Chapter 11
Eleanor's voice. It filled the empty hospital room. It was cold. Full of a furious resentment Cedric had never heard.
"Cedric, you fool. You thought I wouldn't find out? About you and Cassidy? About your betrayal?" The voice was laced with heartbreak. "I will make you regret every single moment. I will shatter your world the way you shattered mine."
Cassidy snatched the recorder. She threw it against the wall. It shattered.
"She's insane, Cedric! She's dangerous! She's out to get us!" Cassidy clung to his arm, trembling. "She fabricated that! She's trying to ruin your career!"
Cedric's chest heaved. He closed his eyes. His body trembled.
"Her life, her death," he rasped, his voice raw with pain, "It means nothing to me now."
Cedric stood in the briefing room. His mind was elsewhere. He fidgeted with the comms device in his hand.
He accidentally pressed play. The voice. Eleanor's voice. It filled the room.
His teammates looked at him. Their eyes were questioning. A few suppressed snickers.
Cedric lunged for the device. His face burned. He needed to shut it off.
He paused. His hand stopped mid-air. The voice. It was Eleanor's. But something was wrong. The cadence. The tone.
He raised the volume. He listened closely. His face grew paler and paler.
He remembered my real laugh. My quiet voice. The way I spoke when I was truly upset. It wasn't this theatrical. This... vengeful.
He slammed his fist on the table. He stood up. He pushed his chair back. It scraped loudly across the floor. "I have to go back to the hospital. Now."
Cassidy grabbed his arm. "Cedric, no! We have a mission! You can't just abandon your team!"
He shook her off. "Something is wrong. Eleanor… she might be in trouble."
His teammates blocked his path. "Sir, General Thompson's orders. No one leaves."
"My wife is missing!" Cedric roared. "My wife!"
"The Curry Group explicitly stated that you and Cassidy must remain here," one of them said. His voice was apologetic.
Cedric's jaw tightened. He swung. His fist connected with the man's jaw.
Chaos erupted. Several men rushed him. They tried to restrain him.
The doors burst open. A squad of men in dark suits entered. Their faces were grim.
The lead man, a hulking figure, moved with terrifying speed. He grabbed Cedric. He flung him across the room. Cedric hit the wall with a sickening thud.
Cedric roared, pushing himself up. His eyes were bloodshot. He glared at the intruders.
The door creaked open again. A new voice. Cold. Clear. It cut through the tension in the room.
"Looking for me, Cedric?" I stood there. Framed in the doorway.
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