Helios cast one last glance at the clock and yawned deeply. It was already 9 PM, and his back ached from sitting for hours. Although the day had been demanding, he had accomplished a lot. All the samples had been prepared for the tests, and while some could already be analyzed and compared, he would have to take care of the rest the following day. The work had been intense, but he was satisfied with the progress.
He gathered his documents and finally stood up. The pain in his thigh, from the bone marrow extraction the doctor had performed on him around noon, was still unpleasantly noticeable. The extractions had drained him of some energy, and the constant pressure on his lower back—from the cerebrospinal fluid withdrawal—and thigh kept reminding him of how much he had pushed himself. It wasn't a sharp pain, more of an uncomfortable pressure at the puncture sites, and damn annoying.
"Did you find anything?" Dante asked as he closed the folder he had been reading from.
Helios wrapped his coat around his shoulders and packed the papers into his briefcase. His research, especially the one concerning Dante, was safest there. He had made sure that nothing indicated the origin of the samples. Only his own results had he deliberately left out. Although only he, his father, Thomas, and Theo had access to his lab, he knew that one could never be too cautious.
After all, Dante had managed to snatch Theo's damn keycard. Helios felt that the distracted assistant should be kicked out for that mistake alone. It was utterly inexplicable how Theo not only let his card be stolen but also failed to notice it was missing for weeks.
Helios had returned it to him and fed him the lie that he had found it under his desk in his office. Theo had been deeply embarrassed and had apologized at least a thousand times for his clumsiness. Meanwhile, Dante had awkwardly studied a container in which Helios kept a spider. More precisely, he kept a black widow in it. Spider had given it to him before he met Davis.
Spider had once said that Helios reminded him a little of that little spider—how it lived in its own world, poisoning everything around it and letting it die without lifting a finger. Spider had given it to him after Helios had procured some poisons for him. The black widow, capable of killing a human with a single bite, was particularly symbolic of the kind of power the little killer. At least the female specimens were known for killing their prey with deadly precision.
He hadn't used it yet, nor had he attempted to extract its venom, but somehow, taking care of it and feeding it regularly gave him a sense of calm.
The thought of Spider made him angry, but at the same time, he knew he would have to contact him if he wanted to get to Belladonna. Helios pushed the thought aside for now. He wasn't ready to face Spider yet, and he would need to prepare himself for a potential meeting with him.
He still wanted to make him pay for his mistake. Belladonna had killed Davis, but Spider had failed to control Belladonna, even after Belladonna had messed up multiple times.
Helios exhaled slowly. Later.
Currently, Helios accompanied Dante to the archives to retrieve the documents he wanted to work on next. He could have given him his keycard, but he didn't trust Dante enough to grant him full access to the company. In his eyes, Dante was a necessary evil, but not a partner to whom he would entrust full control.
"Not really. Blood and tissue are quite similar. Although we have different blood types. By the way, you're B positive, in case you're interested," Helios replied dryly. He stretched his stiff limbs. "Maybe we'll find a clue in your DNA. However, I'm not an expert in that area. I know what to look for and will certainly recognize something, but we might need to ask someone who knows more. Even though the field is still in its early stages of research."
"B positive? Interesting, but nothing that would be relevant to me," Dante said, his tone indifferent. "What's your blood type?"
Helios gave him an amused glance. "Do you want to know what I really need in an emergency? You could just let me die next time. That would be a lot easier for you."
"I don't plan to kill you, Helios. That was… back then was a…"
"Yeah, yeah, an accident. I'll remind you next time your hands 'accidentally' crush my throat," Helios retorted sharply, the memory of the nearly fatal incident two weeks ago still painful in his throat. The unsettling memory of Dante's strong hands around his neck, cutting off his air, made his stomach tighten for a moment. He sighed as the thought of that past danger resurfaced. "If I start to bleed out, you can just leave me there. I have no antibodies, and I can only use my own blood or that of someone who shares my blood type. But I haven't found anyone with the same blood as mine yet."
Dante stopped for a brief moment as he processed this information. His gaze was full of regret. "When you were shot, you also received blood," he said thoughtfully.
Helios smiled at him coldly. "It was my own blood. I have some taken regularly for emergencies. Well maybe father gave some of his own blood, since we share the same bloodgroup. If I make it to the estate, everything should be fine. I'll make it somehow." He turned away and opened the door to his lab. "However, if I'm fatally wounded far from the estate, don't bother trying to help."
