The intermittent sounds drifted into his ears, and suddenly, they grew louder, from faint to thunderous, until they roared beside him like a great bell. He squeezed his eyes shut, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead. He struggled to control his thoughts, forcing himself not to listen to the noise. After a long while, it seemed his efforts paid off—the noise by his ears gradually faded until it disappeared... Only then did he open his eyes, quietly wipe away his sweat, and press his chest to steady his heartbeat.

For so many years, there had always been these sounds, coming and going, whispering by David Carter's ears. This symptom had appeared when David Carter was very young, but as a child, the reality David Carter had to accept was that his father had been ill for many years, and his mother had spent long years caring for his cancer-stricken father. So, the sensible David Carter kept his own condition hidden, unwilling to let his mother worry about him as well.

After all, this minor symptom didn’t affect his life or work. As David Carter grew up, he was even less willing for his mother to worry about him. So, every time he encountered a similar situation, he adopted an ostrich policy, deliberately ignoring the sounds by his ears... Gradually, he became accustomed to these occasional auditory hallucinations.

When he was in kindergarten, David Carter noticed his hearing was especially sharp—he could hear things others couldn’t, and he even felt a subtle pride about it. But after starting school, David Carter realized that not all the sounds pouring into his ears were real. Sometimes, the sounds he heard didn’t exist at all—maybe they were just his own imagination... After entering university, his father passed away. During the funeral arrangements, David Carter vaguely felt that the auditory hallucinations that occasionally appeared in his mind

might also be a kind of cancer, very likely a problem with his brain, or at the very least, an issue with his auditory system...

This thought terrified him, but unwilling to burden his mother with his illness again, he suppressed the urge to tell her. To prevent his mother from noticing anything in their daily interactions, after graduation he used the excuse of seeking better opportunities to stay in this international metropolis and found his current job.

“Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, fear only comes from fear itself.” After wiping the sweat from his forehead and steadying his heartbeat, David Carter quietly scanned the passengers in the subway car, recalling his mother’s frequent words: “Life is like a lump of clay—whatever you long for, shape it into what you imagine, and you’ll harvest hope. I am not a patient, I am healthy, I am happy!”

He kept encouraging himself in his heart, but David Carter knew clearly: recently, his auditory hallucinations had become more and more frequent, often accompanied by dizziness and ringing in his ears. Haunted by the fear of his father’s long illness, David Carter didn’t even dare go to the hospital to confirm his suspicions. Every time he spoke to his mother on the phone, he only shared good news, never bad. Only occasionally, late at night when he was alone, thinking about the future, would a bleak thought cross his mind: perhaps, if he quietly

disappeared from this city, it would also be a kind of... at least his mother wouldn’t have to worry about her son the way she worried about his father.

After gradually calming his emotions, David Carter arrived at his destination. Following the flow of people, David Carter exited the subway station. At the subway exit, a Chinese mixed-race man brushed past him, the two of them lightly bumping into each other. The mixed-race man shuddered, paused for a moment, and watched as David Carter boarded a bus. Then, this Asian mixed-race man walked to the bus stop, examining the bus schedule while pulling out his phone to make a call.

The call connected, and the Chinese mixed-race man spoke in Spanish to the person on the other end: “Torre, I’ve made an unexpected discovery... Yes, exactly the kind you’re interested in... Ah, the goods? The procurement process seems a bit bumpy, but don’t worry, it’s just a small problem—I’ll handle it myself... Time, I need more time, yes, please give me another week... No, no, I don’t need an assistant...”

At that moment, another bus arrived. The man put away his phone, got on the bus, and followed the same route as David Carter, tracking him all the way...

Chapter Two: Connections and Competence

David Carter hummed a pop song as he walked toward his company. At this hour, as usual, the only one who had arrived was the receptionist Elaine Bennett. She was a local, living closest to the company, so every day she was the one to unlock the company doors and prepare everything in advance. As a newcomer, David Carter also tried to arrive a bit early to help with some cleaning.

Elaine Bennett was a chatterbox who couldn’t hold back her words. As she quickly wiped down the doors, windows, and counters, she chatted with David Carter about sisterly secrets, clothes, jewelry, cosmetics, strange news, and city gossip... In short, no matter the topic, she could talk for hours without stumbling—probably a survival skill honed from years of front desk work.

Next to arrive at the company was the boss, Brian Cooper. As soon as he entered, he greeted David Carter: “Chengzi, did you get those machines fixed yesterday?”

David Carter’s mother was a middle school teacher, and Brian Cooper had been her student many years ago.

These days, everything depends on connections. Thanks to this acquaintance, Brian Cooper hired David Carter, who majored in accounting. Of course, because of this relationship, Brian Cooper could also trust David Carter with tasks like collecting final payments from clients.