The Saviour

She wasn’t with me for any ransom. That’s not what I do. Like everyone else, she needs saving. All the roaming, neglected souls on the fringes of society. Most people ignore them, and their obvious pain.

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It started the way it always does. I saw her as I turned the corner of Angsana Green Road, eyes swollen, headphones blaring with pulsating rock music too loud to hear herself think. She reminded me of those other darn females—unnoticed. Except that I observed. I’m an excellent observer, if I do say so myself. That’s why I insist that I’ve done this before. The world just doesn’t know people, or even themselves the way I do.

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I never followed her on the first day. No. It doesn’t work that way. First, I let her be. Patience is the name of the game. Waiting for the right moment is the name of the game. That’s what makes me different from the other thugs out there. At least, that’s what I tell myself. I bide my time until they are ready.

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I followed her around for two weeks, just to make certain she was ready. She has to be willing, you see. So I have to be familiar with her patterns. She didn’t seem to have anyone in her life. No one concrete, at least. There was just one phone call from her mom,I think, and even that was brief. She didn’t go to parties or bars with friends. There didn’t seem to be a boyfriend in her life. She was just a shell, and I was to give her meaning. I’m sure that was my purpose in her life.

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I got my basement ready as I always did, complete with blankets, food, and water. Nothing odd about that. I’m not like the others - I make sure they’re comfortable. My place isn’t a prison - I don’t capture them, I give them a refuge. They must realise that I offer them sanctuary. It’s always better.

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Detective Ariel Lim doesn’t offer a smile. I suppose that’s her and her charming self. She made her way into my shop, looking around at my collectibles - items I’d garnered over the years. Some people call them ‘la ji’ (junk) but I’m not offended. That’s what they are, and I’m proud of them.

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I knew why she was here before she opened her mouth. They’d connected the important dots too quickly. I must’ve gotten sloppy.

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“Lim Wee Keong?” she asked in the coldest female voice I’d ever heard. “We’d like to ask you a few questions.”

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“I’m happy to help in any way I can,” I said, hoping to disarm her with my boyish smile. But I could tell that my handsome charm wasn’t working.

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“Someone saw you in the vicinity of Angsana Green Road the night Angel Lim disappeared,” she said, not wasting time on pleasantries. I’ve always liked their directness.

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“Lots of people walk past Angsana Green Road,” I gave her a casual shrug. “That’s not unusual.”

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Nothing seemed to be in her way. “No one saw you for a week, though.

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I kept the mood light. “Now, detective, is breaking my routine a crime?” I flashed the most briliant smile I could.

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Ariel Lim never flinched, never wavered. Nothing is a joke with detectives like her. They speak to every one as if they did a crime, interrogating. They just waited for their prey to lose their vigilance. Then they pounce. I wasn’t about to fall victim.

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Angel was…wasn’t like the rest. She didn’t adapt the way the rest of them did. Most of them understood after a while. They stop fighting me because they see that I’m not the bad guy. They know that I’ve saved them from something worse. But Angel…she didn’t understand. She kept screaming. She wouldn’t accept my help. Wouldn’t listen to me.

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Yeah, the constant shrieking was making it hard. Her hunger strikes too. Those complicated things, but I told myself that she needed more time. Each of them came round eventually.

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Detective Lim didn’t say much at first. She just stared at me as if she could see right through me. She coursed through details in her notebook, details I never knew how she got. Missing girls associated with me. Information off my mobile phone records.

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I told her nothing.

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She didn’t question me at first. She detailed the evidence in front of me. All the missing girls. “They think they can get away with it. But they can’t. They never do. Even if it takes a longer time.” She raised her eyebrows a few times.

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I desperately waited for her to slip. For her guard to weaken. When I could eventually control the narrative. But she was too smart for that.

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“Wee Kong,” she rose slowly out of her chair. “Forget it. You’re not saving anyone.”

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But Angel needed saving. I so wanted them to understand that. She needed it, didn’t she? Wasn’t I supposed to be their light?

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They managed to find Angel, and all the missing girls. Each one. Nothing was wrong with them; no scratches. DNA tests came out clear. But they still arrested me because they found the girls at my place.

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I’m not the bad guy. I’m not. I wanted to show them the way.

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The place was empty when they found it…..just filled with my karang guni (collectible) items.

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I wasn’t the bad guy. Was I?