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NXX Group Chat
Thursday, 6:36 p.m.
King: Gentlemen
King: This chat has literally been dead for two weeks
Thursday, 8:23 p.m.
King: Guys?
Thursday, 8:47 p.m.
King: Hello???? did we make a new group chat or sth??? y’all are still here right
Friday, 10:01 a.m.
Adjudicator: @King please refrain from spamming in the chat. I will not hesitate to temporarily suspend your communication privileges if further infractions are made.
King: RUDE
King: I sent FOUR texts doc
King: I dont think you understand what spamming is
Friday, 10:23 a.m.
Libra: @King please be patient. Adjudicator and I are very busy at the moment.
Friday, 10:29 a.m.
King: Ohh like im not busy as well???
Libra: That’s not what I meant.
Libra: Listen. I know you are very stressed about the current situation—trust me, I understand.
Libra: But surely you also realize that it has been incredibly difficult to track down further clues thus far.
King: Ok, ok, I get it
King: But dont you DARE tell me you understand. Its highly likely that Rogue betrayed us and thats why we’re in this mess
Libra: That has not been confirmed yet. I believe in presuming innocence until proven guilty.
King: Uh huh. Totally not suspicious that his codename is literally Rogue
Libra: That is an incredibly petty argument.
Libra: And as usual, I’m guessing your theory on Rogue explains exactly what happened to Chevalier?
Adjudicator: @King @Libra We are not going to be arguing about this right now. Fighting when we lack information is a waste of time. If you must discuss this, please do so in your own time or arrange a separate meeting at headquarters.
Adjudicator: Nevertheless, I agree that King’s theory has some level of substance to it.
King: Thank you.
Libra: Very well, I will wait to discuss this further this Sunday at 3:00 p.m. I will do my best to have found something new when we meet then.
King: ??? we dont have a meeting scheduled for sunday??
Libra: I was merely taking Adjudicator up on his offer, so yes, we do have a meeting scheduled now.
Libra: “If you must discuss this, please do so in your own time or arrange a separate meeting at headquarters.”
King: ok you didnt actually have to quote him, I couldve just scrolled up
Adjudicator: Very well. Headquarters at 3:00 p.m. on Sunday it is.
Adjudicator: I expect the discussion to be somewhat fruitful.
King: You dont get to talk to me about expectations when you didnt even make sure whether I was free
Adjudicator: You can make time.
Adjudicator has muted the chat. You may not send messages until the admin opens the chat for discussion again.
The time is 3:05. Vyn is nowhere to be seen.
Marius glances at his watch and resists the urge to grumble something about the importance of punctuality.
Artem says it for him. “He’s late.”
Since the two of them had only arrived approximately ten minutes ago, the air conditioner is just beginning to cool the room down. Marius dabs at his forehead with his sleeve. If Vyn was going to choose not to be on time, maybe he shouldn’t have rushed out from his office so quickly.
Marius opens the NXX group chat to check for updates, but nothing has changed. The chat is still muted. He glances at Artem. “Are you willing to wait?”
Artem nods, but he doesn’t look pleased about it. The glint in his eyes seems frostier than usual, but maybe that was just from the bright fluorescent lights in this room. Marius adjusts his watch, using it as an opportunity to check the time again. It is 3:08.
“Do you have a set time you need to leave?” Artem asks.
Marius scoffs. “I had to make time for this, remember? I’m good for the next two hours.”
Okay, two hours was just an estimate—what he really meant was that he was only willing to stay here for two hours, max. He’s not going to spend the rest of his Sunday in Vyn’s quiet, unlived-in mansion. He wants to go home so he can eat whatever dinner Payton is making tonight and maybe watch TV with his father, if Austin is up for it. Austin hasn’t been up to do much with Marius these days.
But it’s fine. Marius understands. It really, really sucks, but he gets it.
“So, did you find anything new?” Marius casually throws at Artem.
Artem’s lips form a thin line. “Unfortunately, nothing much.”
“Do we even have to meet up for this, then?”
Artem checks his watch, prompting Marius to do the same thing again. It’s now past 3:10. “If Vyn doesn’t show up by 4:00, I think we can go home. People should show up to meetings they are expected to attend.”
