Chapter 18 — Old Painting Restoration Workshop

A strange noise woke up Mien Thu in the middle of the night, when the clock hands were just past two o'clock in the morning. She lay quietly in the darkness of the bedroom on the second floor of the workshop, her heart pounding, trying to listen to see if it was just the sound of a stray cat rummaging through the trash in the alley. But when the noises repeated—the soft click of a lock being engaged, the careful sound of footsteps on the tiles downstairs—she knew with certainty that this was no hallucination.

She quietly crawled out of bed, her heart beating rapidly, her trembling hands reaching for the phone on the bedside table. She didn't dare turn on the light, just slightly opened the door and listened. The noise comes from the main workshop area, where "Vong Nguyet" and all research materials are located.

Her hands were shaking as she dialed Nguyen Vu's number, her voice as whispering as possible. "Mr. Vu, someone broke into the factory."

"Where are you? Are you safe?" His voice on the other end of the line was immediately tense, alert even though he had clearly just been awakened.

"I'm in my room, the door is locked from the inside." She replied, her voice still shaking. "But I heard noises in the workshop."

"Don't go down. Call the police now, I'll be there right away." He said decisively, then hung up.

Mien Thu did as he said and called the local police. Her voice tried to stay calm even though her whole body was still shaking with fear. She sat crouched in the corner of the room, hugging her knees tightly, listening to every smallest sound coming from downstairs, praying that the intruder would leave before the police or Nguyen Vu could arrive.

About fifteen minutes later — to her, it felt like a century — she heard the sound of a motorbike horn, the sound of hurried footsteps outside the door, and then Nguyen Vu's urgent call at the door. She rushed down the stairs, opened the door for him, and he immediately scooped her up in his arms, his voice trembling with the anxiety that had pent up during the drive here.

"Are you okay?" He asked, his hand gently caressing her back as if to make sure she was still there, safe, intact.

"I'm okay." She replied, her voice still shaking, but in his arms, she felt her fear gradually subside.

The police arrived a few minutes later and inspected the scene. The back door of the workshop, which leads to a small alley hidden behind, showed signs of being slightly pried, although the lock was not completely destroyed. Inside, the cabinet containing research documents on "Vong Nguyet" - where she kept copies of UV and infrared photos, and preliminary analysis results - was ransacked, although fortunately, the most important documents, along with her grandfather's stack of diaries, had been kept in the safe in advance according to Nguyen Vu's instructions.

"The intruder did not take anything of ordinary material value." The police officer commented after checking. "It seems their goal is documents, not money or furniture."

Mien Thu and Nguyen Vu exchanged meaningful looks. Both clearly understood that this was not an ordinary theft.

After the police recorded the scene and left, promising to investigate further, Nguyen Vu stayed in the factory and refused to leave even though Mien Thu said she was okay. He sat down next to her on the bench in the workshop, both still in shock.

"They've gone too far." Nguyen Vu said, his voice sharp with anger. "Threatening through letters is one thing, but breaking into your home in the middle of the night is a completely different level. This is a serious crime."

"I'm scared, Mr. Vu." Mien Thu said, her voice trembling, revealing for the first time the weakness she had been trying to suppress for weeks. "Not only for me, but for Thuy Chi, for Mr. Le. If they dare to do this, I don't know what else they can do."

Nguyen Vu turned to look at her, his eyes filled with protection and a deeper emotion that he was no longer trying to hide. He raised his hand and gently stroked a strand of hair falling from her forehead, a gesture so gentle that it made her heart stop beating in that moment.

"I won't let anything happen to you." He said, his voice low and sure. "From today, I will stay closer to the factory, until everything is resolved properly. And I will find more people to support security for the factory, I cannot let this situation happen again."

Mien Thu looked at him, the distance between them in that quiet night seemed to narrow to the point where there was no longer any boundary. She could feel his breath, his eyes fixed on her with a protective longing that he could no longer hide.

"Thank you," she whispered, "for coming right when I needed you most."

"I will always come, whenever you need me." He replied, his voice soft as a promise.

In that fragile moment, between the fear that had not yet dissipated and the newly rediscovered safety in each other's arms, Nguyen Vu bent down and gently placed a kiss on her forehead - not a hasty gesture of passion, but a warm, protective gesture, filled with all the respect he had for her during the past weeks and months of companionship.

Mien Thu closed her eyes and let that warm feeling spread throughout her body, dispelling some of the fear and fatigue that had surrounded her all night long. In her heart, amid the storm that was coming from all sides, she realized she had found a solid shelter — not the four walls of the Bach Nien workshop, but the person sitting next to her right now.

"We will get through this." She said, her voice much steadier now than it had been a few hours ago. "Together."

"Together." He repeated, clasping her hand in his, like a vow that didn't need to be said any more clearly.

The next morning, when Thuy Chi came to the factory and heard the whole incident, her face turned pale and her hands shook with fear and anger. "They dare to break in here?" She said, her voice cracking. "Ms. Thu, should I inform Mrs. Kim at the museum so she can have a better plan to protect the painting?"

"I was thinking about that." Mien Thu nodded, even though her heart was still filled with worries. "But you need to consider carefully how to present it, because if you tell everything now, it may make her panic, and she may even decide to withdraw the painting to the museum immediately before you can complete the necessary evidence."

At that moment, Mr. Le also arrived at the factory. Hearing the story told by Thuy Chi, his face became unusually serious. He went around checking all the doors, nodded and turned to Mien Thu.

"Miss Thu, I know a young man in the neighborhood who used to work as a security guard for a large company and is now free from work. Let me ask him to come watch the factory at night for a while, at least until things calm down." He suggested, his voice filled with the concern of someone who had been involved with the workshop for generations. "I can't let last night happen again."

"Thank you." Mien Thu said, touched by that sincere concern. "I think that's a good idea."

Nguyen Vu, still staying at the factory since last night, further proposed installing a simple security camera system, enough to record any unusual movements around the factory area. "The cost isn't too high, and at least we'll have photographic evidence if they dare to try again." He said, starting to search for information on his phone about nearby appliance stores.

That whole morning, the Bach Nien workshop became unusually bustling — not because of restoration work, but because everyone was busy preparing new security measures. Mien Thu looked at that scene, feeling a mixture of warmth and sadness - her small workshop, which was only used to the silence of meticulous work sessions, now had to learn how to defend itself against forces much larger than it.

At noon, when taking a break, Mien Thu called Ms. Quach Thien Kim and decided it was time to announce part of the incident, even though she had not revealed all the details of the investigation. Mrs. Kim heard the news about the break-in with real concern, immediately asked to send more museum security staff to assist, and asked directly if there was anything unusual related to the painting that Mien Thu needed to share.

"I will give you a full report as soon as possible, when I have enough accurate information." Mien Thu replied, trying to keep her voice calm. "But I ask you to trust me a little longer."

Mrs. Kim was silent for a moment on the other end of the line, then replied, her voice full of thought. "Okay, I believe you, Mien Thu. But if there is anything serious, you must let me know immediately, don't let me bear all the risks alone."

Hanging up, Mien Thu felt somewhat relieved, even though she knew the time she could delay the truth was getting shorter and shorter.