A telephone began to ring repeatedly, breaking the silence of the room with its insistent tone. Someone picked up the receiver and answered:
"Hello, Marie, how are you? How's everything going?" said a familiar and friendly voice from the other end.
"Mr. B, how are you? We need your support to solve a case," Marie replied, her tone tinged with urgency, though she tried to keep it subdued.
"Ah! I see. Although I was on break, I'll make an exception for you and for my former pupil, Agent B Twelve. So, you heard about what happened," he responded, maintaining a calm but curious tone.
"Yes," Agent B replied, his voice firm and decisive.
"Good, I'll help you. Where are you?" he asked, ready to take action.
"In Styria, Austria," Marie responded without hesitation.
"Ah! Perfect. I'm nearby, in Vienna," he said enthusiastically. "I'll put on my uniform and head over. I'll be there in an hour. Send me the exact location. See you soon."
Agent B hung up the phone. At that moment, the silhouette of a sixty-year-old man could be seen rising from his bed with determination. He wore an impeccable black suit, paired with a tie and shirt that matched perfectly. He left his apartment, greeting everyone with a polite but distant smile, and descended the stairs to the parking lot. There, a car-shaped cover lay. He lifted it to reveal a vehicle similar to Agent B Twelve's, though this one was an elegant dark green. He got into the car, started the engine, entered the coordinates into the navigation system, and set off, determined to solve the case.
Back at the orphanage, the prospective parents began to arrive. Some children were taken away by their new families, while others still had to wait, including Billy and Maria.
The mother superior felt that something was amiss, though she couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was. For that reason, she decided to inspect all the rooms with the help of her assistant, Elsa, a young novice with rich brown skin, bright brown eyes, and curly hair, though like the other sisters, it wasn't visible because she wore her veil.
"Elsa, you can go and check all the girls' dormitories. I'll take care of the boys' rooms," the mother superior instructed calmly.
Elsa headed to the girls' dormitories, painted a soft pink, while the mother superior went to the boys' rooms, decorated in light blue. Elsa quickly finished her search and met Ana on the third floor of the boys' dormitories.
Maria, noticing that both were checking the dormitories, said to Billy with concern:
"And now what are you going to do if they find out Aiden isn't here? Wait a minute—did you take the pillows from Aiden's bed?" she asked, frightened.
To which Billy responded with a nervous "Oops!"
"You need to hurry—I'm not allowed to go there," Maria warned him.
Billy ran with all his might, though he wasn't very athletic. He climbed the floors as fast as he could, trying to avoid being seen. He reached the fourth floor just as Mother Superior and Elsa were starting to ascend to the fifth. He tiptoed past them, hiding his heavy breathing, and continued to the fifth floor. Once there, he took the hidden pillows and returned them to the closet. However, before he could leave the room, he heard footsteps approaching. With no time to escape, he hid inside the closet with the pillows, closing the door behind him.
Mother Superior and Elsa entered the room, inspecting every corner. Everything seemed normal until, unfortunately, Elsa noticed that the bed was poorly made and a few feathers from the pillows were peeking out of the closet. They opened the door and saw a hand sticking out. Surprised, Elsa pulled the hand, and Billy stumbled out, completely embarrassed.
"Billy, what are you doing here?" the mother superior asked sternly. "You should be downstairs with the others," she scolded him.
"Well, you see, I was afraid of leaving this place, so I decided to hide in the dormitories," Billy stammered nervously.
The mother superior, who had known Billy since he was a child, could tell when he was lying. Her penetrating gaze settled on him, filled with a mix of severity and concern.
"Billy, you're sweating and trembling. Why don't you tell me what happened? I want the truth," she said firmly but calmly, as if giving him one last chance to confess.
Feeling pressured and cornered by the stares of both women, especially Mother Superior's, Billy had no choice but to give in and tell the truth: Aiden had escaped the night before. The mother gasped in frustration and disapproval, bringing a hand to her chest as her face reflected deep concern. Without wasting a moment, she instructed Elsa:
"Elsa, call the police. This is serious."
Elsa ran toward the mother superior's office, where the only telephone in the building was located. In this institution, mobile phones were strictly forbidden; only computers were allowed in the school wing's computer center. However, Aiden, Billy, and other children had learned to use modern phones by secretly watching videos on the internet during the moments when everyone had gone to sleep.
