Manhattan Reborn 1978

Texas.

Northwest of Houston, eastern suburbs of the small city of Hempstead.

lunch time.

Short-haired Ada Pushk was sitting behind the table beside the bed, resting her chin on one hand, looking at the birds flying by in the distance outside the window, in a daze.

at the door.

The maid Chasida knocked on the door lightly a few times, pushed it open, and waited quietly.

ten minutes later.

Short-haired Ada looked back and saw Chasida. After the two communicated instantly through their eyes, she quickly organized her notebook, put it into the small bag she brought with her, got up and walked out of the room.

First floor, in the restaurant.

Sisters Salonia and Loisa took the grilled fish specially made for One-Eyed Andres out of the oven and placed it on the dining table.

Andres smiled politely at the two sisters. When he saw the short-haired Ada coming towards him following the maid Chasida, he opened his mouth in surprise but said nothing. .

Salonia, the eldest of the sisters, pulled out a chair for the short-haired Ada and asked with a smile.

"Have you finished writing?"

"Hmm..." Ada seemed to have a good impression of Salonia and responded in a rare way.

The maid Chasida observed the people at the table and silently wrote down this small detail.

My sister Loisa tilted her head and glanced at the short-haired Ada who was starting to eat, thought for a while, and asked.

"Are you going home?"

"..Um!"

"Then can you show me the story you wrote?"

Ada stopped what she was doing, looked at Loisa who looked "innocent", and nodded.

Salonia guessed some of her sister's thoughts, picked up a slice of bacon and put it on her plate: "Eat first, don't be distracted!"

"Oh..." Loisa teased obediently, lowered her head and started eating.

One-eyed Andres was tasting the grilled fish specially made for him while observing the subtle atmosphere "wafting" between the four girls, with an imperceptible smile on his lips.

Although he was blind in one eye, his heart was not blind. .

If the four of them live under the same roof in the future, there will definitely be a lot of drama~

----

new York.

Afternoon~

Manhattan, southernmost point of Central Park.

Plaza Hotel, fifth floor.

in the suite.

David, who had changed his clothes again, walked into the bedroom with a plate of cake in his hand, and smiled at Zina and Elena who were surrounding Sierra's mother helping her put on makeup.

"Are you all right?"

"Right away~" Elena put down the eyebrow pencil in her hand, took two steps back, and said with a smile that felt very good.

"You look absolutely stunning."

"Hahaha~" Sierra's mother raised her eyebrows very happily and said with a smile.

"Without your help, I wouldn't have known how beautiful I could be..."

"Wow~" David handed the cake plate to Zina, walked to his mother, pulled her to look at it carefully for a while, and praised it.

"When you put on this sky blue floral lace lady's dress, I can't even recognize you!"

"Mom, you are so beautiful!"

"Hahaha~"

Sierra's mother, who had never been so "ceremonious" before, patted her son with her long silk-gloved hand, turned to look at herself in the full-length mirror, and shook her head with a slightly complicated expression.

"Have I gained weight recently?"

"No!"

David walked behind Sierra's mother, opened his arms and hugged her, looked at the almost "unrecognizable" beauty in the mirror, and continued to praise her cheerfully.

"This Victorian dress you are wearing can only be truly mastered if it is full of mature female charm!"

"Disgusting~" Sierra's mother patted her son's arm and sighed with an even brighter smile.

"You are so old, of course I am old too..."

"Not old!"

"You will always be the beautiful mother standing at the door of my house, watching me go to school!"

"Haha~" Sierra's mother looked at her son in the mirror, with a hint of memory in her smile.

David took his mother's hands, moved sideways, looked at her familiar profile, and felt a "strange" heat slowly rise in his heart.

He seemed to hear the "voice" hidden in his heart, and it sounded again~

"mom!"

"Huh?" Sierra's mother deliberately tilted her head and looked at her son.

David took a half-step forward passionately, kissed his mother's forehead gently, and whispered: "I want to be your...lover for the rest of my life!"

"Hahaha~ OK!" Sierra's mother laughed and hugged her son, kissing his cheek.

