Hidara stopped in front of his old building, gesturing with his hand toward the door, and said in a calm tone: "This is my home… this is where I live, Ren."
Suddenly, he froze in place; the door was ajar. He pushed the door cautiously to enter, with Ren following him in pain and paleness. He had barely taken two steps when his mother rushed toward him with an eagerness he had not expected.
His mother, Widad, threw herself into his arms, crying bitterly: "Forgive us, Hidara! Leaving you alone was our greatest mistake… thank God you are safe."
Hidara replied in a choked voice: "Do not apologize, Mother… fleeing was not a solution; I have learned my lesson now."
His father, Mahmoud, inspected his body with tearful eyes: "Where have you been? We almost lost our minds!"
His parents looked at Ren. "And who is this girl?"
Everyone sat down, and Hidara recounted the bitter details.
"Thanks to this girl and her father, I am… alive."
Widad looked at Ren while patting her head gently: "What a tragedy… From today, I am your mother, and this is your home. No harm will reach you. Do not fear, my daughter."
Mahmoud added sternly: "You are safe, my daughter. I have contacted a friend I know, and I will do my utmost to protect you."
The moment was interrupted by an official knock at the door. Kamel and his assistant, Salim, entered.
He whispered in a suspicious tone with a mysterious smile: "Good news… the lost son has returned. Tell us, Hidara, where did you disappear… your father has not stopped calling."
Hidara answered sharply: "A gang that trades in organs… I thought otherwise. I know their target."
Kamel looked at him with a nearly lifeless gaze: "Do you know any of them?"
"Yes, I know their faces well, and they will never leave my nightmares."
Salim recorded the notes coldly.
Kamel whispered in his ear: "Take care of yourself… we have a lot of work to do."
"Let's go, Salim."
After they left, Widad took Ren's hand and led her to a room on the upper floor. She opened the door: "Look, Ren… from now on, this room is yours alone. Take a rest; the nightmare has ended."
Ren sat on the bed, feeling the weight of exhaustion: "Ah… from today, I will live with the Hidara family… I am really tired, I want to sleep."
That night, Ren fell asleep while holding a picture of her late father to her chest,
"Father… do not worry. Your daughter will fight to live. I will do my best to be well… I promise you."
In the depths of an abandoned warehouse, where light barely penetrated through cracks in the ceiling, and the smell of rust and despair lingered…
The sound of heavy, dragging footsteps echoed, tearing through the funeral-like silence, as it stopped before him.
Jaber whispered in a low voice:
"It seems you have summoned us, leader Jasir."
Jasir was sitting on a rusty chair, rocking very slowly… unnaturally slowly.
In his hand was a picture, which he waved quietly.
He slowly raised his head.
His eyes were empty… of life.
"Do you know what happened today?"
Jaber sighed, feeling — for a reason he did not understand — a coldness creeping down his spine.
The chair stopped moving.
Silence.
Then,
a second passed, and a wave of gravity emerged, pressing with tremendous force.
Jaber panicked, looking downward, forced to kneel from the intensity of the pressure.
His body began to crack, blood flying from him.
The pressure increased, then, a second later, it vanished as if it had never existed.
Then Jasir spoke in a hoarse voice:
"I met a man… a man unlike humans."
"A man with the heart of an animal… and the mind of a demon."
He leaned slightly.
"He asked me… to kidnap his son."
Silence… then he smiled slowly, grotesquely.
"He said he does not want him alive among them… but torn apart, far from them."
Jaber swallowed his saliva.
Jasir whispered:
"Ahhh… humans… when they remove their masks… they become worse than any monster… more cunning and treacherous."
In the corner, Zarak whispered to himself:
"No… more terrifying."
Suddenly—
Jasir threw the picture.
It slid across the floor… until it stopped at Jaber's feet.
"This boy's name… is Shadi."
"You must kidnap him… before the end of the week."
Jaber bent slowly… very slowly… and picked up the picture.
He looked at it.
A boy.
Sixteen years old.
Silence prevailed.
Then—
Jaber began to laugh.
A low laugh…
then louder…
and louder…
a laugh that was not human.
Its echo reverberated through the warehouse walls, as if the place itself was laughing with him.
Then it suddenly stopped.
He raised his head.
He smiled.
He whispered:
"Very well…"
"I will kidnap him."