BURN THE TRUTH

Episode Thirty-eight

Devyn came to a stop on the driveway in front of Velda's house a few minutes past noon. He hasn't said much since after the kiss, but Velda seemed not to bother as she was mostly on a call with Carter throughout the rest of the drive to her house. The call finally came to an end a few seconds after Devyn stopped in her driveway.

"What?" Velda asked as she looks down at the small gift box Devyn held out to her.

"For you," he told her with a slight nudge of his head but still she didn't attempt to reach out for the package "I told you, I'm big on giving well-done gifts to one I cherish. And you did quite great these past few days, so I thought a little gift won't be bad. What say you?"

A look on her face before she took the box from him. "So you asking me earlier was only a show?" She glances up at him.

Her soft smile was a sort of compliment to the eyes and the delicate sweetness within. A genuine sweetness he'd been craving. He smirked, watching her in a manner that made the sweetness in her manifest even more. The smirk ticks every nerve. It's gorgeous. "Just open it" He whispered.

Devyn calmly watch her unbox it until she revealed a tender peculiar gold necklace. Gently she took the necklace into her right hand, admiring it. "You love it?" he asked, surprisingly quite eager to hear her thought about it.

Velda's expression changed as if she was beginning to think, eyes, particularly on the piece of jewellery "It's not really the font I'd pick, but I appreciate it"

Devyn scuffed, not like he expected her to answer genuinely. Of course, she was Velda. "Make fun of me, why don't you? Well, give it back then" He tries to get hold of it but she instead returned it to the box away from him.

"It's mine now"

After a moment, the corner of his mouth twitched into his cheek. It transformed him from someone cold into someone she gets to see not too often. Just a smirk. She could have got off the car had it not been for the way he stared at her. That little rise in the corner of his mouth, which he was oblivious to combine with the cool detachment in his grey set of eyes. Not only was his look gorgeous, but it was also giving her inner pleasure. She was savouring the moment.

Devyn slowly reached for her hand and presses his lips to the back of it - in a kiss. "I shall see you tonight, hoping I will get to see you wear it then” He whispered still holding her hand close to his lips and a warm smile flashed across her face.

Devyn didn't particularly head straight home after dropping Velda, though eventually, he drove his car back into its spot in his garage a couple of minutes past five and after getting out, he plugged the key to its placement and began to unbutton the button of his shirt as he moves across the garage. The air outside is quite cold, unlike the interior of his house.

His shirt was half open though yet to be pulled out from his pants when he passed through the long joined aisles that lead into the house. He got a call as he came into the massive living space. A few seconds after he placed the cell phone to his ear did he nod as if the caller could sense him. “Alright. Keep to it” He said ending the call.

Through the wide see-through glass that runs a section of the space was Asteria in the indoor pool with Casey. It's too bad he doesn't have much time as he would wish to spend with her. His relief as he entered the space they were in was immediate as if the girl had lightened up his mood just by the mere sight of her.

The place has a stunning view of nature outside. Marble walls demarcated the hefty glasses, while the exceptionally stylish overhead roof rendered its jet colour to reflect in the pool, driving the space to fall into the shades of grey and black. But even so, the retreating sunset still managed to play upon the surface of the water as if sweetly inviting play.

“Hello, little one,” He called while a bit away from the entrance. “I see you're having fun,” he remarked mildly.

She grinned “Where is my Mum?” It seems even the fun can't take away the fact that he didn't return with Velda as he promise earlier.

“You know your mum. She is a tough one and you know how she is when she is working on something very crucial. But she will be here tonight, alright?” Devyn tried to reason with her. Milo soon came in from behind and pass a glass of whiskey to him.

Asteria pouted “Hmm, so that means you lost?” she singled out.

Devyn tilts his head to the side, defeatedly giving in to her words. “I bet I did,” He said and downed his whiskey in one smooth motion. Milo raised a brow at his expressionless face. The drink didn't even seem to burn him. Just how much is he drinking these days for his tolerance to be so high?

“So where is my money?” She demanded. Her hands folded firmly dramatically before her.