"If I had met a handsome boy like you when I was young, I would definitely not marry your father!"

"Hahaha~" David nodded sympathetically, opened his arms and hugged his mother tightly, feeling the heat in his heart quickly occupying his whole body, warm, numb, and as refreshing as an electric shock~

Elena put down the cosmetics in her hands, walked quietly to Zina, took her arm, and quietly watched the scene of mother and son "showing affection", and felt a warmth that she had never felt before in her heart.

Zina was keenly aware of the "sameness" of the people around her, gently held her hand, and smiled as she enjoyed the "infinite affection show" between David's mother and son.

. . .

Ten minutes later, in the living room of the suite.

Lilith, Polly, Susan, and Cui Yingying, all dressed in "fancy clothes", stood side by side in front of the old David and his wife and David.

Lilith wore a traditional British aristocratic lady style dress, Polly wore a retro free woman style dress, Susan wore a unique western cowboy style dress, and Cui Yingying wore a one-shoulder tight colorful sequined dress that was popular in the 60s in the United States. .

The four beauties were wearing different costumes, showing four different styles and bright colors, which made David and his wife amazed~

Especially when David saw the four well-dressed beauties in front of him, all with different smiles on their lips, the wonder and surprise in his heart slowly turned into anxiety.

"that.."

David glanced at Zina and Elena who were "hiding" behind him with some guilt, then spread his hands to the four beauties and asked.

"Who should I choose first... take a photo together?"

"I don't know how to solve this problem..."

"Hahaha~" Everyone present laughed.

Little Bernice and little Lindsay, who had been "hiding" behind Polly just now, suddenly ran to Sierra's mother hand in hand. Their two pairs of big eyes looked left and right, full of curiosity~

Little Lindsay's eyes turned back and forth on her mother and all the beautiful aunts. .

He held Sierra's mother with his hand, stood on tiptoes, and whispered: "I'll tell you a secret!"

"These aunties are all bigger than my mother's!"

"What?" Sierra's mother, who had not reacted for a moment, bent down to pick up little Lindsay and wanted to ask a few questions.

Polly seemed to understand what her son was talking about, and a blush suddenly appeared on her face. She strode up to Sierra's mother, wanting to teach this "unfilial son" a lesson. .

"Hahahaha~"

David immediately got the "key point" of the "naughty kid" little Lindsay's words. He laughed and stepped forward to hug Polly, wanting to "test" it with his own hands. .

"Hahaha~"

Several people around him who also reacted also laughed and looked at the "naughty child" little Lindsay who was hiding in the arms of Sierra's mother, and all looked at Polly's upper body. .

And holding David, who was about to "go crazy", he felt her body temperature rising rapidly, and quickly tried to persuade her while holding back a smile.

"Look~ I just told you to stop dieting to lose weight..."

"Children's words are not taboo!"

"Child if..."

"Huh!" Polly glared at her "unfilial son" again, curled her lips and hit David twice, then pulled Lilith and said.

"Now that we're all ready, let's take another family photo."

"Okay~" Everyone agreed with a smile, and Lilith was pushed to the middle position by Susan and Cui Yingying, standing next to Sierra's mother and David.

Polly took the initiative to break away from David's pull, walked to the other side and hugged old David's arm, and then pulled Zina who was busy putting on makeup and arranging clothes for everyone. .

"Photographer" Elena put the camera's tripod in place, directed everyone to pose, counted down to three times, and clicked the shutter several times.

David looked at the people around him at this time, smiled and waved to Elena.

Elena was stunned for two seconds, then smiled and set the time-lapse photography function on the camera, trotted to Zina's side, and struck a pose with a smile on her face~

. . .

It's approaching evening~

In front of the Plaza Hotel.

Old David took his wife and Polly's two children in a car driven by Black Mike, preparing to return to the small town of Morrison, New Jersey, to see how his family was doing.

David stood on the street and watched the car go away. He held Polly's hand and whispered: "The children are willing to stay with their parents. You don't have to worry about them anymore."

"Well..." Polly's tense body slowly relaxed.