“Yeah, unless he’s sick or something,” Marius agrees. Exhaling loudly, he finds the usual chair he sits in during these meetings and tries to make himself comfortable. It’s next to the extra chair that Vyn claims Giann liked to take naps in, but that wasn’t something that Marius had the chance to learn for himself. He tries to distract himself from the thought by focusing on the sound of footsteps—or rather, Artem walking away to the mini kitchen and putting the kettle on. He’s probably going to make himself some coffee. Marius has never seen Artem go a day without coffee.
As the water begins to boil, Marius pulls up his laptop and opens Solitaire. Artem eventually returns with a hot mug of black coffee and props up his own laptop on the table. They spend several minutes in silence, although Marius is almost certain that Artem is doing something much more serious and professional than Solitaire on his computer.
The text message doesn’t come in until 3:27.
Sunday, 3:27 p.m.
Vyn: Hi, Marius. I regret to inform you I will not be able to attend today’s scheduled event. Please pass along the message to whom this might concern.
Marius: Whom this might concern?? you mean mister 99% over here with me?
Vyn: Yes. Anyway, I apologize for wasting your time.
Marius: Nooo hold on
Marius: You, like, never text me
Marius: You always call, or send emails instead
Marius: Which, like, yeah, ok. I get it. Its your style
Marius: But, canceling this late?? what happened lol
Vyn: Nothing. I have only decided that I wish to remain home today.
Vyn: You do not have to check on me. Evrytig id fine
Marius: *everything is
Marius switches off his phone. “Vyn says he’s not coming.”
Artem lowers his laptop screen. “He messaged you?”
Marius nods. “Yeah. Something about wanting to stay home today?” He frowns, a hint of anxiety beginning to gnaw at him. From what Marius knows about Vyn, that’s not like the doctor. Vyn always lets him know in advance if he can’t make a tutoring session, with his fancy schmancy vocabulary and emails that take too long to read. Even the typo—although hilarious—feels off. After another moment of thought, Marius opens his messages and shows the text to Artem.
Artem skims over the brief conversation. “You didn’t have to correct his spelling.”
Marius skirts past the intense desire to throw his hands up in exasperation. “That’s not what you’re supposed to focus on. Come on, I’m trying to tell you something.”
Artem points at Vyn’s profile picture near the bottom of the screen. “He didn’t even read your attempt to correct him.”
“Wait.” Marius pauses. Time seems to slow as he tries to pick the right words to say, but he can’t find any. “He… didn’t?”
Marius and Artem exchange glances at the same time, and this time, Marius sees something stormy behind the attorney’s gaze.
Sunday, 3:46 p.m.
Marius: Uh. doc?? you ok?
Sunday, 3:50 p.m.
Marius: Hello???
Marius: hey we’re getting kinda worried. haha
Sunday, 4:11 p.m.
Marius: We’re coming over
Marius: I told you in advance so you cant be mad at us, ok??
Vyn’s car is still parked in his driveway, so unless something truly did happen, he should be home. Surprisingly, there is enough space outside for both Artem and Marius to park their cars. Something uneasy is writhing in Artem’s stomach as he gets out of his car and locks it. He has only been with the NXX Investigation Team for two months, but in the past month, two of their members have managed to vanish entirely. It has been extremely difficult to label these disappearances as voluntary, but even at this point, Artem can’t jump to any conclusions.
And Marius? Marius has only been with them for three weeks, having been roped into the team just days after Giann’s disappearance. Marius is young, which wouldn’t be much of a problem if he wasn’t a bit volatile at the moment. He’s worried about his brother, just like how Artem is worried about Neil. Understanding this doesn’t make it any easier to interact with him.
Compared to Vyn, Artem and Marius are new recruits. Vyn founded the NXX Investigation Team with Neil and Giann. Artem hates to think it, but Vyn has to be all right. Artem and Marius cannot be the NXX Investigation Team by themselves. Marius hasn’t even finished reading through their backlog of confidential, member-only files. They don’t have all the information needed between them to run this group.
Artem lingers behind as Marius walks up to Vyn’s porch and rings the doorbell.