Dante fell silent, and together they left the lab. Helios locked the door behind him, and they took the elevator down to the archive level. Dante walked behind him, wrapped in thoughtful silence. It was striking how little Dante spoke at the moment.
"To return to your original question: I'll probably find something in your DNA. The probability is even quite high. Tomorrow I can analyze the remaining samples, and then we'll see where that leads," Helios said as they exited the elevator when they reached the archive level. "What do you need at this hour, anyway?"
"I just wanted to take two binders to the estate."
"As night reading or something?"
"Something like that."
Helios rolled his eyes. "As you wish, but you won't find anything in those papers. It's an absolute waste of time."
Dante merely shrugged. "I can't just do nothing."
"Then let's go," Helios sighed and opened the door to the room with the case files.
He closed the door behind them, and together they walked to the farthest shelves, where the files with the oldest case studies were stored. The archives were as untidy and dusty as ever. Someone should have taken care of it long ago, but his father didn't want unauthorized people snooping around in the archives, and those who had access were all too busy with their own work.
At some point, it had become more than irrelevant that the archives were slowly rotting away. As far as he knew, Thomas accompanied a cleaning lady once a quarter, who at least swept the floors. Given the layer of dust that covered the old files, Helios wondered if it was even worth bothering to sweep the floors.
"Since when have you been working for the company?" Dante finally asked, breaking the silence.
"Fourteen years. At least since then, I've been regularly receiving tasks from my father to work on," Helios said, pulling out one of the folders and watching the dust swirl off its surface.
Dante's gaze darkened for a moment before he looked at him as usual. "Do you remember which cases you worked on first?"
Helios had no idea why Dante wanted to read through his first cases, but fine, if he really wanted to, he could go ahead and suffer through them. He walked to the oldest shelf and pointed to a few folders. "The two bottom rows, these are the medications I developed when I was 8 years old. The four rows above contain everything I developed when I was 9, and in the remaining files are all the things I created when I was 10."
It had been so long since he'd thought about his first creations. He absentmindedly brushed his hand over one of the folders from the time when he was 10. The tasks had piled up, and his father had had so many ideas that Helios found interesting enough to work on. His desk had been piled high with materials, and he always had plenty of options to choose from when deciding what to work on next.
There had been so many different diseases among the projects, but also remedies that improved the quality of life. That year, he had created his first painkiller, an anesthetic, and also one that allowed for local anesthesia. He had likely made many doctors' jobs easier by enabling them to perform surgeries with less difficulty.
"You've created so damn much…" Dante murmured, astonished, as his gaze swept over the folders.
"What did you do when you were 10 years old?"
"Probably nothing but nonsense," Dante replied with a slight smile. "I was a pretty... wild child. Band-aids and scrapes were daily proof that I was out with friends." He ran his finger over the spine of a folder titled "Bone Stabilization After a Fracture Through Calcium Therapy."
"I never had friends to get hurt or play around with," Helios heard himself say quietly. "Instead, I knew by the time I was 6 how the human body was structured, by 7 I understood the processes in the body, and by 8 I had read everything related to metabolism."
He felt Dante's gaze resting on him. "That sounds like you spent a lot of time indoors," Dante said cautiously.
"Oh, sometimes I was outside too. Plus, Penny often kept me company when I was studying," Helios said absently as he thought about what his childhood had been.
"Helios, you…" Dante began, but Helios had no interest in talking more about himself. It wasn't Dante's business, and the pain in his leg was becoming more bothersome the longer he stood still.
"How about we check the accounting records and see if we find anything?" Helios suggested. "Maybe we'll find documents from 10-11 years ago. With how disorganized everything is around here, the data is probably still there."
Dante nodded. "That's not a bad idea. Let me just take two of these binders with me."
Helios waved him off. "Do what you want. No one ever looks at this stuff anyway."
As Dante pulled a binder out, dust flew up, making Helios sneeze. He turned away and started walking toward the door. Dante had come to them because Aeternum Pharmaceuticals had supplied medications and bandages to the war zone back then. The company was still in its early stages but had already earned a very good reputation thanks to its effective medicine.
At that time, his father had been busy opening new territories and acquiring other companies. He had always wanted a monopoly, and, as expected, he had succeeded in fulfilling his dream—no matter how many bodies he had stepped over to do so. His father loved power above all else. Would he also conduct strange experiments on people without him? Would he give up what Helios had created?
Helios shook off the thought.
His father had demanded a lot from him over the years, but this had never been the type of task. He heard Dante's heavy footsteps behind him. Helios opened the door and stepped into the hallway that ran through the archive. He walked purposefully toward the room where the accounting records were stored. He opened the room with his keycard, and as usual, the door swung open.
