Agent's Dog System

19.Deception (2)

Once Adia finished styling Aiden’s hair, she thought it would be a good idea for him to wear a tuxedo, but Aiden commented that it would be too much and that the flowers would suffice. Aiden stepped out dressed in his black jeans, navy-blue jacket, black sweater, and blue polo shirt, as it was starting to get chilly outside—though not as cold as European winters. Podbe accompanied him, but not before hearing Adia say, “Go with the boy and keep an eye on him.” Inside the dog, Reia responded, “Affirmative.” The canine and the boy set off for their second outing—more than a formal date, it was their second meeting with Elena, the girl he had only met the day before but for whom he already felt an intense, overflowing teenage love.

Meanwhile, Elena was finishing her workday as usual. Though she was typically kind, that day she seemed distant with customers and the public, as if she had lost her usual spark. The shop owner noticed something was wrong and, concerned, assigned her to organize the warehouse until the end of the day. He asked if anything was troubling her, but she simply replied that nothing was wrong and that he shouldn’t worry. “I’m leaving now; I have some things to do,” she said before heading to the employee restroom. There, she changed out of her store uniform into something more comfortable: white sneakers, green jeans, an orange blouse, a red sweater, a lime-green jacket, and a colorful scarf. She sighed deeply before leaving the restroom and proceeded to leave the store, heading toward the meeting point with Aiden. But not before texting on her phone: “Get ready; when I give the signal, you can proceed.” The signal would be removing her scarf and throwing it to the ground.

On the way, Aiden stopped by a flower shop and asked the owner which were her best flowers. He chose some roses and sunflowers, paying for them with the money Adia had given him. As he walked, he thought, “If this keeps up, I’ll have to work my whole life to repay the lady for all the support she’s given me.” Reia and Podbe could only laugh at the boy’s comment. Once the flowers were purchased, he continued on his way.

It was exactly six o’clock. Aiden arrived first, checked his watch, and began waiting for Elena. He thought she might not show up or that he had arrived too early. Reia and Podbe tried to cheer him up, telling him to be patient and not to worry. More than forty minutes passed when suddenly footsteps were heard, and a silhouette appeared in the distance. It was her, Elena. Aiden complimented her, and she responded, “Sorry for making you wait so long; I got held up with some things at the store.” But the truth was that she had been hesitating about what she was going to do that day; guilt was eating her up inside, but in the end, she decided to gather her strength and go to the agreed-upon place. Upon seeing the flowers, she asked, “Are they for me?” to which Aiden nervously smiled and replied, “Yes, these flowers don’t compare to your beauty.” What he said came straight out of a romantic movie he had watched at the orphanage, courtesy of Maria, who adored those kinds of stories. Elena took the flowers, and their hands brushed. Both Aiden and Elena blushed slightly. If she had doubts before, they were now multiplied. How could she do something to this person who had done nothing wrong and had been so kind to her?

However, her fear of losing her father was stronger. She pulled some dried meat from her bag and offered it to Podbe. “Here, little one, this is for the dog. It’s my apology for what happened yesterday,” she said as she handed the food to the canine. Reia warned him not to accept things from strangers, but Podbe ignored the warning and devoured the meat, which had an irresistible aroma and taste.

The two began to walk and talk while Podbe finished chewing the last bits of food. They arrived at a scarcely traveled spot with dim or almost nonexistent public lighting. Suddenly, Podbe’s internal system emitted an alert: “You are feeling very sleepy.” The dog began to feel dizzy and, after staggering, collapsed on the ground, completely asleep. Aiden mentally asked Reia what had happened, but she didn’t have clear answers either. “He probably felt satisfied and fell asleep,” she thought. At that moment, another notification appeared on the system: “An anomalous substance has entered your organism.” Reia was about to tell Aiden about the alert when she noticed Elena taking off her scarf and throwing it to the ground.

At that instant, hands emerged from the darkness behind Aiden, grabbing him firmly and pressing a cloth soaked in some chemical over his mouth and nose. The boy tried to struggle, but the effect was immediate: he was drugged and lost all strength. The arms lifted him up, and Reia managed to make out a tall figure wearing a hat that covered his face, though the darkness made it impossible to identify him. Elena, horrified, watched as tears streamed down her cheeks at the sight. She wanted to help Aiden, regretting her decision at the last minute, but it was too late. Another figure, equally tall and wearing a similar hat, appeared behind her and struck her on the back of the head, knocking her out cold and leaving her sprawled on the ground.

The two men, one carrying the boy on his back, loaded him into the back of a black car. Once inside, they removed their hats. The one in the passenger seat made a call and said, “The mission is complete; we’re heading there now, sir.” He hung up the phone, and both laughed maliciously before driving away, leaving Elena and Podbe lying on the pavement, one in front of the other.