"Don't do it, Caden," Renee said sternly. 

"We have to take a few risks to get what we want," Caden argued. 

"What you want" Renee reminded. "We were almost caught last time"

"Almost" He repeated. 

"Just leave it be, will you?" Renee asked sighing, indicating that she wanted to end the conversation. 

"No, Renee, I'm not going to," He said raising his voice a little. He hated how Renee was always trying to stop him from getting to the bottom of this. He knew it was risky, but his curiosity was getting the better of him.

"Don't raise your voice at me" She snapped. 

"Or else what?" He asked. Renee simply scoffed at him and left. He felt bad, but he was going to do this. With or without her support. 

"Hello, Caden," A voice said, making him turn back.

"Gabriella?" He asked, confused that she was talking to him. The last time they'd spoken, she made it clear she wanted nothing to do with him.

"What was that about?" She asked, referring to his argument with Renee.

"Oh, it was nothing," He shrugged. "I'm honestly surprised to see you here" 

Gabriella sat down on one of the beanbag chairs and motioned for Caden to join her. 

"I had time to think things through," She started. "And it was wrong to blame you. Anyone would've done that in your situation" 

"I'm glad you understood," He said, a huge smile appearing on his face, making her feel guilty. 

They both sat in silence for a while, unable to think of how to start a conversation. 

"How's Renee? You both seem to have gotten close" She said.

"You here for her or me?" He replied with a chuckle. Of course she was here for Renee, but she couldn't tell him that. 

"I was just trying to start a conversation," She said.

"She's alright, a bit frustrating at times" He replied. 

"How so?" She asked, in an attempt to learn more about her.

"It's a long story," He said with a sigh. Gabriella took the hint and decided that she'd just bring it up later. For now, she was stuck having small talk with Caden. 

As she spoke to him, she realized that she'd been missing him. He was one of the people she truly loved and cared about, and not having him around made her feel lonely. 

"Oh, I have to go," Caden said awkwardly while looking at his watch.

"Where are you going?" She questioned.

"I don't have time right now, I'll explain later," He said before giving Gabriella a small hug and running off. Gabriella stood up from the chair and watched him run into the hallways leading to his room.

She was confused by this behaviour. He was at the safe house, what work did he have that was so urgent? 

Meanwhile, Caden entered his room and opened his palms revealing the recorder he pick-pocketed from Gabriella. His phone had run out of battery a long time ago and the common places had no charging cables in them, leaving him with no technology.

Now that he had a recorder, he could follow Arthur around and finally prove to Renee that Arthur wasn't as innocent as she believed. 

He decided to look for Arthur in his office since that was the place he was found most time. He turned on the recorder and hid it in his pocket before turning towards the door to leave.

"Where you headed?" Renee asked, startling him.

"Work" He replied and tried to walk off, but was blocked by Renee. 

"What work?" She inquired further.

"Killing the undead," He said and Renee's face had a confused look. "I'm joking, chores. What else do we do here?"

"Are you upset about earlier?" She asked him. 

"Of course not," He replied. "I understand your concerns as well," 

She smiled softly and he left the room. He wasn't lying to her, he did understand her concerns just not willing to do what she wanted from him. 

He walked down the hallways and turned left to find Arthur's room. He had memorized every room in this place by now, including the restricted rooms. 

He waited outside the cabin for a while and when he heard nothing, took a stool and climbed to peer in through the transom windows. It didn't take him long to realize that Arthur wasn't inside, meaning Arthur was probably inside one of the restricted rooms. 

That thought made him a lot happier than he thought it would. If Arthur was inside the restricted areas, chances were he was doing something sneaky. And that would mean he'd get his evidence a lot faster. 

He walked further down the hallway as the distinct chatter of those around him quietened, until finally, it stopped. The eerie silence made Caden rethink his decision and remembered the risk he was taking.

"No one is allowed to enter, peek or hover outside these rooms" 

"If anyone is found breaking these rules, they will be shot on the spot" 

His words rang in Caden's head for a long time, but he'd come this far. There was no going back now. 

He tip-toed further and did his best to not make noise. Normally, Caden would've said this place was calm and serene. But knowing Arthur was in there made him feel a sense of dread with each step he took. 

 There were a total of seven rooms he had to scour, so far, he had checked three of them, all of which were empty. 

"What are the odds he isn't here at all?" Caden wondered. If that were the case, he would've risked his stay here for no reason. 

He could hear every smallest sound in the room, the beeping of the recorder, his pounding heart and even the ticking of the clock placed on the wall. 

After he checked the fourth room, he heard the voices of a few people speaking but couldn't make out what exactly they were saying. 

He walked forward, taking special care that his sneakers don't make any sound when they come in contact with the marble floor. As he got closer, he knew that one of the voices was Arthur's. 

"Are you sure?" He asked, cocking his eyebrows. And the other voice was of Renee. 

"When have I ever been wrong?" She asked. Caden stood behind the wall, unable to comprehend what was going on. Why was Arthur talking to Renee? And what were they talking about? 

"That boy is becoming a bigger nuisance by the day" Arthur grumbled. Caden's throat suddenly went dry. Who were they talking about? 

"Well, I did my part," Renee said with a shrug. "Now you don't screw this one up"

"I won't," He said, adjusting his glasses. 

"Eh, it's what you said the last time," Renee said and walked out in the other direction. 

To say that Caden was shocked, would be an understatement. He had a million questions in his head, but answers to none. 

How did those two know each other? Why hadn't Renee mentioned this before? What did she mean by 'last time'? But most importantly, why had she betrayed him? 

Author's note: Hey guys! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. I decided to bring Caden back into the picture, I figure he wasn't getting much time to shine. Tell me, whose perspective do you prefer, Caden or Gabriella? And what do you think is up with Renee?