Chapter 52.3

Alina shrunk back, not from fear but from the pain Ken's words brought her. Noticing her reproachful gaze, Ken realized that he went overboard and sighed with regret.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, that was a low blow," Ken said quietly with a lowered head. "I - Jason told me what happened to your parents. I'm sorry."

Alina nodded, accepting his apology. Her eyes moved to the horizon, where she watched the purple hue of the sunset.

"I get what you're feeling, I do," Alina said. "But killing? It's not - I see what it does to people. You can pretend that it doesn't affect you but it does. It gnaws at you until you can't eat or sleep and I - I don't want you to see you like that."

Ken listened to Alina carefully before mulling over her words. There was a certain disquiet about what she said, but it took him some time to realize why. Finally, he realized exactly what was bothering him and gazed at Alina solemnly.

"Alina . . . have you killed someone before?" Ken asked in a low voice.

Alina smiled bitterly but didn't answer. She placed her unfinished burger back into the brown bag and got up from the railing.

"Let's go and see that safe house," Alina suggested. "I want to know the details."

"Wait. Why do you . . . ?"

"Cause I wanna help," Alina replied to a hesitant Ken. "But under the condition that you don't kill the murderer."

Ken lowered his head, struggling to come to a decision regarding Alina. He appreciated her offer to help him, and he knew that she would be invaluable to his investigation. But he also couldn't accept the fact that he'd have to give up on his vengeance. After thinking it over for an entire minute, Ken came to a decision.

"Alright," Ken relented. "I won't kill him. And thank you."

I promise not to kill him right away, Ken thought in his mind. He couldn't, wouldn't let go of his hatred.

"Right," Alina nodded and hailed a taxi. "Let's get a move on then. I need to get home before curfew or Jason will ground me."

"Curfew?" Ken asked.

"Yeah, he doesn't like me being out so late," Alina answered as an automated taxi stopped in front of them. "He worries too much."

"He's a good brother," Ken said, admitting his admiration for Jason with a smile.

"Way too protective and way too much of a horndog," Alina muttered. "But, yeah, an incredible brother."

Fifteen minutes later, both Alina and Ken departed from the taxi. In front of them stood a rather old self-storage facility. Despite being relatively clean, the dingy old retro look of the facility was reminiscent of the 20th century as it lacked the modern technology that was prevalent nowadays.

Entering the lobby of the storage facility, Alina wrinkled her nose as she looked around. The paint on the walls was yellowed with age and, despite being clean, a faint mouldy smell was prevalent in the air. The lobby itself was small with only three rickety folding chairs for visitors, all placed in front of an old wooden office desk that had lost its sheen ages ago.

Movement from the desk caught Alina's attention and it was only then that she realized that the desk was occupied. An old lady was squinting at Alina and Ken since they had entered. With a grumble, she fumbled through her cluttered desk for her glasses which she promptly put on. Her eyes landed on Alina and a wisp of a smile formed on her wrinkled face until she noticed Ken and she sighed. Ken nodded politely and the old lady waved her hand shooing him away dismissively and the former gestured at Alina to follow him.

Ken led Alina to the back of the facility where dozens upon dozens of shutters, each holding a large space for storage of all sorts. Alina recalled how, when she and Jason were visiting America, auctions would occur over storages whose lease were long expired. Most auctions would contain junk but occasionally there would be a treasure or two hidden amongst all the waste, both a boon and a curse for those who were lucky to win.

Those were the days, Alina thought with a smile. Travelling from place to place, country to country. The world was our home. Still, it's nice to be here, in one place instead of constantly moving. At least now, I have friends.

"We're here," Ken's voice interrupted Alina's thoughts and she turned to look at where he was pointing.

A rather unremarkable shuttered storage stood in front of them, no different than the rest. But knowing that it was a safe house that Jason handed to Ken, Alina knew that there was more hidden underneath the surface. Sure enough, the situation quickly priced her right.

After keying in a pin number, Ken used his fingerprint to unlock the shutter before using a physical key to disable the failsafe. He then bent down and yanked the shutters upwards, opening the storage and gesturing at Alina to enter. Alina promptly entered and Ken, after looking around to check that the coast was clear, followed after her. A thin layer of dust greeted Alina and she coughed while waving her hand to disperse the air around her. Ken ignored the dust and moved to a wall counter.

"Almost there. Hang on a sec," Ken muttered as he pushed a button under the counter. With a click, a part of the wall slowly moved downwards, revealing a hidden staircase.

Alina quickly descended the stairs, happy to exit the dusty room while Ken followed her lead once again. As soon as Alina's foot reached the end of the stairs, the room lit up and Alina nodded with satisfaction when she noticed that the secret floor was much cleaner than the floor above. Looking around, she realized that this floor was full of high tech devices, unlike the rest of the facility.

She could see a food fabricator that only required raw fruits to create high-calorie energy bars, a modern day coffee maker, and shelves of persevered food such as canned fruits. At the far corner was a stand-up shower that was smaller than a public cubicle and a vacuum-powered toilet, much like those found in an airplane. Further off was a bunk bed which was actually just a metal frame that could slide in and out of the wall.

". . . This . . . This is a shelter," Alina muttered.

"Probably if the city's infrastructure ever collapses," Ken agreed.

"You mean this is a small ship?" Alina asked.

"Uh, well," Ken hesitated for a moment, unsure of what to say. "There are thrusters on this, so . . ."

"Oh, God, don't say anymore or I'll want to leave," Alina raised a hand and facepalmed herself.

Of course, she thought. Leave it to the madman who created a Skynet-wannabe-sexbot to also make an aerial shelter with rockets. Jesus, help me. Or him.

"Let's . . . just focus on what we came here for," Alina said to Ken who nodded.