Ch. 8

Then I went to Lex, who was waiting for me in his office. He received me with a benevolent smile that I did not return. If I was too relaxed and calm, he would certainly be suspicious. No, some natural emotions about the upcoming meeting couldn't be wrong.

"Are you ready, Riley?" Lex asked, walking over to me.

"Yes," I replied, nodding.

"I'm sure you're very nervous."

"You don't meet your mother and sister's murderer every day." I swallowed unobtrusively.

"No, thank God not." Lex motioned her head to indicate that I should follow him.

We left the big tent and went to one of the gates that led outside. I looked around and saw that we were accompanied by some men who followed us a short distance away.

"The leader isn't in the camp?" I asked.

"No. I've already told you that I don't want to take any chances. We also have a small bunker nearby, it is safe there. "

I felt that my heartbeat increased with every step and my nervousness grew steadily. I started to sweat, even though it was still quite cool in the early morning. 

"Have you thought about how to get the code out of it?" I asked Lex while distracting myself from my feelings.

He stopped and gave me a smile that my mind made me believe was malicious. Or was it really malicious? "I've thought about how you could do that," he said the next moment, looking completely serious again. “We tried violence and it didn't work. He expects that. He was prepared for this in intensive exercises. You should gain his trust, Riley. "

I swallowed hard. "I doubt he -"

"Don't doubt yourself," he interrupted me. "Always keep in mind that you will save many people's lives with this."

And will take it from many others, I continued in my mind.

"You can't tell him exactly what we're up to," Lex went on. 

“It's going to be hard to win his trust when I'm not allowed to tell him. Maybe I could get him to our side? "

"The murderer of your mother and sister?" He asked. "Is that what you want to fight alongside this man?"

I gritted my teeth and shook my head. "Otherwise I don't know how to get the code," I objected.

“You will think of something, I have complete faith in you, Riley. And if you fail, we'll come up with something else. But at the moment you are our only hope. "

We kept walking and my nervousness grew immeasurably. I had to deal with so many things at once - seeing One again, my feelings, and now the burden Lex placed on me. How the hell am I going to do this? What was Lex thinking? And what was I thinking about insisting on this meeting? I wasn't ready at all! The plan I had come up with ... I couldn't even remember this one!

"We're here." Lex stopped in front of a leafy wall and opened a door that I couldn't see at first glance. 

We came down a flight of stairs to another door that was guarded by two men. Behind this a narrow, dark corridor opened up to us, which was illuminated by scattered lights on the wall.

And then Lex stopped in front of a last door that looked very heavy and massive. I wiped my sweaty hands on my pants while my heart pounded in my throat. My stomach also began to rebel.

Lex eyed me carefully. “Taleon One is behind that door. He is chained and guarded by several men. So you don't have to worry about your safety. "

Time suddenly began to move too fast. In a jiffy Lex had produced a key and put it in the lock on the door. There was a deafening squeak and it was hard for me to resist the urge to cover my ears. Suddenly every single sound was way too loud - Lex's voice speaking to someone in the room beyond, my broken breathing, my racing heart. 

Then Lex looked at me and nodded encouragingly. With trembling knees I took the first steps inside and was just able to suppress a scream when my gaze fell on the man who was hanging in chains on the opposite wall. My chest contracted almost painfully when I registered the wounds on his arms and bare torso. His head hung limply and his wet hair covered his face.

"Is he ..." I whispered choked and paused as One lifted his head and looked me straight in the eye. It felt like someone had rammed a fist into my chest with full force. I gasped and backed away.

His eyes ... For a moment there was disbelief and surprise in them. A faint glimmer of hope had flickered briefly and then went out again. Now they looked at me blankly. Completely empty.

The man in front of me was broken, and something inside of me also broke into innumerable pieces again. 

"I can't do this," I muttered, turning around. Panicked, I fled the room into the narrow corridor, bumped into one of the men who accompanied us, and fell back on my bum. My vision blurred as tears surged and finally ran down my cheeks. The giant above reached out a hand and helped me back to my feet.

"Riley," came from behind me. 

I turned to Lex and shook my head. "I can't do this," I repeated again. "I was wrong."

"Yes, you can!" He replied with a determined look. "You are strong. Go in there and prove yourself. Do it for all of the people that man in there has on their conscience! Get rid of it. You can do it, I know that! "

I clenched my fists and took a deep breath, but kept shaking my head.

“Come on, Riley! He's got your mother and sister on his conscience, ”Lex continued to talk to me, placing his heavy hands firmly on my shoulders. "You owe them that damn it!"

"What am I supposed to do?" I burst out with a sob. "What do you expect from me?"

“I expect you to finally realize that man in there is a monster. He murdered countless people in cold blood, including your mother, your sister and your friends and acquaintances. And yet you feel so much for him. It's a shame, Riley. Your mother would turn around in her grave if she could see it! "

Something stopped in me. With a growl, I pushed Lex aside, ran back into the room and over to the Hunter. I reached out with my right hand and slapped him. And another one until my skin burned like hell on the inside.

"You killed her!" I spat in his face. “You bloody murderer! I hate you! ”This time I took the other hand and struck again. Again and again, as if in a frenzy. Only when I lost my strength did I sink to the ground and look at my palms, which were covered in blood. My own and One's.

That was too much. "Oh god, what did I do?" I whispered, shaking my head again. There was a loud rustling in my ears. "What have I done ..."