"Thanks, Aurelia," Oxygen said, while on the flight to Berlin.

"What happened?" Aurelia asked.

"Thanks for trusting me. Things would have been out of the track if you weren't there to kill me."

"Thank our agency for that," said Aurelia.

"By the way, why did you want to kill me?" Oxygen finally asked the question of the moment.

"Well, I thought that this place doesn't deserve a guy like you. But... All I can say is, I could finally bring justice to the downfall of our agency."

"That's right! And anyway, thanks for all this time, Aurelia," said Oxygen.

"Thank you! And... Oxygen. I have a question," said Aurelia.

"Ah! Now is it your turn?"

"Yep! And... My question is, why did you have Max's diary with you instead of giving it to the agency? If you have done that, maybe, you wouldn't have been framed as a traitor, and... Things would never become worse," asked Aurelia.

"According to me, I didn't find this single evidence enough. So, I thought of dealing with it on my own. But... As we say, the rest is history. Still, I'm glad that I haven't given this diary to the agency."

"Hmmm? Why?" Aurelia asked.

"Well, if I did, I wouldn't have found M this earlier. Four months was never too late for me. Still, after hearing about his murder attempts on you, I'm afraid that I'd let him go like last time. The previous time, it was Angela. And... Okay! I never got to attract negativity."

"Hmmm! That's the spirit I want," said Aurelia. "Just don't care about anything. I'm there by your side. Just ping me whenever you need my help. I'm just a call away from you. Got it?"

And Oxygen nodded his head, understanding her nature.

***

A MONTH LATER...

Oxygen has spent over 50000 euros over one month, yet couldn't find Max. He tried at almost every place possible, from plush pubs to public toilets, but he left no place remaining. Still, he couldn't find Max.

Yet, on the other hand, Max's plans were never left unaffected. He'd already killed the current agents' Caesium and Gallium, and also tried to kill Aurelia twice. Still, she managed to escape alive but got her right leg hurt.

Helpless, he tried contacting Aurelia, so that she could help him out.

"Ummm... Hello? Aurelia, are you free now?" Oxygen asked as she picked up the call.

"Well, yeah, Oxygen. What happened?" Aurelia asked back.

"I tried searching for him at every spot I could find. Still... I couldn't find him at all. What should I do now?"

"What to do now? Are you sure that you haven't left any area?" Aurelia asked.

"Yes! I've wasted my 50000 euros during this process, yet it was just my money and my plans that had got wasted," Oxygen whined.

"I'm asking you again, Oxygen. Are you sure?"

"Yes," he mumbled.

"Fine! I have one plan," said Aurelia.

A curious Oxygen asked, "What is it?"

"Why not submit the diary to our agency?" Aurelia said.

"What do you mean, Aurelia?" Oxygen asked back.

"Like, we already knew that Max is the culprit. So why not explain everything to the agency? If we tell them, they can at least do the needful, can't they?"

"You're right, Aurelia. But..."

"I am not forcing you, Oxygen. I'm just suggesting this to you. I feel like we can catch them easily if we explain it to them."

She was right. They are after all professionals, right? Maybe they can help them.

"Let me think about it. See you," said Oxygen and hung up the call, thinking about whether to consider her plan or not.

***

The next day, as a final attempt, Oxygen decided to search for Max. And he had already planned everything. If he still didn't get Max, he decided to submit the diary and explain everything in Inspygency, and then decide whether to continue working for them or settle back in India.

After trying four streets, he went to a departmental store on the fifth street.

He scanned through the store. It was neither too bustling nor too idle. The right time to ask thought Oxygen, and then saw a man stacking the biscuits. He went towards him to ask.

"Hello, sir," Oxygen greeted him, and he reciprocated with a simple nod. "Well, I'm new to this place. I've come to meet my childhood best friend. After so many years, we're going to meet again. But, I don't know where he is in Berlin. I heard that you may know him. So... Could you please tell me whether or not you've seen him somewhere," Oxygen recited the same tale he has been telling for the past month to everyone, and showed the man Max's picture.

After looking at Max's picture, the salesman looked at Oxygen with confidence and said, "I know him."

Oxygen was elated to hear that. That was the thing he wanted to hear for the past month and he finally did it. "Could you please share with me his details?" He asked elatedly.

"Well, he's a British person, right?" The salesman asked. "George Abbott."

Oxygen, who found that Max used to change his name, said, "Exactly, sir! But, you're talking about this guy, right?" and pointed at Max's picture.

"I am talking about him, sir! I also know where he lives," said the salesman.

Oxygen was thoroughly happy that he finally did it. Concealing his unlimited happiness, he asked, "Could you please take me there?"

"Ummm... Sure."

And the salesman went outside with the permission of the manager, along with Oxygen, who is all set to have a face-off.

***

The place where Max supposedly lives was 5 kilometres from the departmental store. On the ride to Max's place, Oxygen managed to collect all the information from the salesman. Max's name was George Abbott and an immigrant from the UK. Max was previously an aspiring businessman, but his business went on loss as his business partner cheated him. Meanwhile, the bankers from the bank where Max had borrowed money, were in search of Max, for the loans to be repaid. His girlfriend and his parents abandoned him, and to escape from the bankers, Max came to Berlin.

The statement given by the salesman fascinated Oxygen and made him deduce that Max is creative at spinning tales.

As the salesman dropped Oxygen at Max's place, Oxygen thanked him and had a look at its exterior.

It was like an old mansion from a horror movie. The walls were grey and crackled, and the mansion was way too large for one man to live in.

"Dear Max. Here I am, darling!" Oxygen said, with his epic sinister smirk.

So here we are, at the seventh chapter of Retaliation. Hope you guys enjoyed it! Please drop some constructive criticisms. I'm waiting.

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Word Count: 1121 words