In the cafeteria, Jeff, alongside Tecro and a group of men who had joined them, began searching for information about the individuals who attacked the police station and kidnapped the children. They couldn't just sit idly by; too much was at stake.
One of the men raised his phone, his expression grave. "I've got something," he announced after receiving a call. "A friend says he spotted two people matching the description Tecro gave in a desert in Africa. He'll send us the encrypted coordinates, in case those people intercept the information."
Tecro, ever methodical, ran the data through his offline algorithm. After a few tense minutes of silence, he looked up and nodded. "Kenya," he said simply, his tone leaving no room for doubt.
"So Kenya, huh?" Jeff mused aloud, rubbing his chin as his eyes gleamed with determination. "What do you say, guys? Shall we head there?"
The men exchanged uncertain glances. One of them, a burly man with scars on his face, broke the silence. "And how exactly do you plan to get there?" he asked skeptically.
Jeff met his gaze directly, his voice as steady as a rock. "I have contacts. Besides, money isn't what matters here. What matters is stopping those individuals who invaded our town, murdered our friends, and took their children. Who's with me?"
Tecro was the first to respond. He placed his hand on the table, his fingers trembling slightly, but his voice was resolute. "After all, Jeff has always looked out for me. I'm with you."
One by one, the other men followed suit, placing their hands over Tecro's in a gesture of unity.
"Good," Jeff said, satisfied, as he pulled out his phone. He dialed a number and waited patiently. "Hello. I know we haven't spoken much lately, but you owe me a favor. With this, we'll settle our debts forever."
The voice on the other end sounded weary but resigned. "Fine. But after this, we're even."
"Yes," Jeff confirmed before hanging up. He then turned to the men. "Be at landing strip five at eight o'clock tonight. We'll say goodbye to our families this afternoon. If any of you are afraid, don't come. I'll understand."
As the men dispersed to prepare, Jeff visited the hospital. In the room, Ana, the head nun, lay connected to machines monitoring her fragile state. Jeff took her hand in his, his knuckles white from the pressure.
"Ana," he murmured, his voice barely a whisper. "I know revenge isn't right, but I need to ease this pain. For you, for my comrades, for the children… I'm about to do something I might regret, but I love you with all my heart." He kissed her hand tenderly before leaving the room, leaving behind a silent promise.
At exactly eight o'clock, ten of the twenty men who had been in the cafeteria showed up at the landing strip. "And the others?" Jeff asked, though he already knew the answer.
"They're not coming," one of the men replied with a shrug.
"Fine," Jeff said, adjusting his belt. "That makes twelve of us in total, including Tecro and me. We're going to take down those bastards."
On the runway, a small plane waited with its door open. The men boarded one by one, and from the cockpit emerged a young woman of twenty-one. Her long black hair, tipped with purple, contrasted sharply with her fair skin. Her brown eyes, both flirtatious and determined, scanned the passengers. It was Michele, Jeff's niece.
"Hi, Uncle Jeff," she greeted him with a forced smile. "I hope this settles our debt."
Jeff studied her closely. "If you help me with this, everything will be forgotten. What did you do to your hair?"
"Well, I wanted a new look. The blonde was too flashy," she replied lightly, though she knew her uncle wouldn't be easily fooled.
"Are you up to something, young lady?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
She quickly changed the subject. "Alright then, destination Nairobi, Kenya."
"And do your parents know where you're going?"
"No, but I'm old enough. Besides, Dad has an entire fleet of planes. One missing won't be a problem."
"You're right," Jeff admitted, though he didn't seem entirely convinced.
Michele introduced her copilot, Choy Jox, a twenty-two-year-old man of Japanese descent with a calm and friendly demeanor. His sleek black hair and warm eyes inspired trust. He greeted Jeff with a slightly shaky handshake.
"Relax, my uncle doesn't bite. And today, he's off duty," Michele joked.
Choy smiled shyly. "Nice to meet you, sir. Have a good flight."
