Chapter 34 The Smell of Blood
I wanted to leave my friend out as much as possible, but Cindy wanted no part of that. I tried explaining the danger. She didn’t care. She knew the truth needed to come out. For my sake, but she pointed out, if my parents are the true villains, the world needs to know. Who better to expose it than the Fox?
The media and all the news outlets are hiding the truth for one reason or another. We should uncover what we can and expose the truth. By the gleam in her eye I knew there was no talking her down, but I had to have her promise me to listen to what I said because I would only accept help if she promised to stay safe. She agreed.
She was going to arrange a ride for me to get into the city while I collected all the items I needed. I needed to sneak into my old apartment and grab some things. Making it to my old apartment, I first looked around the surrounding area. Ezra said someone has been watching me. It didn’t seem like they were around tonight. I made my way inside. Hood up, it was quiet. Too quiet; usually, the downstairs neighbor had their TV on. It didn’t seem to be the case tonight. The hair on my neck rose. Something was wrong. I moved with great caution as I went up the stairs and down the hall. Noticing my door to my apartment cracked open. It looked like someone busted it wide open.
Taking a calming breath and readied myself for a fight. I moved into the apartment, trying not to open the door any more than I needed to. I slide my back along the wall as my eyes search the small living room. No one seemed to be here at the moment. Once I reached the spot, I had a hidden dagger. I removed it. Slowly, I cleared the rest of the living room and kitchen. No one was found. My place seemed to have been ransacked. I was glad they didn’t find one of the daggers.
I made my way to the bathroom. As I cleared the closet. Still nothing. Something wasn’t right; the bathroom was clear as well. Only the bedroom is left. I steeled myself one more time. I entered the room. Like the rest of the apartment. There was no sign that someone else was here with me. The room was in shambles. I have no clue what they could be looking for. The mattress was shredded and on the floor. What could someone be looking for here? My hidden stash? Maybe, if so, they did not find it. I made my way over to the spot, moving the bed frame as quietly as I could.
Once out of the way, I pushed on the false spot, revealing my hidden stash. I had this here if I ever needed to leave with a new identity and cash. It felt untouched. I grabbed what I needed, then put the false board and the bed frame back. I still felt uncomfortable here. Something wasn’t right. Something screamed at me to leave. I shouldn’t be here a moment longer than necessary. Whatever was here was gone; I needed to leave before whoever was here came back.
I made my way out with the bag over my shoulder and the dagger in my boot. I moved down the stairs and noticed grime on the floor of the door to my downstairs neighbor’s. Moving closer to investigate. My neighbors are very clean people. Grime on the floor wasn’t like them.
What was that saying about curiosity? Oh yeah, curiosity killed the cat.
I should be cautious and head straight to the meeting point. Instead of leaving through the front door. That I knew I should be doing. I walked towards my neighbor's door. I bent down and inspected the strange grime. All it took was a sniff to know something was very wrong. It was blood mixed with something akin to a mutant.
My hand grasped the hilt of my dagger, removing it from my boot. The hair on my neck stood straight, and I knew this was why I felt uneasy. The door wasn’t even locked; it slid right open. Their place was worse than mine. It was absolutely destroyed. Blood and other fluids were flung all around. It was horrible; no one seemed to be around. I made my way through the apartment. Clearing each space.
Nothing again.
I made my way through one bedroom that seemed to be used as an office. Nothing, I almost left, but a glint of something caught my eye. My blood drained when I got a good look at it. It was the silver seal of my parents,
Dear Sir or Madam,
We are searching for our daughter. We believe she has been sold by child traffickers. Thanks to a private detective, we have learned she might be in the area. Attached is a picture of her.
It was a screenshot of me at the LOTAS event. Fuck they must have some sort of AI scanning for pictures of me.
Please contact our detective at this phone number and or email to help us reunite with our daughter. Also, please take into consideration who we are. We require discretion with this matter.
Please do not share this information with anyone other than the person to whom the number is attached. You will be greatly rewarded for your efforts and any help you give us.
Sincerely
Lady Rose and
General Storm.
They were hot on my trail, and they know where I am. I wonder if that’s why my apartment has been torn apart. It didn’t make sense; they of all people in the world, know how hard I trained. If I were kidnapped, I knew how to escape and return. It’s happened before, and I returned safely.
They were pissed. I was even caught and punished me greatly for that. Looking at all the overdue bills on the desk. It was safe to assume my landlord gave me up. Feeling frustrated about it, I took a deep breath. I was about to leave the room when a sound from the last room stopped me in my tracks. It sounded like a human groan and a mutant. I had an idea what it meant; if I was right, this was bad, and I was so dumb for coming in here.