The car ca to a halt in front of the PIT. Kaito got out and looked around. The academy was so quiet that it almost felt strange. On their drive from the gate, they hadn’t seen a single student, which was unusual, but it made sense since the sester was over. The students must have all gone ho to rest.
"Everywhere is so quiet," Hiro said as he stepped out of the car. He slipped on his sunglasses and started walking toward the PIT door.
"The students are on break. What did you expect?" Taros leaned against the car, folding his arms. "We’re supposed to be sowhere in the Maldives with our mates, but instead, we’re here solving mysteries."
"Trust , I feel like killing soone right now," Hiro said with a smirk. "And that soone is Mr. Slade or his brother. Why the hell did he escape? He should’ve just waited for us."
"Stop whining, both of you," Kaito muttered as he crouched slightly, his eyes scanning the ground. He was checking for any tire marks or footprints. "Let’s see if our so-called helper left any trace behind."
"The thief always leaves sothing behind," Samuel said calmly as he started looking around too.
They searched the area carefully but found nothing. With no other choice, they entered the PIT. It wasn’t as dark as they expected. Beta Slade was inside with Eliza. He had brought food for her.
"I heard your voices but decided to wait," Beta Slade said when he saw them. "I knew you’d co down."
"Samuel said you’d be here," Kaito said as he extended his hand. They clasped hands firmly, and the others followed, greeting each other in their usual way.
Eliza stopped eating the mont she saw them. She shoved the food aside and frowned, her brows tightening together. "Snakes in disguise," she spat.
Kaito sighed and rubbed his forehead. "We didn’t co here to deal with your nonsense, Eliza."
Kaito sighed and rubbed his forehead. "We did not co here to deal with your nonsense."
"Then release !" Eliza shouted, pulling at the chains that bound her. She tried to stand, but her body was too weak. "You wicked Alphas kept locked away from the world. If Marcus Malynster ever gets hold of you, I swear you’ll be dead!"
Hiro couldn’t help but laugh at her words. "Tell more about Marcus," he said, his tone mocking. "From the mories I saw, he wasn’t exactly good to you. So why do you keep defending him?"
The room fell silent. Everyone turned to her, waiting, but Eliza said nothing. Taros shook his head. "You can’t even answer him."
"I didn’t reply because I’m not answerable to him!" she growled, her voice trembling with fury. Her chains rattled as she tried to pull free. "Marcus is my master. And when I tell him what you did to , none of you will live to see another day."
"Who is Marcus?" Hiro asked, taking slow steps toward her. "Which Marcus are you talking about?"
Kaito sighed again. He knew what Hiro was trying to do—play with her mind, push her until she broke. "It’s okay, Hiro. That’s not why we’re here."
"Pfft," Hiro scoffed, ignoring him. He pulled his phone from his pocket and swiped across the screen until he opened his gallery. "Here," he said, turning the screen toward her. "Look at this. My brother training with your master."
Eliza narrowed her eyes, struggling to see. When she finally recognized the man in the photo, her whole body froze. Her eyes widened in disbelief, her lips parting slightly. "No... it can’t be."
"Yes, it is," Hiro said with a low chuckle, stepping back with a sly smile. "He’s with us now."
"I’m going to tell him who you really are and what you did to !" Eliza shouted, her voice breaking from anger and desperation. She was tired of being locked up, tired of the chains that kept her from freedom.
"I doubt that," Hiro said, winking at her, which only made her angrier. "He’s our friend now."
"I don’t think Marcus is our friend," Taros muttered under his breath. The thought still bothered him—they had no idea how Marcus would react once he learned Eliza was locked away here.
"He’s not our enemy either," Kaito replied firmly. "He’s Angela’s father. That alone earns him so respect. That’s why we need to be careful with Eliza. We’re going to release her today."
"Today?" Samuel asked, shocked.
"Just like that?" Beta Slade added, raising a brow.
"Yes," Kaito said, turning to Eliza. "We’ll take her along and drop her off at her place." Eliza’s face lit up for the first ti in days, and Kaito noticed it imdiately. That small glimr of hope pushed him to add, "But we’ll only do that if you tell us who ca in and released Mr. Slade."
"Exactly," Hiro said with a smirk. He already knew his brother wouldn’t let this go easily.
Eliza’s shoulders slumped as she pushed herself slightly back, the chains clanking loudly against the floor. "I know nothing," she said weakly. "I swear, I saw no one."
"Save yourself from this, Eliza," Taros warned.
"I think I know a way to find out," Hiro said, handing his phone to Taros. "Let’s play so mind gas, right?"
"No... no! Don’t!" Eliza scread, shaking her head in terror. But it was already too late. Her mind was being pulled into the trap of the lord of mischief.
A few tense minutes passed before Hiro finally opened his eyes again. His face had changed completely. The smugness was gone. He took a slow step back, staring at Eliza with shock and disbelief.
"What happened?" Kaito asked, his eyes moving quickly from Eliza to Hiro. Sothing felt wrong—he could see it in his brother’s face. Hiro had seen sothing. But what?
"We’re dying of curiosity here," Taros said, giving Hiro a light tap on the arm. "Say sothing already."
"Did you see who ca here?" Kaito pressed.
"N-no," Hiro stamred, blinking rapidly. He still looked dazed, as though he hadn’t fully co back to reality. "The last ti she saw Mr. Slade was last night. She went to bed and woke up without any mory of him."
"Okay, but why are you acting like this if you didn’t see anything?" Samuel asked, voicing what everyone else was thinking.
"I... I—" Hiro began, but Eliza cut him off suddenly.
"Please forgive ," she cried, rubbing her palms together. "Please, don’t say it. I had to do it."
"Do what?" Kaito asked, his confusion turning to irritation. The back-and-forth was getting to him. "Can soone speak clearly?"
"They asked to do the job, and I did. That’s all," Eliza said, tears rolling down her cheeks.
"Nothing much?" Hiro snapped, his voice trembling. "People died, Eliza! Do you even know who they were?"
"No," she whispered, terrified. "I was only told to place an object in their car. That’s all I did."
"Was it Marcus who ordered it?" Hiro asked, trying to keep his tone calm, though his hands were shaking. He was holding his rage in by a thread.
"What the hell is going on?" Kaito shouted, his patience snapping.
Hiro opened his mouth, but no words ca out. His eyes filled with tears, and before he could stop them, they spilled down his cheeks. He took a deep breath, but his voice broke when he finally spoke.
"I just found out my parents were killed," he said softly. "It wasn’t an accident."
"What?" they all echoed at once, their voices full of disbelief.
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