The digital clock on the hotel room wall blinked 4:03 PM. A nervous flutter, a hummingbird trapped in her chest, tightened Mrs. Julie's throat. For the last hour, her calls had gone straight to voicemail, an echoing abyss where her husband's voice should have been. A cold dread began to seep into her bones. They should be safe.
   Gianna watched her, a flicker of concern softening the edges of her weary face. "What is it, Julie? You look like you've seen a ghost."
   Julie twisted her fingers, the gold of her wedding band digging into her skin. "I can't reach Brock. What if something's happened? I can't bear to be alone with all that's going on. I can't go home alone." The thought made her shudder. 
   Gianna's hand rested gently on Julie's arm. "You're borrowing trouble. It's probably just the signal in this area. Let me try." She reached out, a ghost of a smile on her lips. "He's probably knee deep in paper work"
   Julie numbly handed over her phone. As Gianna tapped the "Soul Mate" icon, the contact photo flashed onto the screen. Gianna froze. The world around her seemed to warp and bend. Her breath hitched. The image seared itself into her memory, reopening wounds she thought long healed.
   Her fingers fumbled with the call button and it went straight to voicemail. She pulled it down, the weight of the phone felt heavy in her palm.
   "See? It's not working," Julie said, her voice rising with each unanswered ring. But Gianna wasn't listening. She was staring at the bed, her mind racing, the implications of the photo crashing down like a tidal wave.
   "Sorry," Gianna managed, her voice a strained whisper as Julie snatched the phone back. "Is that... is that your husband?"
   "Yes," Julie replied, her worry momentarily eclipsed by confusion. "Do you... does he look familiar?"
   Gianna averted her gaze, trying to mask the turmoil raging inside. "No, not really. What about kids? Do you have any children?"
   "No, but I'm expecting," Julie said, a soft smile gracing her lips. "Why do you ask?"
   "Just curious. Could you... would you mind giving me a little privacy? I need to clear my head."
   Julie, her anxiety still simmering, nodded. "Alright. I better get back to work. If I still can't get through to him, I might have to involve the police." She gave a quick, distracted wave. "See you later."
   The click of the closing door was a starting gun. As soon as Julie was gone, the dam broke. Tears streamed down Gianna's face, silent, anguished. *Why?* her heart screamed. *Why? You promised. You swore you wouldn't leave me. Why did you leave?*
   A sharp rap at the door startled her.
   Gianna scrubbed at her eyes, trying to compose herself. The door opened, and a young doctor, holding a small paper cup, stepped inside.
   "I brought your medicine. Mind if I...? Were you crying? Your eyes look a little swollen. What is it?" Concern creased his brow.
   Gianna forced a weak smile. "It's nothing really, just still can't remember. I just wish I could remember where I belonged."
   The doctor sighed. "(Sighs) Maybe you should just start over and leave your past behind."
   Gianna’s smile vanished. "You know it's not that easy, right?"
   "Yeah, I know, but you have to try."
   "When will I be discharged?" Gianna asked, desperate to put space between herself and the swirling chaos of her thoughts.
   "As soon as you are better."
   "Alright, please can you give me some privacy?"
   "Sure." The doctor placed the medicine on the bedside table and retreated, leaving Gianna alone once more.
   "(Exhaled sharply) Alright," she murmured, the tears drying on her face. Her eyes hardened, the vulnerable woman momentarily eclipsed by something darker, more calculating. "Option A: kill her and take what belongs to me. Option B: support her in finding out where he is and his objective. Option C: just leave quietly. Which should I pick?"
She exhaled
****
Mr. Brock, Hackerman, and Rina were surrounded. Five figures, hulking in the shadows, stared them down. The pursuers, relentless and unwavering, had finally cornered them.
   "You think you still have a chance?" one of the figures sneered, his voice a low growl. "You might have gotten lucky with Canton, but don't think you'll be so fortunate this time. Just give up and follow us. It would be much easier."
   "And what if we don't?" Rina asked, her voice surprisingly steady, her eyes narrowed.
   "What! I do, I don't wanna die yet." Hackerman said immediately. 'Let's just give up and follow them.'
   "Aren't you stupid to be afraid of them?" Rina asked boldly.
   'Yeah if I'm gonna live by being stupid maybe it's worth it.'
   "Seriously, can't believe....."
