Beneath The Orange Sunset ✔️

16

~16~

    "What!" Joelene exclaimed from the other end. "His room is bugged?"

    "Professionally done," Samuel replied. He nodded, his eyes drifting in thoughts as he recalled the thumb sized device, magnetized on a dark metal sheet and fitted perfectly on the wall.

Joelene gave out a muffled chuckle. "This is crazy. Maxime is in a tighter web than I thought."

    "Yes. He sure is."

    "I can't believe this," Joelene breathed. "Who would have done that and why?"

Samuel could feel the emotions welling up in his sister's voice.

    "I don't know. Maybe his mother, who is not even his real mother?"

    "So does that mean Maxime is adopted?"

    "I haven't confirmed that yet," Samuel walked to the windows and took a peek outside.

    "Did Rochelle mention anything about that?"

    "According to Maxime, she had said there was something different about Antoine, or is Antoine adopted?" Samuel smoothened his short hair.

    "You got a point there. Either of the two is adopted. One is the real son and the other is adopted," Joelene pointed out.

    "Exactly," Samuel said. He digested the information. "Maxime definitely will be the adopted son, considering everything happening. Do you have his tracker on?"

    "Yes," Joelene said few seconds later. "I can see his location, in my phone. He hardly moves."

    "That's because he stays in his room twenty four hours on Emile's orders."

    "Alone?"

    "Alone, Joey. You can imagine the loneliness."

    "Damn that woman!" Joelene scowled at the other end.

    "We just need to be one step ahead of Emile and her cohorts or else we will loose the boy."

    "What are you going to do now? What's the next step?"

    "I have to watch Emile. And know what she's up to. She is the sole suspect in this game."

    "Are you going to track her?"

Samuel thought hard about it.
    "Not yet. I will just follow her for a day and see what I can get."

    "Be careful Samuel." Was Joelene last words before the call was disconnected. 

The stillness of the night reminded Samuel of the serenity in Maxime's room.

All he wanted was a simple plan and nobody getting hurt in the process. But it seem more oblivious to let fate decide.

That night Samuel sat in his old single bed. The room was packed with old health books and personal medical equipment.

The moon had just hidden behind the clouds taking its soft rays with it.

Samuel had lit the darkened room with solar powered small lamp on the nightstand. He wore his usual night wear, black T-shirt and shorts.

Samuel felt suffocated. A sense of danger had overwhelmed him making him loose sleep. His head was still ringing from the brief phone call he had with his sister. She was the only one he could trust in this situation, everybody else was a suspect.

He picked up the folder which contained details of Maxime's health progress and flipped through. One thing he had noted about Maxime was constant weakness and complains of nausea and dizziness. His internals may still be weak. Even if they were to escape from the mansion, Maxime may not make it out in good shape.