Frank's heart raced as he watched the girl swerve through the crowd, her pursuers gaining ground. Ollie's grip on Frank's arm tightened, holding him back.

"Can't you see those are Jiuling men!?" Ollie exclaimed, his eyes never leaving the chase. "We have to stay out of this. Just because that looks like a child doesn't mean she is one!"

Frank's jaw clenched, a war raged inside him. His mind flashed back to Molly, his little girl lost too soon. He'd dreamed of the day she'd cause him trouble, the way all kids do. It was a parent's rite of passage, one he'd been robbed of.

He turned to Ollie, a lie forming on his lips. "It's a hunch. We gotta go after her."

Ollie's eyes narrowed, skepticism clear on his face. "You need to stop trusting your hunches for everything, Frank. Whatever that thing is will get you killed one day."

Before Frank could argue, Alan stepped forward, his face set with determination. "I'm with Frank on this one. We're cops, and I can't just look and not do anything. "

Frank observed as Ollie snarled, "This isn't Canada! Your badges mean jack here!" His face contorted with frustration. "We're in enemy territory. One mistake and we're all dead."

"You can stop us if you want, you gotta fight us though." Alan commented, already readying himself for the chase.

Ollie's shoulders sagged in defeat. "Fine," he growled, releasing Frank's arm.

"Alan, you go to the main street and we'll chase from the alley." Frank commanded, pointing at the main street.

"Its the usual!" Alan jolted into action, darting through the sea of people in the main street.

Without another word, the Frank and Ollie plunged into the crowd, pushing against the flow of pedestrians. Frank's eyes locked onto the girl's small form, weaving through the sea of bodies. The Jiuling weren't far behind, their faces twisted with determination.

Frank's felt his body sweat more than usual, the humid air thick in his clinging onto his clothes. On the other hand, Ollie's footsteps light and quick with no sign of exhaustion nor discomfort from the weather. The girl ducked into another alley, her pursuers hot on her heels.

As they rounded the corner, Frank's hand instinctively went to his hip, but paused his action as he was in another country, one known for strict gun laws.

The alley stretched before them, narrow and cluttered with overflowing trash bins. The passageway thinned out, its occupants dwindled, only a homeless occupant slept at the side of a fence. The girl then burst into a full-tilt dash, but to no avail. A female figure suddenly descended from the top of the six-story structure, landing directly in the escapee's way. She sported a crimson qipao beneath a white outer jacket, and clutched two machetes, their handles bound together, one in each palm. The pursuers from behind the girl halted their chase, positioning themselves behind the fleeing young woman. Each man donned an ornate changshan adorned with elaborate silver designs depicting the yin-yang symbol. The girl's frightened sobs echoed off the walls.

Frank had just caught up, his legs burning from the fatigue. "What's the meaning of this fellas? Human trafficking?"

The next moment, a clicking sound from behind the woman echoed through the empty alleyway.

"Hands up now!" Gripping his firearm tightly, Alan bellowed a command, aiming the weapon's muzzle at the nape of the machete-wielding female's neck.

"You idiots, they can't understand you. They're Chinese." A black box appeared in Ollie's hand and it emitted a yellow light.

Ollie then started talking in Chinese, to Frank's amazement he could understand every word. "Look, we know you're from Jiuling. We're from the Path. What's the deal chasing a little kid?" Ollie asked.

"You stupid little kid. You think the drunk white man's little gun can kill me?" The woman giggled, her smile deranged.

"No, but this can." An M4 flashed into existence on Ollie's arms, every inch of it carved with what looks like unreadable characters. It's magazine glowed with the familiar sight of crimson.

The grin vanished from the woman's visage, and without warning, she hurled her blade at Ollie. Her head swiftly jerked to one side as a shot echoed from Alan's sidearm.

Ollie shot the approaching blade with pinpoint accuracy. The weapon ricocheted away, only to be yanked back by its wielder. He then flipped a switch on his assault rifle and depressed the trigger, unleashing a torrent of ammunition. Azure streaks zeroed in on the female assailant, tracking her every movement. Suddenly, one of her companions plunged a hand into his pocket, and countless knives erupted skyward, intercepting each of Ollie's rounds with inconceivable precision.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

Frank had his hand set in his pocket with his other hand holding his pistol.

"Stop!" The knife wielding man shouted. The next moment, the woman arrived beside him, a drop of sweat on her temples. "Everybody calm down. We are just trying to take her back home."

"And all I can see is that girl is scared of you! We ain't no idiots!" Frank yelled. "And no shit you guys attacked us first, that woman over there threw her big ass knife at my guy!"

The man shot a harsh glance at his female companion. She visibly squirmed under his gaze. "It's none of the Path's business what we do. Don't you think so, little man with a gun?"

"I'm just following orders. Ask him, not me" Ollie dismissed the question.

"The one behind me and the man with a big belly aren't citizens, are they? We could fight it out, one of us is dying today." The man commented as he looked at Frank and then Alan. "I don't want to get civilian blood on my hands."

"But the orders!" The woman protested.

