CHAPTER 52: SUSPICIOUS MAN

1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12….

She counted the men guarding the empty house via the binocular she bought the other day.

Zenia rented the flat near the fully guarded house. It was just a meter away opposite her target. Phew! Good thing there was an empty room where she can do her assignment---spying on the men posted at the empty house.

It was weird to safeguard a house for ten years if the owners were long dead. Since it was being carefully watched, that only means that they are expecting the owner to come back or if not, there are important stuffs hidden inside. And that's what she's going to find out.

The young lady was watching the men using binoculars when her phone rang.

"Where are you now?" A voice of a young man spoke from the other line.

"You know where I am." She nonchalantly replied, still, her attention was on the house.

"Did you really rented the apartment near it?"

"Uh-huh. And I think I will be staying here longer than expected. I need to study their movements for the time being so tell your grandpa that I won't be joining his meetings moving forward."

"Oh, okay. Do you need company right now?" 

"Don't you have work to do?"

The young man heaved a heavy sigh.

"It's my day-off and I can't go to the orphanage without my friend."

"Why don't you go alone?"

"Nah, I can't. The old woman will surely doubt my presence. The file that I was looking for was labeled confidential and I bet she'll question my existence if I go there without a valid reason."

"Then why don't you just break in at night?"

"Tsk! I'm not like you. I'm not capable of doing what you're good at. You know that, right?"

"You want me to do it for you?"

"No. Just do your job and I will do mine." The man chuckled.

"That's your call. Bring me chicken then if you decide to come."

"I rather bring you vegetables. Ha-ha!"

"DON'T YOU DARE." She threatened. "You know I have guns, right?"

"Ha-ha! Bye, see you in a bit." Then the man disconnected the call.

Zenia's eyes never left the house nor the men guarding it from the outside. She wanted to sneak a peek on the inside, however, the windows were closed and its curtains were thick as a blanket. If she wanted to break inside the house, then she could hide herself at the rooftop and enter via the balcony at the second floor. However, there are two men watching the balcony too. 

Damn! There's no way she'll be able to sneak inside unless she kills all those men. 

Can she just dispatch them all at once?

She was about to put down the binoculars when she accidentally spotted a man hiding behind a post near the house. He was wearing dark shades and if she's not mistaken, he should be in his mid-fifties. She got curious since the man was obviously observing the men, probably he's someone who wants to enter the house too. 

Hmm… A bit suspicious. She thought therefore she took a photo of him even if he was a bit blurry. Who could that man be? After a few minutes, the man left the area. Looked like she needs to place cctv cameras in every corner near the house. Yeah, she'll definitely do that. But she'll have to think of how to do it. 

The men guarding the vicinity looked tough too. She can't risk getting caught or she'll be dead.

MEANWHILE, Marcus went back to the bench where he sat while waiting for Jade. He doesn't want to stop the woman from having fun with the kids either. Also, he doesn't' want to trouble himself about the man watching Jade anymore since he concluded it must be a stalker or what not. 

She's not special to begin with so why will she be in danger?

Looking at Marcus sitting on a bench while staring at his phone gave Jade the assurance that the man must have forgotten about the topic a while ago. Yeah, she doesn't want to recall that embarrassing moment therefore she joined the children dancing with the stuffy mascot.

And she must say she enjoyed it so much unexpectedly. 

She pulled out herself from the crowd and was about to walk towards Marcus when her phone suddenly buzzed. 

"Hello?" She answered the phone.

"Hello?" She voiced once again. She furrowed her brows when the line got disconnected after a minute.

"Who is it?" Marcus stood up when Jade placed her phone back inside his pocket.

"I don't know. It's an unregistered number. Maybe it was just a prank." She nonchalantly replied. "Aren't you hungry? Lunch?" She grinned sweetly.

"Sure. I made a reservation at a near restaurant." He replied but when the woman turned her heels and walked towards the exit, his mind suddenly recalled the man watching her a while ago.

Could it be the same person? 

He's not sure but he suddenly felt a little queasy. 

*******************

"How is it?" The middle age man dialed a number in his phone while walking back to his car.

"Yes, they're currently together. Sorry I can't follow them for now. The man accidentally saw me."

"That's okay. Stay low for this day. Just make sure you won't blow your cover."

"Yes sir." 

The man was about to hang up when he suddenly remembered something.

"By the way, can you buy me a dog?"

"A dog?" Confusion can be heard in the man's voice on the other line.

"Yes. Dog. I'll tell you what kind of dog and make sure to send it to me today." He smirked.

"Y-yes sir." Then he hanged up.

The man smirked meaningfully when he recalled a specific event in the past.

"Please, don't take him away, father. He's my best friend!" A young boy was crying desperately in hope to save his dog from his drunk father. 

"I clearly warned you before but you disobeyed me anyway." The man's voice roared inside the house. Then he took the dog and threw it outside. After which, the man took his silencer and shoot the poor dog.

"No! Akish!" The young boy cried as soon as he saw his bloody dog lying dead on the ground. "Akish…."