly looking over.

The third, the fourth... they were all photos of this afternoon's beach barbecue and play inside the Villa. There were T-ara members building sandcastles, Girls Generation playing beach volleyball, and everyone sitting together under parasols sharing food... It looked like a record of an ordinary vacation.

But the shooting angles were very tricky. Many photos were clearly taken stealthily from a distance using a telephoto lens. The focus of some photos was, intentionally or unintentionally, aimed at the moments of interaction between Song Tianhao and some of the female members.

Park So-yeon's face grew paler and paler. Im Yoona and Jessica Jung also realized something was wrong, and their breathing became shallow and rapid.

Song Tianhao remained expressionless as he continued to scroll down.

The photos flashed past one by one, from the sunny afternoon to the sunset dusk, and then to the evening when the lights in the Villa were first turned on. There were members playing board games in the living room, preparing dinner together in the open kitchen, chatting on the sofa...

Then, he scrolled to the last few photos.

The lighting in the photos was noticeably darker, and the quality had dropped significantly, clearly taken in low-light conditions.

One of them captured the moment the Villa suddenly lost power and plunged into darkness. The image was a bit blurry, but the living room could be made out, with the members gathered together in a panic, and someone knocking over a cup. The shooting angle of the photo seemed to be looking down from the corner of the second-floor stairs.

The next one was the back view of Song Tianhao carrying Park Hyomin, whose knee was injured, hurriedly walking up the stairs. The photo was very clear, even showing Park Hyomin's fingers clutching the hem of his shirt and the painful expression on her pale face. Song Tianhao's back was broad, carrying an unquestionable protective posture.

The last photo.

It was of just moments ago at the doorway of the master bedroom on the third floor. Under the flickering candlelight, Song Tianhao knelt on one knee by the bed, bowing his head to bandage Park Hyomin's knee.

His profile appeared exceptionally focused under the candlelight, while Park Hyomin looked up at him slightly with a complex gaze—there was pain, dependence, and an indescribable tenderness.

The two were very close, the candlelight casting their overlapping shadows on the wall, creating an unspeakably ambiguous and romantic atmosphere.

The shooting time showed it was less than twenty minutes ago—roughly ten minutes after the Villa lost power.

The shooting location... judging by the angle, seemed to be from the crack of the door of the vacant guest room diagonally opposite the master bedroom.

With a loud boom, it felt as if a clap of thunder had exploded in the minds of Park So-yeon, Im Yoona, and Jessica Jung.

It wasn't paparazzi taking stealthy photos from outside the Villa with a telephoto lens.

An outsider had been lurking inside the Villa all along! Hiding right next door to them! Using a camera, they had recorded everything! They had recorded their panic, Song Tianhao caring for Park Hyomin, and those moments of intimate closeness!