Finding that house was easier than I'd anticipated. The exterior seemed undisturbed, normal even. I clicked my tongue, of course they would pick to hide here. No one would suspect a murderer and his accomplices occupying this building.

It gave off a pleasant, quiet vibe. But I knew there was something darker beneath that feeling. The things that were committed here were far from pleasant.

I wasn't going to take any risks. I had four MPs flank the exterior wall. They each hold their own firearm, watching the front door with such concentration.

They wouldn't barge in till I gave the go-ahead. I wouldn't—at least, not yet. I analyze our surroundings once more.

True, it was quiet here but it seemed to be too quiet. It riled the cautious voice inside my head. Don't they realize

Arron had been gone for a while? Wouldn't they suspect we would've figured out their hideout sooner or later? I clicked my tongue, I despised this cautious feeling.

"Hey, Levi. . ." Hanji steps besides me with her eyes trained on the door. She seemed to get antsier the more she stood here. "Did Arron tell you why Edward targeted Emma?"

I heave out a sigh, "Yeah, and I told you. To avenge Chris."

"I get that but, why?" She ponders. "He's about three years younger than Chris and joined the Scouts only a few months ago. Arron and Booker known Chris for years, and Edward hasn't. He'd shown no interest in him till he heard about Emma's mission. So—why?"

I roll my eyes, this was utterly ridiculous. What's the importance of this information? We're about to rescue Emma and detain that lunatic asshole. That should be the least of her worries right now.

"You're really going to ask me that now?" I hiss while sending her a look. "We got bigger problems to handle if you hadn't noticed."

Hanji shakes her head, not once sparing me a glance. "I just—don't like this eerie feeling. Something's off."

"Tch." I look back at the house. Clearly.

We're in front of their hideout and they had yet to notice our presence. But who the hell cares? We're here now so our only option is to push forward.

"Stay out here if you want, Four-Eyes," I grumble. "I'm going in." I make my advance, ignoring Hanji's hasty whisper-shouts for me to wait.

I was done waiting. Done wasting time when each second could mean the difference between life and death for Emma. Done with giving Edward the satisfaction of hurting her.

Adrenaline began to overpower me, making all my sense a bit stronger. I grip my fists, "Advance!"

The MPs don't need to be told twice for they burst through the door, firearms raised in many directions.

"Edward Cam and Booker Harlow, you're under arrest for the kidnapping of Emma Wolfram and the murders of five victims!" One officer yelled. When I entered I expected some sort of resistance, maybe an angry shout from either of them.

But there was nothing. An eerie silence had greeted us instead. Nobody was here.

My heart pounded in my ears as I click my tongue. "Search the house," I growl. "Don't leave a single corner unchecked."

With a hasty, yes sir, they rush about the house. I watch with fire burning in my eyes, why weren't they here? Did they truly know we were coming?

Was Arron a ploy so they could escape? How could they possibly know we would arrive? I gritted my teeth, if they were to take Emma with them—

"Levi!" Hanji rushes in and I turn to face her.

"What now?" I was in no mood for her theories. Hell, I wasn't even in the mood to wait patiently for these officers to scan the place.

Hanji seemed to understand my silent fury and nodded slightly. "It could be possible they knew we were coming."

"Yeah, no shit," I spat. "They're not even here."

"Or are they?" Her words threw me off balance slightly. I only allowed my brow to quirk upwards in show of my puzzlement. She took it as a sign to continue. "Think about it, Levi, their true target was Emma all along. Revenge was their motive, don't you think they would want to show their work? Arron and Booker have ties to Chris but what Edward does as well? Doesn't that make his motives stronger—more purposeful?"

She shuffled her feet uncomfortably with her eyes narrowing. "If you ask me, I think they're using this opportunity to reveal what they did to Emma. They want commit a final act on her with us as the audience. They want us to find her—"

"What about them?" I snap. "Where would they be then if that's true—"

There came a loud bang before I could finish my question. The walls rumbled from the sound, my ears were ringing loudly. I whirl around to see an officer shot in the gut.