"Enough! Xiaoli, I already said I don't want civilian blood." The man abruptly turned his back on Frank, his movement deliberate and dismissive. He strode past Alan with an air of indifference, not even deigning to glance in his direction. Frank couldn't help but notice the man's confident gait, a clear indication that he considered himself above the present company.

Once the Jiuling group had vanished from sight, Frank approached the young girl who had crumpled to the ground. He examined her bony, malnutritioned figure. Her attire consisted solely of an ill-fitting white tee and denim pants with a yellow paper sticking out in one of the pockets. In his estimation, she couldn't have been more than fourteen years of age.

Frank approached the trembling girl. Alan followed from the other side, but as soon as he got near the girl, a sudden hiccup escaped his lips. Frank shot him a puzzled glance before turning his attention back to the young girl.

"Hey there," Frank said gently, crouching down to her level. "Can you tell us why those men were chasing you?"

The girl's eyes darted between Frank and Alan, fear still etched on her face. She mumbled something incoherent that none of them could hear her. Eventually she said, "I got lost… I don't know where to go or how to go back home."

Frank sensed the lie immediately.

"Look," he said, reaching into his pocket. "I've got something for you."

He pulled out a chocolate bar, holding it just out of her reach. The girl's eyes widened, tracking the dangling treat.

"How about we try this again? Why were those men after you?"

The girl's hand shot out, snatching the chocolate bar from Frank's grasp. She tore into the wrapper, devouring the sweet treat in seconds. When she finished, she looked up at Frank expectantly.

"One more?" she asked, her voice small but hopeful.

Frank chuckled, producing another bar from his pocket. As the girl eagerly accepted it, he noticed a flash of yellow peeking out from her pocket again.

"What's that you've got there?" he asked, nodding towards the paper.

The girl froze mid-bite, then slowly reached into her pocket. She hesitated before handing over a crumpled yellow slip covered in red Chinese characters. Frank's eyes widened as he recognized the writing—it was eerily similar to what he'd seen in Ryan's warehouse.

He turned to Ollie, unable to suppress a smug "I told you so" look. Ollie's face tightened, a mix of surprise and annoyance evident on his face.

Frank turned back to the girl. "Why do you have this?"

She swallowed the last of her chocolate, licking her fingers clean before answering. "I... I stole it," she admitted sheepishly. "It looked funny, and it felt weird. Not like normal paper."

Frank nodded, his suspicions confirmed. He glanced at the empty wrapper in the girl's hand, then back at her hopeful expression.

"Any more chocolate?" she asked, a hint of a smile playing on her lips.

Frank patted his pockets and shook his head. "Sorry, kiddo. All out."

The girl's face fell, disappointment clear in her eyes. Frank felt a pang of sympathy, reminded once again of his own daughter.

Without thinking, he reached down and scooped the girl up, settling her on his arm as if she weighed nothing. She let out a surprised squeak but didn't protest, instead wrapping her arms around his neck for support.

"How about we go back to the restaurant Alan found?" Frank turned to the group.

Alan nodded in agreement, a glint in his eye. "Say, Frank, while we're at it, how about we try some baijiu? Heard it's one of the strongest drinks around. Been itching to give it a go."

Frank raised an eyebrow. "Isn't it a bit early for that?"

Alan shrugged. "When in Rome, right? Might be a bit pricey, though."

Frank glanced at Ollie, who sucked on his teeth as he cast his gaze to the side. "Don't look at me. I'm not paying for that."

The group made their way back through the crowded streets, now bathed in the warm glow of late afternoon. The girl clung tightly to Frank, her eyes wide as she took in the sights and sounds around her.

At the restaurant, Frank settled the girl into a chair and ordered her a bowl of noodles. She attacked the food with the same ferocity she'd shown the chocolate, slurping down the noodles at an alarming rate.

While she ate, Frank pulled out the strange yellow tape, studying it closely. The writing style was unmistakable—identical to the yellow tape he'd seen in Ryan's warehouse. Not just similar, but as if penned by the same hand.

A frown creased his brow. Why would it be here? Could Ian somehow be in Guangzhou right now? The questions swirled in his mind, each one leading to another.

"Alan," Frank said, holding up the paper. "You getting anything from this, maybe a smell or something?"

Alan squinted at it, then shook his head. "Nothing much. Doesn't seem particularly dangerous, if that's what you're asking."

Frank turned to Ollie. "What about you? What's this paper for?"

Ollie leaned in, examining the document. "It's a type of sealant," he explained. "This specific one is for sealing rifts, preventing civilians from accidentally stumbling into them."

Frank's eyebrows shot up. "Civilians can just wander into rifts?"

"At least those with a small amount of ether can," Ollie clarified. "And speaking of which..." He gave Frank a pointed look. "You've got a minuscule amount yourself. Annoyingly just enough to potentially find trouble."

Frank sat back, processing this new information. He glanced at the girl, still happily slurping her noodles, then back at the paper in his hand. The pieces were there, but the picture they formed was still frustratingly unclear. The undeniable scent of a promising lead was potent, enough to elicit a grin as he examined the document.