Chapter 118 The Detector

Chapter 118 The Detector
Knox stared at the small screen in his hand with wide eyes. The words blinking back at him—Trafficking ring detected—felt surreal.

Finally- A real progress. Vincent wasn’t wrong after all. He would have succeeded with the operation if he was still alive.

His grip tightened unconsciously around the device, his pulse beginning to hammer against his ribs.

Dylan, who had been watching him with quiet curiosity, decided to probe. “What is it?”

Knox exhaled sharply, forcing his expression back under control before it could give too much away. He slipped the detector halfway into his pocket as though it were nothing more than an ordinary phone. “I need to leave.”

He rose abruptly from the couch.

Dylan’s brows lifted slightly at the sudden shift, but he stood as well, closing the distance between them with an ease that felt anything but casual. “That’s a trafficking ring detector you’re holding.”

Knox froze.

Slowly, he turned his head. “How would you know that?”

Instead of answering immediately, Dylan reached into the inner pocket of his suit jacket. His movements were unhurried, almost deliberate, as though he knew exactly what effect he was about to have. When his hand came back out, he was holding a device identical to Knox’s.

For a second, Knox genuinely thought his vision had doubled.

Dylan raised the detector slightly, letting it catch the light. “Because I have one too.”

Knox’s chest dipped hard. “That’s not possible,” he said, the words coming out tighter than he intended. “My boss invented that. There are only two in existence.”

Dylan’s lips curved faintly, amused. He began pacing away from Knox, then back again, like a man deciding just how much truth to offer and how much to keep. Knox watched him, impatience threading through his tension.

“Well?” Knox pressed, trying to steel himself than he actually felt at the moment.

Dylan stopped in front of him again. “You work for Julian.”

Knox’s frown deepened instantly. “How do you know that? Who exactly are you?”

Dylan didn’t answer the second question. Instead, he tilted his head slightly, studying Knox with an unsettling calm. “I know a lot. Enough to know your boss is currently in prison.”

Knox stilled.

The room seemed to shrink.

He swallowed once before forcing his voice steady. “You’re avoiding the question. How do you have that detector?”

Dylan’s smirk returned, softer this time, almost playful. “I bought it from Julian.”

Knox’s expression hardened immediately. “You’re lying.”

“Caught me.” Dylan lifted both hands briefly in mock surrender, the gesture too smooth to be genuine. “Alright. I stole it from someone he gave it to.”

Knox’s eyes narrowed. The explanation made just enough sense to be possible, but something about Dylan’s tone told him that wasn’t the full truth either.

“Forget the details,” Dylan continued, waving it off. “The real question is—what are you doing here?”

Knox hesitated.

Everything in him screamed not to speak. Not to trust this man who showed up as Seraphina's old friend the previous day. Not to hand over anything to a man he had known for less than twenty-four hours. But the detector in his hand had already confirmed what he had been searching for, and the reality of where he stood settled heavily in his chest.

Dylan wasn’t just a random man.

He was already inside this place.

And he had one of those devices.

“Why should I tell you anything?” Knox asked, his voice measured.

Dylan’s gaze didn’t waver. “Because it looks like we’re chasing the same thing.”

Knox frowned. “I don’t get it. Are you here to find a trafficking ring too?”

Dylan’s lips twitched. “You’re catching on.”

A silence stretched between them, thick and testing.

Knox finally exhaled through his nose. “I’m looking for someone. A woman. Her name is Samantha.” His jaw tightened slightly as he continued. “There’s a chance she’s inside this building right now.”

Dylan didn’t react immediately. He watched Knox for a moment, as though weighing the truth of his words against something only he knew. Then he spoke, quieter this time. “And what does finding her do for you?”

Knox’s eyes flickered. “She’s important to my boss.”

“That doesn’t answer my question.”

Knox held his gaze. “She’s a donor. Without her… he might not survive his sickness.”

Dylan’s expression shifted subtly.

He leaned back slightly, folding one arm across his chest while the other still held the detector loosely at his side. “And you think she’s being held here.”

Knox let out a dry breath. “Can I trust you?”

Dylan chuckled softly. “You don’t need to trust me. You just need to understand that our interests align.”

Knox didn’t respond.

Dylan’s tone shifted, losing its teasing edge. “My mother is missing.”

That got Knox’s attention.

“I’ve been tracking leads for months,” Dylan continued, his voice steady but carrying something heavier beneath it. “Until I got here.”

Knox’s brows drew together slightly.

“I’m not here by accident,” Dylan added, his voice lowering. “I’m here because I believe she might be inside one of these operations.”

Knox searched his face, trying to find the lie in it. But what he saw instead was something sharper than deception—purpose.

“And you think you can find her here?” Knox asked, curious.

Dylan lifted his detector slightly. “I can tell.”

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Then Dylan tilted his head slightly. “Seraphina… is she connected to this?”

Knox’s expression shut down instantly. “No.”

Dylan’s brow lifted faintly.

“This has nothing to do with her,” Knox added firmly. “It’s between me and my boss.”

Dylan held his gaze for a second longer than necessary, as though reading past the words. Then he gave a small nod. “Alright.”

Knox exhaled, tension still coiled in his chest. “If you know so much, then help me understand something. If you’ve been investigating this place for so long, why haven’t you found your mother yet?”

Dylan didn’t answer.

He turned away instead, walking toward the window. His reflection stared back at him through the glass, composed and unreadable.

When he finally spoke, his voice was quieter. “Because this isn’t a place you break into on impulse.”

Knox frowned.

Dylan turned back to face him, the ease in his posture gone now. “You walking in here tonight, unprepared, with that device?” He shook his head faintly. “That’s not progress. That’s suicide.”

Knox’s jaw clenched. “I can’t just walk away. I need to find where exactly the ring is in this building.”

“And you will,” Dylan said calmly. “Just not tonight.”

Knox looked around instinctively, as though expecting the walls themselves to betray them. The place looked normal. Where could a ring possibly be in this building? Adrenaline coursed through his veins.

“That’s the problem,” Dylan added, following his gaze. “Everything here is built to look like nothing. So don’t even sweat it. You can’t do more than you have tonight.”

Knox’s frustration surfaced. “Then what do you expect me to do? Sit back and wait while—”

“Yes,” Dylan cut in, his tone suddenly firm. “You leave. Now.”

Knox stilled.

Dylan stepped closer, his voice lower but carrying more weight. “Because the longer you stay here tonight, the higher the chances that someone notices you’re out something. And when that happens, you don’t just lose your lead… you lose your life.”

The words settled heavily between them.

Knox swallowed.

He knew Dylan wasn’t wrong.

He exhaled slowly. “…Seraphina is involved.”

Dylan paused.

Knox’s voice dropped slightly. “She believes I can find Samantha to save her husband. My boss.”

Dylan’s jaw clenched visibly.

For a moment, he said nothing.

Then, finally, he spoke- “Go back.”

Knox looked at him sharply. “I was hoping you could…”

“I’ll get back to you,” Dylan continued.

“How?” Knox asked immediately.

Dylan’s lips curved faintly again, but this time there was no humor in it. “You have my word.”

Knox held his gaze, searching for something solid in a man who clearly lived in shadows.

After a moment, he gave a small nod.

Then he turned and walked out.

This was a week ago—before Julian woke up to a wiped memory.