Predator

21

As soon as he finished speaking, Amelia felt the bed lighten beside her, followed by the sound of rummaging at the wardrobe—clearly, he was changing clothes too. The burn scar on the man's waist and abdomen, a secret deliberately concealed, urged Amelia to quicken her pace in changing. When her tousled head emerged from the oversized collar, she saw Liam, already dressed in a matching t-shirt and cargo pants, hands in his pockets, eyebrows raised as he looked at her.

The piercing elephant cries outside were incessant, waking not only them but also the mercenaries on other floors. The sound of heavy military boots echoed on the concrete, making Amelia's head throb. She buried half her face in her collar and obediently followed behind Liam.

They kept a five-minute distance from the mercenaries, hiding their presence under the cover of darkness and obstacles.

Meanwhile, in a corner of the factory, several mercenaries, holding powerful flashlights, cursed as they shone the lights into a cage. Inside, a small elephant, terrified, curled its trunk and buried its large head in the corner. The leader, with a fierce expression, annoyed at being woken up, kicked the iron cage.

With each kick, Amelia, hiding in the shadows, clenched Liam's arm tighter.

"Do you want me to save it?" he asked.

The girl nodded.

"There are no free lunches here," he said, his dark eyes locked on her lips, his hand reaching to tease her plump lip, his meaning clear.

"Agree or disagree?"

"... Save it," she whispered.

Liam's smile widened, a hint of wickedness in the curve of his lips as he ruffled her hair. "Wait here."

It didn't take long. The sound of his deliberately slow footsteps was a warning, causing the men around the cage to turn. Liam grabbed the lead mercenary's shoulder and flung him backward. The man staggered, and Liam's face reflected in his brown eyes.

Standing in front of the elephant cage with his hands in his pockets, Liam pointed his thumb at the still-screaming elephant inside. "This one, from now on, I'll handle it."

No one spoke; no one wanted to be the target. The man on the ground, feeling humiliated, spat and stood up. "Don't forget, if the boss upstairs can't sleep and his leg hurts..."

"I'll take responsibility," Liam interrupted. "Now, you can leave."

The man wanted to say more, but his companions elbowed him, and he swallowed his words. As they walked away, Liam called to her, "Come over."

Amelia grabbed the bars, not sparing Liam a glance. She watched the small elephant, who was staring at the half-eaten elephant head left by the hunting dogs. The elephant's mouth, yet to grow tusks, cried out mournfully at the carcass, like calling for its mother. Tears welled up in her eyes.

Liam reminded her, "You can give it a name."

"Can I call it Mike?" she asked, referring to MIKE, the Monitoring the Illegal Killing of Elephants program under CITES.

Liam was silent for a few seconds. "Whenit's just the three of us, you can call it whatever you want."