Chapter 24 Targets For Assassination

“Boss! Boss! Over here!” Ember waved to her mentor after spotting her coming out of Master Odok’s armoury. She halted her sparing session and rushed over to Anna’s side. “What did Master Odok wanted to speak with you about?”

Anna replied to Ember’s question by showing her the envelope in her hand.

“Is it a new contract?”

“Yes.”

“Who’s the target this time?”

“I’ll tell you on the way. We have to set out now. Do you need to prepare anything?”

“No, I just feel the urge to take a wiz is all.”

“Okay, hurry up and unload your bladder. Crimson Scorpion has already received a head start.”

“Are we going after Crimson Scorpion? How come? Is she the target listed in the contract?”

“No, it’s a list of other people who work at Bio-Ace Pharmaceuticals.”

“Bio-Ace Pharmaceuticals?” Ember was astonished. “Isn’t that where your boyfriend works?”

“Lower your voice, Ember.”

“Oh, sorry. But boss, could this contract be related to that fire which burnt down a huge portion of the lotus building the other day?”

“I believe so.”

“No wonder that Crimson Scorpion was fleeing the crime scene. It must have been her handy work who set off that explosion.”

“I figured as much. The problem this time is who she’s targeting.”

“Hm, what do you mean, boss? There’s a problem with one of the targets?”

“See for yourself.” Anna passed over the envelope to her minion. When Ember recognized the familiar face on sheet one, her eyes popped out of her head.

“Isn’t this your boyf…!” Ember quickly covered her lips to prevent sensitive information from being spilt. After they left the peak of Mt Venom she continued her conversation with Anna. “Your man is among the target to be assassinated. If Crimson Scorpion is indeed seeking his head then I’m afraid it’s only a matter of time before he succumbs to death.”

“Why do you say that Ember? Isn’t he still recuperating in the hospital?”

“No, I kept my eye on his condition while you were recovering, he was discharged from the hospital earlier this morning. The cops brought him along with the other surviving members on this list to a secure location where they are keeping them under protective custody.”

“Is that so, then it will take some time before Crimson Scorpion and her goons find out his location. It should buy us some time to prepare a suitable strategy.”

“Time would have been an option on our side but the problem is that Crimson Scorpion has already infiltrated the police ranks, so she may be already aware of their location.”

“Then we better hurry.” [Whoosh!] Anna and Ember added more velocity to their movements. They were both slinging from multiple Elij-Plum trees that were growing all around the building rooftops. Arak Gold was seamlessly integrated with flourishing vegetation.

……

Later that evening. Surrounding a luxurious safe house hidden by tall walls were several covert police vehicles. Detective Kim was there instructing his officers to secure the premises. Accompanying him was the bewitching Inspector Lee who he recently affiliated with.

“You really didn’t have to come, Inspector Lee. My boys and I are more than capable of securing the civilians’ safety. I appreciate the Intel that you’ve shared, however, if our location is leaked to the enemy and something does go down here, then I would hate for you to be caught in the crossfire.”

“Is that so Detective Kim?” Inspector Lee got within breathing distance of the middle-aged man. “It’s been a long time since a man has been worried for my sake. You’re so kind Detective Kim. Okay, I’ll take your advice to leave this place. Come grab a drink with me when you’re free, okay? You did save my number, right?”

“Yes, I have it stored on my phone. Please have a safe trip, Inspector Lee.” Detective Kim portrayed a moment of blush on his face as he waved goodbye to the gorgeous Inspector who drove away. Some of the officers who were close by spotted his red face and teased him for it.

“Whoa, it seems that our elite detective is crushing on that fabulous Inspector.”

“It’s about time he found a lover in his life.”

“But do you think that he is anywhere in Inspector Lee’s league?”

“Are you bling or something, rookie? Didn’t you see how Inspector Lee smiled at him just before she left?”

“I did but isn’t that…”

“YAAH!” Detective Kim’s ears grew tired of the officers’ gossips, thus he unleashed his brusque tongue at them. “Aren’t you officers on duty? Go patrol the damn premises and stop spreading false rumours.”

“Yeah! Right away, sir!” [Chep! Chep!! Chep!] The gossiping police officers ran away in separate directions after getting scolded for their loose tongue.

“Tsk, damn those incompetent runts.” Detective Kim took out a pack of cigarette from his pocket then lit one up. “If Inspector Lee’s information pan’s out then the real Tainted Scorpion will be coming to claim those people lives tonight. How cunning of that wicked woman. Actually faked her death with a Demon Triad’s body. If Inspector Lee didn’t bring this vital information to my attention I would have continued living my miserable life thinking that my wife and daughter’s death was avenged.”

