RECLAIM

Chapter 18. Grey Origin

~Arden~

"Please, continue." His voice takes a deeper undertone, and Arden knew she could sense some of the dark emotion leaking from him. Countless generations had fought so hard, for so long to end this kind of practice. Had rejoiced in each other on that faithful day when they confirmed that trafficking was finally put down for good. Only to be disappointed yet again with the dawn of reality.

Sure. On records and statistics around the country, across the world even, the crimes link to trafficking was close to zero. The numbers was so negligible compared to its heyday. But, the truth is the perpetrators just upped their game. They treat trafficking as a war now. Learned how to make it even more private, more profitable, to grow and harvest it in a way that's unprecedented. They treat it as a kill or be killed situation, a necessary recourse to live. Some people even accuse that bio-robotic body parts and organs rental business has a part in keeping it alive somehow. Now, he's starting to believe the silly conspiracy theory has some merit in it after all.

"Was Reclaimers and Scavengers always involved in this line of business?" he said after a long silence.

"Yeah, sometimes we do, along with untold number of other gray activities. But, you know that. Reclaimers are famous for walking the line."

"True. Please continue."

"I was a part of one of this special case. I was offered by someone, most probably a Scavenger, and the Reclaimers recruit me. At least, that's what I've been told," Laith said carefully as if he somehow would start raging at any given moment. He won't. He's seen too much, know from personal experience that anger will bring nothing.

Arden tried to tone down his response. "Hang on. I'm genuinely confused."

"Remember the charity part? In other word, I was sold to the Reclaimers. Or maybe they rescued me?" She tilts her head, looking genuinely unconcern. "Anyway, the Reclaimer who took me in said my condition was pretty bad. They say that's why I lost my memories."

The implications of her words dawn on him. His jaw locked tight, teeth gritting for long seconds as Laith watched him fight his anger in silence. Arden glanced at the darkened windows towards Alex, hoping to distract his mind.

"You lost your memories?" he finally asked after a long pause.

"My earliest memory was waking up at the Hive infirmary."

"How old are you? I mean, when the Reclaimers recruit you?"

"Medical scans estimated my age was around nine or ten."

"And this Scavenger, the one who offered you, was Trevor White?"

"I have absolutely no idea." She sighed. "My colleagues at the Hive considered this topic a taboo remember? But, I figure since he's one of the big players in the business, he might know something."

Arden gave a subtle nod. "You're the only one?"

"You mean as the recipient of this charity? No, there others too. But we're so few and far in between. And, as I recall, came from various channels too."

"What about your family? Nobody's looking for you?" He frowned.

"Don't know if any ever existed and nope. I waited and when I finally fed up, begun searching. So far, I found air. No prior data. Not even a birth certificate. It's like I was born only after the Reclaimers took me in." She shrugged. "Well, maybe I was born on some remote corners of the world. It happens."

Something clicked inside him. No wonder their personality didn't clash as much as he predicted. They were more alike than either of them realizes. Not an exact match down to the tee, but they came from a similar background. They both seen and experienced enough to survive and thrive. It raises a new concern though. The more Arden knows, the more he finds it hard to be able to contain his own concerns. Fortunately for him, he didn't have the time or the luxury to delve into the root that stems these tender feelings.

"So yeah, I confess. This stakeout feels a little personal to me," she softly said. "I love to get my hands around one of Scavenger throat and squeeze it. Who knows what kind of squeak he emulates? Besides, it's not like that we got any other lead," she continues, a little louder this time.

"You got a point."

"On the topic, remember out friend Ratty? Guess who he told me was trying to get into money loaned for organs rent business?"

"You contacted him?"Arden almost forgot the existence of that man.

"Mm. He can't say for sure if the Scavengers were involved though. It's nothing more than an underground rumor."

Arden watched as a small, sad smile makes its way to her. They sat in silence as the reactivated comms carries nonsensical soft sounds from the other side. Still, for every fresh snow that falls on the windshield, more sound disappears. Arden thinks he had to thank Alex's for his calm and not so talkative demeanor.

"How's your condition, Grim?" Arden asked him, knowing, that no matter what the reason behind this stakeout, it's too late to back up now.

His reply was a deep sigh. "No abnormality spotted other than the snow that for some strange reason, decided to fall in earnest. I'm starting to think that this whole thing is a big fat waste of time. If he really is as careful as the rumors say, then there's a chance that he already made us."

"You want to wrap this up?" Laith said on his heel.

"No." Alex sounded resolute. "I'm not going to give up now. If there is even the smallest chance this Trevor White really related to my sister's disappearance then I--"

An unexpected loud interference jolted both Arden and Laith upright. Checking both the comms and e-Links, he noticed that all of them are down. Not again. Begrudgingly, they focused their attention towards Alex, standing still about twelve feet away from them. He appears to be frozen stiff, alone.

All around them, thick snow fall, a tell tale sign that a blizzard is on the way. Aside from that, nothing looked out of the ordinary. Yet, the downed communications gave more than enough warning that somebody decided to crash this party. Moving his hand slowly toward his gun, Arden never takes his eyes from their surroundings, searching for even the smallest abnormality.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. You're completely surrounded," an unfamiliar voice said right by Arden's side window. He stopped moving immediately. From his eye corner, he can also see Laith does the same. "Please refrain from doing anything that will make this even harder. Our order was to take all of you as safe as possible."

Arden breathed in deeply, his instinct telling him to fight; he chose to raise both of his hands instead. He may be a slacker, but he is a damned good poker player and the odds are stacked against them. He knew, somehow, they really are surrounded. How the other party can get this close and still the three of them can't see anything except for the snow spoke volumes.

Seeing the toast e-Links and comms, combined with state of the art stealth gears they used and the precision involved, their opponent were professionals. The bottom line is, it also speaks of the length whoever behind this will go to take them alive. For now, their best bet is to follow whatever instruction given. In that, he can see Laith agrees. Guess this can be counted as an improvement in her book. What do you know, maybe it actually leads them somewhere.

"I appreciate if you come with us," the voice said as Arden and Laith car doors opened slowly from the outside. "No need to worry. We're going to treat the three of you with utmost care. Now, let's take a ride, shall we?"

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