Contract Marriage with My Secret Partner in Crime-Chapter 155: Pawns in the Dark

[92 Days Left to Live]

The rain had started just after midnight.

Fine mist at first, barely audible over the quiet of the streets, but by morning it had turned to a steady downpour. It drummed softly against the windows of Camellia Hall, a dull rhythm that matched Levy’s sluggish pace as she sat at her desk, absently turning a pen between her fingers. Her planner lay open but untouched. A blank page stared back at her.

The dorm was unusually quiet. Mira was still asleep, buried under her comforter like a caterpillar in its cocoon. Dana had gone to her early literature class, and Celeste was nowhere to be seen—probably off doing extra credit work or attending a breakfast seminar with the Business Society.

Levy leaned back in her chair and let out a soft sigh. Her thoughts had been clouded since that conversation with Mira yesterday. The idea that she hadn’t been randomly assigned to Mr. Cassius Varen... that someone had placed her under his advisory on purpose... it unsettled her more than she wanted to admit.

She rubbed her temples and tried to focus. She still had assignments to do, two reports to write, and her group for the Business Fundamentals project was still waiting on her final draft. But her hands wouldn’t move. Her mind kept returning to Mr. Varen. To Miss Sophia. To the flicker of something she couldn’t quite reach in her memory.

A knock at the door pulled her from her spiral.

Not a soft one. Sharp. Quick. Urgent.

She stood, confused, and crossed to the door.

When she opened it, Celeste stood on the other side, damp from the rain, eyes sharp.

"Get dressed," Celeste said. "Now."

Levy blinked. "What?"

Celeste glanced over her shoulder. "We don’t have much time. I’ll explain in the car."

---

The city looked grey and washed out, buildings blurred behind streaked windows as Celeste drove with both hands tight on the wheel. Levy had barely gotten her hoodie on before being dragged out, and now she sat in the passenger seat, soaked and rattled.

"What’s going on?" she asked again.

Celeste didn’t answer at first. Her jaw was tight.

Then finally, she said, "Mira’s missing."

Levy’s heart dropped. "What do you mean, missing?"

"She left our dorm sometime between three and four in the morning. Her location last pinged near the old hospital site. Then nothing."

"The abandoned one?" Levy asked, her voice rising. "Why would she go there?"

Celeste’s hands tightened around the steering wheel. "That’s what we’re going to find out."

Levy was silent for a moment, watching the raindrops chase each other down the windshield.

"Is this about what she said yesterday?" she asked quietly. "The file she found on Mr. Varen?"

Celeste didn’t answer. Not directly.

Instead, she said, "Mira’s smarter than she lets on. She probably went digging deeper. And now she’s in trouble."

---

The hospital was still scheduled for demolition.

The front gates were padlocked, but Celeste drove around the back, parking near a crumbling loading dock hidden from the main road. The rain was lighter here, protected by the overhang of old trees.

"Careful," she whispered as they climbed out. "No security, but we don’t know who’s inside."

Levy hesitated. "Shouldn’t we call the police?"

"By the time they get clearance to come in, we’ll be too late."

Levy didn’t argue.

They slipped through a rusted side door, the hallway dim and musty. The air smelled of mildew and sterilized history. Water dripped somewhere in the distance.

Celeste led the way, flashlight in hand. Her steps were confident but quiet.

They passed through an old patient wing, long-abandoned beds covered in sheets, then through an auxiliary corridor. Levy felt her heartbeat rising with each step.

And then—

"Wait," she whispered, grabbing Celeste’s arm. "Do you hear that?"

A soft electronic hum.

Celeste nodded once.

They crept forward, reaching the old supply room Reynold and Jeric had found days before.

It was empty now.

The generator still hummed, but the laptop was gone. So were the vials.

"No..." Celeste muttered. "We’re too late."

A rustling sound made them spin around.

A figure darted past the doorway.

Levy didn’t think. She ran.

"Levy—wait!" Celeste shouted, following close behind.

They chased the shadow down the corridor, through a maze of stairwells and broken lights. Then into the surgery wing.

The figure turned sharply.

Levy followed—

—and skidded to a halt.

Mira.

She stood near the old operating theater, soaked, shivering, hands bound with zip ties. Her eyes widened when she saw them.

"Behind you!" Mira screamed.

