Chap 7
Chapter 7: The Red Umbrella
Victim: Đặng Hữu T. - Child trafficker using rail transit routes
Crime: Pushed onto railway tracks moments before oncoming train
Modus Operandi: Timed "accidental" stumble at rush hour
Forensics: Blunt force trauma from impact; no evidence of foul play due to crowd chaos
There's something poetic about trains.
They move forward no matter what.
They follow a fixed path.
They don't stop for anyone.
Just like justice.
I met Đặng Hữu T. by accident. Or rather, he met someone else - a girl. Ten years old. Thin. From Cao Bằng. And I watched as he smiled, bent low, and offered her "work in the city." He wore a clean shirt and used soft words.
But his hands - his hands were too calm for a man offering help.
I followed them.
Not then. Not obviously.
Later, I found out everything: the "boarding house" with seven girls, none older than fourteen. No windows. No schooling. Just fear.
He didn't hurt them himself. He just sold them to others who would. He called it "logistics." He moved them via train - tickets bought in cash, girls muzzled with fake IDs, always two or three steps ahead of the law.
No charges had ever stuck. He was "careful."
But trains don't care how careful you are.
STAGE SELECTION: PLATFORM 4, GA SÀI GÒN
Platform 4 was perfect:
No cameras
Rush hour crowd
Evening rain
I had rehearsed the choreography a dozen times.
There's only one second between when a train enters visibility and when people truly realize it's there. That's my window.
THE RED UMBRELLA
I bought it just for this - a large red umbrella with black ribs. Easy to see. Easy to identify. Easy to disappear.
He took the same train every Thursday at 6:15 PM - not to travel, but to escort. He always arrived early, checking his phone, scanning for contacts.
That evening, I waited under the shelter, hood up, red umbrella tilted.
I walked toward him slowly.
He didn't see me.
The train was late - 6:17. I heard the whistle before anyone else reacted.
That was my moment.
I bumped into him, hard, shoulder to chest. I shouted, "Watch it!" - loud enough to be natural.
He turned. Lost balance.
And I let the umbrella go.
It flew upward, spinning like a bleeding starfish in the grey light.
His foot hit the edge of the platform.
He tried to catch himself.
Too late.
The train struck him at 94 km/h.
THE AFTERMATH
Screams. Panic. People rushed to the edge, some gagged. The train screeched to a halt two cars too late. All they found was a red splash and scattered papers.
The crowd blocked vision. No one saw anything clearly.
Security ran. Whistles blew.
I simply walked away. Blended into the people.
The umbrella? Crushed beneath the second wheelset.
FORENSIC REPORT (Case ID: 2024-0118-T)
Victim: Đặng Hữu T., Male, 38
Time of Death: Approx. 6:17 PM
Cause: Multiple blunt-force injuries consistent with high-speed rail impact
Scene Analysis:
Victim observed standing near platform edge prior to incident
No witness statement confirming intentional push
CCTV from adjacent platform partially obscured due to umbrella
Autopsy Findings:
Polytrauma; immediate fatality
Alcohol: Negative
Drugs: Negative
Conclusion: Accidental fall onto tracks during rainstorm
Case Status: Closed due to insufficient evidence of foul play
Later, I saw a news report calling it a "tragic accident." Some even speculated suicide. Others commented that he had looked "distracted" lately.
No one investigated further.
The girls in the boarding house were found two weeks later and relocated. Quietly. Without press.
I hope they forget his name.
But I won't.
That night, I wrote the seventh name.
7. Đặng Hữu T. - Age 38 - DOD: January 18th, 2024
Next to his name, I drew a tiny train.
Because some justice doesn't knock.
It arrives on schedule.
Bạn đang đọc truyện trên: Truyen3h.Co