Alaric's eyes widened as Steve broached the subject he'd been desperately hoping to avoid. His mind desperately searched for a way to navigate the conversation without revealing too much, because he knew that he didn't have a direct answer to the question. Panic gripped him, unknowing of why, and for a moment, he was utterly dumbstruck. He fumbled for words, his mind racing to come up with a response that would deflect the impending confrontation. As Steve pressed on, Alaric swallowed hard, a bead of sweat forming on his forehead. He knew this moment was inevitable, the past catching up with him. Inwardly, he berated himself for not being better prepared, for not having a convincing explanation at the ready. "I know that that was where I found you," Steve declared, his gaze piercing. Alaric sighed inwardly, acknowledging that he couldn't dance around the truth any longer. "The abandoned house, same address was where I found you, young master, and you were unconscious. Are we serio
Sighing deeply, he took a moment to calm down. Finding the innermost courage to move forward, he raised his head straight, looking through the windshield, and holding a tight grip on the steering wheels. "Drive!" he ordered through the transmission system, and Steve relayed the command to the guard in the accompanying vehicle. They drove immediately, and most of the people who were around watched as all of them rode off, as if they were escorting a president. Alaric, behind the wheel of his sleek black vehicle, felt a surge of responsibility. As the convoy rolled down the winding roads, Alaric couldn't shake off the feeling of anticipation. He reached into his pocket, retrieving the small earpiece he had acquired earlier. Slipping the earpiece into his ear, Alaric hesitated for a moment before pressing a button on its side. A soft hum filled his ear, signaling its activation. With a deep breath, he called out, "Steve, do you read me?" In another vehicle down the convoy, S
Alaric was listening to the steady communication between the members of the team, and how the commander had given out orders to them. He was plugged in, which meant that he could hear everything they said, and he was amazed by it. “How long before we get there?” He asked. “Five minutes, young master,” the commander replied. “Good. It seems there is progress. You will connect the chip to your own when we get there, right?” Alaric asked. “Yes, young master. I will do that when we get there. But when do we know when to stop? You said we should stop about 100m from the location. How is that?” “I will tell you when to stop. I think by now my mother must have reached there, and I told her guards about it too. They will stop at a safe distance from the location so that the criminal won't know that I have protection with me,” he said. “What if a criminal has been waiting before then to see if you actually brought anyone with you, and has been looking around the place if he would find so
“I'm not quite familiar with this place, but we are near a street. We left the main road following the directions, and this is where we found ourselves. There is hardly anybody around, and there is a street about 40m ahead,” the vice commander explained. “Good. Stay on the line and be alert at all times. Make sure you protect the madam at all costs,” he ordered. “Yes sir! Got that. I have already ordered all our members to guard the front of the madam's car because I don't want anything to happen. We are on guard right now and we are waiting for the young master and the rest of the members of our team,’’ he said. “We are suspecting that the criminal must have waited for the young master, I might be watching closely to see if anyone was accompanying him to the place. Do you think there's anyone around you watching you or maybe stalking you?” He asked. The vice commander looked around and scanned the area. It was a deserted place that seemed like no one was around, and it looked lik
“Young master, my second in command, told me that the place was derelict, and it seems like the road is not good. They are gone from the main road, and it seems like no one lives around,” the commander said. “Yes. That's the place! Tell them to stay there,” Alaric ordered. Alaric knew that with the descriptions given to him, it was the place he expected it to be. “Young master, I told my second in command that I would order him to do what you order me. I will give the order to him now, and tell him to make sure that all the other members of the squad stay there,” he said. “tell him that they should always be on guard till we reach there. Even if that place is derelict and they have not found any sign of life or anyone who lives around there, they might still be someone watching closely or looking from a nearby place. Make sure that they are not suspected of anything or anyone is not watching, suspecting them or thinking they are out to cause harm,” he said. “I will do that, y
He began breathing fast, and his hands began shaking while losing a tight grip on the steering wheel. The past could play in his head very vividly, and his heart was beating fast. All of a sudden, finally losing grip of the steering wheel, his car swerved near the ditch, and he gasped, immediately pressing his foot on the brakes, and the tires of his car screeched for mercy before his car came to a sudden halt. Steve had already driven about 50 meters ahead of Alaric when he heard the sound. All the cars behind Alaric were first to stop as they noticed the unexpected event. All of the members of the A-V squad were on alert. Steve immediately stopped the car, and the commander, seeing that no one else was driving, stopped too. Steve immediately unfastened his seat belt and got out of the car. He rushed to see what had happened with Alaric and had his heart in his head, as he went there. He reached where Alaric was, and he peeked through the window. Alaric was still trying to r
"But…he has not stepped out of the vehicle. Are you sure everything is alright?" "I don't know, Steve. How about you go and check for yourself?" He asked. "Okay, young master, I will," Steve said and turned to head to the commander's car. 'God, let it not be what I am thinking,' he muttered to himself, as he took his steps, heavy from the burden that lay on him. Steve walked forward through the road, his steps heavy with a sense of impending doom, and his footsteps echoed along the deserted road. The gravel crunched beneath his boots as he approached the commander's car, the knot in his stomach tightening with each step. An ominous thought whispered in his mind, suggesting that the world around him was about to unravel, and he desperately wished it were a mere figment of his imagination. He was sure the commander wouldn't have been harmed. As he drew closer, the car door swung open, revealing the commander's stern face, etched with concern, as he immediately came out. Steve's
"I think we will also have to get permission from the young master for that. Let's go see him," Steve said to the commander. He went and walked up to Alaric's car, followed by the commander behind him, but was shocked by what he saw. Alaric's head was raised, and his hands shaking on the steering wheel, whilst trying to remain calm and breathing heavily. "Y… young master. A… are you all right?" He asked, really worried about what was really going on with Alaric. Steve was surprised that he was in that kind of position, and it seemed like Alaric was really afraid, or maybe something like that. He wasn't sure what the problem was, or what Alaric's expression showed, but he knew that something was wrong. Alaric, jolting to reality, immediately wore a straight face, trying to pretend as if nothing was wrong with him. They didn't want to express his feelings, since it was the determining point of events, and making a single mistake, or having anyone worry about him, could ruin the