Chapter 56

Chapter 56

Many times, men and women have a different understanding for the same word. 

For example.  ‘Full body’ to Jian Yao means she will be wiping his face, neck, chest, back, arms and legs. And this is embarrassing enough.  

But for Bo Jinyan…

Full body means EVERYWHERE, especially the part that is usually hidden beneath his underwear.

Jian Yao thinks to herself. Well, it is a reasonable request.  It has been quite warm in the past few days.  She suggests: “Let me put a chair in the shower box.  You can sit there.  I will hold and control the shower head and make sure no water touches the wound.  Ok?”

Bo Jinyan smiles.  His eyes are gleaming with joy.

“Of course.  Good idea.”  He says in a low soft voice.

Something don’t feel right.  But man are usually excited by physical contact.   She thinks no more of it and walks to the bathroom.

————-

The bathroom lights has a nice warm glow.  Jian Yao puts a bar stool in the middle of the shower box.  

Jian Yao helps Bo Jinyan to sit down.  

She helps him to unbutton his shirt. He is sitting very still, just looking at her.  

She takes his shirt off.  Perhaps it’s her imagination?  The place seems to be filled with his unique masculine scent.  She looks up.  Bo Jinyan is still staring at her, smiling.

“What are you smiling about?”  She asks.

“I am enjoying my shower.”

Ok…. Jian Yao makes a mental note for herself. Do not speak to him during any form of physical contact.  Anything he says is bound to make her embarrassed.

But it’s not up to her to control whether Bo Jinyan decides to speak or not.  After she takes off his trousers, and see his long and toned legs, she picks up the shower head with a redden face.  As she turns the water on, she hears him say: “What about my underwear?”

Jian Yao takes some time to think of a reply.  The water lands next to his feet.  Steam starts to fill the bathroom.

“It’s not necessary.” She says softly.

“Of course it is.” He looks at her and says faintly: “I wash myself everyday.”

Jian Yao’s face is burning with embarrassment.  

“I can teach you.” He continues to say in a leisurely manner.

Jian Yao feels like the thread veins inside her face is about to explode.   

“I don’t need you to teach me.” She starts to rinse his good arm.  “I will do what I need to do. If you don’t like it, you can do it yourself.”

“Ok.” Bo Jinyan says reluctantly.

She takes the handmade soap from the corner and starts to gently rub it on his arms.  Then she hears him speaks again: “How are you intending to wash it off?  I don’t like the water temperature to be too high.”

Jian Yao: “You… just shut up!”

Eventually, she finishes cleaning his back, his arms and his legs.  She shoves him the shower head: “I will go out for a while.  You can rinse the rest yourself.”

Bo Jinyan looks in your eyes: “Sure, but you will need to help me to take off my underwear.” He smiles: “I can’t bend my back.” 

This is a very ‘valid’ reason. 

He is sitting on the chair.  He is tall, proportionate, with a great muscle definition.  A perfect body.  His face seems to be blushing too.  He looks at her with anticipation. 

Jian Yao tries her best to avoid touching his skin, but some contact is inevitable. She pretends nothing has happened when her fingertips accidentally touches his flesh.  But her heart is pounding.  

Seems like it took forever for her to complete the task.  She quickly hands him the shower head and turns her back on him: “Call me when you are done.” She walks out quickly.  But she hears him call even before she reached the door: “Jian Yao.”

“What?” She turns her head to the side, looking at him with her peripheral vision.  

“Even if you pretend not to see it. You can’t ignore the fact.” He says in a slightly coarse voice, “I'm aroused…because of you.”  

——————-

Jian Yao waits in the lounge.  She pressed her cold fingers to her hot cheeks and takes a deep breath.  It’s the first time she has seen a completely naked man in her life.  The night in bed.  It was too dark. Besides, she subconscious kept her eyes away from the lower half of his body.  

The image is still vivid in her mind.  

Suddenly she thinks of what’s likely to happen between them in the not too distant future…. Oh, how embarrassing.

Bo Jinyan’s voice from the bathroom: “I’m ready.”

“Ok.”  She walks slowly back to the bathroom.

Oh great! She has to face him again.

————————

Because of his restricted mobility, there are lots of things Bo Jinyan cannot do at the moment.  The days become long and boring.  

Bo Jinyan’s temper is obvious.  Except for Jian Yao, he grumbles and mocks about everything.  

On the fifth night.  Jian Yao is watching some US drama on her laptop.  Bo Jinyan is sitting next to her.  He can now put his hand around her. 

After the nth time he criticises about the drama - actors are ugly, the plot has too many loop holes… Jian Yao can’t stand it anymore.  She looks at him: “Why are you so testy?”  

He says faintly: “Because I hate recuperating.” 

“Your injuries were worse last time.  It took you a whole year to recover.  You got through that ok.”

Bo Jinyan gives her a glance: “It’s different.”

“Why?”

“I didn’t have you by my side to challenge my desires.”

“….”

Then when night falls, he mood improves: “Time for a shower.”

It’s almost October.  The weather has cooled down a bit.  Jian Yao looks into the dark outside the window: “The temperature is dropping tonight. It’s not that hot anymore.  Is it necessary?”

He looks at her: “Are you trying to deprive me of my only pleasure in life at the moment?”

She pauses, then says: ‘Very well.  Let’s go.”

