Rise of the Banished She-Wolf (Evelyn) novel Chapter 89

**Where Falling Leaves Whisper Stories Written In Silence by Ryn Jace Reed**
**Chapter 89**

Evelyn

My jaw tightened in a vise of anxiety as I watched the nurse methodically fill the last vial with my blood. Each deliberate motion felt like a cruel reminder of my precarious situation, a stark illustration of my vulnerability.

“Take these to the lab immediately,” Charles commanded, his pale fingers brushing against the collection of glass tubes that held my very essence. “I want a comprehensive analysis by morning.” His tone was chilling, as if he were discussing a mere experiment rather than my life.

I pressed a cotton ball against the puncture in my arm, trying to mask the discomfort that surged through me like a wave. “Are we done here?” I asked, my voice icy, an attempt to shield my vulnerability from his piercing gaze.

Charles’s lips twisted into that unsettling smile of his, one that never quite reached his cold, calculating eyes. “Not quite, my dear. Now that we’ve satisfied my scientific curiosity, I require your other talents.” He gestured toward the door with an exaggerated flourish. “Follow me.”

In an instant, two guards flanked my sides, their imposing presence a grim reminder that I had no choice in this matter. As we moved down the sterile corridor, the fluorescent lights flickered overhead, casting an eerie glow. I caught sight of Taylor being escorted toward us from the opposite direction. He looked utterly drained, his complexion pale, a ghost of his usual vibrant self.

“What’s going on?” Taylor croaked, his voice hoarse and weary, a mere shadow of the strong friend I knew.

Charles dismissed him with an indifferent glance, leading us to a secure room that loomed ominously at the end of the hallway. Inside, a massive steel safe stood like a sentinel, adorned with an electronic keypad and a digital display that pulsed with an ominous light. “This,” Charles announced with a flourish, “is where your hacking skills will prove invaluable, Aurora.”

My heart sank as I glanced at the collection of crates visible through the transparent front of the safe, each containing ammunition embedded with tiny electronic components.

“Tracking bullets?” I murmured, the realization sending a wave of nausea through me.

“So the body I saw in the water… belonged to one of the women who couldn’t unlock your safe?” The thought of their fate twisted my stomach into knots, a grim reminder of the stakes at play.

“Not only that,” Charles chuckled darkly, the sound chilling me to the bone. “I also grew weary of them. Their blood became… uninteresting after a while.”

I swallowed hard, fighting against the disgust that threatened to overwhelm me. “If I unlock this for you, you’ll let us go?” I asked, desperation creeping into my voice.

“Of course,” Charles replied, his voice smooth like silk, but I could detect the lie lurking beneath the surface.

“And if you’re lying?” I challenged, locking my gaze with his, unwilling to back down.

Charles’s expression hardened, the warmth of his earlier demeanor replaced by something colder and far more sinister. “I’m growing impatient with your incessant questions.” He nodded to his guards. “Bring her to the safe. Ensure she can’t attempt anything foolish.”

With a shove, the guards propelled me forward, forcing me to kneel before the electronic lock. One of them roughly untied my hands, granting me just enough freedom to work on the keypad.

“You have one hour,” Charles informed me, his tone devoid of warmth. “After that, I will find more… creative ways to motivate you.”

I scrutinized the safe, noting the three distinct layers of security: a standard electronic combination, a biometric scanner, and finally, what appeared to be an algorithmic challenge designed to thwart automatic decryption tools. I had encountered similar obstacles before, but I needed to buy myself some time.

With a deep breath, I began working on the first layer, my fingers dancing over the keys with practiced precision. Within a quarter of an hour, I had bypassed the initial security and moved to the biometric scanner.

“I need your fingerprint and retinal scan,” I instructed Charles without lifting my gaze from the lock.

He stepped closer, placing his finger on the scanner and leaning in for the eye verification. The second lock disengaged with a soft click, but I could feel the tension in the room rising like a storm brewing on the horizon.

The final encryption materialized on the small screen—a complex web of numbers and symbols that would have left most people scratching their heads in confusion.

After twenty minutes of painstaking effort, I could sense Charles’s patience wearing thin. His eyes narrowed as he scrutinized my deliberate hesitations, his frustration palpable, a predator waiting for its prey to make a wrong move.

“Enough games,” he snapped, suddenly grabbing Taylor by the collar and dragging him toward the deck door. “Guards, take him outside. Hold him at the edge.”

“What are you doing?” I demanded, rising to my feet only to be shoved back down by a guard’s heavy hand.

Charles’s eyes gleamed with malice. “You have five minutes. If you fail again, your friend will take a swim with weights attached to his ankles.”

“Charles, you’re despicable,” I spat, fury igniting within me as I turned back to the lock with renewed determination.

“Tick tock,” Charles replied, his calm demeanor infuriating me further as he checked his watch, a smirk playing on his lips.

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