"I did not want to torture him unless you gave the order," Ethan said as they walked deeper underground.
"You did the right thing," Axel replied calmly. "Because I need to do it with my own hand."
His voice echoed through the cold concrete hallway.
Ethan gave a quick nod, though his expression remained unreadable. He had seen Axel like this before, only a few times, and it always meant trouble for whoever was on the receiving end.
They continued walking until they reached another set of thick steel doors facing each other.
The underground facility was built like a maze, intentionally confusing to anyone who did not belong there.
Most had been stripped down to bare essentials, leaving only cold walls, locked rooms, and heavy silence.
At the end of the hall, Ethan stepped forward and pressed his thumb to a scanner beside one of the steel doors.
A beep sounded, followed by the low grind of machinery.
Then,
The door swung open slowly, letting out a blast of cold air.