“Hello?” Marius calls, ringing the doorbell several more times in succession.
Artem heads over to Marius. “Wouldn’t it be better to try calling him?”
Marius glances at Artem. “Why me?”
“We don’t really… call.” Artem doesn’t even have Vyn’s number saved on his phone. He just picks up on every ‘Unknown Number’ call, and sometimes, it happens to be Vyn.
Marius gives him an incredulous look. “Then how do you stay in contact?”
“That isn’t relevant right now.” Artem waves the question aside. Knowing Marius, the younger man would probably make fun of his and Vyn’s communication methods, and he isn’t in the mood for that at present.
Marius sighs. “Fine. I’ll dial him, then.” He pulls out his phone and taps on a name in his contacts list. Several long seconds pass. “He’s not picking up.”
“That’s clear enough.” Artem hums thoughtfully. He glances at the windows to see if he can peer through them, but all the curtains are drawn. His fingers curl into his palms, nails digging into his skin. “It’s possible that he is not home.” It’s possible that he disappeared, too.
“Let’s check.” Marius moves away from the porch and wanders over to the side of the house facing the garden.
Artem follows after him. “What are you doing?”
“Just a tip I got from Giann some time back,” Marius says. He hesitates, but continues. “Vyn keeps a spare key outside for emergencies.”
“He… does?” Artem isn’t sure why he finds this so surprising. Leaving a key outside has never seemed entirely sensible to him, but then again, Artem also remembers the few times he had accidentally locked himself out and had to call someone for help. Perhaps the more surprising thing is that Giann had thought this information useful enough to give Marius.
Was that suspicious? Giann and Marius hadn’t even been part of the NXX Investigation Team at the same time. Artem eyes Marius, wondering if the new Pax CEO had anything to do with Neil’s disappearance. He already knows that Marius is good at putting on a brave front and telling necessary lies to others. But what if the façade went further? What if Giann and Marius had been working together to plan something?
“Found it!” Marius picks up something shiny and holds it up for Artem to see. From the circular water mark on the ground and the plant pot beside it, Artem can only deduce that the key had been underneath the pot.
They head back to the front door to try the key, but it doesn’t fit in the lock.
“Try the back door,” Artem suggests, crossing his arms.
Marius steps away from the porch. “I’m already on it.”
As they approach the back door, Marius’ phone beeps. Artem surges forward. “Was that Vyn?”
Marius glances at his phone. “No. Just my PA. Something about work.”
For some reason, the false alarm only makes the unease within Artem tighten and constrict. He folds his arms behind his back, trying not to seem uncomfortable, as he waits for Marius to open the door.
It’s dark inside. The curtains are drawn, the lights are out, and there is no one sitting in the living room. If it wasn’t for all the spotless furniture and a yet-to-be rinsed tea saucer sitting on the coffee table, Artem would have thought Vyn’s mansion was a nicely furnished but unoccupied home.
Marius inhales sharply as he rounds the coffee table.
“What?” Artem instinctively asks.
Marius shakes his head. “Nothing. Just…” He crouches down and picks up a teacup from the ground. The rug, which is miraculously unstained, must have stopped it from shattering upon contact. As Marius sets the teacup down on its saucer, Artem can see a few remaining drops of tea inside. Either Vyn has spontaneously fled, or he is still somewhere inside the house. Somehow, it doesn’t seem very much like Vyn not to do his dishes if he is planning to leave. Artem finds his gaze trailing to the stairs near the back of the house.
Marius echoes his thoughts. “We should check upstairs.”
Artem nods.
The second floor seems smaller than the ground floor. There is a room that Artem suspects to be Vyn’s, given the lab coat hanging on a rack in the corner and the neatly stacked documents on the desk across the bed. The only other room on this floor is the bathroom, where the sink is still wet. Vyn is still nowhere to be seen.
As Marius double checks the hall for hidden doors—a ridiculous notion, but Artem lets him anyway—Artem considers the other rooms on the ground floor they have not yet inspected. There is the kitchen, of course, but if Vyn accidentally tipped over a cup and left a saucer behind, he doubts that Vyn is in there. There might be another bathroom for guests. And for a house as large as this, perhaps there is a second bedroom that might function as a guest bedroom.
