The man fixed his gaze on a middle-aged woman draped in jewelry at a clothing stall. His eyes brimmed with greed as he targeted her handbag. His pace quickened, his heart hammering against his chest. Treading silently through the crowd, he muttered under his breath:
"Three meters, two meters..."
Lightning fast, the man lunged, snatched the woman's bag, and fled. Panicked, the woman gave chase, her hands reaching out desperately but failing to reclaim her property. After a few meters, the man glanced back to see her still pursuing him. He swiftly pulled a dagger from his pocket, lunged at her, plunged it into her chest, and continued running. The surrounding crowd erupted into chaos, immediately calling for an ambulance and the police.
At 12:50 PM, inside a small house, the man sat on a sofa, trembling with fear. Sensing the police would soon find him, he scrambled to pack his things, deciding to make a run for it.
At 1:13 PM, his phone rang. Panicked, he quickly hung up. The unknown number called back repeatedly. Infuriated, he finally answered:
"What the hell do you want?"
A deep male voice replied from the other end:
"If you want to live, do exactly as I say. Pack your bags and get out. Try not to be seen. Go to the gas station near your house, hijack the small truck, drive out, and turn right. I will call you back."
The caller hung up. Despite not knowing the stranger's motives, the man obeyed to preserve his freedom and his life. He crept toward the gas station and, seeing no one watching, slipped into a truck and drove off, leaving the owner in shock. The unknown number called again. He answered urgently:
"I'm in the truck. What now?!"
"The police are coming; your best bet is to get as far away as possible. Drive 5km along that road and turn right twice, then turn left. Drive another 40km along the highway and turn left again. Follow the small path for about 7km, turn right, then left. You will reach the edge of a forest. Drive straight until you see an abandoned house. Do not go inside, and do not pay it any mind. Keep moving forward; there will be a car waiting for you to the North. I will call again. Remember, do not panic even if you are being followed."
The man followed the instructions to the letter. After just over 1km, he felt he was being watched, guessing the police had tracked his location. Struggling to stay calm, he pressed on while plainclothes officers trailed him silently.
At 2:25 PM, the man abandoned the truck and sprinted toward the woods. He ran past the abandoned house without stopping, heading toward the far edge of the forest.
At 2:36 PM, beneath the canopy of trees, a black car sat waiting, just as the mysterious caller had promised. The man called the stranger:
"Where do I go next?"
"Drive forward along the hillside road. When you descend the hill, park the car exactly 5 meters from the signpost. Walk another 100 meters to the first house you see-it must be exactly 100 meters. Wait there until tonight; I will make arrangements for you."
Overjoyed, the man complied. He parked 5 meters from the sign and walked to the first house he encountered. Finding the front door locked, he circled the building and managed to pry open a kitchen window to sneak inside.
At 3:01 PM, as he climbed through, a rope triggered. A massive blade swung down, severing his head. Blood soaked the floor. The head, eyes still wide with shock, rolled toward an open door as a shadowy figure stepped out and retrieved it.
Later that evening, at 6:07 PM, the front door creaked open. A 30-year-old woman entered and flicked on the kitchen light. She let out a piercing scream and immediately called the police.
Sirens echoed through the neighborhood as Da Dang Ha and five other officers entered the scene. On the kitchen floor, by the window, lay the headless corpse of a middle-aged man in his 40s. Blood from the neck saturated the floor and splattered the walls-a horrific, barbaric sight.
Officers searched the premises but could not find the victim's head. Near the window, they discovered a rope and a large iron blade rigged to it.
Through interrogation and investigation, Da Dang Ha learned the woman was the homeowner, Doan Kieu, who worked frequently and was rarely home. The time of death was estimated to be 3 to 4 hours prior-around 3:00 PM.
The victim was identified as Vuong Hoang, a man with a criminal record for theft and the murder of eight people to seize property, a spree that had destroyed an entire family. While in prison, he had repeatedly assaulted other inmates. However, he supposedly reformed, and his original 35-year sentence (given when he was 35) was reduced to just 7 years. Earlier that day, he had robbed and stabbed a woman in Thanh Tuyen district.
"3:00 PM... a woman named Doan... a man named Vuong..."
Da Dang Ha muttered, recalling a phone call reported by his staff: "On September 21st, 20CH, at 3:01 PM, in the house of a woman named Doan, I will take the life of a man named Vuong."
"It's that killer!"
Da Dang Ha punched the wall in fury. It was his fault-he had been too subjective. Realizing his mistake, he clenched his fists, silently swearing to catch this murderer.
Only one thought consumed his mind:
"What is this killer's motive, and who is he?"