   "Tsk...tsk...tsk," another of the figures cut in, impatience lacing his voice. "Time is ticking. I know what you're doing, buying time, huh? But for what? Don't see anything happening here."
   "Maybe you aren't old enough to see what we see even while sitting." Rina stated and immediately two jet from different direction shot out massive bullets to the forest causing a mushroom of smoke.
   A helicopter stopped at the center and the three went in immediately.
   "Are you guys crazy? What kinda entrance was that?" Rina asked.
   "Init Rina, that was a bad ass entrance, you know that?" The pilot, a guy with builds and short braided hair rejoiced.
   "Shen, I bet this was your idea, you guys were late." Rina said angrily.
   "Come on Rina, at least we're safe now. I almost peed my pants back there." Hackerman said, panting like hell.
   "Why's he like that? Dead?" Shen asked
   "He got beaten by one of their leaders." Rina answered, lying Mr Brock on the floor of the jet.
   "You think those explosive would have done some damage?" Hackerman asked Shen.
   "Who knows, we actually just caused enough distraction to rescue you guys." Shen replied.
   "(Groans in pain as he awake) I'm supposed to be home today...I think I dropped my phone during the fight in the forest, I need to call my wife and tell her everything is fine." Mr. Brock said.
   "Okay first off I actually want to know, did you really rob the bank?" Hackerman asked curiously.
   "(Sighs) Yeah we did." Shen replied with a smirk. "If they had gotten their hands on that money, men! They'd have purchased a lot of ammunition."
   "May I know whe....."
   "You may not." Rina replied cutting in to Hackerman.
   "I guess I'm not yet trusted enough."
   "Alright can I have a phone now?" Mr. Brock asked, changing to a sitting position.
   "You can have..."
   *Boooom* an explosion occured at one side of the helicopter, damaging the fan slightly.
   "What was that?" Rina asked in panic.
   "OMG! The helicopter is on fire, I think it's a rocket bomb." Shen replied.
   "Have they always had weapon like this?" Hackerman asked in surprise.
   "Who cares? We need to do something about them." Rina stated as the three of them stared at the rocket behind the helicopter.
   "We don't have much time, the helicopter's been compromised, we gat to do something." Shen informed speeding up.
   "Contact any of the other two jets, tell them we need help." Mr. Brock ordered.
   "Scarlet, we need help right away. The helicopter's been compromised. Do you copy?"
   //*Shhh*, on my way baby!//
   "Can I have your axe Shen? We need to get rid of them."
   "It's right behind you."
   Mr. Brock picked up the axe and went to the edge of the jet. "Here we go." He thrust the axe at the rocket.
   The axe smashed through the glass and stopped right in front of the pilot. With the fear of getting hit the pilot lost control of the rocket as he crashed into the forest.
   "Alright we need to jump off." Shen said, leaving the pilot seat to join them.
   "What! I can't jump off." Hackerman shouted, scared.
   "Then remain in here, it's no one's choice." Rina commented.
   "As soon as we leave the island we jump." Mr. Brock said.
   "You mean we're going to jump into the river?" Hackerman asked. "Damn! This is the worst day of my life."
   "At the count of 3, 2, 1 now." Shen shouted, kicking off Hackerman and the rest followed behind.
   "My gosh did you have to do that." Hackerman asked.
   They were descending with great speed into the ocean. The jet in no time exploded, flinging off different parts and from the rear another jet approached them.
****
In the sterile confines of the police station, Mrs. Julie wrung her hands. Hope battled with despair in her chest, a frantic dance that left her breathless. The officer across the desk, a man whose eyes held a mixture of weary resignation and mild annoyance, seemed unmoved by her mounting panic.
   "I've been trying to contact him for hours. There's no answer, no voicemail, nothing. I don't know what else to do. Isn't there a way to put up a search? Can't you do *something*?"
   "First off, madam," the officer said, his voice flat, "it's not certain that anything bad has happened to your husband. Secondly, you should contact the night watcher head officer instead of the police, maybe they should be able to contact him through the office number."
   "Oh! That's true why didn't I think of it...."
   *Phone rings*
   Mrs. Julie fumbled in her purse, her heart leaping with a surge of desperate hope. It was an unknown number. "(Sigh) I really thought he was the one." She grumbled, picking up. "Hello."
   "Sweetie, it's me."
.....
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