In a small village located on the outskirts of the city…
Kamil sighed as he shook his daughter's shoulder.
"Come on, my daughter Ren, wake up! You've slept too long; you have school."
Ren (moaning): "Ah… what time is it, Father?"
Kamil whispered: "It's seven in the morning."
Ren (panicking): "What?! I'm late!"
She jumped out of bed in the blink of an eye.
"All right, I'm going to gather some firewood. Don't forget to eat your breakfast, my daughter."
"I won't forget, Father."
Zarak whispered: "This is not the boy I wanted. Are you all idiots? What did I tell you? You useless fools! I gave you instructions, you scum."
One of them looked at him shamefully.
"Yes, sir… but what should we do with the boy?"
"I don't care. I am only after my goal, and nothing else matters to me."
"But sir—"
Zarak whispered: "But what?"
With a terrifying glance:
"No… nothing."
Zarak whispered: "But really, do as you wish."
Then he sent a glance toward Hidara with a fleeting look.
Hidara whispered:
"Where am I? Why am I tied up? Why? Let someone tell me! What is happening? I can't see clearly… That drug they gave me made me lose consciousness. What do these people want from me?"
One of them looked at me.
I felt his gaze pierce through my chest.
Don't come near me…
No…
Don't come near…
Stop…
Please… stop…
Step…
Step…
Step…
Don't come near.
Please, don't come near me.
I can't breathe. I feel a tremendous pressure on my chest.
The air no longer reaches my lungs.
My pulse raced violently until I felt it would tear my chest apart.
Sweat began pouring down me.
Then he arrived.
I felt him.
He was so close.
So close that the heat of his breath brushed against my ear.
It was hot…
Horrifyingly terrifying.
Then he whispered…
"Why are you afraid? Don't worry… you will only… die."
Hidara screamed: "Nooooooooooooooooo!"
Kamil whispered:
"Wait, what is that sound?"
Kamil thought as he stopped his axe.
It sounded like a boy… scared.
"Let me check it out. I'll approach the source of the noise."
Kamil sneaked toward the noise.
"What is this? An old building… and a car? What on earth is happening here?"
Zarak exited the building, got into his car, and left.
Kamil sighed, sweat pouring down him:
"Another car just left the building! Something is wrong. I must hurry."
Kamil entered the building cautiously.
Shaky whispered: "What do we do now?"
Maggie sighed: "Why don't we call Mr. Jaber? Maybe he will reward us."
The phone rang.
Jaber whispered: "What is it?"
Shaky whispered: "We kidnapped a boy, but Zarak doesn't want him."
A laugh escaped Jaber, forming a cruel smile on his face:
"Fine, I want him. I only care about the money. We will cut up his body and sell his organs. Bring him to me."
Hidara sighed, sweat pouring down him, after hearing the conversation:
"What? Am I going to die? Am I really going to die? This cannot happen…"
Sweat streamed down his face from sheer terror.
Someone… anyone… please save me…
His eyes filled with tears.
"I don't want to die!" he screamed internally as the tears began to fall.
Kamil was eavesdropping.
"What should I do? I have to save him… I will do anything."
Shaky whispered: "No one will come to save you today!"
A terrifying laugh echoed in the room.
Shigi placed his hand on his stomach.
"Ugh… I'll go take care of my business."
He went outside.
Kamil whispered: "This is my chance. I'll get rid of him."
So he was taking care of his business.
He looked at a tree trunk.
Kamil attacked the man from behind, knocking him to the ground. Quickly, he took his clothes and weapon to disguise himself.
Kamil entered the building in disguise.
He saw Hidara lying there with two men nearby.
"Why did you take so long?"
Kamil remained silent because he knew his voice would betray him.
The men began to suspect.
Shaky raised his eyes: "Why don't you answer, you fool?"
One of them approached to look at his face.
In a moment, Kamil struck him, breaking his neck, and dropped the first man swiftly.
He fired a bullet into the other man's leg, then grabbed Hidara's hand while aiming his weapon.
Kamil: "One more step and I will kill both of you!"
The two men retreated in shock.
Kamil managed to escape, carrying Hidara all the way to his home.
Inside the building, Shaky called Jaber.
"Sir Jaber… the boy escaped. A villager took him."
"Does he know what you look like? Did he see Zarak's face?"
"Yes, he saw everything."
"This is a disaster! I'm coming there myself, you fools!"
Jaber called Zarak.
Jaber whispered: "The boy escaped."
Zarak sighed: "I told you, I don't care."
"He saw your face."
"I think I already told you… I don't care."
Jaber whispered: "Fine. I'll handle it myself."
Hidara's body was covered with bruises, burns, and serious injuries.
He was unconscious.
Ren: "What happened to him? Who is he? And why do you look so scared, Father?"
Kamil: "It's a long story… Go heat some water and clean his wounds."
"Oh my God… the poor boy. We don't know what he went through. I'll wash up and try to rest."
"All right, Father."
Ren began cleaning Hidara's wounds gently.
She whispered to herself:
"This boy is not from here. His skin is very pale… He seems like he belongs to the city."
Hidara woke up in the evening.
"Ah… my head hurts. What happened to me?"
Ren looked at him: "You're safe now. Here, this is all to regain your strength."
"Thank you…"
He whispered to himself: "It's true… I've been saved."
"Where is the man who saved me?"
Kamil entered to him.
"How are you feeling?"
"Better, thank God."
"What brought you here, Hidara?"
"Honestly, I don't know. Everything went dark, then I found myself with those criminals. I owe my life to you… I will never forget what you did for me. Thank you so much."
"Rest here until you fully recover, then you can return to the city."
"No… I have to go now. Everyone will be worried about me."
He whispered to himself:
"Everyone… I have no one waiting for me."
Kamil looked at him:
"No. You're still injured. Moreover, the kidnappers are still looking for you. You won't leave until you fully recover. Do you understand?"
He insisted, and Hidara finally agreed to stay.
The next morning, Ren was watering the flowers.
Hidara approached.
"You have a wonderful father."
Ren looked at him.
"I know. I don't need you to tell me."
"I want to thank him properly for saving me."
"Don't worry about that. My father is not the type to do good expecting anything in return."
Hidara sighed.
"But—"
"Just recover first. That will make him happy. My father loves seeing people happy. Now, I'm going to school. Breakfast is ready. If you need anything, help yourself—just don't leave the house."
"All right."
After several days…
Kamil looked at Hidara.
"What do you say, my son? Do you want to go hunting with me?"
"I would like that."
"All right then, let's go."
At the lake…
Hidara whispered excitedly:
"Look! Look at this! I caught a huge fish!"
Kamil laughed.
"All right, look at that! You're a natural hunter."
Hidara laughed, and a rare moment of joy lit up his face.
Suddenly, the sound of a car engine cut through the calm.
Jaber stepped out, holding a firearm.
"I finally found you, you little rascal. You're like a mouse—hard to track. Well, it doesn't matter now. I'll just kill you. Your existence is only a problem for us… it's better for you to die here. If you ever return to the city, you will only give us a headache."
With an evil smile,
Jaber aimed his weapon at Hidara and fired.