"I'm almost there, Doctor Liam," Jania said as she turned the wheel and veered the car into the entrance of Newark Liberty International Airport.
"Okay, you can wait outside. I just have to get my luggage, and I'll be out in a minute," Doctor Liam's voice came through the earpod before the call was cut off.
Jania parked near the arrival gate before picking up her phone. Immediately, it lit up and showed the time: 5:17 am, with a dark wallpaper in the background.
She dropped it and leaned against the seat as her mind wandered back to her interrogation with Rico.
'I will ask you one more time... who sent you to kill Ephyra Allen?' With a dangerously low voice, a seated Jania questioned the barely alive figure chained in front of her.
A cough rattled through the room as Rico struggled to lift his head, his swollen eyes barely able to focus on her. Blood stained his lips as he gasped for breath, his body trembling under the strain. But he still held onto his silence, and Jania was getting tired of this.
Her patience snapped, and she stood up, her heels clicking against the cold floor as she approached Rico once more. Kneeling down to his level, she grabbed his chin and forced him to look at her, her voice icy.
'Listen, I'm getting tired of all this shit, alright? It's been a long fucking day for me, and the last thing I need is your pathetic ass trying to act all tough. Now, you are going to tell me everything I want to know, or so help me, I will make sure you regret ever crossing paths with us.'
Rico's breath came in ragged gasps, and for the first time, a flicker of fear crossed his battered face. He licked his cracked lips, struggling to form words.
'I swear... I don't know the full details. It was just a favor I—'
'Ah...' She threw her head back. 'Marcellus, Marcellus...'
'Okay, okay! It was her stepmother, okay? It was her fucking stepmother!'
Jania's grip tightened for a moment as her mind processed Rico's words. Her stepmother?
She tilted her head, her eyes narrowing. *'Her stepmother? What's her name?'
Rico's voice trembled as he croaked, 'Marianna. Marianna Allen.'
Jania's lips curled into a cold smile. *Marianna Allen.* So, it was closer to home than she had thought. Ephyra's own family wanted her dead.
'Why?' she pressed. Follow current novels on novᴇl(ꜰ)ire.ɴet
Rico groaned in pain, trying to shift his weight. 'I don't know... I swear, I only got the orders from Marcellus. She paid well, but the details... they weren't clear. Just to make sure the girl never reached home yesterday.'
Jania stood, her mind already moving on to the next steps. The pieces were starting to fall into place, but there were still so many unanswered questions. Why did Ephyra's stepmother want her dead? And who the hell was Ephyra Allen?
Stepping away from Rico, Jania looked at one of the guards. 'Get rid of him. Clean up everything.'
The guard nodded as Jania turned on her heel and walked out. She had work to do—a lot of work.
As she reached her car, her phone buzzed. It was Han.
'I have done the background check. I have all her information,' he said, his tone sharp.
Jania nodded, starting the car as the engine roared to life. 'Good. Send it to me and report back when you're done. And Han, make sure there's no trace of this left behind.'
Jania hung up and sped off, her mind racing. If her stepmother wanted her dead, then there were some serious problems with her family.
But one thing was for certain: if Ephyra was Master Lyle's cure, she was far more important than anything or anyone, and nothing must happen to her.
Back in the present, Jania's focus snapped back as she saw Doctor Liam approaching the car, dragging his luggage behind him. As he approached, dressed in a dark-fitted, short-sleeved, ribbed, crew-neck t-shirt and high-waisted trousers secured with a belt that had a prominent silver-toned buckle, he was holding a black coat, and on his left wrist, he wore a watch with a silver band.
Liam opened the passenger door, greeting her with a tired smile. "Good morning. Thanks for picking me up, Jania."
"No problem," she nodded, her usual mask of composure slipping back into place. "Long flight?"
Liam gave a tired smile as he settled himself into the car. "Too long."
Jania turned the car onto the road, the early morning light spilling into the vehicle. "Well, we have a lot to discuss."
"Definitely, but that will be after we get to Lyle's. I'll just get some shut-eye for a bit," he replied, leaning back in his seat and closing his eyes.
Jania glanced at him, noting the shadows under his eyes. She understood the strain he was under, being one of the best neurological surgeons and neuroscientists in the world.
Doctor Liam was always in high demand, constantly shuttling between cities for surgeries and consultations. It wasn't surprising that he needed rest, especially after going to Germany to perform surgery and catching a flight back to New York within hours, without proper rest.
As the car hummed along the quiet highway, her phone buzzed again, pulling her out of her reverie. It was Han.
'I've sent the files. You'll want to review them as soon as you can,' his voice came through, clipped as always.
"Thanks, Han. I'll take a look," Jania replied before hanging up. She glanced at Liam, who was already dozing in the passenger seat, his chest rising and falling in a steady rhythm. She reached for her tablet, pulling up the files Han had sent over.
The screen illuminated with detailed background information on Ephyra Allen.
As Jania scrolled through the background files on Ephyra Allen, she skimmed past the basic birth details, focusing instead on the significant turning point in Ephyra's life—the death of her mother. Ephyra had been only two years old when her mother passed away, and just a year later, her father remarried. Her stepmother, Marianna, entered the family with her own two-year-old daughter, Myra. What followed was a steady decline in Ephyra's status within her own family