Without waiting for Marius, Artem turns and heads downstairs. He hears quick footsteps as Marius hurries after him.
“Any luck?” Artem asks, knowing full well that if Marius had actually found anything, he would have been notified immediately.
“What do you think?” Marius says.
Artem shrugs. “Do you know how many bedrooms this house has?”
To his credit, Marius goes along with the change in topic instantly. “Two, maybe? I know there’s one downstairs because Doc left the door open one time when I came over for a tutoring session.”
That meant Artem’s guess was right. “Let’s go.”
Marius blinks. “Uh, okay.”
Marius shows Artem the location of the guest bedroom, and Artem opens the door and steps inside. He notices that Artem checks the door for a lock. Surprisingly, this room doesn’t have one. Marius makes a note to put a chair against the door if he is ever forced to stay over at Vyn’s for some reason or another. The thought of the psychiatrist barging in for some reason or another and seeing Marius’ rubber ducky pajamas is an idea too horrifying to comprehend right now.
Marius shoves the image away. At any rate, the more horrifying thing would be if something actually happened to Vyn. He doesn’t have to like the doctor to admit that. If Giann had been friends with Vyn, that was enough to place a bit of trust in him.
When they enter the guest bedroom, nothing seems out of place. There is a single bed, a window with the curtains drawn in front of it, a bedside table, and a small wardrobe in the corner of the room. Marius turns to check on Artem, but the other man is heading toward the wardrobe.
Wait. Does he really think—
Artem pulls open the wardrobe doors.
Inside, with his knees pulled close against his chest, is Vyn. He peers up at the two of them with wide, golden eyes.
For a moment, it is all the three of them can do to stare at each other. If there was anything Marius was about to say, it instantly vanishes.
Then Vyn narrows his eyes and shifts himself so he can see them better. “What, exactly, are the two of you doing in my house?”
It’s a bit of an embarrassing position to be found in, with his body tightly squeezed into the wardrobe. Vyn does not particularly enjoy being forced to look up at Marius and Artem from this height, which, of course, is even worse than his normal standing height.
“Why didn’t you respond?” Marius demands, holding up his phone.
Vyn sniffs in what he hopes is a self-righteous manner. Artem is standing behind Marius, arms behind his back as he watches quietly. Did they arrive here under any pretense? From Marius’ tone, he sounds genuinely worried, and if Artem is here, he must have been somewhat concerned as well.
“My phone ran out of battery,” Vyn responds carefully.
“Why?” Artem asks, and although it is such a simple question, Vyn’s lips curl slightly in disgust. It should have been an obvious answer, and he does not care to be judged by Artem Wing in particular right now.
“If I am not online, there is always a valid reason,” Vyn says.
Marius crosses his arms. “If I didn’t know any better, I would assume that you’re here because you’re…”
Vyn sends him a sharp look, hoping to stop him in his tracks.
Marius hesitates, but he finishes anyway. “...Hiding.” Behind him, Artem nods, so they are both clearly in agreement. Vyn glares at them. Since when have Artem and Marius ever agreed on anything?
Well, another point remains—the assumption may be correct, but the fact that they were able to come to this conclusion so quickly is worrying. If either Marius or Artem is a mole responsible for Giann or Neil’s disappearances, Vyn may be in very great danger right now. And even if he doubts the idea of Artem and Marius both being traitors, there is no such thing as being too careful.
Marius sighs and places his hands on his hips. “Well, whatever your reasons are, we’re here. You can do your dishes and charge your phone now if you want.”
“Additionally,” Artem pipes up, “since we are all present, we can have our meeting if you are able.”
Vyn is in no mood to listen to Marius and Artem throw increasingly petty arguments about Giann and Neil at each other, but for the sake of appearing strong, he drags a palm over his face and climbs out of the wardrobe. “Fine. If you wish to hold your meeting here, you may do so.”
“Our meeting,” Marius says.
