005 - Red string: Surprise!!!

The woman in black froze. Alex continued, his voice still light, but his smile deepening as it floated over:

"In that box is the key to the Empire of the Lenners. I have never seen it. Don't you want to see what it looks like?"

The hands that had been hesitating froze.

Who did not know of the family owning one of the biggest groups in the world. Maybe some might not know, but the woman did.

The box, small as it was, suddenly felt heavy, immovable.

The amusement in Alex's smile deepened, and he relaxed in the chair he was tied onto.

"Ever since I got that box, I never opened it, but what if it is a fake? I don't think the one who sent you will believe any truth you will say when he finds out."

The words pricked at the mysterious woman's heart, as could be seen from how her hand trembled. But at last, after a few seconds, she made her decision, and pushed the box into the bag with newfound resolution that cut off every uncertainty Alex's words made her heart pregnant with. Though she looked more hurried than earlier, apparently wanting to leave Alex's apartment sooner rather than later.

"You are not a professional."

Despite herself, those words from Alex's made the mysterious woman in black pause her actions.

"You don't look unstable like a junkie, and you seem a little reluctant in your actions. So I take it that you are not here because you want to. Now here comes the question: how merciful will the one who forced you to come here be should you fail to bring back what he wants?"

The mysterious woman in black could just leave. She could just take her bag and leave, but irrespective of Alex's intentions, his words were like a torn off band-aid that left behind a wound she could not ignore, a wound that touched the weakness in her heart as she thought deeper.

And there was nothing to prove whether the box had been opened before or not. It could have had its contents changed, even if she had no idea what it was, or worse, it could be empty. And she would be unable to wash off any accusation when the time came.

From excitement, the mysterious woman now only felt a frustration she could not name, as well as a nameless anger to accompany it.

She put the raised backpack down, and turned to look at Alex with gritted teeth. She hated the smile on his face, but there seemed to be nothing she could do to erase it, unless she crossed some lines. She hated his expression filled with amused interest, but she could only be the joke to amuse him, as he kept seeming in control of the situation.

She forced her words through gritted teeth:

"You want me to open the box. Why?"

Alex raised an eyebrow, and answered truthfully:

"I said it before, I am curious. I can afford not to care, but you can't. You have to care. So why not satisfy my curiosity at the same time as you make sure you truly got what you have been sent here to get. After all, after today, there will be no more chance for either you, or anyone else to get to me."

At the end, Alex's smile turned deep with dark anger, showing emotions beyond the mask that made the woman take half a step back by instinct.

That anger had surprised her, though on further thought, it was reasonable. It was the previous smiles which had fooled her, and it was only now that she was feeling apprehensive about what would happen afterward.

Alex's smile lost its depth, as he whispered lightly:

"You are afraid. But you were the one who barged into the heir war of the Lenners…"

It was like the words were coming from the dark abyss the mysterious woman had stared into. It sent a chill down her spine. Worse still, she could not refute any of what Alex said.

She gritted her teeth, and turning away from the brown, amused eyes, she opened her bag again and took out the wooden box. She could feel something unusual after all the goading, but she had no choice. Like Alex said, she really had no choice.

Alex, looking at what was happening, smiled. His eyes flashed with an obscure glow. As the mysterious woman held the upper half of the wooden box, he squarely met her gaze with his smiling brown eyes. She lowered her dark eyes to the box, and his smile widened slightly.

He looked behind her, at the sparse clouds beyond the open door of the balcony, to see the edge of the glow of the moon illuminating the dark vault. His smile gained a subtle, unsettling depth, before he heard a subtle clicking sound.

His grandfather gave him the box before dying, saying it contained his most precious treasure destined for his one true heir. It could only be opened on a night of a full moon, and only when it would be important for his life. And as it seemed, today was good enough, was it not?

Alex gave the mysterious woman a deep look, then squinted his eyes gleaming with intrigue and curiosity, as he watched her open the box he had never managed to open before.

The wind slowed down, and the world held its breath. The box became the sole object of the woman in black's focus. She pushed up the cover, and searched for the answer inside with an intense look. She saw something white, before she caught sight of something red.

At first sight, there was nothing dangerous inside the wooden box, so she pushed the top up to finish opening it, only for a subtle feeling of resistance to appear, and disappear in the same instant.

*FLASH*

A strong light suddenly appeared, brightening the room like lightning without thunder. The dark eyes were blinded, and the woman wobbled on her feet, then fell down onto the soft carpet. Alex's eyes widened, and he seemed ready to curse at the unexpected turn of events, before he fell dizzy, he lost consciousness too, his head falling weakly onto his chest.

The box that was the source of everything fell onto the floor as the gloved hand holding it lost its grip, causing a soft sound to precede the silence that returned.

*Pa*