Half an hour ago.
A Native American couple entered at the start of St. Cross Street and began their leisurely pace down the path. The petite woman had her arms hooked around the man’s arm intimately, not fazed by the brush of his elbow against her soft chest.
“He went in.” Tsukino Kyoko reported, “He’s probably buying the same food again. Disgusting sour olives and rye bread.”
Xia Lei confirmed, “Yeah, it is the same combination again. His name is Harde. He’s using this method to torment their prisoner.”
“A prisoner that the FA is interested in and chose to engage in a time like this. I wonder who it is? I’ve got no clues to assume either,” said Tsukino Kyoko.
Xia Lei gazed down at her. “What are you referring to by time like this?”
“After the pyramid crumbled,” answered Tsukino Kyoko.
Xia Lei chuckled. “You’re forgetting something.”
“What did I forget?” Tsukino Kyoko looked at him with curious eyes.
“That I’m dead.” Xia Lei continued, “I’m dead now but the CIA is not going to let up. Their target is no longer me but the source of the AE capsules. They’re trying to investigate what happened years ago and obtain some clues from within. That’s why the FA members are here. The current FA Organization is nothing but a lap dog reared by the American government.”
“You’re right, I forgot about that,” agreed Tsukino Kyoko as she tightened her hold around Xia Lei’s arm.
Xia Lei felt sheepish but tolerated her advances. It was all he could do for now. This was the consequences of his rashness. While they had only enjoyed a two-centimetre relationship, it was enough verification of their relationship for the Japanese woman. Plus, it didn’t help that they were disguised as a young couple.
The two of them entered the diner opposite number 48, St. Cross Street.
Xia Lei ordered their meal and began enjoying his breakfast with Tsukino Kyoko. His took his time, slowly enjoying his breakfast while using his X-ray vision on the building across them.
Tsukino Kyoko studied the situation inside the diner through the corner of her eyes.
A waiter was walking over with two egg tarts.
Tsukino Kyoko kicked at Xia Lei under the table.
Xia Lei flashed her a faint smile of gratitude.
“Good morning, mister and miss.” The waiter greeted them courteously. “Thank you for supporting us, I noticed that this is your second visit here. Please enjoy these egg tarts. It’s free of charge and we hope that you can continue to be our patron.”
Xia Lei nodded, replying to the waiter in English. “Thank you.”
The waiter set the pastry down on their table. “Are you from America?”
Xia Lei replied, “Yeah, we’re from the Pine Ridge in South Dakota. We’re from the Sioux tribe.”
“Oh. Though I haven’t been there, I’m sure that place is lovely,” said the waiter.
At this moment, Tsukino Kyoko quickly inched over and pecked Xia Lei’s cheek. “Darling, you should eat it soon. Your food is getting cold.”
“Oh, right.” Xia Lei responded and took the chance to end the conversation with the waiter. However, the man offered the waiter a five USD bill.
The waiter left them alone with a bright smile.
Xia Lei used his X-ray vision on the waiter, finding no weapons or spy bugs on him. Despite that, he needed to keep his guard up. This diner was located across a Mossad base. Who would be surprised if Mossad planted agents in every building on this street?
Xia Lei turned back to train his vision on the ancient building. This time, he attempted to locate Yan Fo and Augustan from the FA Organization.
Finally, he found them in an office on the third floor. When he noticed them, a new face had just joined them in the space. The man was led by an Israeli agent.
Penetrating through the thick curtains, Xia Lei locked his gaze on their faces and read their lips.
They spoke English.
“Mister Kerns.” As soon as the door was shut, Yan Fo was direct. “We’ve received information that a mountain had collapsed on the outskirts of Jerusalem. Is that true?”
Kerns was taken aback. “Who did you hear that from?”
“We’re from the same field, why the unnecessary question?” Yan Fo squinted.
Kerns shook his head. “It is possible that something like that happened but I’ve not received any relevant intel. I’ll rectify it soon. Mister Yan, why are you so interested in this incident?”
“You know what we’re here for. We’re here on behalf of America’s interest and we work for their government. We’re investigating this under Mister Williams’ instructions,” said Yan Fo.
“Are you trying to threaten us with the CIA?” Something akin to anger flashed through Kerns’ eyes.
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“Mister Kerns.” Augustan, who had been quiet throughout the exchange, had finally spoken. “That is not our intention. What America wants, you want too. Your country has been conducting this investigation for years and yet you’ve found nothing. A genuine collaboration will help solve the problem.”
“Xia Lei’s dead.” Kerns held his gaze. “And you took the chance to shove your hands into my pocket and yet demand genuine cooperation. You’re really…”
Yan Fo interjected his sentence. “Mister Kerns, let me show you something.”
“What?” Kerns raised a brow.