Vyn does not bother to respond. He thinks back to the events of this morning: the mysterious package that had appeared in front of his doorstep, the delivery man standing by the garden with a cap obscuring his face, the dark van by the gate with tinted windows. Vyn had not been expecting a delivery, nor had he ordered anything recently. Remembering that Giann had vanished when picking up a package certainly did not help things, either. The rational solution, Vyn had decided, was to lock himself up in his house and hide until the threat went away on its own.
Vyn heads out of the room, not waiting for Artem and Marius to follow. “Leave the curtains as they are,” he tells them. “We can convene upstairs.”
Apparently, ‘convening upstairs’ meant sitting in the second floor hallway, in the dark, with a freshly brewed pot of tea and leftover croutons from a salad Vyn claimed to have put together the day before. Artem exchanges glances with Marius. It was seeming more and more that Marius had been correct about Vyn hiding from something.
“Vyn,” Artem begins slowly. “Is something wrong?”
Vyn slowly turns from the phone charger he has just finished plugging in behind him, his eyes gleaming with something hostile. “Perhaps so. I do not wish to elaborate on this.”
“Doc, come on, you were hiding in the guest bedroom,” Marius says, and Artem nods in his direction to acknowledge the subtle support. “That’s not like you.”
“Besides, I think we have reason to ask if whatever happened made you miss a meeting and not answer your phone,” Artem adds.
Vyn glares at him. “If I do not desire to be interrogated, I expect that you will respect my boundaries.”
Artem stifles a loud sigh. When Vyn gets like this, it is practically impossible to get anything out of him. Instead of pushing the other man further, he picks up a dry crouton and tosses it into his mouth. It’s fairly well seasoned. Artem would probably use it in a Caesar salad.
“Vyn,” Marius says, “it’s not an interrogation and you know it. We’re literally hiding out in the hallway for you, which is pretty suspicious in and of itself. You’re giving off so many warning signs that you might as well be an actual hazard.” He exhales loudly and looks away, his gaze falling on the floor. “When Giann disappeared, there wasn’t anything leading up to it, okay? So forgive us—forgive me—if we came all the way just to see if you were still here.”
Vyn tenses. It only happens in a fraction of a second, but Artem ends up noticing anyway.
“Keep an eye on your notifications next time, yeah?” Marius grumbles, crossing his arms. “I don’t care if your phone dies, ‘cause I’m gonna immediately assume it’s an emergency. Get a portable charger. It’ll save us trouble in the long run.”
Artem finds himself agreeing with Marius. He would never mention it, of course, but Marius has gained a certain level of respect in the way he managed to get straight to the point. And of course, there is something else for Vyn to glean, too. Marius is sincere, so much so that any more ideas about him conspiring together with his brother immediately fades away. If even Artem can tell, it must be ridiculously easy for Vyn to read.
Vyn sips his tea. His hands are trembling when he sets the cup on a saucer again. “Fine. I understand your concerns.”
“So you’re gonna tell us what’s going on?” Marius says.
Vyn’s gaze flickers over to Artem. Artem arches a brow at him. Vyn rolls his eyes in return and sighs. “Very well.”
They have him cornered. Maybe it was a deliberate act on Marius’ part, or some kind of good cop, bad cop scheme the two of them have plotted. But there is also truth in Marius’ plea. The tea is beginning to grow cold, so Vyn refills his cup to buy himself more time.
Besides, Marius had brought up Giann. For Vyn and Marius, that particular disappearance is still raw. Artem will not understand that in the same way because he is focused so strongly on Neil.
But—Giann. It always came back to Giann, didn’t it? Vyn sets down the teapot, trying to push away the usual concerns that came whenever he thought about Giann. They had founded the medical research center together. It was Giann who had introduced Vyn to Marius and Austin, and who had pushed Vyn to take on Marius as a student. And it was Giann who had vanished first. Not Neil. Vyn and Neil had only ever been professionally acquainted.
But perhaps that was not true, either.
Neil cackles with the laughter of a man far beyond his years. “Come on, tell me it looks good.”
“You look like a hooligan,” Giann deadpans.
“Excellent, excellent.” Neil guffaws, spinning around with his oversized coat and faded loose trousers. His hair, usually pulled back into a low ponytail, falls loose around his shoulders. It’s surprising how much younger he looks with it dyed black. “It must be perfect, then.”
