A faint noise drew his attention, halting his exit momentarily. His interest piqued the more his mind accessed that silent sound that he had heard.He was the only one on the ground floor at this time but before he took his exit, he felt it was best to trace where that sound had come from.The sound was very faint but unmistakable. The operative noticed that the straw piles that were at the side seemed slightly disheveled.Was it him being too inquisitive or was it normal that the straw piles seemed like a hideout? Was his mind whirring with ideas? What if their targets had that spot as their hideout?Was it worth checking? One part of his mind was telling him to ignore it and just assume it was nothing but another voice in his mind was urging him to remain inquisitive.As a trained operative, any such signs should never be ignored so he tilted towards the idea of remaining to see the end of his curiosity.Could it behind that Alan and his goons were hiding behind the piles of straw?

“Are you sure it's not you? Then let me smell you. Come closer so I can smell you and be sure that you are not the rat.”Mr. Lawrence inhaled deeply, as if searching for a scent of betrayal or deceit. He savored the operatives’ discomfort and fear.“Hmm, amazingly you don't smell like a stinking rat.”“Let me move to someone else. We must find the rat.”All of the operatives had their faces flushed with shame as they all knew that none of them was completely free of a possible accusation from the boss. Their hearts sank with guilt and dread under the boss’s accusatory demeanor.Mr. Lawrence turned to another operative, his sniffing gesture now becoming a ritual.He pierced an accusatory look into the operative. “Hfff, hfff, you stink!”“Captain, come and see. I think this one must surely be the rat.”The operative’s embarrassment reached a boiling point as his bladder trembled in the weight of his anxiety.“I am—not—Sir, I am not the rat,” the operative trembled, his face burned with

Before Della’s question could escape her mouth, the men moved fast, binding Della with ropes and restraining her to a chair just at the corner of the room.The underground space had a low ceiling, forcing the team of operatives to duck as they navigated through the cramped earthy space. The sound of dripping water also echoed through the cavern.With all her might, Della wrestled against the ropes, but the more she wrestled the more hopeless the situation was.“Get these ropes off me,” Della yelled, her voice echoing through the air. Mr. Lawrence’s face was round and jovial, his eye dancing in a deadly movement of merriment. He was loving what he was seeing - Della being tied to a chair and hopelessly struggling like a rat caught in its trap.“I said, get these ropes off me!” Della yelled, her tone firm and authoritative. “I am going to force you to drink your own urine when the tables turn.”Mr. Lawrence, who knew that Della had nothing but empty threats continued his evil chuckle,

The fate of Della’s fingers was hanging by a thread as the sound was a harbinger of the possibility of dread.One more click from Mr. Lawrence and Della’s perhaps all of fingers would be cut off.“Say your last prayers, will you?” Mr. Lawrence mocked.Della bit back her screams as she stifled the anguish within her so as not to give Mr. Lawrence satisfaction.Even if it meant that she was going to be butchered alive, she vowed in her heart not to make a single sound.Her belly churned and her lungs were compressed. She was about to witness a part of her body being cut off.Heartbeats were rising - Brody was watching everything go bad for the woman who so desperately wanted to protect him. He shut his eyes, determined not to watch the horror that was about to happen.Click!Mr. Lawrence applied the buttons and with a deadly swipe, the sharp edges of the machine took a hit at Della’s fingers.In the twinkling of an eye, a small piece fell out of the machine’s impact.“Arrrrrrrr!”The ai

With superhuman strength, he hurled a broken piece of wood towards the metal weapon, causing a loud clang and sudden deflection.Alan expertly sent the broken piece of wood that it was like a missile that was not going to miss it's target.The tension in the whole room intensified.A surge of shock surged within Mr. Lawrence as he witnessed his gun careen off in an unexpected direction.The eyes of almost everyone in the room traced the direction in which the weapon flew to, their faces contorted with shock.The sound of a bullet they were expecting to hear was changed into something else.A surge of irritation swept over Mr. Lawrence with the trick that Alan had just pulled off. Now he was going to regret doing that, he reason.His anger flared, darting with a dash towards Alan. He folded his fist, preparing to send him another terrible hit.But Alan became fluid, his combat potent as he seized Mr. Lawrence fist in his extended palm.With another movement of the left arm, Alan send u