"I didn't get in here with Theo's card," Dante remarked.
"No wonder, only a few people have access here," Helios replied and stepped inside.
The room, in contrast to the others, was clean and tidy. There was a small, functional desk in the middle. Not a single speck of dust could be found.
"It's pretty clean in here," Dante remarked, surprised.
"The accountant is quite a picky man. I think he's just too lazy to haul the thick files to his office, so he processes them down here when he needs to go through older data," Helios explained as he walked to the shelves, searching for those dating back 12 years.
When he found the first folder, he flipped through it until he came across one labeled "Soley." He carried it to the desk and opened it.
He quickly skimmed through the list of delivered items, but it was unremarkable—nothing that could further his investigation.
"Dante, bring me the folder from the following two years," Helios said, still reading.
"Did you find anything?"
"No, it's just a regular delivery list," Helios replied, flipping through the pages. "The monthly deliveries are all very similar. Sometimes more, sometimes less was delivered, but the income is pretty consistent and increases reasonably the more goods are delivered."
Dante placed more folders on the desk. Helios continued to examine the earnings from the last few months and then reached for the next folder. After going through all the files, he closed them and leaned back in the chair. Dante looked at him expectantly, the question he wanted to ask clearly written on his face. Helios shook his head.
"Nothing to find. The earnings are clean and match the deliveries."
"Damn."
"I think we'll have no choice but to go to Soley," Helios said, rubbing his thigh, which still ached.
So annoying...
Dante studied him. "You should rest. I'll put everything away," he offered, starting to file the folders back.
Helios, meanwhile, opened the drawers of the desk out of pure boredom. The top one was filled with some office supplies—pens, sticky notes, a few paper clips. In the second, he found some envelopes and a stamp. But the last drawer was empty. He closed it again, but then suddenly heard a faint rattling sound, as if something had fallen over. Strange. The drawer had been empty.
He opened it again and stared into the interior. Yes, it was definitely empty. Puzzled, he ran his hand over the bottom of the drawer, carefully testing if anything moved. A slight wobble—almost imperceptible, but it was there. A false bottom? Why here, in this room? That didn't make sense. He pressed from underneath the drawer, but it didn't give. Determined, he tried to pull the drawer all the way out, but it was firmly anchored.
"What are you doing?" Dante asked as he came back.
"Checking something," Helios replied.
He lay down on the floor to get a better view under the drawer. If only the room were a little brighter. He could barely see anything; the wood of the desk was quite dark. He felt around the bottom of the drawer with his fingers until he finally found a small hole.
Well, that's suspicious.
"The drawer has a false bottom," Helios said. "We need to figure out how to open it. Who knows what might be hidden in there."
"We could break it open," Dante suggested, clearly liking the idea.
"We could," Helios mused aloud, "but then I'd have to explain why I absolutely needed to get into it. Apart from me, only the accountant, Thomas, and my father have access to this room."
"So it will be noticed. Shit," Dante swore, clearly understanding the risks.
Helios exhaled slowly and weighed the risks. In principle, his father couldn't do anything to him. Helios had helped him secure his monopoly with his work for years, and there was still so much work piling up on his desk that any punishment could hardly be severe.
His father loved him more than anything. Helios knew that. But he wasn't entirely sure if his father truly loved him as a son or simply as his golden goose.
Either way, it was worth the risk to break open this drawer. The worst that could happen was that his father would lock him in his lab. Helios smiled at the thought of being locked in his lab for several days.
Then there was that one thing his father still demanded from him…
Maybe he would also force him to take on that particular task. Helios recoiled at the thought, but he needed Dante to kill Belladonna. Alone, he could never kill a trained assassin. Maybe he could manage to kill Spider, after all, the guy liked him. For some reason. But Belladonna was a different story.
He was the personification of chaos.
Helios looked at Dante, whose gaze was impatiently fixed on him.
"We could also get the key. The accountant will have it somewhere. But honestly, I have no patience to search forever for such a small key and try it out," Helios said. "In an emergency, I'll just say my card got stolen."
Dante looked at him doubtfully. "They'll never buy that."
Helios smiled calculatingly and leaned back as he crossed his arms. "They need me. They have no choice but to believe me. So?" He straightened up and made room. "If I could just ask your bear-strength to open this humble drawer for me. Preferably in a way that doesn't immediately reveal that something's off."
Dante sighed. "I'm really not delicate enough for this."