“Do not forget the most important accessory.” Vyn presses an empty wine bottle onto Neil’s open palm. Neil’s fingers curl around it instinctively.
When Neil holds the bottle up to his face, his eyes widen. “Well, jeepers.”
Giann snorts. “‘Jeepers’? That’s a new one.”
“I’m trying to get into character,” Neil retorts.
“No, you still would say ‘jeepers’ even if you were not in character,” Vyn says, and Giann nods enthusiastically in response.
“ANYWAY,” Neil interrupts, “are my eyes failing me, or is this a genuine vintage Ferro?”
“It used to be,” Vyn answers. There was no need to elaborate further. It was simply something he had lying around at home.
“Wait, seriously?” Giann says. “How did you get your hands on that?”
Vyn deliberately angles his face so the light gives his glasses a dramatic tint. “I have my ways.”
“Psh, you’re probably just friendly with one of the Svartian importers,” Neil says. Even though that is close enough to the real reason, Vyn scoffs, as if Neil could not be any further from the truth. Neil snickers and tears the label off. “Well, it’ll still work for our purposes.”
“Seriously, Vyn, any cheap wine would have done,” Giann says.
Vyn glares at him. “Are you even aware of what constitutes cheap wine?”
Giann shrugs. “Sixty bucks a bottle?”
Neil shakes his head disapprovingly. “Spoken like someone who has never tried the kind of wine sold for a tenth of that.”
Vyn nods severely. “The problems of the rich, am I correct?”
Neil whistles and holds up his hand for a high five. Vyn returns the gesture.
Giann turns on Vyn, his hands gripping the back of his head like he can’t take this any longer. “You’re literally royalty!”
Vyn smirks. “That is not what the general public believes.”
Vyn glances up at Marius and Artem, who are still waiting expectantly for an answer. He digs his nails into his palms to anchor himself, then relaxes before he can cause himself any real pain.
“There was a delivery this morning,” Vyn begins. “I thought it was odd, considering I was not expecting anything to be sent over.”
Marius frowns. It does not take much analyzing for Vyn to guess he is probably thinking about Giann’s own circumstances.
“The situation felt suspicious,” Vyn continues. “From the van outside my house to the fact I could not see the delivery man’s face. And when I thought about the previous… incidents…” Vyn trails off, already annoyed at himself for hesitating. But the little pauses in his sentences are nothing compared to the alarm of Marius and Artem finding him in the cramped guest room wardrobe.
“You assumed the worst,” Artem finishes.
“Wait, so you’re saying that—” Marius leans forward, half of his face buried in his hands, “—that someone could be after you.”
That was what Vyn had thought, too. First Giann, then Neil? It was not enough to be a decisive pattern, and yet some part of him could not help but wonder if he was going to be next. The idea that there was an unknown enemy out there who was slowly gleaning the NXX Investigation Team, one member at a time, was not necessarily grounded in concrete evidence, but it was something that felt believable all the same. Although Vyn knows that uncomfortable truths should be confronted when they are unveiled, it would certainly be easier than believing that there was a traitor in their midst.
And… he misses them more than he should. He had not known he would be left alone like this, left behind as the only thing keeping the team’s original vision alive.
Neil and Giann had always seemed older, more experienced. Even Giann, with all his tomfoolery, had been trained since he was young to take over his father’s company. And now here Vyn is, stuck with Giann’s little brother and Neil’s favorite prodigy when all he wants is the original NXX Investigation Team back again. Not their lackluster replacements. Not people who are still settling into their roles in the team.
“I am not certain if there is someone truly after me,” Vyn says. “But I thought it would be best to take precautions.”
If he vanished, too, would he be whisked away to the same place Giann or Neil, or perhaps both, are held? Or would he end up dead in a river somewhere, only to be found days later by the local police?
To lure out the enemy is too big of a risk to take right now. The team has only just begun to pick itself up, and as much as he hates to admit it, Vyn is needed here. He cannot leave behind Marius and Artem mere weeks after allowing them into the investigation team.
Artem nods slowly. “I agree. I still think you should have answered your phone—”
“It was dead,” Vyn insists.
