Allen grew eager as the days passed. On Monday the mail arrived, four days before his journey to the old facility.
" So when are we going there ? " asked Allen
" Tonight " Albert replied
Allen went back to training, on the way he saw Jessica
" Hey " she waved at him
" Hey " he replied
" You wanna grab lunch together ?" asked Jessica
" No, I got some training to do " Allen replied
" You ok dude ? Recently, you seem different from how you used to be. Is there anything on your mind ? Something you wanna talk about ? " asked Jessica
" No... No... I'm ok " he replied
" If you wanna talk, I'm here " she replied
When she was about to leave, he called her. " Can I ask you something ? "
" Yeah sure " she replied
" Have you ever committed to something you didn't want to do? As if you really weren't interested in taking part, but you did it anyway. Would you do it for someone you can't say no to ? " asked Allen
" You don't really make sense to me, but if you don't want to do something, don't. " said Jessica
" But what if you are already committed to it ? " asked Allen
" Still... You can say no. Just talk to them. They will understand. " said Jessica
" It's not that easy. It's ok... Just forget it " said Allen
" Is this about the Jupiter mission ? " asked Jessica
" No.... No.... It's something personal. Don't worry, I will figure something out... " said Allen
" Alright, but hey... If you ever want to talk about anything, I will be here. " said Jessica
" Thanks. By the way I'm taking a vacation for this week, I'm going for a trip. " said Allen
" Trip ? Where " asked Jessica
" I haven't really decided " Allen replied
" Well, go to Maldives, the beaches are there so amazing " said Jessica
" I can't, did you forget about my condition ? " asked Allen
" Oh yeah, I forgot, you are a vampire who doesn't like the sun. If you expose your skin directly to the sun, you will burst into ashes. "
" Ummmmm...... Not exactly, but I might die " said Allen
" I'm just kidding dude " said Jessica
" Yeah I know, by the way thank you for putting up with me for all this time. " he knew he might not come back, so he said good bye without saying goodbye
" Will you be gone for the whole week ? When will you return ? " asked Jessica
" Probably Saturday or Sunday. Why ? " Her reaction was not what he expected. She didn't ask anything about the trip or his odd good-bye.
" Nothing..... It's just that...... " she hugged him
He did not understand why she reacted that way. Afterwards, he went to the training room. When he turned around he saw Jessica standing there, looking at him, he felt a little weird.
In the evening, he didn't waste any time. Allen met with Albert outside the city. They then went to Dan's house together.
" If we both miss work on the same day, will anyone suspect anything ? " asked Allen
" No ! As a matter of fact, I'm working right now. You can do anything when you are the highest authority " said Albert
" So how far is her house ? " asked Allen
" From here, about 5 hours drive " said Albert
Allen drove to Dan's house, he thought about finding something useful. Hours later they arrived at their destination.
They both went to the door and unlocked it.
" There is a security system inside, the password is 729539 " said Albert
Allen turned on the lights and disabled the security system.
" Let's not waste any more time " said Albert
They searched every square inch of the place for any useful files, computers, photos, or anything else that could be helpful.
They searched for a couple of hours without finding anything useful.
" There is nothing in here " said Allen with frustration.
" Keep looking " said Albert
Despite his frustration, Allen continued to search.
They searched for another hour
" There is nothing here, it was a waste of our time. Fuck..... " said Allen
Albert took a deep breath " It is already late, so we will stay here tonight. "
Allen didn't say anything back, he was so disappointed.
July- 6- 2055 Tuesday
They were preparing to leave in the morning.
" Let's go " said Allen
Albert was still searching for something here and there. He then noticed a photo of Dan in the wall. " What were you hiding from me ? "
Allen was waiting for Albert in his car when Albert called him. He went inside
" What ? " asked Allen
" Look at this picture " Albert showed him a picture of a young Dan infront of her house.
" It's a different house. It doesn't look like this one " said Allen
" Look here " Albert showed him some documents " When I removed the back of the photo, I discovered them. These are the papers from the house she bought. But it doesn't belong to her, the name on the document is different. "
Allen read the documents carefully " What if she bought this under a false name? As you can see from the date, the house was bought a couple of months after the second portal opened. "
" That makes sense. She must have found something. The place was used to hide it. " said Albert
" Look here " Allen showed a map in his phone " I searched for the house's location. About 20 miles from here, it's really remote. It's in the middle of the woods, so it's a good place to hide something. " said Allen
" Let's find out what she was hiding there. " said Albert
Allen started the car and they followed the GPS. They reached the woods within a few hours.
" The car can only go so far, we'll have to go the rest on foot. Can you walk ? " asked Allen
" I can manage.... " Albert was tired ,but still he wanted to go there
They walked for about half an hour, and then saw a small house. They walked towards it.
" Wait... " said Albert " Look... there's a window there. I will check it, let's see if anyone is inside. You check the surrounding area. "
Albert looked inside, but no one was there. After checking out the area, Allen returned.
