Silence.
No one dared to even breathe loudly after Grace announced the most unexpected news. Everyone just sat there in complete silence, staring at her as if she was suddenly talking in a language they couldn't understand, or maybe they were just waiting for her to announce that it was just a joke.
"I'm being serious." Grace confirmed their worst nightmare without showing an ounce of hesitation. "We are closing our base tonight, and the seven of you will make sure that we will be leaving behind nothing. There should be no trace left for anyone to ever find us once the daylight breaks tomorrow morning."
This time, she waited patiently for them to absorb her words. She just sat there and watched them process the news. She wasn't sure how long it took before finally one of them decided to speak.
"But Boss... why are we closing our base all of a sudden?" It was Valeska who asked the question. The twenty-seven year old's dark orbs were fixed on Grace as she waited for the answer along with the rest of the six members of the inner circle.
Grace looked around at the table, taking in the anxious expressions of each one of them. Each seven of these had been with her since her childhood. She had trained with them, fought with them, and even killed with them. They had spent more than fifteen years together.
All these seven people were highly skilled in keeping their faces expressionless no matter the situation, and yet, they were failing badly in it as they heard her sudden announcement of closing the base that had existed for nearly a century.
"I know that you all have questions. But before I answer them, there's something I want to ask you all. It's a question I asked Kevin earlier today." She spoke while looking at her team members. "Do you all trust me?"
"Yes!"
No hesitation. No second-thoughts. No regrets. They all answered in unison without missing even a second.
Grace felt some kind of weight immediately lifting off from her shoulders once she heard their answer. With a little nod of her head, she continued, "Then I want all seven of you to trust my decision of closing our base. If we all want to survive, we need to end things before it's too late for us."
Her words made the seven exchange worried glances among them. "Boss, is something bad going to happen?" Jasper asked.
Grace let out a small sigh and nodded her head in response. "We will have to get ready for a dangerous upcoming disaster. It's a top secret in the government and I only found out about it this morning through my secret sources. So make sure not to talk about it in front of anyone else."
After she saw all seven of them nodding their heads in understanding, she continued, "But the main reason for closing our base are our own people."
The shock and confusion of the seven was evident on their faces as they exchanged more glances among themselves, wondering what she really meant by her statement.
"Is something wrong with our people?" Maven asked, focusing his full attention toward her.
"The outer circle has rebellious intentions." Grace revealed, taking everyone by surprise even though they all had questioned the outer circle's loyalty toward her at least once in the past. "They want to replace me, and if I don't stop them, they might succeed sooner or later."
"How dare they! I knew Daniel and his men are up to no good." Kevin growled in anger. He had never been a fan of the outer circle and their leader Daniel.
"What's your plan, Boss?" Aleena asked from where she sat next to Kevin. Despite her charming face and kind appearance, the coldness and killing intent in her eyes were shining brightly - a sharp contrast that always left everyone stunned.
At the question, Grace shifted her attention toward Ryan. "You have more than enough evidence to prove Daniel's disloyalty toward the Blackwoods, right?" She asked the man who had been secretly following Daniel for the past three years and had collected all information about his plans against Grace.
In her previous life, she knew about Daniel's plans but always ignored them. After the apocalypse hit the Earth, she didn't want to throw him out thinking that it would be very inhumane of her. Little did she knew how foolish she was for thinking like that.
But in this life, she was determined to not repeat another such stupid mistake. She would never allow someone like Daniel to become a threat to her.
"I have more than enough to erase his very existence." Ryan answered with a proud grin that had the rest of the six members staring at him in shock. They clearly had no idea about his secret task.
"Wait. Even if Daniel is at fault, there are hundreds of people in the outer circle. What will happen to them if we will close the base?" Maven asked. He wasn't really questioning Grace's decision but was actually trying to know her detailed plan.
"It's because of those people that we need to close the base. Most of the men in the outer circle are more loyal to Daniel than they are to me. As for those who aren't yet, they will in a matter of time. Since we can't go around killing hundreds of people overnight, closing the base and leaving them with nothing would be the best solution." Grace explained.
The seven nodded their heads in understanding as they finally knew the reason behind her sudden decision.
"And what about Daniel? How are you going to handle him? Do you want to hand him over to the authorities?" Kevin asked only for Grace to shake her head in denial.
Her eyes held a deadly intent as she answered, "We can't risk attracting authorities' attention toward us when we are trying to erase our traces. I have a perfect plan for Daniel, one that he deserves for betraying me. I must seek my revenge tonight."