ire squirmed in her seat, trying for the hundredth time to loosen the ropes that kept her tied to the ufortable metal chair. The dim lighting of the warehouse wasn''t helping her mood, nor was the damp, musty smell that lingered in the air. She''d been there for who


    knows how long, and her patience was running thinner than a sheet of paper.


    "Great. Just great," she muttered to herself, kicking at the ground with the toe of her heels. "Why does my life have to be involved with kidnapping." She added sarcastically.


    Her brain buzzed with thoughts as she tried to piece together what was happening. Eligos. It had to be him. Everything pointed to him-his obsession with control, his shadowy tactics. But why? Why now? Had she identally offended him? Or was this just one of his twisted games?


    She sighed and leaned her head back against the chair. "I''m worn out, tired, stressed and my clothes is really not suitable for this asion."


    Just then, the sound of a door creaking open echoed through the warehouse. ire''s head snapped forward, her body stiffening. Heavy footsteps followed, each one slow and deliberate, the kind that screamed, I''m making an entrance. "Well, here we go," she muttered under her breath, straightening up.


    The footsteps stopped just outside the faint light spilling into the middle of the room. ire squinted, trying to make out the figure in the shadows, but the person stayed put.


    "Good evening, ire," a male voice said, smooth and almost annoyingly cheerful. It was the kind of tone you''d expect from someone who thought they were much smarter than they actually were.


    "Evening? Don''t you mean nightmare?" ire shot back, her tone sharp. "Who the hell are you?"


    The man chuckled, a low, amused sound that made ire''s skin crawl. "Oh, you will find out soon enough. But does it really matter? You should focus more on why you are here."


    ire red into the darkness. "Yeah, well, I''d focus a lot better if you''d stop ying Phantom of the Opera and step into the light."


    Anotherugh, this one a little louder. Then, finally, the figure moved forward. As he stepped into the dim glow, ire groaned. A mask. Of course, he was wearing a mask. "Seriously? What is this? Amateur hour? Or is it Halloween? I thought we are passed that." she snapped, eyeing the sleek ck mask covering his face.


    "Amateur?" The man tilted his head. "I think I deserve more credit than that. You are here, aren''t you?"


    "Only because someone shoved me in a car and dragged me here," ire retorted. "That doesn''t scream ''mastermind."""


    The man ignored her jab, pacing slowly in front of her. "You know, you are a lot like your second-inmand. Stubborn. Mouthy. A bit too curious for your own good."


    ire''s eyes narrowed. "Matthew? What does he have to do with this?"


    The man stopped pacing and turned to face her. "Oh, he was a delight. Even though I didn''t get anything out of him, it''s still a pleasure torturing him. Though I''d prefer not to use the same methods on you." ire''s stomach flipped, but she refused to show fear. "What do you want?" she asked, keeping her voice steady.


    The man leaned closer, his masked face inches from hers. "Answers."


    "Answers to what?" ire shot back, leaning as far away as the ropes would allow.


    He straightened up, his voice casual. "Does the name An Smith ring any bells?"


    ire frowned, her brain flipping through mental files like a frantic secretary. "An Smith... An Smith..." She shook her head. "It sounds familiar, but I can''t ce it. Care to enlighten me?"


    The man tsked, like a teacher disappointed in a student. "Come now, ire. Don''t y coy. You and I both know An Smith wasn''t just any name."


    "Well, apparently we don''t, because I''ve got no clue what you''re talking about," ire snapped.


    The man resumed pacing, his tone turning mocking. "You''re either a terrible liar, or your memory is worse than I thought. And here I was expecting more from you."


    ire clenched her jaw. "Look, if


    you''ve got a grudge against An


    Smith, maybe try taking it up with


    Otherwise, I wouldn et


    him? Oh, wait, you can''t,


    you can''t, because


    he''s obviously not around anymore.


    be would


    12


    That struck a nerve. The man stopped dead in his tracks, his body stiffening. "Careful, ire," he said, his voice dropping to a dangerous low. "You don''t want to test my patience."


    "Oh, is that what this is? A patience test?" ire quipped; her sarcasm cranked up to full volume. "Let me guess: if I pass, I get a gold star and an early release?"


    The man turned to face her again, his hands sped behind his back. "You know, Matthew had the same attitude. So stubborn and loyal. I wonder where you got that kind of person. I''m impressed." "He told me what you did to him."


    The man turned to face her again,


    his hands sped behind his back.


    ire couldn''t see his expression, t


    .n


    but she knew he was probably smirking. "Oh, he did? I''m touched.


    So, what''s the rating? Did he tell you?"


    ire hissed at him. "You''re sick you know that."


    "So, I''ve been told. You know if you want to get your freedom, I suggest you talk now."


    "Well, I hate to break it to you, but I''m not much of a talker," ire shot back. "Especially not to masked creeps in warehouses."


    The man chuckled again, but there was a cold edge to it this time. "Oh, ire. You''ll talk. Everyone talks eventually."


    ire red at him, her mind racing.


    An Smith. Why did that name sound so familiar? Was he someone from work? Or was he someone ire knew? It felt like ire had


    heard his name, but she can''t


    remember when. To much on her


    te causing her to forgetting simple things.


    But the question is why did Eligos wanted to know about An Smith? And why didn''t Matthe tell her that he is looking for An Smith? ire thought to herself, she needs to have a serious talk with Matthew cause it seems that he is still hiding some important things from her. She needs everything to be transparent. One hiding a secret is not good for ire.


    She couldn''t ce it, but she knew one thing for sure: she wasn''t giving this guy the satisfaction of watching her squirm.


    "You can pace around all you want," she said, her tone defiant. "But unless you start making sense, this is going to be a very boring kidnapping."


    The man tilted his head again, as if studying her. "Oh, I''ll make sense soon enough."


    With that, he disappeared into the darkness, his footsteps fading as he walked away.


    ire groaned, slumping back in her chair. "Great. Another lunatic with a ir for drama. Just what I needed."


    She nced around the dim warehouse, her mind already working on an escape n. If Eligos thought she was just going to sit there and wait for answers, he clearly didn''t know ire Peterson. "I need an escape n."