"I didn't ask you to fix a watch, did I? Just break the damn thing open, I want to see what's hidden inside," Helios replied, rolling his eyes.
Dante rummaged through the drawers until he found a ruler. He tried to lift the bottom from above, but the wood didn't give. Then he lay down under the drawer, seeming to struggle to break it open. Helios stayed seated at the desk, watching him as he struggled.
He glanced at his watch. 11 PM. It was slowly getting late.
"We've been here way too long. Let's come back tomorrow with the right tools to break it open," Helios suggested and stood up, ready to call it quits.
"No, wait, I think I've got it," Dante said, and a faint crack sounded. The front of the drawer gave slightly, and the bottom opened. Papers, a stamp, and sealing wax with a seal fell out.
Helios gathered everything up while Dante got himself together and sat down. Helios was not a little surprised by what he was holding in his hands. He quickly flipped through the papers, trying to memorize as much as he could. Dante didn't interrupt him, until Helios finally handed him the bundle of papers.
"What does it say?"
"Side income," Helios said briefly. "Look at page 30."
Dante stared at him as though he didn't immediately understand the connection, but then he flipped to the indicated page. His expression darkened as he read the words. He stared at it for a long time, intensely focused, as if trying to ensure that he wasn't mistaken.
"I knew it…" he said softly.
"It continues all the way up to today. Whatever's going on there: Aeternum Pharmaceuticals is involved. And no matter what they're up to, I think we'll find some answers there. Unfortunately, there's no address listed," Helios said, letting the papers sink down. "Maybe my father knows more than he's ever told me, or our accountant is a corrupt little asshole."
"Vale definitely has something to hide. As much as it pains me to say it, Helios."
Helios waved it off. "I promised to help you, and I still have no intention of breaking that promise. It seems to be related to my father, but that's no reason for me to give up." He snorted. "Whatever Father is hiding from me, we'll figure it out. Let's start in Soley."
Dante looked at him for a long moment. "You want to go there?"
Helios nodded. "Enjoy it, Dante. Because of you, I'll take vacation for the first time in my life."
___
They left the building and stepped out into the cool night air. A sharp wind blew through the streets, and Helios pulled the collar of his coat higher. When he glanced at his watch, he cursed softly. They were running way too late. Dante was right behind him, the files tightly held in his arms, looking around with growing suspicion.
Suddenly, Dante grabbed his arm and stepped in front of him. "Stay behind me, something's not right," he whispered, his eyes scanning the surroundings attentively.
"What's not right?" Helios asked in a normal tone, but Dante put a finger to his lips.
"Shhh!" Dante hissed. "The other two guards aren't here." He pointed to the company behind them. "If I give you the signal, run to the car as fast as you can."
Helios raised an eyebrow and kept walking. "Relax, Dante. I've put them to sleep."
"You've...? When?!" Dante stopped, then continued in disbelief, "Hold on, wait! Why did you put them to sleep?"
Helios rolled his eyes and walked on without hesitation. "Don't worry, they're resting on the couch in the foyer. We've still got some things to take care of. Although, I would have put you to sleep too if you hadn't recovered so quickly," he said, not paying attention to Dante's worried look.
Dante quickly caught up and now walked beside him. "That's not the way to the car," he noted.
"Well spotted, my little detective," Helios replied with a mocking tone. "We're meeting someone quickly. I mean, I'm meeting someone, and you'll wait while I clear up a few things."
Dante looked at him, confused. "Who do you want to meet at this hour?"
Helios hesitated for a moment. "An informant," he answered briefly, continuing to walk.
"When did you contact an informant? I've been with you the whole time," Dante asked, still puzzled.
"Later," Helios replied as they reached the alley he was heading for.
His heart began to beat faster, and a wave of anger rose in him. Helios clenched his fists and took a deep breath. He had prepared syringes with poison, which were waiting in his coat pocket. A scalpel was tucked in his shoe, and for an emergency, he had a small gas trap with him—a device he didn't even know if it worked. The gas trap contained only chloroform and was attached to a string.
He knew that physically, he was neither the fittest nor the strongest. Overpowering a man in a direct fight was unlikely. But with the gas trap, he might have an advantage. He didn't trust himself to hold a chloroform-soaked cloth over someone's face, but the trap could provide the necessary distance. It was an attempt—nothing more. Somehow, it would work.
His insides clenched as he thought about the upcoming meeting. Soon, he would face Spider. The man he had promised to kill the next time they met—right after Davis's death. Helios wanted nothing more to do with the assassin, but here he was, in the cold of the night, ready to engage in this dangerous game again.
