The hotel room was empty.
A small device sat beneath the edge of a table.
Its red indicator blinked.
Beep...
Beep...
A digital display on the device showed:
20:00
Three men stood near the door.
Mike was the biggest of them, with a broad body and a heavy face. He kept checking the device while rubbing his palms together.
Jene stood beside the window. Tall and thin, he watched the street below with sharp attention.
Kasi remained near the table.
He looked nervous.
Mike glanced at him.
"Stop staring at it."
"I can’t."
"You’re making me nervous."
Jene turned from the window.
"Both of you, stop. We still have time."
Kasi swallowed.
"Are you sure this is going to work?"
Jene gave him a look.
"You’re asking that now?"
Mike laughed under his breath.
"Kasi, you’re the one who wanted to carry the last one around."
"I didn’t know it would be this heavy."
Jene sighed.
"You’re lucky we haven’t left you behind."
Kasi looked offended.
"I said I’d handle it."
"And you nearly dropped it twice."
Mike raised a hand.
"Enough. Let’s finish this."
They moved into the corridor.
Kasi carried the last device inside a locked shoe box.
Jene looked at his watch.
"Come on. We leave now."
The three started walking.
Then the lights flickered.
Mike stopped.
"What was that?"
The hallway lights went bright.
Then dim.
Then bright again.
A low electrical hum came from somewhere inside the walls.
Jene looked toward the ceiling.
"Voltage problem?"
Another flicker.
The entire corridor went dark for a second.
When the emergency lights returned, a strange sound came from behind them.
A faint flutter.
Kasi turned.
"What was that?"
Several black shapes crossed the ceiling.
Bats.
One flew directly toward him.
Kasi raised his arms.
"Get away!"
More bats appeared.
They circled the three men, forcing them backward.
Mike swung his arms.
"What’s happening?"
Jene tried to reach the exit.
"Move!"
Kasi suddenly stopped.
His eyes went upward.
A figure clung to the ceiling above him.
Two crimson eyes stared down.
Kasi opened his mouth.
No sound came out.
The figure dropped.
Kasi collapsed.
"KA—"
Mike ran.
Jene followed.
A dark shape flashed behind them.
Jene felt something strike the back of his neck.
He fell against the wall.
Zakula stepped into the corridor.
His red eyes moved toward the devices.
"Three criminals..."
His voice was calm.
"And three problems."
Mike was already gone.
Zakula looked toward the first room.
The device inside continued beeping.
He entered.
The timer was still running.
Zakula examined it for a few seconds.
His expression remained unchanged.
Then his attention shifted toward the locked shoe box.
A second device.
The display showed:
00:10
Nine.
Eight.
Seven.
Zakula reached the box.
Six.
Five.
He touched the device.
Four.
Three.
A faint red glow passed across his fingers.
Two.
One.
The beeping stopped.
Zakula lifted his head.
The room became silent.
He looked toward the corridor.
Mike had disappeared.
Jene lay unconscious against the wall.
Kasi was still on the floor.
A moment later, he regained consciousness.
What happened to me?
He looked at his hand and saw blood dripping from it. A sharp pain shot through his palm.
Then he noticed the others.
Blood was dripping from all of their hands as well.
Everyone is here?
Suddenly, his body became weak.
His vision blurred, and he collapsed again.
But just before his eyes closed, he noticed a white note lying beside the defused bomb.
Back inside the café, Irin suddenly stood.
Her chair scraped against the floor.
"What was that sound?"
The people around her looked confused.
A young woman sitting nearby pointed toward the ceiling.
"The lights."
They flickered again.
Irin tilted her head.
"Beep..."
The sound came faintly from somewhere beyond the dining area.
It sounded familiar.
Then police sirens rose outside.
People began turning toward the windows.
A voice came through a small speaker.
"Everyone, please remain calm. We have received information regarding a possible explosive device inside the building."
The café erupted.
Chairs moved.
People rushed toward the entrance.
Someone shouted.
"There’s a bomb!"
Irin remained where she was.
The young woman beside her grabbed her arm.
"Come on!"
Irin pulled her hand away.
"Wait."
"We need to leave!"
"I heard something."
"What?"
"That beeping."
The girl stared at her.
"You’re crazy. We have to get out!"
Irin reached for her cane.
"I need to find Yemir."
"Call your boyfriend!"
Irin stopped.
"Boyfriend?"
"Yes! Call him!"
Irin searched through her phone.
Then she froze.
"I don’t have his number."
The girl’s mouth fell open.
"You don’t have your boyfriend’s number?"
"He isn’t my boyfriend."
"Then whatever he is, forget him for now!"
Irin shook her head.
"He went toward the restroom."
Before the girl could answer, police officers entered.
"Everyone move outside!"