He didn't have time to react, a low, wheezing gasp escapes him as he falls to the floor. My eyes widen when I see two figures lingering the shadows. One had a firearm.

I didn't think twice as I shoved Hanji behind me. They only had one shot before loading another round of gunpowder.

"Disable him!" I yell. Three of the officers quickly rush towards them. Firearms were raised and they unleashed their shots.

But the men ducked behind a flipped table. I gritted my teeth, damn it!

"Drop the weapon!" One officer shrieks with his firearm raised. "You're both under arrest!"

I hear a small scoff from behind the table before watching the firearm being tossed to the side. My shoulders straighten as I take one step towards them.

"Cut the act, you pieces of shit," I growl. "Now stand up."

A straining moment has passed making my blood boil even more. I open my mouth the shout again but I see Booker take a stand. Hands cockily raised he sends me a distasteful glare.

"Came to save your girlfriend, Captain?" He sneers with a frown. "She's probably dead—"

"Shut up!" I order. "Work your mouth again and I'll see to it that one of these officers will shoot you in the foot."

He clicks his tongue but doesn't say more. Hesitantly the officers lower their firearms and one makes a move towards him. I watch with such fury that I didn't care about anything else.

But as I watch as Booker willfully gets detained a thought rushes through my mind. Where the hell is Edward? There were two figures a moment ago, one was Edward.

So where the hell was he? Before I could ask Booker slams a knife into the officer's shoulder. A shrill of pain escapes the man's throat.

He staggers back hand over the impaled knife. I let out an animalistic growl, "Shit!"

I make a move towards Booker, assessing his defensive stance. He wasn't going anywhere as far as he was concerned. With two officers and me here, he wouldn't make it out alive.

"Levi, look!" I stumble to a stop, my head flying towards the direction Hanji had pointed.

There Edward stood. For a second our eyes locked and I was able to see the anxiety and the anger pulsing through them. My body shook in rage, my lips pulled back into a snarl.

He tears his gaze from mine and clambers down the stony steps with a the door slamming soon after. My breath hitches in my throat, the cellar. In that moment I soon forgot about Booker and the other officers wounded.

All that mattered was seeing my fist being slammed into his face. All that mattered was letting my anger fully unleash. All that mattered was that I reach Emma before it was too late.

"Hanji!" I break into a run and didn't have to continue my order. She already knew what I wanted.

"Yeah, we got Booker!" She shouts back with rushed footsteps following her shout. "Hurry up!"

I didn't have to be told twice. I run down the steps and ram my shoulder against the door. The door bursts open with the hinges popping off the doorway.

It falls to the floor with a thud but I pay no mind to it. I scan the dim-lit cellar looking for either Emma or Edward. Blood roared in my veins with my eyes darting to each corner of the room.

Till they landed on the farthest wall. My eyes widen slightly with my breathing coming to a stop.

"One more step and she's dead."

Edward glares hatefully at me as he fixes the knife upon a woman's throat. And it wasn't just any woman—it was Emma. A terribly beaten up, bloodied Emma.

I couldn't process the image before me, couldn't breathe at the sight. Her hair was cut in such an uneven way that I could tell they didn't care how she looked. Her face was marred with bruises and cuts that it took me a moment to realize it was truly her.

Her body was worse. Shirt in tatters while her exposed skin and remainder of clothes were caked in blood. She was shackled to the wall behind her, lifeless as Edward held her roughly.

The mere sight sickened me. She wasn't even putting up a fight as if—she lost the will to. I clenched my teeth, fists shaking.

"What the hell did you do to her?" I watch Edward simply shrug as though this were a nonchalant conversation.

"Oh— just teaching her a lesson. I whipped some sense into her if you must know." He pulls the knife away from her throat and throws her down to the floor.

Her back was visible and a cool chill crawls down my spine. It was an ugly sight, there were terrible lashes deep and infected coating her whole back. Blood dried on her skin, her shirt ripped into shreds.

