"What happened here?" repeated the burly man with a gentle but masculine voice.
However, the old man remained silent, avoiding eye contact with the burly man's bright blue eyes.
"You heard him. What happened here?" said the girl in a sassy tone.
The old man started fidgeting his fingers as drops of sweat rolled down his wrinkled face.
"Seems like this guy redeemed himself an electrifying experience." said the girl as her disappointed smile slowly shaped into a wide grin.
"Stop threatening him."
"What is there to hide? Just tell us what happened and no one will get hurt." comforted the burly man.
"Y-y-you don't understand..." whispered the old man with shaky hands.
"They'll... they'll fucking kill me!" cried the old man abruptly. He then gripped his tangled hair tightly with his weak hands and stared blankly at the dusty concrete floor.
"Tch, this old man is really pissing me off."
The girl suddenly raised her pistol and pointed at the trembling old man.
"Cecilia, stop." said the man with the hoarse voice.
"You said that "they" will kill you. So who is... they?" the man with the hoarse voice was immediately intrigued.
"I don't know anything. Please leave me alone." immediately replied the old man.
"Just tell us. I assure you that you'll be kept in safe hands." assured the man with the hoarse voice.
The old man stared at the floor and closed his mouth tight. Silence ensued with only the sound of rainwater striking the ground.
"Anyways..."
BANG
Cecilia shot the old man's left leg with an indifferent face. Blood splattered and spewed from the old man's wounds throughout the room. He cried in pain and wailed.
"Cecilia, you dumb bitch. You just fucking exposed our presence!" shouted the man with the hoarse voice.
"Humph, I believe this idiot's cries from before had already warned them. That was the reason why I wanted to shoot him dead at that moment. They probably escaped by now, and I believe this old man is just here to act as an alarm."
"So how about you three boys go search the upper floors, while I stay here to... to interrogate him." said Cecilia with a sweet smile plastered on her delicate face.
"Cecilia, you better not kill him." warned the burly man with a hint of worry.
With pistols at the ready, the two men and the robot rushed up the stairs.
.....
The old man's wailing of pain slowly calmed down. He was lying limp on the floor like a starving animal, and soon his breathing stabilized.
"Finished?" said Cecilia with a pitiful face.
"Fuck, I'm gonna die of blood loss. Please, please save me. I can't feel my left leg." begged the old man as he dragged his blood-stained legs towards Cecilia.
"You know, things wouldn't have turned out like this if you chose to cooperate with us." said Cecilia with disdain.
"Just tell me what you want. I'll give it to you." said the old man with a desperate tone.
"Fine. Tell me everything you know and I'll maybe save you."
"Please, I don't think I could last any longer." begged the old man.
Looking at the extremely fragile old man, Cecilia took out a roll of compression bandages from her pocket and tossed it at the old man. "You'll have to wait for medical treatment once the robot comes back. Wrap these bandages around your wound and do not pull the bullet out."
The old man immediately wrapped his gunshot wound and the gushing blood stained the bandages crimson red.
"Now that your concerns are over, you'd better be speaking, or else your other leg would also have a hole."
A sigh escaped the old man's lips as he gasped for air.
"It was 2 years ago. Do you still remember those refugees and convicts sent to our planet? Some of these refugees started occupying our town and they brought with them some weird ritualistic traditions."
"And since most refugees were as poor as me, they started populating these abandoned houses and they would drive away homeless people like me."
"The same thing happened to this building. When the refugees came, I sneaked up to the upper floors out of curiosity and discovered the remains of the other man who live in this abandoned apartment. They must have killed the man who lived on the 3rd floor of this apartment and I think they're using his body to perform some ritualistic sacrifice for a "magic god". So when I discovered this dark secret, I decided to back away from these refugees and left this building voluntarily.
"Then why are you still here?" asked Cecilia with a curious tone.
The old man sighed and continued, "I don't know how they did it, but they realized that I knew about their dark secret and they held me captive."
"I was lucky because most of the townspeople knew me or else I would have been like the guy on the 3rd floor."
"They made me live on the first floor so I couldn't interrupt their business. In addition to that, they threatened to kill me if I were to expose their dark secret."
"Why were you unconscious and why was your face bruised?" asked Cecilia.
"Heh, I tried escaping by sneaking out and I successfully escaped. But again, they mysteriously discovered the location I had been and followed my tracks. After finding me, they gave me a beating and dragged me back to the apartment."
"As for how I became unconscious, I can't recall. I was conscious when they dragged me back, so I must have fallen asleep."
"Interesting... How many people are in this refugee group and what are they like?" questioned Cecilia.
"This... this group of people may seem like some sort of secret organization or cult, but from what I have seen I think they're more of a..." the old man hesitated as he thought of something.
"More of a what?" asked Cecilia with growing irritation.
"Ahem, I'm sorry. I believe this group of refugees is more of a family ."
"How do you know?" said Cecilia.
"At night when there is absolute silence, I can sometimes hear faint voices of children coming from above. Also, when the refugees came, I saw them carrying many housewares. However, I didn't see any children when they came in."
"Hmm, a family. How sweet..." mumbled Cecilia. "Anyways, are there any notable members within this group?"
"Actually, the family that I spoke of is not the entire group. There is another group within the group, and they are most likely the killers. This group is probably composed of cultists who worship the "God of magic". I believe these cultists traveled with the family to stay lowkey." said the old man with a wary look.
"They were also the ones that threatened and attacked me." added the old man.
"I appreciate your corporation." said Cecilia as walked closer to the old man. She then skillfully struck the old man in the carotid artery, causing the old man to lose consciousness and fall on Cecilia's arms.
Cecilia gently laid the old man on the floor and quickly informed the two men on her phone-like gadget about the real situation.