Sacred Flame: His Enemy, His Mate (BL)-Chapter 26: Surveillance

Kain Locke

I pressed my back against the wall of the cleaning room, holding my breath as the footsteps got closer and closer. They were searching everywhere for me.

When I heard them coming earlier, I didn’t think twice before I grabbed the nearest door handle and slipped inside. It was a cleaning room, so it was small and cramped, with a sharp smell of bleach around the corner.

I tried to make myself as small as possible, pushing into the pile of mobbing sticks. My heart was pounding so hard in my chest.

Audrey had casually stated it earlier that I had to hide until his signal as though it’s going to be easy like eating a pie, after all it’s not as if I can just go hiding in someone’s room. Definitely whomever it’s going to be will scream out loud for them to catch me.

So that wasn’t an option.

I was still thinking when the footsteps stopped all of a sudden. And to make it worse, it was in front of this room, so my heart began to pound wildly in my chest.

And the pace increased when the door creaked, allowing light to spill in, penetrating into the darkness and I froze,

A figure stepped inside at first, followed by another and another... their boots were loud against the tiles as they moved slowly, checking every corner.

I pressed tighter against the wall, praying they wouldn’t see me. But then they stopped at the gesture of the one leading them.

He clicked his gun and stepped closer, until he was in front of where I was hiding.

His hand shot out, shoving the hanging mops aside. And the moment our eyes met, his mouth twisted into a cold smile.

"There you are."

Before I could react, his hand gripped my arm hard. I tried to pull away, but others flooded closer and I was restrained in no time, not like I would like to make matters worse.

So Audrey, it’s over to you because signal or no signal I’ve already been caught.

They dragged me out, my feet barely keeping up as they pulled me down the hallway into the room I recognized as the one I was questioned the other day. On a large screen ahead was footage of myself in the hallway, it was on repeat.

The people in here were the same from the other day, just that they were much less than then.

"How do you escape from the cell?" That question was thrown at me first, "and before you go on and start mixing several lies together, the lock wasn’t broken, nor the extra security breached, so how do you manage to break out of the cell... or should I say who lets you out?" He concluded, fixing his gaze on me.

Of course, there’s no way its security will be breached when Kael himself lets me out.

So this interrogation would be the hardest I’ve ever been in. Not when there’s no window, or fire exit in a cell. It was a cell, which means even if fire were to break out, then it’s the luck of whomever was locked in there, because no one would even remember them.

I swallowed thick saliva down my throat and was about to open my mouth to say something when the large screen displaying me talking to an Omega in the hallway started distorting, and the next second it black out.

"What’s going on?" Murmur followed.

"Surround the prisoner, do not let him escape!" One of them blared and I scoffed as they surrounded me.

It’s not as though I have a choice to run from here.

Not until six months.

However, when the screen lit up again, it was all white, then it went back to the previous Video playing on repeat, before it started being overridden by another surveillance.

Everyone we’re watching with their mouths hanging open.

Now I understand what’s on the drive given to me by Kael.

It first showed the party, everything going on normally, then me and Alex went to the exit that leads to the balcony, followed by the figure in a biker suit holding the transparent glass filled with pink substance and smashing it on the ground.

That was all it showed before the screen switched off again.

****

"This will be your new room, I’m sure you’ve been here right?" The guide from the first time I arrived on the ruined base in the island asked, as I stepped into the room, surveying it. After the surveillance, they declared me innocent and gave me my freedom.

"I woke up here the day I got taken to the questioning room." I answered.

"You have a good memory." He said with a little smile.

"It’s more of a bad memory, so it’s normal I still remember it vividly."

He chuckled, taking my answer as a joke.

"How am I going to get my things in here?"

"Don’t worry, they’ll get it to you soon, it’s still at the hotel so they’re still taking in most of the important stuff. So don’t worry much, they’ll get it to you soon." He assured, patting me on my shoulder, "You did so well out there, in fact I believe it wasn’t done by you. Anyways, good luck." He walked out right after.

I glanced around the room one last time. It was plain, just like I remembered from the first day I woke up here, confused and alone.

I checked the clock hanging on the wall, it was 8 pm. Only two hours until ten, and I’d have to meet Kael.

My chest tightened at the thought of meeting him. What did he have to say anyway ? I thought as I sat on the bed, my hands planted on the bed as I leaned on it.

Today had been a long and exhausting day, although fulfilling, because I’d seen my little boy. He was so happy that I haven’t seen him happy in a long time. Maybe today wasn’t so bad after all.

Then there was Kael, Cold. Calculating. I still didn’t know if he was behind how I got into the cell, but I knew that he got me out of there so I wasn’t so certain of his intention, but I was aware that he just like watching me suffer. Or maybe not.

I sighed and looked around again. No bathing towel. Of course. These people weren’t going to make my life any easier. The room was empty and boring, nothing to distract me from the mess swirling in my head. If only Bella were here... but that thought hurt too much, so I quickly pushed it away.

A sudden knock on the door snapped me back. I walked over and opened it to see a face I didn’t recognize. He was tall, wearing the usual uniform, and his expression was blank.

"You’re being summoned," he said without any hint of emotion on his face.

I frowned. "By whom? Why?"

"I don’t know. I’m just here to take you there." he answered simply. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

I wanted to press for more information, but his face told me I wouldn’t get anything out of him.

Thus, I nodded and followed him through the hallways, although I couldn’t stop wondering where they were taking me now? And why now, just two hours before the meeting with Kael?

Of course, I still remember.

We stopped in front of a large door, and he knocked once before pushing it open. I stepped inside and immediately recognized the faces waiting for me. My heart sank. I haven’t seen them for the past five years.

Three men stood there, each one a ghost from my past. Old rivals. Maybe enemies would be the right words.

The man in the middle took a step forward, his smirk spreading slowly. "Look who it is... the little traitor." he sneered at my face, patting the same shoulder the guide pat earlier.

I kept my face blank, but my fists clenched.

"You’ve been given a mission," a voice spoke from behind me, and I turned to see the instructor standing in the corner of the room on a stool, his eyes cold and piercing. "All four of you. And it must be completed tonight."

I didn’t ask why or what the mission was because I already knew it wouldn’t be easy. But worse than that, I knew they were testing me. They wanted to see if I would survive... or if these men would make sure I didn’t.

Of all the people they could have teamed me up with, it had to be them, so if this isn’t intentional, what is?

The instructor’s gaze shifted to the others. "Failure is not an option." His eyes landed on me last, repeating that same warning Caspian had given me when I was leaving for my last mission that day five years ago, "None of you better come back empty-handed."

"What are we going for?" I questioned, regarding he wasn’t revealing any

"Just because some surveillance proved you weren’t the one that was responsible for the pheromone attack doesn’t mean we believe it. And just a little reminder, you aren’t the leader of this group, so follow your team and leader." He said and walked out.

The door slammed shut behind him, leaving me alone with three men who would love nothing more than to watch me die. Or worse. Besides, it will be a perfect revenge for him.

I took a deep breath, keeping my shoulders straight and my face unreadable. I wasn’t going to give them the satisfaction of seeing me scared.