Hm?
A passive wave of Te washed over the room. And I must say, the quality of this Te was nothing short of superb. But there was something specific about the quality that irked me.
My chest tightened, my heart squeezing as my gaze fell on the sight of the young man who stood next to the door at the entrance of the room.
"I have completed my mission, boss." The slightly deep voice of the young man echoed, fueling the displeasing sensation that traveled within me as he gave a slight bow to Mangé.
Mangé nodded. "Yes, you have done well."
I furrowed my brows, my forehead wrinkling as I clenched my fists tightly, my nails digging into my palm, leaving crescent-shaped marks on them.
The quality of his Te feels familiar. And dangerously so.
Suddenly, a strong, desperate urge overwhelmed me. That urge nudged me, sending a negative signal around my body that invited me to stand up and punch the man straight in his face. But I composed myself.
I barely composed myself.
It seemed as though Mangé had noticed that something was off with me. He furrowed his brows, his neck slowly turning to meet my face.
"Stel?" He called out softly. But to his call, I offered no response. Instead, my absolute attention was intently focused on the young man with whom my gaze was keenly locked.
As I studied the neutral, almost indifferent expression on his face, my heartbeat spiked, thrumming against my ribs with an unexplainable force, causing my blood to boil as it surged through my veins with frightening speed and proficiency.
I do not know who this man is. I have never seen him before. But. But. And but. My instinct NEVER alerts me for no reason.
My instinct is something that has always saved me from imperceivable danger for as long as I can remember.
"Stella?!" Mangé's voice rang out again. Though this time, his voice grew rougher, louder. More concerned, and more frightened.
"Who is this man? And why do I feel like I have seen him before?" My question came suddenly, disregarding Mangé's worried call and throwing him off guard.
Mangé's eyes widened subtly, but they narrowed back almost instantly as his unmistakably tense facial expression softened. He breathed out a heavy sigh of relief, his unconsciously puffed chest deflating.
Then, Mangé's lips cracked, and a small smile painted his relieved face.
"He's someone that I deeply trust, Stel. He's my right-hand man," He said, waving his right hand at the young man, a gesture that signalled him to walk in. "His name is Germaine. And he's the one that I sent to track you."
The moment Mangé uttered those words, it clicked for me. And a hot, uncomfortable feeling arose from the deepest parts of my body. That feeling was a bubbling one. It crawled upward from my stomach, swimming through my knotted throat.
At the same moment, a feeling akin to an electric shock circulated through my brain, and suddenly, my head felt heavier. A harrowing ache banged against my skull. But I endured it.
Those simultaneously thrumming feelings converged. And they birthed realization. An eerily grim realization.
I had felt his presence earlier. Back when I was walking into Wall Street. It was the same quality of Te that I felt, but I quickly brushed it off as it was faint and could belong to anyone.
At that moment, I ignored Mangé. The bright light that shone in my grey gaze flickered off. It darkened, and almost instantaneously, it met with the dull brown eyes of the young man whose physical features were not worthy of my mentioning, nor was he worth looking at.
The thin bangs of his brown hair hid his brown eyes, but he slightly brushed them aside, as if to express that indeed, he wanted me to get a good look at those indifferent eyes of his.
To him, I asked one question, "Were you following me?"
The expression of his stoic, pale face that glimmered faintly under the warm, bright light of the room bulb was that of complete and utter indifference. It felt like it was suspended in neutrality.
But as he heard my question, that disgusting neutrality slightly cracked, and a subtle, dangerous smirk illuminated said face.
Then, he answered with a question of his own. "Oh? You noticed?"
The way in which he asked the question triggered something in my already aching brain. And I felt a thin thread stretch within my soul, and that thread stretched out wide until it finally snapped.
Immediately, my Te flared, and my skin flushed red as my entire body quivered with palpable, simmering rage that dulled the beating of my heart.
The temperature of the entire room spiked to an unbearable degree. And my vision blurred ever so slightly. Mangé became a blurred figure in my periphery. And the only person whom I could see clearly amid the blurry haze was Germaine, who stood calmly next to the door, unaffected by my Te pressure.
The chair on which I sat fell, and I think it even broke as I stood up. The motion of my uprising showcased my deadly intention.
I could not compose myself any longer. And all rational thought that had barely held me together shattered into pieces.
Only one thought rang through my mind:
'Kill Him.'
"Stel, wait!" Mangé yelled aloud, but I didn't listen. I couldn't listen. "Don't do it, Stella!!" He screamed yet again. He knew what I was about to do, and he also knew the type of person I was, and most importantly, he knew that he could not stop me once I started.
"Stay away, Mangé." I managed to voice out with a shaky voice that was the result of my quivering jaw.
I took unusually calm steps that were contradictory to my simmering rage as I slowly approached Germaine, who still stood firmly under my pressure, his brown eyes challenging me as the smirk on his lips never faded.
"I'm the one who ordered him to track you!!" Mangé's desperate yell finally reached my ears.
I froze in place. A few inches away from Germaine.
Mangé quickly stood up, walking toward me and placing a gentle hand on my shoulder.
As I felt his warm hand on my shoulder, the weight of his words found their way into my heart, sinking deeply as I processed them. Then slowly, I turned my neck toward him, and my gaze was aggressive. All the veins on my face bulged.
I could barely breathe properly, my breathing was shaky, and my heart pounded against my chest like it would jump the very moment I stopped breathing.
"You sent him to track me?!" I screamed at his face. I think drops of saliva were sprayed on his face.
I honestly don't know what got me so worked up. But I knew that it was more than just the fact that he tracked my location, my house. My instinct kept tugging at me, whispering into my ears to end him.
"I have a family, Mangé!!!" My now cracking voice was thick, hoarse and quavering as it echoed through the entire fortress.
Yes, that's right. Old Man Craffold is my family. And I can't let him get hurt because of some gang nonsense. I can't bear to lose someone I care about again.
Mangé's lips curled into a suspicious sneer as he narrowed his piercing gaze. "A family? Aren't you a screwer? How the hell did you afford an insemination pod? Because I'm damn sure you didn't join any gang."
"No." I spoke, "Listen to me, Mangé. This man is dangerous!! He's–"
"Why are you so scared of me?" Germaine interrupted, "Is my visage that intimidating?"
Mangé's eyes widened immediately, his neck turning to meet Germaine, "Would you shu–"
I lost it.
Everything slowed down in my vision.