Irin stepped forward.
An officer raised a hand.
"Ma’am, please stay back."
"I need to find someone."
"It’s dangerous."
"I know."
She moved forward anyway.
The officer tried to stop her.
"I said stay back!"
Then a door opened at the end of the corridor.
Yemir appeared.
He carried the disabled device in both hands.
Several officers immediately rushed toward him.
"Put it down!"
Yemir stopped.
"It has already been disabled."
The officers surrounded him.
"Where did you find it?"
"In the restroom."
Yemir pointed toward the hallway.
"I heard the beeping first. Then the lights started going up and down."
The officer looked at the device.
"You found this yourself?"
"Yes."
Another officer examined it.
"It’s inactive."
The first officer nodded.
"Everyone out. Now."
The customers began leaving.
One officer looked at Yemir.
"You may have prevented a serious incident."
Yemir glanced toward Irin.
She was standing near the entrance.
Their eyes met.
He smiled.
"Let’s just get outside."
Police secured the building within minutes.
Two disabled devices were recovered.
Three suspects were found inside the upper section of the hotel.
Beside them was a note bearing the same symbol.
Z.
Officer Nelson stood over the evidence table.
His assistant, Jacky, handed him a report.
"Two devices recovered. Both inactive."
Nelson nodded.
"And the suspects?"
"Three men. Mike, Jene, and Kasi."
A young female officer named Oliva examined the suspects.
Their palms showed small injuries, with traces of blood still visible.
She frowned.
"Strange."
Nelson looked at her.
"What?"
"Nothing. I’ll have the medical team handle it."
Then Oliva noticed Irin standing nearby.
The officer approached her.
"You’re Irin?"
"Yes."
"I’ve seen you around this area."
Irin smiled politely.
"Have we met?"
"Maybe once."
Oliva introduced herself.
"Oliva."
Irin gave her name again.
Oliva took out her phone.
"If you don’t mind, could I save your number?"
Irin nodded.
They exchanged numbers.
Yemir stood beside them.
Oliva noticed him.
"You should save her number too."
Yemir smiled awkwardly.
"I don’t have it."
Irin turned toward him.
"You don’t?"
"No."
Oliva laughed.
"Then save it now."
Yemir took out his phone.
Oliva guided him through the contact screen.
"Here. Name first."
"I know how to do that."
"Then why are you staring at the screen?"
Yemir smiled.
"I was checking."
Irin laughed softly.
Oliva shook her head.
"Call her once after saving it."
Yemir did.
Irin’s phone rang.
She answered.
"Hello?"
Yemir smiled.
"Now you have my number."
"Thank you."
Later, the police took Yemir into a white interview room.
A mirror covered one wall.
Officer Nelson sat across from him.
Jacky stood beside the door with a notebook.
"Start from the beginning."
Yemir explained everything.
The café.
The strange beeping.
The flickering lights.
The locked restroom.
The device.
Nelson listened without interruption.
"And you found the second device?"
"No. The police found that one."
Nelson nodded.
"Did you see anyone suspicious?"
Yemir thought.
"Not clearly."
"What about the three suspects?"
"I didn’t see them."
Nelson closed his notebook.
"You understand why we had to bring you here?"
"Yes."
"You handled the situation well."
Yemir looked at the mirror.
"I only did what I could."
After another short exchange, Nelson stood.
"You’re free to go."
Outside the room, Irin was still waiting.
The moment Yemir stepped out, she stood.
"Are you okay?"
"I’m fine."
Before they could leave, voices erupted outside.
News reporters had arrived.
Cameras crowded near the entrance.
"Was it you who found the device?"
"Were you involved in the incident?"
"Did you see the suspects?"
Yemir stopped.
He looked at the officers.
"Can you please keep them away?"
Nelson nodded.
"Move back. He has requested privacy."
The officers formed a line between Yemir and the reporters.
No further statement was given.
A few minutes later, Yemir and Irin finally walked away from the café.
The street had become quieter.
Irin held her cane in one hand.
Yemir carried the umbrella in the other.
For several minutes, neither spoke.
Then Irin turned slightly toward him.
"Yemir."
"Hmm?"
"Did you see him?"
Yemir slowed.
"Who?"
"That man."
"Which man?"
"The bats..."
Yemir stared at her.
Irin continued.
"Did you see someone with them?"
Yemir’s expression changed for a second.
"Bats?"
"Yes."
She waited.
Yemir looked ahead.
"I don’t know what you’re talking about."
Irin remained silent.
Then she lowered her head.
"Never mind."
They continued walking.
Above them, on the roof of a distant building, two crimson eyes appeared between the shadows.
Zakula watched them disappear down the street.
A small smile touched his face.
Then the darkness swallowed him.