It was the third day of Elias Vale's mission — August 13th, 2023.
Barcelona was wide awake; the city never truly slept. But in the quiet corridors of the Grand Mirador Hotel, the night felt stretched thin, tense, and watchful.
Detective Marin Cross stood by her window, one hand pressed lightly against the glass. The reflection staring back at her looked exhausted — dark circles, restless eyes, a woman haunted by both duty and ghosts.
Something had felt off since morning.
First, her room key card didn't work. Then she noticed her suitcase had been moved an inch from where she'd left it. Subtle — but to a trained detective, enough to set off alarms.
She had the feeling of being watched — that familiar chill crawling down her spine, like eyes tracing her every movement from unseen corners.
She checked the hallway twice that night, once with her pistol drawn, but found nothing except the hum of lights and distant laughter from the hotel bar.
Still… something was wrong.
She took her phone, hesitated, then dialed the only number she could think of — the mysterious man she'd met days ago. The one who somehow made danger feel like curiosity: Elias Vale.
He answered on the second ring.
"Cross. Didn't expect a call this late."
"I think someone's been in my room," she said quickly. "Door was off its latch, luggage shifted. No signs of forced entry. Could be nothing, but…"
"But you don't believe in coincidences," Elias finished for her, his tone unreadable.
There was silence on the line — long enough for her to sense him thinking, calculating.
"Did you see anyone?"
"No. Whoever it was, they were careful."
"Lock your door," Elias said finally. "If someone's watching you, they'll come back when you're off guard."
She frowned. "You sound like you've done this before."
A small laugh. "You could say that."
They ended the call shortly after, Marin still uneasy but strangely reassured.
She had no idea that the man on the other end of the line — the one who'd warned her — was the same one she'd sworn to bring down.
In his own room next door, Elias set his phone down and exhaled slowly.
He'd noticed it hours earlier — the shadow slipping into Marin's room, the glint of a blade at the man's hip. He hadn't hesitated. A quiet step behind, a twist, a muffled gasp, and the intruder never made another sound.
Now, as he wiped the faintest trace of blood from his sleeve, Elias glanced at the shared wall between their rooms.
"You're more valuable than you realize, detective," he murmured. "And Lamina's already watching."
He slid his gun back into the drawer and turned off the lamp.
Outside, Barcelona glittered — beautiful, loud, and utterly unaware that predator and prey now slept only meters apart.
And neither knew which one was which.
After dropping the call Elias remembered yesterday events.
The corridor outside Elias Vale's hotel room had been silent — until the sound of quiet footsteps broke it.
Elias had felt it before he heard it; an instinct that never failed him. Someone was there. Watching.
He slipped from his bed without turning on the light, retrieving the knife he kept under the pillow. The faint creak of a door opening down the hall confirmed it — someone had entered Marin Cross's room.
Elias moved like a shadow.
The intruder was careful, skilled — no wasted movement, no hesitation. A silenced pistol in hand, dressed head to toe in black. He was halfway across Marin's suite before Elias struck, one swift hand around the man's throat, slamming him silently into the wall.
The fight was brief, efficient. Elias disarmed him, pressed the blade to his throat, and whispered:
"Who sent you?"
The man tried to resist, but Elias had patience only for the truth. It didn't take long. Pain loosened the tongue better than persuasion ever could.
"Dr. Lamina," the man gasped, his breath ragged. "She— she said the woman ruined the plan. Said she betrayed her."
Elias's eyes narrowed. "Betrayed?"
"The detective… she's compromised Lamina's operation. The boss wants her gone before she talks."
The words hit him harder than expected.
He tightened his grip just enough to make the man choke.
"Why her? What could she possibly know?"
The man didn't answer. His silence told Elias more than words could. Whoever this detective was — she'd stepped into something she didn't understand.
When it was done, Elias left the body where no one would find it, his expression unreadable.
Back in his room, he poured himself a glass of whiskey and sat at the window, the city lights reflecting off the glass like broken stars.
"So, Marin Cross," he muttered to himself. "You've managed to anger Lamina Antonio."
He turned the name over in his mind, remembering the woman's calm smile and her methods. Lamina didn't forgive mistakes — not even small ones.
Elias exhaled slowly, realization dawning.
If Marin was a liability to Lamina, she might also be the key to finding her.
A dangerous plan began to take shape.
He would get closer to the detective — not out of trust, not out of mercy — but because she could lead him straight to Lamina's door.
And if she truly had betrayed Lamina's empire, then sooner or later, every hunter in Barcelona would be after her.
Elias smiled faintly, coldly.
"You just became my shortcut," he whispered.
Outside, the first hints of dawn brushed the skyline.
The clock ticked softly beside him — Day 3 of 10 — and the hunt had only just begun.
Elias made a plan that he'll get close to Marin in order to get a solid grasp on the plan of lamina Antonio. Elias also had a misconception in his mind that Marin is working for lamina Antonio maybe she did something wrong and lamina is trying to silence her .
While in her room Marin had no idea of the storm that was brewing. Marin phoned her fiance to talk about how she feels unsafe in this hotel . Marin had a theory of her own and that is that the killer that was there on the stadium is hunting people down. She believes there's a hit list that is going down. Marin in concern wondered if Elias was going to be a casualty in all this warfare. She also made a promise to be Elias 's shadow until the matter is resolved.
Meanwhile lamina Antonio sitting in her office. A goon rushes out saying
" Miss Antonio, our suspicions are true."
Lamina responds by asking "Elias and Marin are they in a relationship?"
" Yes miss Antonio Elias took the liberty of killing one of our man, who would do that for a random nobody and killers don't have hearts."
Lamina Antonio disappointed replied " get ready for plan B."