The Debt Vision

5. Emergency Alert

Sebastian stared at the glowing words showing before him. The silver letters reflected faintly in his eyes.

His survival probability was seventeen percent. For several seconds, he simply stood there as the warehouse felt colder than before.

The distant sound of traffic filtered through broken windows mixing with the soft creaking of rusted metal beams overhead.

Sebastian's jaw tightened as the question still lingered in his mind.

Who exactly was coming ? And why did the system believe there was an eighty-three percent chance he wouldn't survive ?

His pulse quickened as the glowing arrow still pointed toward a section of cracked concrete behind the table Sarah Whitemore had used before.

The Hidden Asset. The reason she offered a quarter million dollars. The reason someone was hunting this debt file.

Sebastian took a slow breath and crouched beside the marked area. His fingers brushed against the concrete. Nothing looked unusual as it was just cracks and dust there.

A faint vibration suddenly echoed through the warehouse.

Bzzzz.

His phone rang displaying an unknown number calling on the screen. Sebastian hesitated before answering.

“Hello ?”

There was no response from the other side but he could clearly hear a person's slow and calm breathing. The hair on the back of his neck stood up. “Who is this?”

The person still stayed silent, his breathing still audible to Sebastian's ear and then suddenly the call got disconnected.

Sebastian lowered the phone slowly and a cold feeling settled inside his stomach, realizing that was not a prank. Someone deliberately wanted him to know they were there watching and waiting for him.

His gaze shifted toward the entrance of the warehouse but it was empty. He immediately moved. If someone was coming, he couldn't stand here like an idiot waiting to become a victim.

He stood up and his eyes fell on a broken metal rod lying nearby, he picked it up instantly. The steel felt cold in his hands. Not much of a weapon but better than nothing. Then he began striking the concrete.

Clang !

Dust blew in the air.

Clang !

A crack widened, still nothing happened.

A bead of sweat slowly rolled down his forehead, his breathing grew heavier with each shot.

Clang !

The metal rod slammed down again and this time the sound really changed as he could hear the sound of a hollow echo from below.

Sebastian froze and his heart skipped a beat. He struck once more there again and the hollow sound echoed once again. Something was definitely underneath.

A wave of excitement surged through him. After months of failure, humiliation, and dead ends, he had finally found something real. Something that belonged only to him.

His father used to say that truth always leaves a trail. For the first time in months, Sebastian felt like he was following one.

A smile almost formed on his lips but the voice from behind faded away the smile completely from his face.

“Found something interesting?”

Sebastian spun around and witnessed three men standing near the warehouse entrance. None of them looked like investors. Dark jackets, broad shoulders with cold expressions on their faces.

The leader stepped forward. His shaved head reflected the afternoon sunlight filtering through the doorway. Sebastian's grip tightened around the metal rod.

The man smiled but it wasn't a friendly smile. “We've been looking for you.”

Sebastian remained silent as the man's gaze dropped toward the cracked concrete then back to Sebastian and his smile widened.

“Looks like we arrived just in time.”

The warehouse suddenly felt much smaller and much more dangerous. The leader extended his hand.

“Give us the debt file.”

“No.” Sebastian replied instantly.

The smile faded from the leader's face while one of the men cracked his knuckles and another adjusted his sleeves behind him.

A knot twisted inside Sebastian's stomach as he realized this was not a negotiation.

The leader sighed dramatically. “You know, I was hoping you'd be smarter.”

Sebastian shifted his footing slightly, getting ready for what came ahead of him and the leader noticed it instantly.

A chuckle escaped his mouth. “You think you can fight ?”

The question drew laughter from the leader's members. They were mocking, exactly the way people had looked at him for months like he was weak, broken and finished.

Something inside Sebastian shifted as he was tired of it. Tired of being pitied, tired of being mocked and tired of watching everyone decide his worth.

The leader took another step forward. “Last chance.”

Sebastian shook his head before words could escape from his mouth and answer the leader. “No.”

The rejection landed harder this time as the leader's eyes narrowed and then he nodded and signalled his men.

“Get ready for your funeral then.”

The first man launched himself targeting Sebastian. The first punch came fast. Sebastian barely avoided it. The fist grazed his shoulder as he stumbled sideways.

Pain shot through his arms and the second attacker rushed him instantly, taking advantage of the situation. Sebastian reacted on instinct as the metal rod swung.

Crack!

The attacker cursed and staggered backward clutching his forearm. For a brief second, Sebastian felt a little hope burning inside his chest and then reality hit him. It was three against one.

He wasn't some action hero but only a simple investigator, who hadn't been in a real life fight since college.

The leader's fist smashed into his ribs and a wave of pain exploded through his side. Sebastian felt like air left his lungs as he stumbled backward and crashed into a stack of old crates. The warehouse seemed spun around him as his chest burned.

The men laughed out aloud. “That's the famous Sebastian Kane?”

“Pathetic.”

“I expected more.”

The humiliation stung almost as much as the pain. Months ago, powerful executives respected him and now even the thugs laughed while beating him.

The leader grabbed Sebastian's collar and lifted him slightly. “Nobody is coming to save you.”

His voice lowered. “Nobody even remembers you.”

The words hit harder than the punch itself because part of Sebastian knew they were true. No family, no friends, no allies, no one. It's just him and no one else beside him.

The leader smirked after seeing something flicker across Sebastian's face. He enjoyed the pain, weakness and hopelessness on Sebastian's face. Same like Nathan, the landlord and everyone else loved watching him fall.

Suddenly a memory from his past surfaced where years ago, his father was standing beside him. His hands rested on Sebastian's shoulder.

“People will tell you what you're worth.” He smiled calmly. “Don't let them decide.”

The old man's voice echoed clearly inside his head and something shifted inside Sebastian. The hopelessness vanished, not entirely but enough to stand, fight and refuse them to decide his worth.

His hand suddenly grabbed a loose wooden plank from the broken crate and before the leader could react…

Crack!

The plank smashed across the leader's face and blood sprayed from his mouth and nose as he stumbled backward.

The warehouse suddenly felt silent and everyone froze including Sebastian. For a second nobody moved. Then the leader touched his bleeding nose.

His expression darkened as pure rage burned in his eyes. “You Idiot.” He growled.

Sebastian's breathing became ragged. His ribs hurt, his shoulder hurt, his whole body hurt as pain flooded through them. Yet for the first time all day he felt alive.

The silver words suddenly appeared again, brighter than ever in front of his eyes.

[Emergency Assessment Activated.]

[Hostile Threat Level : High]

Then appeared the next line which ran Sebastian's blood cold.

[Secondary Hostile Group Arriving.]

“What?” He mumbled under his breath.

The attacker watched him with confused expressions and kept glancing at each other's faces.

Out of nowhere, the sound of several vehicle's tires screeching outside came and the leader's expression changed instantly and real fear flashed on their faces.

The warehouse door burst open and heavy footsteps echoed across the concrete floor. A dozen armed professionals looking, disciplined and dangerous men entered together.

The entire place fell silent for a moment as an old man in an expensive suit , silver hair, cold and calculating eyes stepped forward. His gaze swept across the room before settling on Sebastian and instantly recognition flashed across his face.

For the first time all day…someone looked genuinely interested in Sebastian Kane.

The old man adjusted his cufflinks calmly and then spoke a sentence that made everyone frozen in their places.

“After twelve years…..” His eyes locked onto the hidden section beneath the floor. “...someone finally found it.”

And then the Debt Vision displayed a final message. A message that made Sebastian's heart stop for a moment.

[Identity Confirmed.]

[Claimant #1 Located]

[Graystone Logistics - Former Owner]