The thick stone door looked very ancient. Jaden tried to push it with all his strength, but it didn’t budge.
“Everyone, let’s try together,” Jaden called out. The group gathered in front of the stone door. “Heave! Ho!”
“Push harder! Ah!”
With a thunderous crash, the stone door finally opened.
Once it was open, they realized the door was about forty to fifty centimeters thick, explaining its immense weight and sturdiness.
Stepping through the door, they began to explore the area, discovering that it resembled a laboratory.
The air was filled with an unpleasant odor, possibly from the door being sealed for so long or from lingering chemical experiments.
Further inside, they found a table with some books and notes scattered on it.
Surprisingly, these documents and books were well-preserved, despite the dust covering them, indicating that no one had entered this place for a long time.
Jaden flipped through the documents but couldn’t understand the foreign language they were written in.
“Take all of this back to the boss, including these books,” he instructed. “The boss is knowledgeable and should be able to read them.”
As he packed up the items on the table, he continued, “Look around for anything else worth taking. The map led us here, so there must be more than just these notes. Keep searching.”
“Jaden, look here,” one of his companions called out. “There’s a diary written in our language, not a foreign one.”
The group gathered around as Jaden took the diary, noticing some bloodstains on it. He opened the first page and saw the messy handwriting, indicating the writer was in a distressed state.
“Today is my first day in this laboratory. I didn’t expect them to be so ruthless. They want me to create those poisons.”
He turned to another page.
“It’s my tenth day here. They threatened to kill my two children if I resist any longer.”
“Twenty days have passed. Will I be trapped in this dark place forever? My children… For my children… I have no other choice…”
Jaden put the diary away. “Keep searching. It seems this really is a laboratory, and it looks like they kidnapped some important figure…”
The group continued their search.
“Here’s a sealed jar. I wonder what’s inside,” another member found a peculiar jar.
“This jar is different from all the others,” Jaden observed, weighing it in his hand. “It’s not heavy; let’s take it with us.”
As they packed the jar, a gunshot suddenly rang out. Armed men appeared at the entrance.
Without a word, the men opened fire on Jaden’s group.
Bullets rained down on them along with some grenades.
These attackers were well-prepared and heavily armed.
Jaden grabbed a chair and hurled it at them while leading his team in a frantic run through the hail of bullets.
The chair was shattered mid-air by gunfire.
But Jaden and his team quickly disappeared from sight.
The black-clad men wielded assault rifles and wore bulletproof vests. The leader signaled them to activate tracking devices to find Jaden’s group.
They were clearly highly trained professionals.
“They seem agile and skilled in combat. Shoot on sight; don’t engage in close combat!” the leader ordered.
“Yes, sir!” the men responded in unison.
Meanwhile, Jaden and his team had run several hundred meters down a long corridor, only to find another thick stone door blocking their path. Jaden glanced back nervously. “We’re trapped. Push the door!”
Panting heavily, they realized their pursuers were not ordinary assassins.
“If they’re from some hidden family, they’ll take everything we’ve found,” Jaden said urgently. “We must get these items back to the boss.”
He suspected they weren’t the only ones searching for this treasure; other groups might have similar maps.
“Jaden’s right. Push the door! Hurry!”
Their only option was to open this door.
A mechanically inclined boy noticed a mechanism near the door. He placed his hand on it and twisted. With a series of clicks, the stone door slowly opened.
Those pushing the door stumbled as it gave way unexpectedly.
Seeing the door open, Jaden praised the boy, “Peter, well done! Let’s go!”
Footsteps echoed behind them as the assassins closed in.
They rushed through the door into what appeared to be a living area with a bed covered in dust but otherwise intact.
“This looks like a bedroom.”
“It must have belonged to a woman,” Jaden pointed at some cosmetics on a dressing table.
As they surveyed the room, they heard noises outside; the assassins had entered.
“Move!” Jaden directed them to another door, which was wooden and easily pushed open, revealing an elevator shaft.
“Get in, quickly.”
Jaden jumped onto the platform, followed by Peter and the others.
Like an old-fashioned elevator, it had manual controls with levers.
They cranked it vigorously until they reached the surface. Jaden then cut the rusty chain with his knife, sending the elevator crashing down with a loud bang.
Ahead lay a dark cave; behind them were their pursuers. They had no choice but to run forward.
Reaching the cave’s exit, they were stunned to find themselves at a cliff’s edge overlooking a vast ocean below.
Jumping would mean certain death or severe injury by drowning.
But their pursuers were closing in!
Jaden looked at his team with a pale face. “What do we do now?”
Peter examined the terrain and suggested an idea. Jaden gritted his teeth. “It’s our only option now.”
The assassins soon reached the cliff’s edge and found footprints ending abruptly.
“Did they jump?”
“This cave is a straight path with no hiding places,” their leader frowned. “Deploy drones to search for them.”
“Yes, sir!”
“If they jumped into the sea, send teams to search the waters.”
“Yes, sir!”
Unbeknownst to them, Jaden’s group had climbed down to a hidden cave on the cliffside, concealed by a small tree at its entrance.
They could hear the assassins above them but remained silent and still.
Exhausted and drenched in sweat from their escape, they waited quietly as night turned to dawn and footsteps faded away.
“They might have left,” Jaden whispered.
One of his companions suggested climbing up.
“Be cautious; it could be a trap,” Peter warned. “Let’s wait until noon.”
“Peter’s right,” Jaden agreed. “I know you’re all tired and hungry, but hold on. We’ll find food once we’re safe.”
No one spoke further as they patiently waited.
At Aettosa Hogan family villa:
Olivia looked helplessly at Mrs. Hogan. “Mom, can’t I wear this outfit?”
“Oh dear, it’s too formal just to pick up Dexter. Wear something more cheerful,” Mrs. Hogan sighed. “You’re dressed for work! Do you have a meeting later?”
“Yes, Mom, you’re right. After picking up Dexter, I have an important meeting at work that I can’t miss,” Olivia replied with a forced smile.