Artem lets him finish, then continues. “—but I think being careful was a good decision.”
“I mean, at least we’re here now, right?” Marius adds.
Vyn lowers his gaze to the floor. At least they’re here now? Is that a comforting sentiment at all? For all he knows, one of them could still be a traitor.
And yet, he feels safe. Vyn knows he cannot always trust his feelings, but his pulse is far more steady than it was in the dark wardrobe. He is no longer listening for footsteps or other signs of intruders. Instead, he is sitting here with tea and croutons, and the wide hallway feels more secure than the enclosed wardrobe space.
Vyn sighs. “I appreciate—”
Before he can say whatever he had been planning to say (I appreciate that you came, how mortifying), the phone beside him vibrates.
Artem starts when Vyn’s phone screen lights up. He hopes that no one noticed, but barely anything tends to escape under Vyn’s hawklike gaze.
“Uh…” Marius begins. “Are you gonna pick up?”
Vyn unplugs his phone from the charger. “It is an unknown number,” he mutters.
That seemed suspicious. But maybe it was only a coincidence? Since Artem doesn’t have Vyn’s contact saved, Vyn always appears on his phone as an unknown number. He knows he should probably remedy that, but the idea of having Vyn saved in his contact list doesn’t sit right with him, especially since Vyn has opinions about Neil that Artem strongly disagrees with.
Vyn taps the green ‘accept call’ button and puts the phone on speaker.
“Hi, is this Dr. Vyn Richter?” A cheery voice greets them.
Artem raises his eyebrows at Marius, who shrugs in response.
Vyn creases his brow. “...Yes.”
“Ah, okay! I was just notified that one of our guys mistakenly dropped off a package at your address, but they’re a newbie, so they mixed up a detail or two.”
“I see,” Vyn says.
“So if you still have the package, I’ll get someone to pick it up and deliver it to the right place,” the voice continues.
Vyn glances at Artem and Marius, mouthing a question at them. Artem can’t lip read very well, but he understands the general idea. Artem shakes his head and whispers, “I didn’t see a package outside.”
Vyn nods in acknowledgement. “No, I do not believe it is with me at the moment.”
“Ohh, I see. That’s all right, then—it means someone else should have already corrected the mistake. Sorry to bother you, Dr. Richter. Have a good afternoon.”
“Yes,” Vyn says. “Goodbye.” He hangs up and puts his phone down beside him, a blank look in his eyes.
After a short pause, Marius brings his hands together in a single clap. “There we have it,” he says. “Looks like it was just a mix-up. Everything should be all clear now.”
Artem wrinkles his nose in sympathy. He understands how it feels to make a fuss out of nothing, even though Vyn was more than justified considering the events of the past few weeks. But now it feels a bit silly for the three of them to be sitting here in the dark with nothing left to talk about. Although the topic is still relevant, discussing Neil and Giann’s disappearances doesn’t feel appropriate now—especially considering how the three of them in this hallway believed that Vyn was in danger of going missing, too.
If Vyn had really disappeared this afternoon, Artem doesn’t know if he would still have it in him to argue about Neil and Giann’s respective innocence. Even if it was impetuous of him and Marius to have rushed over, he would still do it again if something similar were to happen again. He may not be too fond of Marius or Vyn, but they are all that is left of the NXX Investigation Team. Disagreeing over Neil and Giann won’t change that fact.
Vyn clears his throat softly. “Well, gentlemen,” he says, “Now that the matter has been resolved, I think we can conclude this meeting.”
Marius gives him a bemused look, but doesn’t argue otherwise.
“I will show you out the door,” Vyn continues. “I trust that we will not need to speak of this incident again.”
Artem gets it. He came all the way here with Marius when they could have stayed at the Victorian mansion and spent half an hour arguing. Plus, Vyn had been honest with them about his concerns, and though it was not for long, Artem can’t remember the last time—if there ever was such a time—that they were all in agreement like this. Now that they know everything is fine, the atmosphere is beginning to get quite awkward and uncomfortable.
“Yup.” Marius pops the ‘p’ as he rises to his feet and dusts off his hands. “Good timing, Doc. I gotta get home for dinner.”
