Chapter 18

It was quiet... and almost too quiet. There was only the sound of dripping water echoing throughout the room. Aleta woke up with a limp and a pair of eyes that opened slowly. Her head was a little dizzy, but that wasn't a problem at all. What mattered to Aleta right now was the place where she woke up.

Aleta blinked for a while, until she finally sat up and was surprised to see herself in a room behind bars.

"No! What happened, why is this happening?" she muttered to herself in a panic.

She stepped quickly forward and gripped the bars in front of her tightly. His eyes searched in every direction.

"Help!" she shouted.

"Someone help me, anyone help me. Please... please open. Let me go!" I shouted again.

Aleta clenched her fists tightly, trying to tease the iron bars before her. And of course, it was in vain. How could it? It didn't even move an inch.

"Stop doing stupid things like that."

A voice suddenly rang in Aleta's ears. The girl automatically turned around to look at the source of the voice. Apparently, Aleta was not alone in the room. Not far from where she was, a man with chains on his legs was sitting while watching Aleta's movements from earlier.

Aleta did not say anything. She just looked at the man in confusion. A man dressed all in black with wounds and dried blood on his hands. The man's face was partially covered by a mask, which made it impossible for Aleta to get a clear view of the man's face.

"I've already done something similar. But it was in vain and I ended up staying here," the man told Aleta.

Aleta stayed where she was. She had no intention of approaching the man despite her curiosity.

"Don't waste your energy on useless things like that," the man said to Aleta.

Aleta flopped down, leaning against the bars to stare at the man. She sighed nervously as she was still confused by the situation. To be honest, she was also still panicking. His memory stopped the last time he was in pursuit in the forest behind his house.

"You must be special," the man said.

Aleta frowned. She pointed to herself.

"Me?" she asked in surprise.

"Yes, you! You must be special. Otherwise, you wouldn't be here in one piece. At the very least, one of your body parts should be missing," replied the man casually.

"What did you say?" Aleta was surprised to hear that.

"Yes, but you look fine without any injuries," the man replied.

Aleta looked back at the man from toe to hair.

"But every part of your body is intact!" the girl emphasized.

"Why do you think part of my face is covered by a mask?" The man said in a questioning tone. That made Aleta curious.

"So... what happened to you?" Now Aleta was curious.

"My eyes and part of my face." The man answered calmly, as if it was just a normal thing like someone asking about the weather.

"Oh my God!" Aleta squealed, she couldn't lie about her own shocked expression.

"Do you want to see it?" the man asked.

"No!" Aleta immediately rejected him. Of course Aleta couldn't bear to look at it. She was afraid of blood, especially with such a horrible wound.

"Ha ha ha, all right. You don't have to be afraid of me. I'm just a prisoner. Look, my feet are even in chains. Let alone hurting you, I'm even tormented by these chains," the man explained to Aleta. It was as if he knew Aleta's thoughts.

It was so quiet in the prison that the sound of Aleta and the man chatting could be heard clearly.

"My name is Ethan... And you are?" asked the man named Ethan.

"I'm Aleta," Aleta replied hesitantly.

"That's a beautiful name. I'm sure you won't be in this prison for long. Unlike me," said Ethan.

"How do you know, and why are you so sure?" asked Aleta.

"Just instinct..." the man replied.

"So what made you get arrested and brought here?" the man asked.

"So what made you get arrested and brought here?" the man asked.

Aleta fell silent and hugged her knees. The girl seemed to be in deep thought, and she really didn't know what was going on.

"I don't know," Aleta whispered.

"I don't know what I did wrong," Aleta said.

"There's no way, there must be a reason why you're here!" The man seemed adamant.

Aleta seemed to be thinking hard, remembering what had happened. But she couldn't picture anything. Except for one thing. Her life changed drastically after she got to know Davian.

"All I know... my life changed after knowing Davian." Aleta said softly again.

The man looked surprised after hearing Davian Ricardo's name that came out of Aleta's mouth. He clenched his hands in annoyance. The veins on his face now stood out.

Aleta was naturally confused by the man's reaction. Why did the name Davian Ricardo seem to have such a bad reputation.

"What's wrong with you? Do... do you know Davian Ricardo?" asked Aleta.

"You really don't know? Or just pretending not to know huh!" The man's demeanor changed. He was no longer relaxed and instead looked like he wanted to pounce on Aleta.

"What do you mean, I don't know what you're talking about!" said Aleta with some fear.

"Tell me, how do you know that asshole!" Ethan looked like he wanted an explanation.

"What's your business. I have no obligation to answer you!" Aleta argued.

"Answer me if you want to get out of here!" shouted Ethan.

"Well... well, calm down. I'll explain!" Aleta tried to calm Ethan down.

Aleta let out a long sigh before she began to tell him about her misunderstood encounter with Dave.

"Back then, I accidentally saved Davian from the people who were chasing him. After that... there were many strange things that happened. So... he brought me to live with him. Of course, it was because he felt he owed me a favor," Aleta explained.

"And you're willing to deal with her without the slightest suspicion?" Ethan couldn't seem to figure it out.

"I said no! But... he made me an offer I couldn't refuse!" Aleta was not to be outdone.

"Aahhh I can't believe this. Don't tell me it's about money! He promised you a lot of money? My God, why are people like you always so greedy, huh!" The man sounded angry at Aleta.

"Hey, what are you doing? It's none of your business. Whether I'm greedy or not is definitely none of your business!" Aleta retorted equally fiercely.

"I am greedy! And I will always be greedy, especially when it comes to my family!" she added.

The man gave Aleta a confused glance.

"Why, what's wrong with your family?" Ethan's tone weakened slightly.

Aleta was weighing something in her mind. She wondered to herself. Should she tell Ethan about her family being victims of the massacre and her suspicions about Davian Ricardo being involved? Meanwhile, she and Ethan had only known each other a few minutes ago.