When she settles Bo Jinyan on the chair in the shower box.  She shoves him the shower head and smiles: “When you are done, go to bed.  Goodnight.”  

Bo Jinyan looks at her.  She has already walked out of the bathroom: “I saw you taking the files from the shelves with your hand today.”

• So, Mr. Bo Jinyan.  You are on your own.  

Jian Yao returns to her room.  Then she hears water splashing sounds from the bathroom.  She smiles to herself.  

But she forgets that everything has a consequence.  She deprived him of his ‘only pleasure’, and there is a price she will need to pay too.  

She is woken by in the middle of the night.  She smells a familiar scent, then her body is lifted off the bed.  She opens her eyes.  It’s Bo Jinyan.  He is strong enough to carry her.

“What you are doing?” It’s the middle of the night.

He replies with action.  He carries her into his room, put her on his bed, then lies down beside her.  

He just twirls her hair quietly.  She thinks of all the possible things he might do.  She blushes.  

He has purposely left the bedside lamp on. 

“Hug me.” He says.

Jian Yao turns around and shuffle up close to him.  She puts a hand in front of his chest.  She likes this position.  It’s intimate, but not sensual. 

And to her surprise.  He is lying very still.  Eyes closed.  

He carried her over just so that they can sleep on the same bed.  Nothing more.

After she falls asleep, Bo Jinyan opens his eyes.  

Oh…. she was expecting something more from him.  

But he is not fully recovered.

And he must be in his best form for his first ‘time”.

—————-

The next morning, someone comes to see Bo Jinyan.  Finally, he has got something to sink his teeth in.

Bo Jinyan’s fame has spread to the rest of the country since the two serial killing cases.   Today, an older officer from a second grade city from the South have come to seek his counsel.  

He is about forty ears old.  He looks tough and experience.  

Although they are not expecting visitors,  Jian Yao invites him to come in to take a seat on the sofa.  Bo Jinyan is clearly not so welcoming: “When did my lounge become a reception area?”

Jian Yao looks apologetically to the officer.  But he doesn't seem to mind.  He takes out a stack of files and passes a few photos to Bo Jinyan: “Professor Bo, please have a look at the files.”

The photo shows victims lying in their respective crime scenes.  There are five photos all together.  They look like they were killed by the same person.  The murders happened about eighteen years ago.  The method the killer used had was the same for all the cases. There were also matching DNA from all the crime scene. But it’s a cold case.

The old officer heard about how quickly Bo Jinyan managed to crack the recent homicides, so he thought he’d take a chance.

“ A lot of the buildings where the crimes were committed have been demolished.  The bodies are long buried.” says the old officer. “I only have these photos and the witness statements.  I have worked on this case for years.  I am about to retire.  I know there is only a very slim chance we can crack this now.  But I want to give it a last try.”

 Jian Yao studies the information on the cases: 5 single ladies. Factory workers.  Between the age of 20 - 25.  All of them were quite pretty, and slim.  Time of death was in the middle of the night, when they were asleep at home.  No signs of sexual assault.  But the bodies were abused after death.  The cases were spread over a period of two years.  According to the witnesses, all the ladies had a number of admirers in the factories.”

Jian Yao frowns: “It’s a very old case, and there’s hardly any evidence.  Bo Jinyan, what do you think?”

Bo Jinyan says to the officer: “I will give you a few suggestions:

• The killer was between 30 to 35 years of age when he killed those women.
• He worked for an organisation that provides services to the community: driver, courier services, electrician or plumber, or even police officer.  He was working for or close the factories. At least, it will be in the same suburb.  
• He was probably a stalker.  But the victims and him might have met during some social functions.  He might even tried to pursued them.  He’s had personal contact with the victims before killing them. 
• He should be average looking.  Not handsome, but not ugly either.  Quiet. Quick tempered.  Temperamental.
• He hated women.  Though he didn’t have sex with any of the women, I think there is still connection between sex and his crime. He lacked family attention from young, especially from his father.
• Lastly, a serial killer at this level lacks self control.  There reason why there were no more cases must be because of change in his circumstances.  Perhaps he was in jail for other crimes, or he was hospitalised or moved elsewhere, or he changed his killing style.  If he is still alive, he will want to keep connected with his victims, for example, visiting their tombs or the crime scenes regularly, so he can re-live his memories.     You mentioned some of the buildings are demolished.  However, for a psychopath, he can only sees what’s in his head.  To him, those building still exist.  

———————

The officer left after talking to them.  Is he going to find the killer after so many years?  It’s hard to say.  But over the next few days, more officers from various provinces come to Bo Jinyan for assistance.  Bo Jinyan does the same thing as he did for the old officer.  He gives them his views on the cases and profiles the killer for them.

Sometimes Jian Yao is concerned that he is too tired out. “Are you sure you are not too tired?”

Bo Jinyan: “Does your body ever feel tired when your brain is doing all the work?”

Five days after the old officer came to him, he locked in a suspect: 52 years old man that runs a small store near the cemetery.  He was an electrician.  His parents separated when he was young.  The police officer matched his DNA to the cases.  

Jian Yao is overjoyed to hear the results.  They try their best to help the ever increasing flow of visitors that seek his counsel.  

So, time passes quickly when one is busy.  It’s now end of October.  Bo Jinyan has been resting at home for almost two and a half weeks.