The sunlight shone and dispersed in the room. Vera’s eyelids fluttered slightly and then opened.
She breathed in the air of a new day... Her body still felt uncomfortable, but her current mood seed good.
When she sat up and stretched herself hard, she saw a small black card on the edge of the pillow.
It was playing-card size, like the one used by her to play card tricks.
Vera frowned, she didn’t rember ever customizing such a prop... but she didn’t pay any more attention to it.
She got through another night of the full moon, which was good enough for her to be happy for over one month, until the next night of full moon arrived.
So her fingers gripped the black card, and threw it out subconsciously, as if it were a playing card--- It flew out, stopped when it hit the wall; and slid down the wall. Finally, it beca one of the many items in this room.
Vera shook her head with wry smile while looking at the current appearance of the room... She didn’t want to make trouble, so she had to ask so worker to fix the broken part of this room before she left the place she rented.
Vera walked out of the room with a quilt wrapped around her body.
She saw Vicar first.
Vera shook her head. She saw Vicar sitting opposite to her at a place two-ters away from the door, with a fruit knife in his hand.
Now, he was dozing off.
Vera walked over to him, foot kicked the stool leg. The shock had Vicar suddenly woke up, and the fruit knife fell down and made a loud noise, "Vera! You woke up. How’s everything going?"
Vicar got up hurriedly.
Vera lightly said, "If there are so delicious foods for breakfast, I think I will be better."
"Oh! Wait for a second. If you want to eat, how I wish I could give you all the food in the refrigerator!" Vicar said with an exaggerated look, "So long as you don’t eat !"
Vera rolled her eyes, and showed Vicar one-finger salute.
"By the way, did you get to the bed?" Vera turned on the TV and asked Vicar later, who was cooking breakfast.
"How dare I!" Vicar shook his head, "Were you conscious of climbing into the bed this ti?"
Vera shook her head, "I can’t rember... probably."
Vera had been absent-minded for a split second... She seed to rember that she fell down the floor, and vaguely... heard so weird sounds.
After breakfast, Vera looked at Vicar and said, "Get your tools ready. This evening, I’m going to visit Efim’s ’fortress’."
"Today?" Vicar was shocked, "Are you sure? But you need to take a rest now."
"I’ve already recovered, I’ll probably make a full recovery this noon." Vera said indifferently, "I’m not that healthy, but at least I should be a little better than ordinary people... just take it as loosening my bones and muscles!"
...
...
"Boss, Mr. Victor is coming."
His henchn sent him into the building---Efim was viewed by Victor at the mont when the lift door opened.
"Hahaha! Dear Victor, I’ve been waiting for you for a long ti."
The hearty laughter and Efim’s sincere smile gave Victor an illusion, that he was eting an old friend, who he hadn’t seen for dozens of years.
"Forgive for coming to visit you in the evening because of the trivial matters at the police station." Victor laughed.
Efim walked forward and embraced him heartily; and then hand on his shoulder and took him into the room, saying with passion, "I just opened a bottle of good wine. It’s what I bought from an auction last year in Sotheby, Italy. You should have a try!"
"Oh, really?" Victor smiled, "That’s worth having a taste, or else I won’t have any chances in my life later on."
"Hahahaha!" Efim laughed, "No, you have more opportunities in the future! If you like, you cannot only taste these wines, but also have the ability to beco one of the purchasers of these wines!"
Victor laughed without words.
As Efim opened the bottle, he said, "I’m 54 now. And I started to make a living when I was 13 years old. Do you know what’s the reason for to make a living in the beginning?"
"I would be glad to hear it."
"A pair of leather shoes." Efim recalled the history, "At that ti, the entire country was concentrating on developing military affairs... Military developed, but other fields collapsed. At that ti I was in university. You know, in winter, I could only wear a pair of worn boots and was the mockery of the whole class; so since then, I swear that I must be capable enough to get what I want."
Victor said calmly, "Now, Mr. Efim has owned a large amount of wealth that ordinary people cannot imagine."
Efim laughed loud, "Let’s have a drink and stop talking about unpleasant things! Let’s talk about sothing else after drinking!"
Victor squinted his eyes, "Isn’t Mr. Efim too happy today? Don’t forget that you’re in a bad situation now."
"No ... greater returns always hides at back of a worse situation." Efim patted Victor’s shoulder and said, "Co with !"
He took Victor to the central area of the living room--- a ’The Naless Maiden’ was placed on the central table quietly.
It was placed lying down.
"As a Muscovite, I think you must know what the picture is." Efim said with smile.
Victor glanced at it, nodding before sighing with emotion, "It cost 260 million Euros. This world is too crazy. But, Mr. Efim, are you showing the painting just for showing off?"
"No! I’m going to send this picture to you." Efim suddenly said, "And I can tell you, this is the real one!"
Victor frowned.
He didn’t know what ’the real one’ ant... as if there was a fake about.
In the video Urey sent him, it didn’t ntion the details of the painting--- but only revealed that the painting had been purchased by Efim secretly.
’The Naless Maiden’ was the sa as a treasure handed down from ancient tis, and could be regarded as a national treasure.
Efim’s behavior committed cri of scalping relics in private, which was a hard cri to escape.
"What do you want to do?" But at the sa ti, he was keenly aware that Efim had other purposes.
Efim said then, "How did your subordinate film or get the video about this?"
Victor shook his head, "I can’t act rashly and alert the enemy... of course, before confirming Mr. Efim’s cooperative willingness."
Efim rubbed his hands and nodded, "You’re right. You should be careful. However, I don’t need your answer, because I know where the video ca out from."
"Oh?"
"Now it’s the ti for you to show that you are capable enough to be the head of the police station." Efim sneered, "Now that this painting has appeared in soone’s ho. Even if that person denies pleading guilty, he cannot get rid of the cris of possession of national treasures, correct?"
Victor calmly asked, "Who’s the other party?"
Efim told him slowly, "He used to be an exiled guy who called himself ’noble’... As of now, he’s doing illegal business... In the last decade, his family made a fortune by in firearms smuggling. They should be hiding in Morocco, but nobody knows why they ca to Moscow recently... You know how developed the river transport is in this city!"
Victor seed to understand Efim’s plan.
It was what he expected.
Efim sneered now, "Getting back a stolen national treasure, and even arresting the successor of this family that is running a weapons smuggling business... Oh, dear Victor, do you like this gift?"
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