She gently got rid of David's hand, held Lilith's arm, and said with a teasing smile in her eyes.

"How are you going to spend Valentine's Day?"

"Uh..." David scratched his ears unnaturally, and when he saw Lilith also had a "watching the fun" smile on her lips, he shook his head and spread his hands.

"To be honest, I didn't expect how to spend tonight..."

"But I also don't want you to be disappointed or not feel my sincerity and love..."

"So, I leave this decision to you!"

"What do you say, I do!"

"Oh?" Polly glanced at Lilith with sparkling eyes, then looked at Susan, Cui Yingying, Zina and Elena. The evil smile on her lips was no longer hidden and she said directly.

"We want you to dress up as a woman and go shopping with us!"

"What?!"

"no!"

"I'm a man, and I can never wear women's clothes in this life!"

"Haha~ Really?"

Polly glanced at her "accomplices" Susan and Cui Yingying, who had already planned it. She took David's arm with a smile and walked straight to the hotel door regardless of his "struggle" and "resistance."

. . .

more than an hour later.

Polly and others got into the car surrounded by a "dressed-up woman" and went straight to the nightclub.

. . .

It was approaching midnight.

Plaza Hotel, fifth floor.

After an afternoon and a night of "craziness" ~

David felt like there was nothing more he could do. .

He lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling silently, feeling that he still couldn't accept that he would become a "women's clothing boss". .

Polly, whose face was flushed, showed a satisfied and happy smile, lay on his chest, and asked.

"What are you thinking about again?"

"I finally understand now, a joke I heard someone tell..."

"Oh?"

"What is it?" Polly thought about it interestingly and asked.

"Hmmmm~"

David snorted, put his arm around Polly, and said while holding back his laughter.

"Three best friends got together to chat. They all felt helpless and angry at their husbands' increasingly perfunctory behavior."

"So they started teasing each other about their husbands' past shameless behavior~"

"The first daughter said: My husband is an artilleryman. Before every battle, he will complain that he has insufficient ammunition.,"

"The second woman laughed loudly after hearing this and said: Even if your husband always shouts that there is no ammunition, he is still better than my husband!"

"He...is a scout..."

"When he comes home from get off work, he always stares at me with a vigilant face, fearing that I will suddenly attack."

"At this time, the third woman also said with some distress amidst the tacit laughter of her girlfriends..."

"If you follow your words, then my husband is a sentinel~"

"Every time he sees me from a distance, he turns around and runs away as if he has discovered a major enemy situation."

"Hahaha~" When Polly heard this rich joke, she rolled her eyes at David coquettishly, pushed his shoulder a few times with her right hand, and said with a disgusted smile.

"Okay~ How can you make up an excuse like this just to be a deserter...?"

"What excuse!?"

"What I'm talking about is what others say..."

"Haha~" Polly took the nightgown and put it on her body, went down to the bed and curled her lips.

"Someone else, huh?"

"Bring this man over someday and let me see him too!"

"Tsk~ It's not him, it's her!" David defended, feeling that he was wronged.

Polly didn't want to hear these "nonsense", so she waved her hand and said, "Go and ask Susan and Cui Yingying to come and accompany me."

"what about me?"

"You can't be so heartless, can you?"

"I wasn't lazy at all just now!" David hugged the quilt tightly and shouted with a very helpless expression.

"..." Polly rolled her eyes speechlessly, walked to the bathroom door, and said casually.

"Don't think I don't know what's going on in your mind!"

"Humph!"

"Uh..." David looked at her disappearing from the bathroom door, scratched his head and sat up, smiling~

----

Manhattan.

After midnight~

42nd Street, Wildfire Bar.

The steel-toothed dog Menge stood at the door of the bar, watching a middle-aged man with firm steps walk to the far corner and get into a car, and let out a long breath.

in the car.

Fal Pocchivino put his left hand on the steering wheel, bent his head and looked at the middle-aged man with calm eyes and cold face, and asked in a low voice.

"You want to investigate the case about your daughter's abduction?"

"Ok!"

"What's your daughter's name?"