Yan Fo retrieved a few photographs from the insides of his blazer and pressed them into Kerns’ palm.
The way Kerns held the photographs had obstructed half of it from Xia Lei’s view. Despite that, the remaining half was enough to make him inhale sharply.
It was a picture of a corpse. The unfortunate soul was a very built black man that had an array of impressive tattoos. He looked intimidating. On the steel table, his skull was cut open to reveal his brain. The most shocking thing about it was the size of his brain. It had shrunk to the mere size of a fist. It looked positively dehydrated and had signs of decomposition while the rest of his body was free from such symptoms.
Kerns inspected the rest of the stack. It recorded different corpses but the same shrivelled and shrunken brain.
It did not require much thinking for Xia Lei to recognize who was the culprit. His heart throbbed with emotions. “Zhu Xuanyue is alive! She’s feeding! She’s still in America!”
From a human’s perspective, Xia Lei had hoped for her death. However, from the perspective of his personal sentiments, he wished that she was alive. Xia Lei always had conflicting feelings when it came to things relevant to Zhu Xuanyue.
In the office, Kerns placed the photographs on the table. “Why are you showing me these?”
Yan Fo answered, “Mister Kerns, did you not notice how unique the cause of their deaths was?”
“Indeed, it is unique. But what does it have to do with me? What does it have to do with Israel?” Kerns questioned sharply.
Yan Fo replied, “Recently, hundreds of similar deaths were reported in America. In the beginning, relevant experts had thought that it was a rare brain-eating parasite. Eventually, the hypothesis was rejected because it was too much of a coincidence that all of them who died were charged with felonies. They were criminals, abusers and drug dealers. A parasite cannot choose its victims. This was a serial killers work”
“How would someone kill like this?” Kerns gasped. “What weapon did they use?”
“I have no idea.” Yan Fo continued, “But the CIA had used the Tenshin system to analyze the patterns. All of the obtained hints had pointed to Xia Lei.”
“Isn’t that person dead already?” Kerns was baffled.
“He's dead but these mysterious deaths had started occurring after his reported presence in America. He is the only advanced human to exist. The Tenshin system suspects that he had created an all-new virus that even America couldn’t wrap their heads around.”
Kerns brows furrowed.
In the diner opposite the building, Xia Lei furrowed his brows too. He thought to himself darkly, “Tenshin system? I’ve never heard about it before. It’s able to give them specific clues and involve me? This alone proves its value. Does it know about the virus I planted inside the CIA’s intelligence network?”
Xia Lei’s heart sank with anxiety.
Yan Fo spoke again. “Mister Kerns, the Tenshin system had also deduced a very interesting conclusion. I’m sure you’d like to hear it.”
“What is the conclusion?” Kerns lifted his gaze.
“Xia Lei’s advancement and abilities are sourced from the AE capsule and the capsule originated from Israel. The source is here and who can guarantee that the virus is not here? Don’t forget that Xia Lei had been to Israel and opened fire with the CIA. If you don’t wish to cooperate with us, you won’t be able to access information provided by the Tenshin system. It’ll be too late to do anything when the virus outbreak happens here,” warned Yan Fo. As the military officer of the FA Organization, Yan Fo had a way with words. It was more powerful and effective than weapons.
Augustan persuaded, “Yes, working together is the best choice. Bring us to the mountain, we’ll need to share with you all the information obtained in recent years.”
Kerns fell silent. “Give me a moment, I’ll go report this to Mister Ibola.” With that, the man left the office.
Yan Fo and Augustan stared at each other without a word. In the office of a high-ranking Mossad intelligence officer, one careful inspection would allow you to pinpoint several minuscule cameras and spy bugs. These two were as cunning as a fox. They played a game they knew well, opting to communicate with their eyes instead of words.
Xia Lei took the chance to rest his eyes. He picked up the egg tart and munched on it as he pondered about his next step. “Israel has nothing to fight against America with. If America threatens Mossad with a new virus strain, the Americans would surely have their way. Yan Fo and Augustan will be heading to that mountain. Should I hand them a gift?”
Tsukino Kyoko lowered her voice. “Boss, we’ve been here for too long. We need to leave or we’ll attract suspicion.”
Xia Lei hesitated briefly. “Give me another three minutes.”
Within that time frame, if Kerns did not return to his office, Xia Lei would leave with Tsukino Kyoko.
The ninja nodded.
Thankfully, Kerns was back in his office two minutes later. “Our boss has agreed to it. Come with me, I’ll bring you to the mountain.”
Yan Fo smiled. “Thank you.”
At the same time, Xia Lei stood up from his seat in the diner. “Let’s go, shall we?”
And with that, Tsukino Kyoko took it as her cue to wrap her arms around his own.