They went to the door, it was locked.
" Break it " said Albert
Allen was a little surprised, he looked at Albert's face. Even Albert is desperate right now.
Allen smashed the lock with a large rock he found. Because the lock was old and rusty, it broke easily.
They entered the house, which had two bedrooms, and a kitchen. They looked around.
" There was someone here recently " said Allen
" Yeah I noticed that. The furnitures are surprisingly clean. " said Albert
" There are groceries in the kitchen. " said Allen
" Let's search the place, don't miss anything. " said Albert
Despite searching the whole place, they couldn't find anything useful. Allen heard a cracking noise coming from the floor while looking around the bedroom.
" I think there is something under here " said Allen
When Albert came inside, they removed the carpet and found a door, which they opened and found some documents and a laptop. They took it out. They checked the files.
" This is a collection of files related to the old facility and FIESTAA. Whoever it is, they know everything. " said Allen
" What about the laptop ?" asked Albert
" It requires a password " Allen replied after checking it.
" Damn... Let's check everything again. " said Albert
Despite of searching every nook and cranny in the house, they were unable to find anything else
" What now ? " asked Allen
" We'll wait until evening to see if the person returns. But not here " said Albert " They will see our car, or the car tracks, if they come back. We will wait near the turn, on the highway. Whenever we see someone taking this route, we will follow them "
They waited until 6 p.m. on the highway. Allen took the files and laptop with him.
However, they did not see anyone going to the woods.
" We should go back. " said Allen
" Then what ? We are back to square one " said Albert
" Well look at this laptop, it's an older version. I know a guy who can crack it. " said Allen
" Alright let's go " said Albert after a moment
They went back to their homes.
July- 7- 2055 Wednesday
Allen took the laptop to his friend's. The laptop was unlocked in less than 30 minutes by his friend.
Allen didn't open the laptop, he took it and went back to Albert's.
" Come in " Albert was waiting infront of the barn for Allen.
They opened the laptop and searched every folder. Photos of Dan's family were found, including photos of her parents, her husband, and her children.
Then they found a folder named ' To My Dear Diya and Alby '
Allen played it
" Hey guys, if you guys are watching this that means I'm probably dead." they saw a middle aged Dan " I will make this short and quick as possible. Since Emily disappeared, a lot has changed. We all wanted her back so badly. She was a colleague and a friend to you, but for me she was more than that. She was my best friend, she was my sister. I got the notification when I was near the barn. When I went inside to check the footage, I saw a portal opening, and then the cameras went off. All I wanted that time was to see Emily one more time, I wasn't thinking about anything else. It was a risk to go there alone, but the same time I didn't want to put you at danger. What if the monster came back ? I didn't want to lose you too."
" I went there without waiting for you. I would have been caught if Alby hadn't done the same. I used the situation as a misdirection, as an excuse to stay away from you. Because what I found there was worth protecting. That day, I learned more than I could have ever imagined. "
" Although I always wanted to tell you the truth, I was afraid that you would not see things the same way as I do. I knew one day you would figure it out, but I'm not telling you everything because I don't know what's going on there at the moment. As I don't know if I'm alive, if I am, and if you are watching this video before talking to me, please understand that I cannot provide you with any information. Everything must be kept secret until one day, after that, everything will be explained to you. I have made the necessary arrangements in case I die. You will learn the truth one way or another, trust me. Until then....... " The video ended
Neither of them talked for a moment. Albert was in disbelief, even one of his best friends didn't trust him.
" Keep looking " As Albert stood from the chair, the sadness on his face was visible.
Allen searched for half an hour before Albert returned.
" Anything ? " asked Albert
" Nothing else, just bunch of family photos. Photos from holidays, games, graduation, etc.. " said Allen
" Mmm.... Ok.... Go home, I'm sorry I dragged you into this mess. I will go to the old facility. " said Albert
" No...... It was my choice, I said yes. And I will keep my promise. I will check everything one more time. " said Allen
" Don't bother there is nothing in there. She was always like that, playing games with us and making us miserable. She's just playing another game. Search all you like, but it won't lead you anywhere. " said Albert
" Maybe we should call her son, he may know something about the second house " said Allen
" Both of her sons were in boarding school, so I doubt they know anything. As far as I know, her younger son doesn't even visit her; he hated her for some reason. In case there were anyone who knew something, it was her husband, but he died decades ago. " said Albert
" What about her daughter ? " asked Allen
" What daughter ? She doesn't have a daughter. She only have two sons. " replied Albert
" What ? Wait... then who is this ? " Allen opened the laptop and showed Albert a photo of Dan with a young girl.
" Maybe a relative of her's " said Albert
" Does she is in any other photos ? " asked Albert
" No...not really " Allen replied
" Leave it then, go home. You need sleep. We will leave tomorrow evening. " said Albert
" Alright sir, do you mind if I take the laptop ? " asked Allen
" No.... Not at all... " Albert wasn't interested in it anymore.
Allen took the laptop and went home.