Celeste tackled Levy just as another figure emerged from the shadows, swinging a metal rod.

It hit the wall with a clang.

Levy scrambled up, heart racing. Celeste stood in front of her, fists raised.

The attacker wore all black. A mask. Gloves. No identifiers.

"Go!" Celeste shouted.

Levy didn’t hesitate. She ran to Mira, pulling a small cutter from her bag and slicing through the zip ties.

"We have to move!" Mira hissed. "There’s more than one!"

Sure enough, a second figure appeared down the hall, blocking their exit.

But then—

Gunfire.

Not aimed at them. But at the ceiling above the second figure’s head.

A voice shouted from behind: "Get down!"

Reynold.

He charged in from the opposite end, weapon drawn, Jeric behind him. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

The attackers scattered, fleeing through a side exit. Reynold gave chase.

Jeric ran to the girls. "Are you hurt?"

Mira shook her head. "Just cold and pissed."

Celeste dusted herself off. "Thanks for the dramatic entrance."

Jeric smirked. "Would’ve been earlier if you told us where you were going."

---

After introducing themselves, they reconvened at Jeric’s flat later that day, all soaked and silent. Mira had a blanket wrapped around her, and Levy sat beside her, still processing everything.

Reynold stood at the window, arms crossed.

"They were organized," he said. "Not amateurs. Not random."

Jeric sat at the table, examining the zip ties. "Same kind used in Helix facilities. Industrial, clean cut. These guys are trained."

Reynold leaned against the wall. "Which means Helix is more active than we thought."

Reynold nodded. "And they’re cleaning house. Brent’s trying to erase all evidence."

"And that includes people," Mira added quietly. "Like me."

Levy stared at her. "You shouldn’t have gone alone."

Jeric turned to Levy. "We need to ask... how much do you know about your mother’s past work at Public Diamond?"

Levy blinked. "What? She’s just a nurse. She’s worked there forever."

Jeric looked at Reynold.

Reynold took a breath. "There was a program. More than two decades ago. Experimental treatments. Gene therapy, biometrics, cognitive trials. Off-the-record. Your mom was listed as lead nurse on several patients."

Levy’s heart pounded. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Because you might have been one of the patients."

The room went still.

Levy stood up. "That’s insane. I would remember something like that. Also, that was more than two decades ago. I’m only eighteen."

"Not if it was erased," Mira said softly.

"Your mom might no longer be working there, but that experiment still seems to be ongoing to this day," Jeric added.

Reynold approached her. "We’re not accusing your mother of anything. But she might not have had a choice. A lot of people didn’t."

Levy backed away. "No. I want to talk to her. Now."

Jeric exchanged a look with Reynold. "We can bring her in. But carefully. If Helix finds out she still knows something..."

"I don’t care," Levy snapped. "She’s my mom."

---

Across town, Brent stood in a dark office, the glow of the monitors casting faint light across his face. He watched the camera footage closely and then rewound the clip.

Levy. Jeric. Reynold. Along with Mira and Celeste.

His eyes shifted to another monitor where Cassius was frantically issuing orders to find and rescue Levy. Brent narrowed his eyes, silent for a moment, before reaching for the phone.

"Cassius will be there soon," he said.

There was a pause on the other end.

"Erase the traces of our involvement."

He set the receiver back into place just as the door opened. Larman stepped inside, his voice tense as he spoke.

"Are you really going to keep doing this? I think Cassius will find out soon that it was you. You should stop now before it’s too late. You even put his daughter in danger."

Brent stayed silent. His gaze remained fixed on the monitors while his thoughts returned to the orders he had given. Mira and Celeste were not acting on their own. They were under his control, moving only as the commands inside their minds directed them—in short, hypnosis. It had been his choice to let them reveal those files to Levy, his plan to let her learn the truth in fragments.

Reynold and Jeric were different. They had not been manipulated, only observed. When their second raid of that place showed nothing, they did not relax. They stayed alert, keeping watch, which was exactly what Brent had counted on. That was why he staged the scenes earlier, making sure the two detectives would be forced to act. They believed they had chosen to step forward, but every move had been set into place by Brent.

None of it had been real danger. He would never allow that. Everything was part of the play he had staged. Every piece moved exactly where he wanted it to be.

At last, Brent spoke. His voice was calm, almost certain.

"Isn’t it good now? Cassius is finally making a move."