Harriet knocked on the door.‘Come in!’Entering, Harriet handed a report to Elias. ‘General Westwood, this just came in. In about an hour, there’s a firearms transaction scheduled at an abandoned warehouse. We’re unsure about the scale of the operation.’Elias glanced at the report before him. ‘Got it. Tell Lemuel to assemble twelve Special Forces soldiers downstairs in ten minutes. You stay here and keep an eye on things.’The authenticity of the report was still uncertain, but it couldn’t be ignored.Kurtazagg’s border was rife with criminal activity, and it was a key market of the Shadowfire Syndicate, which was responsible for nearly eighty per cent of arms and drug trafficking in this region.Elias’s mission was clear: take down Shadowfire.‘Understood, General Westwood.’ Harriet saluted.Elias stood, grabbed his jacket, checked his ammunition, and left the room to meet with the team.In ten minutes, the team of Special Forces were ready.The armoured vehicle pulled up, Elias ta
Lemuel recalled the woman he saw earlier, remembering her wily grin and lethal motions.‘Sir, if a mercenary’s involved, then this mission...’ Lemuel’s voice trailed off.‘Gets more complicated,’ Elias affirmed with a slight nod. ‘The fact that Shadowfire could hire Inga implies an extravagant sum offered.’‘Then why did you…?’‘Why did I let her go?’Lemuel nodded.‘Because Inga isn’t the strategist; she’s a consummate executor. The true puppeteer is the mastermind behind the scenes. Unless we capture the real leader of Shadowfire, eliminating Inga alone won’t suffice.’Lemuel’s expression grew more solemn with Elias’s insight.The armoured vehicle continued its course, yet an abrupt burst of flames disrupted the tranquillity.In mere seconds, an earth-shattering explosion resounded, and mushrooming smoke billowed, forming a cloud above the distant fire.The ground trembled, fissures spreading across the turf.Unprepared for the sudden upheaval, Lemuel, who piloted the armoured vehic
Callie could see the weight Suthat carried at such a young age, the burden of a reality that demanded maturity beyond his years.‘Just focus on resting now,’ Callie advised, hoping to ease his concerns. ‘The turmoil at the borders won’t last forever. The future of this place rests on young shoulders like yours.’Suthat nodded. ‘I will, Doctor.’A sudden thought seemed to strike him.His expression grew more serious. ‘Doctor, have you resolved things with the other male doctor?’It took Callie a moment to realise he was referring to Jamison.She had no ready answer for the boy.Try as she might, she couldn’t fathom why Jamison harboured such an unexplained grudge against her.Callie thrust both hands into her pockets. ‘There’s nothing to resolve, since I didn’t fight with Dr Garcia.’‘But something’s not right between you two, isn’t it?’ Suthat insisted. ‘You’re not quarrelling, but neither are you talking to each other.’The boy was perceptive.Callie, however, didn’t want to dwell on
Concerned that Angelia’s elbow could be fractured, Jamison swiftly guided her towards the X-ray room.Once the X-ray procedure concluded, he tenderly lifted her, carrying her to a bed in an empty ward.Angelia’s eyes were cast downwards, concealing her emotions.She looked so vulnerable and delicate, with her small, tear-streaked face framed by cascading curls.In an attempt to comfort her, Jamison spoke in a soothing tone, ‘I’ve reviewed the X-ray, Dr Hawthorne. Fortunately, there’s no fracture in your elbow. The pain you’re feeling is due to muscle strain, and it’s quite swollen and red. It should improve in a few days.’He produced a bottle of medication to aid blood circulation and extended it towards her.However, Angelia remained motionless, not reaching out for the medicine.Jamison, concerned, asked, ‘Dr Hawthorne, are you alright?’Angelia slowly raised her tear-stained face to meet his gaze, her voice quivering, ‘I...’As Jamison looked into her eyes, he realised he couldn’t
‘Give it to me,’ Jamison demanded abruptly.‘I can handle it myself,’ Callie insisted.Impatient, Jamison snatched the tweezers from her hand.‘Hey!’‘I’ll take care of it,’ he declared.Jamison proceeded to suture Callie’s arm, noticing that the wound had become slightly inflamed, likely due to her delayed treatment.A troubling thought crossed his mind—she must have been injured during the blast, which was almost two hours ago.He demanded, ‘Why did you wait so long to treat it?’Callie winced as he worked on her arm. ‘I... I didn’t think it was that serious.’Jamison probed further, ‘I’m the overall in charge at the infirmary. Why didn’t you inform me when you got injured?’Callie didn’t look at him. ‘I didn’t want others to know about my injury.’Jamison had a pretty good idea of whom she meant by ‘others.’He pressed, ‘Elias?’Callie bit her lip but remained silent, confirming Jamison’s suspicion.‘Why are you afraid of Elias knowing?’ Jamison asked with frustration. ‘I thought y
The mention of Katina made Elias momentarily tense.‘Callie’s a good woman. I don’t want her to suffer the same fate as Katina,’ Jamison growled.‘I’m not going to hurt Callie,’ Elias replied. ‘She and Katina mean different things to me.’‘Then what does Katina mean to you now?’Elias extinguished his cigarette and locked eyes with Jamison. ‘I don’t need you to tell me what to do. The way you are acting now…’He grabbed Jamison’s collar, his eyes showing a hint of violence. ‘Do you have feelings for Callie?’Jamison was thrown by the question.He believed he didn’t have any romantic feelings for Callie.He hadn’t known her for long, and he was aware she was with Elias from the beginning.Falling in love with Elias’s woman was out of the question.‘Are you out of your mind?’ Jamison scoffed.‘I’m not kidding,’ Elias stated firmly. ‘Jamison, your concern for her seems to have crossed a line.’‘I just don’t want to see her end up like Katina.’ Jamison removed Elias’s hand from his collar
Jamison donned medical rubber gloves, selected a pair of tweezers, and carefully unwrapped the gauze covering Callie’s arm.As the gauze came undone, it disturbed the wound, causing Callie to take a sharp intake of breath.Jamison’s gaze focused on the wound, revealing signs of inflammation despite the presence of scabs.He spoke sternly, ‘Your wound has become infected.’Callie had underestimated the seriousness of her injury because it didn’t hurt much when left untouched.However, when confronted with Jamison’s words, she looked down and noticed the inflammation around the suture.‘Looks that way,’ she acknowledged with a nod. ‘But it’s alright; I’ll take some anti-inflammatory tablets later.’Callie made a move to lower her sleeve, but her action was halted by Jamison’s firm grip on her hand.Jamison’s brow furrowed. ‘If you keep downplaying your condition like this, I can’t guarantee that Elias won’t find out about your injury.’Callie bit her lip, frustration building. ‘Dr Garci
Callie interrupted with a reassuring smile. ‘I appreciate your concern, but trust me, I’m fine. Right now, your priority is to rest and recover.’After taking Suthat’s temperature, Callie checked the thermometer reading. ‘Your temperature is almost back to normal, at 37.9 degrees. You’re healing well. Another day or two, and you can be out of here.’Suthat’s smile was strained.‘Just lie back down. There’s a stack of old magazines over there if you are bored.’ Callie glanced around and sighed. ‘I guess there’s no TV here.’After Callie left, Suthat looked around.When he was certain no one was paying him any attention, he discreetly removed the IV needle from the back of his hand.***In the war room, Elias sat at the head of the long table, and Harriet worked the projector.‘Based on the latest intel,’ she reported, ‘the explosion that occurred at 4:35 yesterday was a government-initiated event within Kurtazagg. It was designed to wipe out a rebel faction. The blast claimed the lives