I couldn't register anything and vaguely hear Edward releasing a dark cackle. Heat roars through my veins, my lips pulled into a nasty snarl. I narrow my eyes into a deadly glare.

How dare he hurt her? How dare he?

"You bastard! I'll rip you to shreds!"

"Ah-ah-ah, didn't I say I'll kill her if you take another step?"

Without knowing I had taken a purposeful step towards them. My fists were clenched with raw anger burning me on the inside. I wanted nothing more than to unleash this unrelenting rage within me.

Wanting to yank him away from her and slam his sorry ass into the damn wall. But as I watch Edward grab Emma by the hair before placing the knife upon her throat once more that thought quickly left my mind.

I let out a growl, "You sick piece of shit."

"Damn, is that way you talk to a member on your squad?" Edward tuts while feigning a frown. "You truly are rude."

"Shut up!" I roar. "Let her go!"

Edward doesn't answer for a moment. His lips quirking upwards into a smirk before he bellows another laugh. I found nothing amusing about this, his laughter only made my fists shake.

"Now why would I do that?" He muses. "I can taste my sweet revenge, Captain. Right here, slicing her neck—watching her die and paying with her blood—is enticing."

This wasn't the same Edward Cam who became a Scout. No longer did youth glow in those eyes of his but only hatred. Cold, deep hatred that wish to be unleashed. It disgusted me.

"She has nothing to do with—"

"NOTHING TO DO—?! Do you hear yourself right now!? You're defending a murderer!"

He pressed the knife into her skin. Blood began to spill over the smooth metal, every instinct told me to run towards them. Barrel into Edward and slam him to the ground.

But that intent in his eyes withheld me. He knew what I wanted and fed off of my anger. He pressed that knife deeper into her throat and an ugly growl escapes me.

"She deserves every bit of pain I throw at her. She killed Scouts for her benefit! She sent my half-brother to his death! I'll make sure she does by my hand!"

My eyes widen slightly, his brother. Chris was his half-brother, it's the reason behind all this. Reason behind his intent to kill. But it didn't justify his actions. Not even in the slightest.

"Does it look like I care?" My vice was cold and sharp. No emotion layered them.

Edward gawks at me as if I grew another head. I didn't care. Didn't care if he was blood-related to Chris.

Didn't care if he loved his brother or not. No, all that mattered was I get Emma out of this alive.

"What did you say?" His voice came out breathless. I merely sent him a cold glare, he flinched at the intensity.

"I don't give two shits about your dumb relationship you had with Chris. You're just some whiny-ass baby who can't get over the fact their half-brother sacrificed himself for a good-cause."

"Good-cause, my ass!" He roars. "He didn't have to join the Scouts but he did because of this wench!"

"Call her that again and I'll shove your legs down your throat."

Edward shakes his head and scoffs at my threat. He then pulls the knife away from Emma's throat. He drops her like a bag of flour, I grimaced when she falls to the floor with a thud.

Was she dead? The mere thought had my heart sinking but I force myself not to dwell on it. I force my eyes on Edward who swerves around her body, flipping the knife in his hand.

"You know, Captain, come to think of it you also don't react when a solider dies in the heat of battle."

I scowl at him, "The hell does that have to do with anything?"

"Means you're like her. A cold-hearted killer." His eyes slowly narrow, his lips down-turning into a snarl.

I knew that look. I lived my whole life in the Underground to know what it means. I shift my weigh upon my legs keeping my body loose. Edward grips the knife and placed it in front of him.

"I'll have to exterminate you," he sighs. "We can't have two killers on the loose, can we?"

"Tch, guess not." I square my shoulders before popping my neck. "Looks like your ends near, shitty brat."

"Phe, we'll see about that—Captain Levi."

/\/\/\/\/\/\

So sorry this chapter sucked lol

The next one will be good (I hope)

Do you think Emma had died?

Lemme know in the comments!!

Vote and Comment!!❤️❤️