Casey chuckled “She is a whole lot” she let out from where she lay. “You found yourself an interesting child”

“I see you're doing quite well at teaching her a lot,” Devyn said as he walks closer to the pool.

“I have no hands in your game, you did bet to return with her mother” She motioned with her both hands.

He reached for his wallet, bringing out a few dollars, and then he passed them to her “Here we go,” he said as he leaned in to hand the money to her. “You won. Deals off” he said with a wink.

“Keep this for me, please” Asteria passed the money to Casey before she energetically push off the end of the pool, she glided through the water straight as a pencil. Her tiny frame was barely noticeable.

Devyn walks out of the place with Milo coming along, behind. He sighed and looked up at the ceiling, eyes closing “Here,” Milo said as he passed him another shot of whiskey. “What's bothering you?”

“You would be retrieving the article on new year’s eve. Which is likely tomorrow night” He said before turning to look in Milo’s direction. He took another sip of his drink to hold his words. The operation was originally set after the new year celebration but for some unspecified motives, he seems to want it now.

“Why sudden?” Milo goads “don't tell me you want the operation to be quick because of her,” he said, though his words got no evident emotion from Devyn as he seem particularly invested in his terms than Milo's.

“No Milo. It is not because of her” He said, voice low as he turned away from him. “Our target will be at the airport by noon tomorrow on his way to Russia to return on the 2nd. He would leave with his main escorts since he is with a new tech that got the attention of the Russian man he would be meeting. In other words, this is the best time to operate silently”

The smirk slips off Milo’s face “So now, you know I'm in no mood for play, it's better you chose your next words carefully,” Devyn warned in a low voice which is oddly his usual voice during a mission, one that holds no emotion of such. Particularly during the mission that pertains to his revenge strategies.

Milo swallows against the burn of the whisky he had sipped and wipes the corner of his mouth “Casey need to be aware immediately”

“Then get her set” he motioned for him to carry on. “Give me some moment, I will be down in the space,” he told him before taking the route to his bedroom.

Devyn later walked into the surveillance room, it was already half past seven, an hour away from his supposed dinner with Velda. The large screen brought up an image of a safe before Casey began to dissect it using a blueprint. “Although Mr Everdeen would be away from home, it still doesn't peel off the fact that the place is submerged with high security. Milo, you already know that the safe puzzle got about 252 billion combinations. In addition, I came to extrapolate more information about the construction of it, built by a locksmith named Edward Smith, to him a lock, a safe, were puzzles... which makes this one more complicated than any you have cracked before”

The dissection of the safe manifested on the screen into numerous steps. And after going through all, Casey brought up the blueprint of the Everdeen’s passion, gradually drawing out the entire layout “Though another problem we might have is that the mansion has a million extremely complex security protocols in place to detect exactly what we’re trying to do here”

“I’ve been reconning their system for weeks since I returned to test their capabilities. But it shows I can only be in their system for 19 seconds at a time, without them detecting me. Then I have to drop out, do the whole thing over again, and repeat until I can get your damn ass in and out without someone sending you to the heavens”

“How many times have you exactly manipulated their system?” Milo asked inquisitively, his hands folded across his chest as he stood by her side, eyes training on the screen.

“I haven't exactly done it, but it will work, theoretically,” She said nonchalantly as her fingers rested on the keyboard.

Milo leaned in, his tongue poking on the inside of his cheek to suppress the beginning of a controversy. “Are you actually sending me into the devil’s pit with a word as Theoretically?” his face screwed up.

“Since when are you afraid of risk?” Casey said yet focused on the screen.

“Since you used the word theoretically in a mission like this” Milo returned. Devyn was on the verge of breaking into the dialogue when a call came through his phone.

He shifts back after fishing it out of his pocket. “Detective,” He said in a low tone as he place the phone on his ear taking a few steps away before he suddenly came to a forced stop. His mouth clamped and eyes fixed as her barely coherent voice filled his ear and so, his entire body became impossibly still. Velda was a strong woman but this voice he was listening to was foreign, even though she tried to keep her voice stable, the faint panic was detectable which only brings Devyn’s suspects to one thought.

“I will be back,” Devyn barely uttered before he zoomed out of the room.