Tyrus opened the fridge after a long pause. On his hand was a bottle of gin, cap unscrewed, and the alcohol still at full. He gave a sidelong glance toward Johannes as he put the bottle down on the black marble counter.
"Special? You can frame it like that."
His hands moved to the drawers and grabbed six wine glasses. Each one flawless and exquisite, radiating a smooth reflection of the fluorescent light.
He took one of the empty glasses and raised it.
"A drink for the ladies?"
Johannes stared at Tyrus’s sudden change of behavior, then he turned towards the three at the back.
Evelyn slightly nodded.
Yunera gave an empty response, and Kimmy didn’t seem to have intentions to toast.
"Only for three," Johannes looked back to Tyrus. "And make it quick. You still haven’t answered our question yet."
"What am I, your bartender now?" Tyrus smirked, doing as he was told.
In no time, ice cubes rolled down into the glass, mixed with gin, and an unknown water tonic Johannes and Evelyn hadn’t seen before.
He handed the drinks one by one. When it was Evelyn’s turn, his hand paused mid-air, stunning both Johannes and her.
"What’s wrong?"
"Your eyes and your heartbeat," Tyrus locked eyes with her. "They are as tense as a stretched band. Emotions do not flare up without a reason. Tell me, you’ve known him for a long time, haven’t you?"
A gun muzzle suddenly pointed at his head. On the side, Dmitri coldly placed his finger on the trigger, slowly making distance as he stepped back.
The glass of gin had long been placed on the counter, unsipped, mist forming on the surface.
Tyrus didn’t turn.
"What is the meaning of this?"
"You can fool anyone but us," Dmitri spoke. "If this is your way of playing the long game, you chose the wrong people."
"You’re built different," Tyrus smiled. "I like that."
"Another nonsense and I’ll pop a limb."
Tyrus shook his head and pulled the glass away from Evelyn’s reach. He faced the cold-blooded Dmitri and raised both his hands.
"Elias’ mistake was thinking Pandora was the answer to his greed. Everyone here is a HELIX III recipient, but it was a mistake to assume that supplies would last."
"Yeah, he’s not the only one greedy in this world," Dmitri let out a low chuckle. "Aren’t you lot too? Don’t take me for a slow guy. You’ll pay for it."
"I’m not," Tyrus clarified. "Listen to what I say first, and you will understand why."
"My patience is limited."
"I assume you have encountered those meteorite shards on the way here," Tyrus measured Dmitri’s reaction.
"Pesky obstacles," Dmitri commented. "What relevance does it have?"
"A lot," Tyrus shifted his tone. "You’ve seen what it can do to normal humans. Now imagine what it can do to an area filled with HELIX III superhumans."
Dmitri raised a brow.
"You’re telling me you have a group of super zombies in your district’s backyard?"
"Not only that," Tyrus eyes narrowed. "There also came a big one."
The room was instantly plunged into silence. Just as he blurted that phrase, a horrific image of those large footprints came into Dmitri, Evelyn, and Johannes’ mind.
"Hey, I’m not catching up," Yunera stepped in. "What is this idiot talking about?"
Kimmy quickly pulled a section of Yunera’s clothes, and inched close to her ear.
"Sister, let’s go over there. I’ll explain it to you."
"Huh?" Yunera was confused even more, but Kimmy didn’t risk it and tugged harder than before.
Johannes calmly watched their departure into the corner. Evelyn’s ears perked, clearly intrigued about what Tyrus has to say.
"The emergence of those zombies was a telltale sign that something shitty would happen," Tyrus’s mouth no longer contained itself.
"Why do you say so?" Dmitri asked.
"The neighboring mansions wanted to act like a hero and save the world. A bunch of kids still wet in their pants, riding the coattails of their parents—what do they know about danger and fights?"
"So you just watched them die?" Johannes clenched his fist. "Shouldn’t you have helped them clear the threat? And you call yourself a noble guy?!"
"You’re an agent," Tyrus mocked. "You should be better than this."
He tried to hand another lecture, but it didn’t land well this time. A fist smashed into the marble counter, digging a large pit under the dust.
"You’ve got balls. You may be a Shearman, but I will not hesitate to kill you if you anger me another time."
"Heh, I don’t think your buddy would oblige to that," his eyes hinted to the side.
"Step down," Dmitri ordered, his gun already lowered. "This guy still has more to say."
Johannes retreated but his resentment remained. His withdrawal led Tyrus to continue.
"Losses piled up faster than the HELIX could mend. But those idiots realized too late. When they came home with their tails between their legs, the demon Elias knocked on their door."
"And he didn’t get a single HELIX supply..." Dmitri came to his own conclusion, but something felt lacking about Tyrus’s story. Then he remembered the presence of those super zombies.
Those superhumans turned before they could consume their HELIX III supplies. Elias must have thought of the same.
"What about the zombies," he added. "Did he kill them or what?"
"He wouldn’t have come to me if he did," Tyrus let out a snort. "Luring that giant zombie out of its lair was already a miracle. Going past the rest? Heh, only a large, organized military unit could compare to them."
The three of them were shocked. Evelyn and Johannes even more so.
"He lured... a giant zombie?"
"Out of its lair?"
No wonder those large footprints were ever present in the outskirts and in Elias’ former base. No wonder those footprints pointed forward and even continued deeper into the city proper.
But another question surfaced on their mind—how did Elias managed to do it?
"Don’t ask me that question," Tyrus dismissed them before they could speak. "If you want an answer, you can pull it out of his mouth."
"Oh, I can get plenty of answers out of yours," Dmitri threatened. "You said most of the military should have been compromised. What makes you think of that? Are you a scientist?"
Johannes and Evelyn watched over as well. The sudden zombie apocalypse was indeed terrifying, but they didn’t think many units would become combat effective.
Tyrus stating it earlier with such confidence made them suspect him even more.
The latter simply let out a laugh and went around the counter. He grabbed the gin bottle and poured himself a drink.
Though the ice had melted a bit, the situation no longer called for him to be picky.
"Well, it took you long enough to figure that out. Where do you want me to start?"