Chapter 1

The cable car hung suspended in mid-air. Over the intercom, a staff member's voice crackled:

"It's past closing time for the park. You're coming down this late, so you'll have to pay me overtime."

"Let's make it a flat fee of 7,000 bucks. That's for the whole 7,320-meter cable car ride, I'll even round it down for you."

"Transfer the money, and I'll restart the cable car. If you don't, you can all hang here in mid-air tonight!"

I pleaded with the staff member to restart the cable car because two elderly people had suddenly collapsed from high blood pressure and were already unconscious.

The staff member scoffed, "Then pay up for your lives, simple as that. No money? Then you deserve to die there!"

Without warning, the cable car shuddered to a halt, leaving us dangling in the vast emptiness.

The steel cables groaned and shrieked in the wind, a sound that grated on my teeth.

Below, the valley plunged into an abyss, the twilight bleeding ink-black into the horizon, rapidly devouring the sky.

Inside the cabin, our senior tour group of twenty elderly passengers, just starting to unwind from a day of sightseeing, were now plunged into the abyss of panic by this sudden stop.

"What's going on?"

"Why did we stop? Is something wrong?"

"Chloe, dear, is everything alright? This looks so scary..."

My heart plummeted. I forced down my own rising anxiety, managing a reassuring smile.

"Don't panic, everyone. It might just be a temporary stop. I'll ask what's happening."

I immediately found the intercom button on the cabin wall and pressed it.

"Hello? Control center? We're passengers on the downhill cable car. Could you tell us why we've stopped?"

After a brief static hiss, a young woman's voice, laced with laziness and impatience, cut through.

"Hello, hello, can you hear me? This is Amy from the mountain base control room. It's already past closing time for the park, and you guys are coming down this late. That's infringing on my private time, so you'll have to pay me overtime!"

Overtime?

Everyone froze, stunned.

The woman sneered, then slowly continued, "By the rules, it's one buck per meter, and this cable car line is 7,320 meters long. I'll round it down for you, let's just make it 7,000 bucks. Transfer the money, and I'll get the cable car moving again. There's a QR code right next to the intercom, see it? Now, scan it and transfer the money, immediately!"

"Money in my account, and I'll send the cable car right down. If not..."

Her voice suddenly turned chilling, "Heh, then you can all hang up here in mid-air and freeze your asses off tonight! The night wind up here can literally kill you!"

The cabin erupted into chaos, the elderly passengers gasping in horror.

"This... what kind of logic is this?"

"This is robbery! It's blackmail!"

"This is outrageous!"

"Are you and the park staff in on this together to scam us, tour guide?"

I couldn't help but frown.

I'd led so many tours, been to this park thousands of times, and we usually descended around this time.

This was the first time I'd ever encountered anything like this.

I quickly calmed the seniors, suppressing my own anger, and tried to speak into the intercom in as steady a voice as possible:

"Ma'am, what's your name?"

"Amy."

"Ms. Amy, I don't know if you're a new employee, but I've brought groups to this park so many times, I know your schedule by heart. We are not past closing time."

"Your demand is unreasonable and completely baseless. We've purchased valid entrance tickets and cable car tickets, and the park is obligated to transport us safely down the mountain. Please restart the cable car immediately. We can discuss any issues once we're safely on the ground."

Amy instantly shrieked, "Discuss? Who's discussing anything with you?!"

"My time is money! Cut the crap, no money, no movement!"

Just then, Margaret, an elderly woman from our group, tugged at my sleeve, whispering anxiously, "Chloe, dear, you need to look... Arthur and Eleanor... their faces aren't right. Arthur looks... it's making my heart race..."

I turned back to look.

Arthur was practically slumped in his seat, his face an unnatural, deathly gray, his lips a terrifying purplish-blue. One hand was clutched tightly to his chest, his breathing shallow and ragged, as if he might stop any second. His forehead was beaded with cold sweat.

Eleanor gripped his other arm tightly, her aged face etched with immense fear and helplessness, her lips trembling.

"Medicine... Arthur, where's your blood pressure medicine? Your heart medicine?"

Arthur shook his head slightly, with great difficulty, his eyes already unfocused, his voice barely a whisper.

"Finished... last pill... forgot... to bring..."

My heart plunged to rock bottom.

Arthur suffered from severe high blood pressure and a coronary heart condition.

This sudden fright and being suspended at this altitude were a fatal blow to him!

I immediately rushed back to the intercom, yelling, "Ms. Amy, we have an elderly passenger in our group who has fallen critically ill because of your actions! He's showing signs of oxygen deprivation and needs to be taken down the mountain for emergency medical attention immediately!"

"You need to restart the cable car right now! Otherwise, if anything happens to this elderly man, you will be held fully liable in the eyes of the law! This is murder!"