His head felt a bit groggy, and Eric Carter began wandering alone on the street. He needed some quiet time to think about a few things, but his current state of extreme drowsiness without being able to sleep made it hard for him to truly calm down.

Very conflicted,

Very uncomfortable,

It was like walking out of an internet café after two nights in a row, or like a middle school student who stayed up all night reading novels under the covers and then had to get up early for class the next day.

As he walked, Eric Carter suddenly stopped in his tracks. The surroundings felt somewhat familiar.

Then he saw the sign ahead:

Tongcheng First Affiliated Hospital.

He had actually wandered all the way to his old workplace. Heh, maybe it was just because Tongcheng was too small.

Eric Carter walked into the hospital, not for a trip down memory lane, but planning to get some sleeping pills to try;

Not eating—he could still tough it out, at worst just drink more water, fill up on water to get by for a while. But not sleeping—now that was a long-term torment.

A familiar hospital, a familiar work environment. Eric Carter saw that on the photo album of the emergency department on the ground floor, his own photo had turned gray.

Then, almost unconsciously, he walked to his old office. His desk had already been taken by someone else—a middle-aged doctor with a face full of pockmarks was sitting in his spot. He glanced at the nameplate on the desk: surname Kang.

He let out a long sigh, tinged with a bit of emotion.

Eric Carter temporarily forgot about getting sleeping pills. Maybe it was this “things have changed” feeling that temporarily suppressed the torment of his sleepiness. Eric Carter started wandering around the hospital.

He was reminiscing about all the bits and pieces of his life here,

His work,

His life,

And,

His past,

Or rather, his previous life.

There was no going back, really no going back, Eric Carter muttered in his heart.

Then, without realizing it, he had walked down the stairs and arrived at the basement level.

He stood still. Having worked here for many years as a doctor, he knew the layout of this floor well.

Some equipment storage rooms, and then—the morgue.

He remembered that he had once lain in the hospital morgue, and had been made up by a mortician there.

He started walking again, heading toward the morgue.

Eric Carter wanted to take a look at the place where he had once lain. That was the explanation he gave himself for heading that way, but in reality, it was a special feeling in the dark, guiding him forward.

As he walked, Eric Carter saw the morgue door. There was an electronic keypad lock on the door. Coincidentally, Eric Carter remembered the code. If it were another department’s doctor, they probably wouldn’t have any connection here, but Eric Carter used to be in the emergency department. The people sent to the ER were usually in serious condition, and inevitably, some couldn’t be saved and had to be sent here.

In fact, this hospital also served as the police station’s temporary morgue. Some unidentified or “pending” bodies would be temporarily kept here. This was common in many places—if the local police station lacked facilities or forensic staff, bodies were often kept at the local funeral home or hospital.

He entered the code.

The lock opened immediately.

Eric Carter walked in.

A chill swept over him,

Not the kind that prickles your skin,

But a special, eerie cold that seemed to smother the warmth inside you.

In the morgue, of course, there were bodies lying there. This was a temporary resting place for the dead.

Normally, there should be an attendant outside, but for some reason, Eric Carter hadn’t seen anyone when he came in. Maybe the person had stepped out for a bit.

Eric Carter walked among them. A few bodies were placed on cold gurneys, covered with white sheets. One body was wrapped in a floral quilt from home. Judging by the silver hair exposed from the head, the deceased was probably an elderly lady.

Because of his profession, Eric Carter was never very afraid of corpses. Besides, now he himself was a ghost.

Eric Carter walked over to the freezers—the kind with pull-out drawers.

The freezers with bodies inside all had labels on the outside, recording the name, gender, and other information of the deceased.

Eric Carter pulled open an empty freezer, reached inside, closed his eyes, and slowly felt around. Gradually, a sense of intoxication came over him, as if only here could he find peace.

After hesitating for a moment, Eric Carter lay down inside.

“Squeak…”

The freezer was slowly pushed in, until it closed completely.

Silence,

Coldness,

Utter stillness,

Eric Carter slowly closed his eyelids.

Drowsiness swept over him.

He finally found the feeling of sleep.

But he couldn’t sleep just yet,

Because he still didn’t know

Who had just been standing outside, helping to push the freezer in for him…

Chapter 9: So This Is What You’re Really Like, Ryan Cooper!

Eric Carter started kicking his feet inside, trying to get himself out, but from outside came the sound of “clack clack”—which meant the lock on the freezer had been fastened from the outside.

He was locked in, unable to get out.

For a moment, Eric Carter felt as if he was back in the scene when he was first placed in that cramped coffin.