Detective Kim tossed the half-burnt cigarette on the floor; later pressed it out with his boot. “Tonight I will definitely bring you to your grave.” He took out another cigarette from the pack and lit it up. “Everyone, remember the drill. Report in every 30 minutes. Keep your eyes on the sky. I don’t want any mistakes tonight.”

“Yes, sir.”

Finished addressing the officers under his care, Detective Kim went into the dwelling complex to address the scientist who survived the intentional explosion which took place several days ago at Bio-Ace Pharmaceuticals.

One of the female targets pending for assignation struck up a conversation with Detective Kim as soon as he entered the living room where they all were. “Excuse me, officer. When are you going to tell us what is going on? After getting discharged from the hospital we were immediately brought to this unknown facility against our will. Why, are we in danger?”

“That is what I’m about to explain to you all.” Detective Kim searched is eyes around the spacious abode. “Is this everyone who survived the explosion from the lab?”

“Ahm…” Dr Kate who had just spoken to Detective Kim also glanced around the room. She quickly noticed that someone from their group was missing. “Wait a moment. It looks like Prof. Shaw hasn’t come back from the bathroom yet.”

“Oh, then I’ll wait for him to get back. I will only say what I have to say once.” Detective Kim leaned his rusty bottom against a decorated table as he waited for the missing individual to return.

[Step! Step! Step!] Confirming Deleon’s return to the living room, Detective Kim stood up straight and addressed the small crowd. “Ahem, now that everyone is accounted for I will begin debriefing you. Please have a seat.”

Now that their bottoms were settled in the long sofas, Detective Kim continued. “As of now, you are all under protective custody. The incident which happened seven days ago that caused your underground laboratory to explode was no accident.”

Hearing this made the protected individuals more scared. “Did you hear what that man say?”

“Of course, we heard. That deadly explosion which claimed the life of our co-workers was intentional.”

“So somebody tried to kill us? Is this related to what we were working on?”

“It has to be! Why else would we be targeted? I’ve never offended anyone in my life to deserve such explosive attention.”

“Yes, it must be that project we were working on. The assailant made sure to burn everything to cinders, even our precious plants of darkness.”

As their lips continued to spit out words, Detective Kim got annoyed due to his voice which was lost amid the conversation. In light of this, he elevated his voice above theirs, saying:

“Quiet down! I am in the middle of an important conversation here.” The scientist shut their mouths, furthermore, given their focus back to Detective Kim. “Many of your assumptions are correct. During our investigation, we discovered that the cause of Bio-Ace Pharmaceuticals explosion was due to an intentionally placed type-4 lethal bomb. We believe that you are being targeted for the confidential research you lot were working on. You were brought to this undisclosed location so that we can keep you safe while finding out who wants you all dead. For us to expeditiously solve this case we require more information. Do you mind sharing with me what you all were experimenting on?”

“Ahm, that’s….” No one was willing to spill the beans. After conversing with their eyes for a short while, all three of them rested their gaze on Deleon Shaw. He was the lead scientist who started their secret project. If anyone were allowed to divulge confidential information to the public it would be him.

“Hmm?” Taking notice of who the remaining scientists were staring at in silence, Detective Kim also spared that person a glance. “Well? If you don’t say anything now you might not get the chance to later when you have all been assassinated.”

Monika Simpson got veritably scared after processing what Detective Kim had just say. “W-What does that mean? Are their assassins after us?”

Detective Kim responded. “The best of the best. I happened to be affiliated with one of them and let me tell you, she never misses her targets. Probably you people have heard whispers about her. She’s very famous in the underground as Tainted Scorpion.”

“Tainted Scorpion?” Everyone gave an audible gasp when they heard this moniker. Their faces blatantly displayed their astonishment. “You don’t mean th-th-that Tainted Scorpion that was on the news recently do you? The one who was found dead in that warehouse?”

“Same one.”

“But she’s dead! How can a dead person be after us? Quit screwing around!” Wade Blackwood was getting angsty. He was fidgeting so much, he couldn’t hold his bottle of water properly.

“Huh…” Detective Kim noticed Wade’s fidgeting and added. “With that weak constitution of yours, you might be the first one that she kills.”

“Oh, Jesus!” [Splash!] Wade got so scared by what Detective Kim said, he accidentally dropped his bottle of water on the fur carpet. If my author’s vision perceived correctly, I believed he also wet his pants.