Chapter 3: Catalyst
The soft hum of the refrigerator was the only sound in the kitchen as Merak leaned against the counter, his brown eyes fixed on the doorway. He had been standing there for what felt like an eternity, his mind racing with worry and fear. He had seen Ombre in pain before, but never like this. Never with a bullet wound and a broken leg.
He heard footsteps approaching and turned to see Ankoku walking in, his black eyes filled with concern. "Merak, how's Ombre?" he asked, his voice soft. "He's... he's resting. Akauri managed to get the bullet out and set his leg.
He was now resting in his room, but Merak couldn't shake off the worry that gnawed at him. He knew something was off, something Ombre wasn't telling them.
Ankoku placed a comforting hand on Merak's shoulder. "He's going to be okay, Merak. Akauri knows what he's doing."
Merak nodded, but his expression remained grave. It's just... something's not right, Ankoku. Ombre's hiding something." "What do you mean? You think he's lying about what happened?"
Merak shook his head. "No, not exactly.
I mean, I believe him about the gunshot and the fall. But there's something more. He's scared, Ankoku. Really scared. And he's not telling us everything."
Ankoku's brow furrowed in thought. "You think he's hiding something about who shot him?"
Merak nodded. "Yeah. And I think it's something big. Something dangerous."
Ankoku's expression darkened. "Do you think it's related to his work? Maybe he got involved in something he shouldn't have?"
Merak shrugged. "I don't know. But I do know that whatever it is, it's putting him in danger.
And I can't just sit here and do nothing." Merak's voice was firm, his resolve unwavering.
Ankoku nodded, understanding Merak's concern. "So, what do we do? We can't exactly force him to talk."
Merak thought for a moment before responding. "No, we can't. But we can try to get him to open up. Maybe if we show him that we're here for him, no matter what, he'll feel safe enough to tell us the truth."
Ankoku considered this for a moment before nodding in agreement. "Alright, so how do we do that?" Ankoku asked, his black eyes reflecting the dim light of the kitchen. "We need to be patient and understanding. We can't rush him or make him feel like he's in trouble. We just need to be there for him, like we always are."
Merak nodded, appreciating Ankoku's insight. "You're right. We need to be patient. But we also need to be careful. If Ombre is in danger, we need to be ready to protect him."
Ankoku's expression turned serious. "You think we're in danger too?"
Merak hesitated before nodding. "I do. If whoever shot Ombre is still out there, they might come after us too.
We need to be prepared."
Ankoku's eyes widened, his black hair falling into his eyes as he nodded. We need to be careful. But how do we protect Ombre when he's not telling us what's going on?"
Merak's expression turned thoughtful. "We need to find out who he's been working with. Maybe that will give us some clues." "But Ombre's always been secretive about his work. He never tells us anything about his projects." But maybe he's been working with someone he trusts.
Someone he might open up to," Merak suggested, his brow furrowed in thought. "We could try talking to his colleagues, see if they know anything."
Ankoku nodded, "That's a good idea. But we should be careful not to make it obvious that we're prying. We don't want to tip off whoever might be involved."
Merak agreed, "You're right. We need to be subtle about it. Maybe we can invite them over for dinner or something, get them to talk without making it seem like an interrogation."
Ankoku smiled, "You're getting good at this, Merak.
But how do we get Ombre to open up? He's always been so closed off about his work."
Merak thought for a moment before responding, "We need to make him feel safe. Maybe we can invite his colleagues over for dinner. Make it seem like a casual get-together, but really, we're trying to get information out of them." But how do we make sure they don't suspect anything?"
Merak shrugged, "We just need to be casual. Act like we're just interested in getting to know them better.