Jeff then introduced Tecro Wong, his partner, who seemed a bit embarrassed when mentioning that he lived with him. "Oh, so you're my uncle's partner and live with him?" Michele teased. "I thought he was a loner, but I see he's got company now."
"Don't be silly, girl," Jeff growled. "He lives with me because we work together, and I rent him a room. Besides, I'm doing this for Ana, who's critically ill in the hospital. The less you know, the better."
Michele nodded, her tone now serious. "I understand, Uncle. Poor Miss Ana Lang."
The plane roared softly as it took off. During the flight, Tecro reviewed the profiles of those responsible for the chaos in Arnoldstein, while Jeff planned their next move. Meanwhile, Michele browsed the news on her tablet. She read chilling headlines: "Danger in the city: Several police officers brutally murdered at the station." Another read: "Mother superior of the orphanage critically injured." And another: "Orphans kidnapped from the Arnoldstein orphanage."
"Oh no," Michele murmured to herself. "What's happening in this world? Could it be connected to what we went through before?"
Her copilot, Choy Jox, observed her curiously as he adjusted some controls in the cockpit. His dark eyes gleamed with a flicker of interest behind his aviator glasses, and his calm expression contrasted sharply with the inquisitive tone of his voice. "What's going on, Michele? What debt was your uncle talking about when he said it would be settled?"
Michele let out a soft sigh, as if weighing how much to reveal. Finally, she turned to him, resting her elbow on the armrest of her seat while gazing out the plane's window. The night sky was speckled with stars, but her mind seemed lost elsewhere, in another time.
"Alright, I'll tell you because you're my best friend," she began, her tone light yet tinged with nostalgia. "When I was a teenager, I did something incredibly stupid. I borrowed one of my dad's small planes without permission. I didn't have real experience—just a few hours of flying I'd sneaked in when no one was looking. I thought it would be fun, you know, to feel free... But everything went wrong."
She paused, as if the words carried more weight than she wanted to admit. "I crashed the plane into Old Tom's barn. Luckily, I wasn't hurt, but the barn was completely destroyed. My dad would've found out right away if it hadn't been for my uncle Jeff."
Choy raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "What did your uncle do?"
"He got there before anyone else," Michele continued, her voice now lower, almost a whisper. "He found me sitting in the middle of the wreckage, trembling and crying like a little kid. He said, 'How could you be so reckless? You could've died or killed someone. All I could do was beg him: Please, Uncle, help me. If my dad finds out, he'll punish me for life.'"
She paused for a moment, recalling Jeff's stern yet compassionate gaze. "He knew he was in a dilemma. His career as a police officer and his ethics were at stake. But he also knew that if he didn't help me, my dad would've gotten me into far worse trouble. So he made a decision: he reported the plane as stolen and convinced everyone it was an external criminal act. My parents only had to pay for the barn repairs, and... well, I didn't end up in jail."
Choy whistled, impressed, leaning back in his seat. "Wow, what a crazy story. I wish I had a cop uncle."
Michele rolled her eyes, though a mischievous smile tugged at her lips. "Yeah, sure, shut up already, Choy," she teased, pretending to be annoyed as she tried to change the subject.
The young pilot raised his hands in surrender, chuckling softly. "Alright, alright, I won't say anything else. But your uncle seems like a pretty cool guy."
The plane began its slow descent, and Michele activated the intercom to announce their arrival. "Attention, we've landed in Nairobi. Everyone buckles up for the final approach."
Once on the ground, the men disembarked one by one, each carrying a mix of determination and nervousness. Jeff approached Michele, who remained by the plane's boarding stairs, watching him with a mixture of admiration and concern.
"Go in peace," he told her firmly, his voice filled with authority but also tenderness. "You've paid your debt. Now let us do what we must."
Michele looked into his eyes, seeing in them an unwavering determination, a resolve that left no room for doubt. She knew there was no way to dissuade him; her uncle was set on facing whatever was necessary to complete his mission. Without another word, she nodded slightly and returned to the plane, leaving the men ready to confront whatever awaited them in Kenya.