CHAPTER 6: WARMTH OF THE COFFEE

The scent of burnt toast hung thick in the air, an acrid cloud of disappointment drifting through the small safe house kitchen. Hana's irritated voice sliced through the morning haze like a blade.

"You absolute menace, I told you not to touch the stove!" she snapped, swatting at Damian with a spatula.

Damian, completely unfazed, grinned as he leaned against the counter. "Hey, at least it's not as burnt as last time. Progress!"

A frustrated groan left Hana's lips as she turned off the smoking toaster. Damian had somehow managed to incinerate two slices of bread beyond recognition. It was an ongoing mystery how a man with such superhuman resilience could be so utterly hopeless in the kitchen.

From across the room, Audrey sipped her coffee, barely concealing her amusement. "Oh, trust me, Kenzo, you missed Damian's attempt at 'eggs with a side of crime-solving.'"

A low groan came from the hallway. Disheveled and groggy, Kenzo appeared in the doorway, his sharp eyes squinting as if the mere existence of the morning offended him. His dark hair stuck up in unruly directions, his usual stoic demeanor slightly compromised by his sluggish state.

"This is the worst way to wake up," he muttered, rubbing his temple before scanning the room. His gaze landed on the charred toast and the vaguely yellowish scrambled eggs on the counter. "This… is a crime scene."

Hana tossed the ruined toast into the trash with a dramatic flick of her wrist. "Blame the idiot over there."

"Excuse me," Damian interrupted, gesturing at himself with mock offense. "I was trying to contribute to the group."

Audrey shot him a deadpan look. "By poisoning us?"

"Hey, food poisoning is just an unexpected plot twist for your stomach!" Damian countered with a cocky grin. "And besides, who else is going to cook?"

Hana narrowed her eyes. "Literally anyone else."

"Kenzo?" Damian tried, looking over at the still half-asleep man.

Kenzo shook his head. "Not happening."

"Audrey?" Damian turned his hopeful gaze to her.

Audrey smirked. "I value our lives."

Damian sighed dramatically, placing a hand over his chest. "Fine, fine, I get it. You all just want me to starve. The tragedy. The betrayal. The heartbreak."

Hana rolled her eyes. "Just sit down and let me fix this disaster."

Kenzo sat at the table, his fingers idly tapping against the wooden surface. The warmth of the coffee Audrey slid toward him was a welcome contrast to the lingering exhaustion in his bones. He took a sip, exhaling as the bitter taste grounded him.

The morning had begun with chaos, but now, as the team settled, a certain calmness seeped in. It was a momentary reprieve from the looming shadows of their mission.

Audrey sat across from him, watching him closely. He felt her gaze even before she spoke.

"How are you feeling?" she asked softly.

He glanced up, meeting her eyes. There was no pressure in her question—just quiet curiosity. It was something he'd come to appreciate about her. Audrey never pried. She simply offered space for the truth to be shared.

Kenzo considered his response. Physically, he was fine—if a little exhausted. Mentally, the weight of their purpose still pressed against him, a constant reminder that they were more than human now. They were beings caught between two worlds, existing in the in-between, neither alive nor fully dead.

"I don't know," he admitted finally. "It's like... every time I close my eyes, I can still see everything. The things I shouldn't be able to. The truths no one wants to face."

Audrey nodded, her expression unreadable but understanding. "Your gift is a burden, too. Just like all of ours."

Kenzo let out a dry chuckle. "Yeah. Some gifts. You can see through deception, Hana can rewrite memories, Damian's an indestructible idiot, and me? I just see too much."

Audrey's lips curled into the ghost of a smile at his words, but her eyes remained serious. "But you use it to uncover the things that matter. That's what makes you different."

He tilted his head slightly. "Different?"

She set down her coffee. "You don't just see hidden realities, Kenzo. You seek them. Most people would turn away, but you don't. You take the pain of knowing and do something with it. That's why you were a journalist. That's why you're here."

For a moment, he was quiet. It wasn't often someone voiced the weight he carried in a way that didn't feel like a curse. Audrey had a way of understanding things beyond words, of seeing through the masks people wore—not just to deceive others, but the ones they used to lie to themselves.

"And what about you?" he asked. "You see through every lie, every deception. How do you deal with that?"

Audrey exhaled, her fingers tracing the rim of her mug. "You learn to focus on the truths that matter. The ones that help. Otherwise, you drown in the weight of knowing."

Kenzo studied her for a long moment. He understood what she meant—though he wasn't sure he'd mastered it himself. His gift had always felt more like a curse than a tool for good. But Audrey had a way of reframing things, of making him feel like maybe—just maybe—he wasn't completely lost.

The sound of Hana slamming a fresh plate of actual food onto the table broke the moment.

"Eat," she ordered, wiping her hands on a towel. "And if Damian even thinks about touching the stove again, I will erase his memories of cooking permanently."

"Rude," Damian muttered, already reaching for a fork.

Audrey let out a quiet laugh, and Kenzo found himself shaking his head in amusement. The morning had been chaotic, but in the strangest way, it had reminded him of something he hadn't felt in a long time—

Something like home.

The warmth of breakfast had barely faded when Hana leaned back in her chair, arms crossed, a smug expression playing on her face. "Alright, children, time for something fun."

Kenzo arched a brow at her. "That phrase coming from you is never comforting."

Hana smirked. "Oh, you'll love this one. I did some digging."

"Of course you did," Audrey muttered, setting down her coffee.

"I hacked into Rudi's work emails," Hana continued, pulling up a holographic display on her tablet. "The guy's not subtle. I found encrypted messages about a secondary hideout where he keeps sensitive files. And get this—it's an old police storage facility on the outskirts of the city."

Damian let out a short laugh. "So… let me get this straight. Our dirty cop has a sketchy evidence dungeon? Why am I not surprised?"

Audrey's expression turned serious. "If we can retrieve those files, we might find unaltered records proving his involvement. The ones he couldn't erase or alter."

Kenzo leaned forward, fingers tapping against the table. "How do we know it's not a trap?"

Hana shrugged, her lips curling into a mischievous grin. "We don't. That's the fun part."

Damian rolled his eyes. "Right. Because nothing says fun like walking into an obvious setup."

Audrey exhaled, her mind already working through the logistics. "We'll need a plan. A careful one. Hana, how secure is this place?"

"Abandoned, technically. But that doesn't mean unguarded," Hana replied. "According to the logs, Rudi sends his guys there every few nights. My guess? He's keeping more than just files."

Kenzo's jaw tightened. "Evidence of more crimes. Ones he never wanted anyone to find."

A moment of silence stretched between them, the weight of the situation settling in.

"Alright," Audrey said finally. "We go in tonight. Hana and Damian stay on lookout. Kenzo and I will search inside."

"Oh, come on," Damian groaned. "Why do I have to stay outside? I can take out a few guys if needed."

"Because subtlety is not your strong suit," Hana shot back.

Kenzo smirked. "And we need the building to still be standing when we leave."

Damian scowled. "Fine. But if things go south, I'm charging in."