True to his word, Vyn accompanies Marius and Artem as they leave. He is the last down the stairs, leaving the teapot, teacups, and croutons in the hallway for him to clean up later. As it will be getting dark soon, Vyn allows the curtains to remain closed and switches on the lights in the living room.
Marius tosses him something small and metallic, and through some miracle or another, Vyn actually catches it. It isn’t until the object falls into his hands when he realizes it is his spare key.
“Keep that in the same place, yeah?” Marius says. “For emergencies.”
Vyn narrows his eyes. At least that explained how Artem and Marius managed to get into his house. “I will see about that.”
Marius winks, and for a second, he looks so much like Giann that Vyn is thrown into some nondescript moment of the past. But then the clock ticks by, as it is known to do, and Vyn finds himself standing by the front door while Artem pats his pockets to check he isn’t missing anything he brought with him.
“Drive safely,” Vyn tells the two of them.
Marius coughs. “Yeah, and make sure your phone stays charged, okay? I’m not gonna let you live this down if it happens again.”
Artem nods. “And please reopen the group chat so I can contact you if necessary.”
With nothing else to say, Vyn shuts the door, still gripping the spare key between his fingers. Now that they are gone, the house is quiet once again.
Vyn turns away and begins to head back upstairs. Artem and Marius do not and will not ever make good replacements for Neil and Giann, but as their own people, they will do for now.
Vyn breathes out slowly. Yes. They will have to do for now.
The drive back is long and slow and a great test of Marius’ patience. Maybe he should have lingered longer at Vyn’s house just so he wouldn’t have to get stuck in traffic.
Payton gently clears his throat. The sound comes from Marius’ phone, which he had unceremoniously tossed onto the passenger seat before he left Vyn’s neighborhood. “Marius, where are you?”
“Driving,” Marius answers. Well, not really. The row of cars in front of him stretches so far ahead that he’s probably not going to be moving for a while.
“Will you be home for dinner?” Payton asks pleasantly.
“I sure hope so,” Marius says. “Just leave something out for me.” He taps his fingers on the steering wheel and swallows, trying to keep his tone neutral. “Is Dad home?”
“Tonight, yes. He has asked for dinner to be served in approximately forty minutes.”
Marius glances at the time. Is he going to be able to arrive home before then? He doesn’t know. If everything after this road is all right, he might be able to have dinner with his father. Marius exhales slowly. If he ended up missing dinner just for Vyn’s sake…
No, things would probably be fine. Vyn and his father are pretty buddy-buddy, anyway. And it’s not like Austin has been in the mood to ask about Marius’ day recently, either. But Marius can try. He might miss the first course, or maybe the third, but he’s going to try. Vyn is safe back home, and Marius has Payton and his father waiting for him.
“See you later, Payton,” Marius says.
“Indeed,” Payton responds. “The table will be set for you.”
NXX Group Chat
Sunday, 7:59 p.m.
Adjudicator has unmuted the chat. You may now send messages again.
Sunday, 10:42 p.m.
King: Guys we totally forgot to reschedule the meeting
King: Like. I get what we did today was super unusual
King: But I still wanna throw hands. I have WORDS you guys
Libra: There will not be any “throwing hands” in the future, thank you.
King: hhh you’re awake
Libra: Yes. I have work to do.
King: laaaame
Monday, 10:05 a.m.
Adjudicator: Good morning all. @King I am free this Wednesday evening. @Libra, how about you?
Libra: That should work for me.
King: Yeah thats cool
Adjudicator: Excellent.
Adjudicator: Come prepared. I look forward to a productive discussion.
King: lol you better be there this time
Libra: Please know that I am also aware of the location of your spare key @Adjudicator.
Adjudicator: Yes, yes. I will make a good attempt to be punctual.
Adjudicator: The same applies to you, of course.
King: Yeah ill be soooo early. you wont even have left home by the time I arrive at hq
Libra: Judging from what I have seen of your schedule, I suspect that is a lie. Adjudicator will probably be waiting for us as usual.
King: No shut up im definitely gonna be early
King: Just you wait >:(
Adjudicator: And wait I shall indeed :)