Because Spider was the only one who could deliver Belladonna to him.
Helios gritted his teeth until his jaw ached.
"Dante," he said in a deliberately calm tone, "No matter what you hear, you'll only come in when I call for you. You stay here and don't eavesdrop on me. Otherwise, the informant will be gone. I'll explain everything later."
Dante exhaled slowly. His gaze clearly told Helios that he absolutely didn't like the situation. Nevertheless, he nodded. "Take care of yourself. I still need you."
Helios gave him a cool smile. He walked forward into the dark alley.
Helios walked deeper into the alley, and with every step, the anger inside him grew, bubbling beneath his skin like a blazing fire he could no longer suppress. The darkness engulfed him until it felt as though he had become part of the shadows. There were no lights, only the silent, oppressive space of the night. The air was damp and cool, and the smell of garbage mixed with that of cold concrete.
"You're late," Spider said, his voice coming out of nowhere as Helios passed a trash can.
Helios stopped abruptly, his eyes flashing.
"Why? Got something else to do? Maybe another job you've screwed up?" he snapped back, his anger pulsing through him like electricity.
He turned his head to Spider, who seemed to merge with the shadows. Spider took a step toward Helios.
"Maybe," he said with a wide grin. He walked closer until he was so close that Helios could easily drive his syringe into his heart. Spider took Helios's chin in his hand and gave him a seductive look. "I knew you'd come back to me."
Overwhelmed by his anger, Helios slapped his hand away. "Don't touch me, you damn asshole!" he hissed, his voice as sharp as a blade.
Spider took a step back, observing Helios for a moment with a mixture of amusement and utter disrespect, then crossed his arms.
"Alright," Spider said with a mocking smile. "What can I do for you, my queen?"
A cold shiver ran down his spine. Spider was still way too close. How much Helios would love to take him out. He wanted to see him die in the dirt before him. But unfortunately, he still needed Spider.
"Belladonna. I want him delivered to me with a damn bow around his neck," Helios answered coldly. The anger within him now burned ice-cold, making him almost physically tremble.
"Belladonna…?" Spider began, then his expression turned thoughtful as he shook his head. "He's an idiot, but I don't deliver comrades."
"This idiot shot wildly everywhere. He botched the mission, killed Dante and Davis, and injured me," Helios responded, clenching his fists. The thought of losing Davis and what Belladonna had done made his anger grow into a burning, hateful flame.
"He's new; people mess up a bit when they're new," Spider shrugged, as if it was nothing.
"Spider," Helios said in a cutting tone, the rage inside him now unmistakable. "I want revenge on Belladonna. Or maybe you want to pay instead for his fault?"
Helios pushed back the rising anger that was boiling inside him and reached into his coat pocket with one hand. His fingers found the syringes and gripped them tightly. The cool metal in his hand somehow calmed him. It was a feeling of control that he needed. He held the syringe in a way that he could draw it at any moment if necessary. Spider's gaze shifted to his hand, which had disappeared into the pocket.
"You'd better leave that alone," Spider said in a casual, almost warning tone. "I've seen what you've been carrying with you lately."
"When did you…? Never mind! Deliver Belladonna to me. I'll buy that damn bastard!" Helios almost shouted, his voice distorted by rage.
Spider laughed, a nasty, almost mocking laugh. "Oh? You thought you and your lover were alone in the alley? I was there too, Helios. I saw everything. I saw you kill that guy and how you let yourself get fucked afterward." His voice dropped to a lower, more seductive tone. "Just the look on your face and those sweet sounds you make! Revenge doesn't suit you, come with me and let me pamper you," Spider grinned broadly. "I'll treat you like a princess. I promise."
Helios' eyes widened, a spark of shock ran through him. Spider had been watching them?! Helios gritted his teeth. Hopefully, Spider had enjoyed the show.
"Like a princess?" Helios asked with a cold, almost mocking smile. "Try it, and I'll dissect you alive."
"I love your murderous side, Helios. His death seems to have flipped a switch in you, or am I wrong?"
"Don't mention him," Helios hissed. He gripped the syringe tighter.
Spider laughed again, but Helios' smile disappeared. Instead, he fixed Spider with an intense gaze.
"Ten million."
Spider stopped laughing. "What?"
"I'll offer you ten million for Belladonna. I get my revenge, and you get rid of your chaotic colleague."
Spider smiled a murderous grin. "Now that's an offer."