Meanwhile, the mother superior turned her attention back to Billy, whose expression of regret was evident.
"Billy, you're in serious trouble, young man. If you aren't adopted today, you'll have to clean the bathrooms and dining hall for a month," she said severely, though her eyes showed more concern than anger.
Although Billy tried to apologize, insisting that he never usually lied and that he was truly sorry, it was already too late; the punishment had been decided. The mother superior, with a softer but equally firm tone, added:
"Pray that nothing bad has happened to your friend. You don't know all the dangers out there and what could happen to children."
Billy, deeply remorseful, lowered his head and returned to the courtyard with a heavy heart and slumped shoulders. Meanwhile, Elsa dialed the police number. At the other end of the line, a deep voice answered:
"Chief of Police Jeff speaking."
"Yes, Sheriff, good afternoon. This is Elsa from the orphanage. We have a missing child, and we don't know his whereabouts. Please, we need your help to find him," Elsa said urgently.
Jeff exhaled slowly before responding:
"I'm sorry to hear that. Unfortunately, we don't have enough personnel available right now. A large plane has crashed in the forest, causing a massive fire, and we've mobilized our search and rescue unit."
Both men left, though before getting into the car, Jeff couldn't help but glance one last time toward the window, where Ana was still watching him from a distance. It was then that Tecro snapped his fingers in front of him, pulling him out of his reverie.
"Well, we're off," Tecro said with a teasing smile, and the patrol car began to move slowly.
At the same time, an elegant black car arrived in the alley. Out stepped an imposing figure: a tall, distinguished man who removed his sunglasses as he walked toward Marie. He wore an impeccable black suit, a perfectly knotted tie, and gleaming black shoes. His dark mustache, shaped like an eagle's wings, framed a serious expression, while his red eyes glowed intensely beneath his half-black, half-gray hair.
"Hello, Marie," the man greeted her in a deep voice, holding his sunglasses in one hand.
"Ah! Hello, it's you, Agent B," she responded in a neutral tone, though her cheeks flushed slightly pink.
"I feel bad about what happened to one of my pupils. I know you cared for him deeply... and that you liked him," he added with a hint of mischief in his voice.
Marie tried to remain composed, but inside, she was as red as a strawberry. She cleared her throat lightly before responding:
"He's not dead yet; he's just in a coma thanks to the technology we have. I hope he recovers," she said, somewhat annoyed by the insinuation.
"As always, you're reserved, and don't fall for my provocations," Agent B commented with a mischievous smile, chuckling softly. "Anyway, back to why I'm here. This is the artifact we found, but there are no other clues, not even a fingerprint."
Agent B began inspecting the area with his eyes, moving slowly and observing every detail with almost hypnotic concentration. The workers on-site exchanged intrigued glances, murmuring among themselves.
"But what is he doing? All we see is him standing there, staring at the area. Isn't that something we've already done?" One of the workers asked, frowning skeptically.
"Silence, please… let him work," Marie said firmly, silencing the curious onlookers with a calm but authoritative gaze. "Ah! The red eyes of perception can see what happened as if it were a scanner. The only difference is that they can view events as if watching a live movie. It's one of Agent B's unique abilities," she explained, her tone blending admiration and respect, as if revealing a fascinating secret.
Everyone was astonished by Marie's explanation, now observing Agent B with renewed curiosity and respect. In B's eyes, now glowing like burning embers, images of the past are reflected as if a movie were being projected directly into his mind. He could visualize the exact moment of what had happened: every movement, every detail, every shadow. However, something deeply intrigued him. He couldn't perceive the magic emanating from the artifact—a mystery that only strengthened his determination to solve the case.
"So there was another living being by your side, Nick," he murmured to himself, smiling with satisfaction at uncovering a new clue. His mind raced, piecing together the fragments of the puzzle that was beginning to take shape. "Bingo, I know where we need to go. To the kennel."
With renewed determination, Agent B turned toward the team, his red eyes still glowing with intensity. His stance was commanding, radiating confidence and leadership as he prepared to share his discovery and guide them into the next phase of their investigation.