"Betty."

"Oh..." Far quickly remembered the girl named Betty, nodded, and after a moment of silence, asked again.

"You are Brazilian?"

The middle-aged man replied in a hoarse voice: "I want to find the real culprit behind my daughter's murder."

"and then?"

"..." The middle-aged man said nothing and looked at Farr quietly.

"..All right!"

Farr started the car, let it drive slowly down the street, and said.

"Actually, similar cases of keeping young girls in captivity and human trafficking cases happen quietly in some corner of this city almost every month."

“While I was investigating this case, when I chatted with colleagues from several nearby states, they also said that the immigrant population in the jurisdiction has been increasing in recent years, with unidentified girls, women and children accounting for the majority. "

"The main factor behind this situation is that the U.S. government has gradually relaxed its immigration policy, which has allowed many smugglers to see huge business opportunities."

"Especially in the past few years, New York City has received a large number of Jewish immigrants from China, and the New York City government has been close to shutting down the government revenue deficit due to various problems."

"The city government has no money, so the police officers who rely on the city government for their salaries will certainly have a hard time~"

"Therefore, the past few years were the most chaotic period in New York in the past 30 years, and also the period when the old and new forces and gangs were at their most serious."

Farr parked the car at an intersection, looked ahead at the Brooklyn Bridge service road leading to Brooklyn, and sighed softly.

"I have met your daughter Betty and several girls who were rescued with her."

"The last time I saw them, their mental state was pretty good, but they were just a little uncomfortable adapting to the unfamiliar environment in the police station."

"Later, I heard that they would be deported back to the country after completing the entire process, so I stopped paying attention to their situation."

"I didn't expect that..."

Farr clenched the steering wheel with both hands, looked at the green light ahead, gently stepped on the accelerator, and whispered through gritted teeth.

"Betty was stabbed to death in a dark alley on the street with a sharp weapon similar to a long-edged knife..."

"There were many wounds on her body, but one of them pierced her liver..."

"The medical examiner said that after her liver was destroyed, she did not die immediately due to excessive blood loss, but was stabbed many times in succession."

"Her strong desire to survive made her choose to resist and struggle..."

"But her liver can no longer bear it..."

Farr slowed down the car and stopped in front of a department store on the street. He turned to look at the middle-aged man and said coldly with anger in his eyes.

"Now, either you prove your true identity, or I let you try my fists!"

"..." A hint of warmth suddenly appeared on the middle-aged man's cold expression.

He raised his hands, took out the worn leather wallet from his pocket and opened it as Farr watched.

Farr looked at the neon lights outside the car and saw clearly an old photo in his wallet. He loosened his clenched fists and frowned.

"That's not enough!"

"..." The middle-aged man put his wallet in Far's hand and slowly took out an envelope, which contained several pages of letter paper wrapped with several photos.

In the photo, Betty, the girl who was unfortunately killed, was wearing a relatively conservative swimsuit, standing under some coconut trees on the beach, looking at the sea with a bright smile. .

The middle-aged man turned the photo over, letting Farr see a few lines of words left behind the photo, as well as the date. .

1978 2 Month 14 Day.

"..." Farr was silent.

The middle-aged man looked down at the remaining photos in his hand, and the tenderness and love in his eyes seemed to be "flowing" uncontrollably. .

"Betty, she's my daughter!"

"My beloved and only child!"

"I am still alive now just because of her."

"If she dies, I have to change my way of living!!"

Farr stared at the youthful Betty in the photo, returned it and the wallet to the middle-aged man, and whispered.

"Tomorrow night, wait for me at the phone booth in front of this store!"

"it is good!"

The middle-aged man carefully put away the photos, envelopes and wallet, then took out an oversized envelope, put it next to Farr, opened the car door, and left.

Farr looked down at the envelope with some confusion, then glanced at his leaving figure in the rearview mirror. After opening the envelope, he couldn't help but take a few breaths of cold air. .

Because inside the envelope were all old versions of rice knives that had ceased circulation more than ten years ago, and their face values ​​were all 1000 yuan.