Even after Her Death by Rita Bond

Chapter 310 The Shop's Secret

Behind Carter, police officers were setting up a perimeter, indicating something serious had occurred ar the shop:

I couldn't help but feel uneasy as I glanced at him. "Is it okay for me to be here?"

"Don't worry. All the cameras have been turned off."

That reassured me. He wouldn't put me at risk.

"You should've been inside. It's freezing out here."

I just wanted to see you sooner. He offered a soft smile.

For a brief moment, almost forgot how he used to be Why had I once thought of him as so frightening?

I gently pushed him toward the door. "What happened today?"

"I had some people stir up trouble at the shop. As soon as they heard we might call the police, they tried to pay to make it go away. But when money didn't work, one of them shut the place down."

I stopped in my tracks. "They were planning to force their way in?"

"Yes. A bunch of thugs, really. They didn't expect us to be prepared. We had backup waiting outside, and when the scuffle started, they ran into the underground tunnel."

I'd figured out where the tunnel was, but now I worried. With so many people around, I feared the decoy might have gotten into trouble.

100

"Did anyone get hurt?" I asked, anxiety rising. I had only wanted to cause a bit of a stir, not out of hand.

Carter's face grew dark. My stomach twisted. "What happened?"

things get

"They're badly injured. They meant to scare them, but the situation escalated. They broke into a secret underground base. If that secret leaks, the whole shop is done for. That's why they never planned to let anyone leave today. "Do you remember the guy who used to fix our cars? He stepped in to protect them. He got hurt, but at least he's alive."

I remembered him well. I'd added him on WhatsApp, chatted with him a few times.

He hadn't been at the shop long, so he likely didn't know anything too important.

I'd gone through his posts. He was a cheerful guy, came from a small town in the mountains to support his family. He had a younger sister who was excelling in school.

He was kind too. When he couldn't afford to buy food for stray cats, he'd give them half-of his lunch.

1had always liked him. The first time I met him, his bright personality reminded me of a little sun. 1/4

210 The Shop's

up in something he didn't

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th nd I hadn't witnessed the chans firsthand, I could imagine how dangerous it must have been. Once inside

were barricades everywhere, and the floor was stained

reached an agreement, giving us permission to enter

of blood stains on the floor made me

were werely injured,

"Where's Captain Turker? tasked.

in the

down there? What's the

words.

the hidden passage. Just as I expected,

The walls had only been roughly coated with cement, and the air was thick with a musty, rotten scent, mixed with the overpowering smell of blood. The last time I was here, I

his expression

I replied, though my voice

this the place you've

the paths. "Yes, the

my steps as I

harder my heart beat.

gently, patting the back of

was hit by the sight of the stone bed in the

lying here," I said. "This is

saw a man with

opened a nearby

2/4

09:16 Fri, Dec 13

The

of them made my tears

me in this room.

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he studied the assortment of tools. His anger was

stood motionless beside him,

voice, "it might hold some

only one. I wiped away my tears quickly. "What's in the

find out soon enough,"

next room, and the sight left

had been bare and unfinished.

medical equipment-machines of all sizes, an operating table, and tools that looked more advanced than any I had seen in a