The Line Blurs

David placed the steak on the plate, serving it with mayonnaise sauce and grilled corn. He placed it in front of me. The fragrant aroma of the food immediately filled the air around us. With a calm motion, he set the plate in front of me, staring at me for a moment before sitting across the table.

He took a fork and began cutting the steak on his plate. “I live in this house alone,” he started the conversation. “The house you usually visit, that’s my parents’ house.”

I furrowed my brows. My heart raced, mixed with embarrassment. “How did you know?”

He nodded firmly. “You’re always consistent in waiting for me and my family in front of the house or at the office, aren’t you? Just to get answers to all your questions.” He laughed, as if satisfied with the look of embarrassment on my face.

“Other journalists do the same thing, not just me,” I defended myself.

“No, Hanna.” He shook his head slowly, his eyes never leaving mine. “No,” he answered with a deeper, more serious tone. “You’re different.”

I fell silent, trying to interpret his words.

“From the beginning, you were different, and I like that.” David looked at me with a gaze I couldn’t quite understand.

Suddenly, the doorbell echoed throughout the room. David turned to the source of the sound calmly, but his eyes sharpened again, as if he already knew who was outside.

I held my breath, feeling uneasy with the sudden change in atmosphere. Something had shifted between us, something heavier than just the words spoken.

Mr. David stood slowly, his eyes still fixed on the door. One of his bodyguards came in and whispered something to him. From his expression, David seemed displeased with what he heard. Disappointment and anger mixed together.

He exhaled deeply, as if trying to calm himself. His left hand clenched into a fist, while his right hand touched his temple, a clear sign that he was struggling to contain his emotions. The atmosphere, which had already been tense, now turned even more ominous.

“What’s going on?” I asked, sensing that this situation wasn’t good.

David glanced at me briefly, as if deciding whether or not to explain. After a few long seconds, he finally spoke, his voice firm but emphasized, “Someone’s coming, someone who… shouldn’t be here.”

I could feel that he was holding back a fury that was on the verge of exploding. In an instant, the tension enveloped the entire room. Even the bodyguard standing near the door seemed to sense the change. I waited, but not a word came from David.

“And we can’t escape like we did on the island.”

Then, he turned back to his bodyguard and gave a silent nod, signaling without speaking. The bodyguard nodded and then stood next to me. “Hanna,” He held my hand casually, but there was panic in his face. “Follow them. Please.”

“Who’s coming?”

“I’ll tell you later. I promise.” His face was full of determination, but I could see the fear he was trying to hide.

The bodyguard gestured for me to stand, and I knew I had no other choice. I looked at David once more, hoping to see a clearer answer in his eyes, but he simply nodded slowly, as if to reassure me that this was the only way.

I stood up and followed the bodyguard toward the door. But before I fully left, I turned back and looked at David, who was still standing there. A second later, the door closed behind me, leaving David alone.

When we reached a room, one of the bodyguards in front of me stopped near a small table that had a large ceramic vase on it. Without saying a word, he carefully lifted the vase and rotated it in a certain direction. A quiet click sound was heard, and suddenly, the wall beside it began to move.

The wall slid to the side, revealing a hidden secret door. I froze for a moment, unable to believe what I was seeing. It felt like a scene from a movie—but this was real.

“Go ahead, Miss,” said the bodyguard standing next to the door, his voice cold and emotionless.

The door opened with a slight creak, revealing an empty room with only a small chair inside. No windows, and little ventilation. I stepped closer, curiosity mixed with fear overwhelming my mind. What kind of place was this? But I knew, there was no turning back now.

“You must wait here until we return,” said one of the bodyguards, commanding me. “This is Mr. David’s order.”

“Wait-,” I said, stopping their movement as they were about to close the door tightly. “What’s going on? You must know something.”

They didn’t answer. Then they closed the door, leaving me behind. The heavy sound of the door closing echoed throughout the room, making me feel as though I had just been trapped in another world.

I stepped back, staring at the door with a mixture of fear and confusion. I tried to take a deep breath to calm myself, but the air in this room felt heavier, making my chest feel tight.

When I turned around, the room seemed larger than I had realized earlier. Small lights on the ceiling provided just enough lighting to see a large table in the center of the room, surrounded by empty chairs. Around the room, there were locked filing cabinets.

I approached the table with hesitant steps. A white sheet with a map of the house lay casually on top. When I looked at it, the house was huge. I didn’t even know where I was.

There was a place that piqued my curiosity on the map. A place marked with a thick red circle in one of its corners, as if marking something important. The writing was small, almost unreadable, but clear enough to make me curious. I leaned in closer to the map, examining it more closely.

RedRoom.

“What’s so important here?” I murmured quietly, my fingers tracing the lines on the map.

I grabbed the map, folded it quickly, and slipped it into my jacket. My gaze shifted to the white door. On its handle, there was a coded lock with a faint blue screen.

I extended my hand, touching the small screen. It lit up brighter, displaying four empty digits waiting to be filled in. However, there was no clue as to which code I should enter.

I bit my lip, trying to figure out the code. Could it be an important date for David or his family?

Could it be Daniel’s birthday? I went back to the white door, my fingers hovering over the code screen. I pressed the buttons 1308. After the last number was entered, I held my breath.

The screen turned red. I had the wrong code. It wasn’t about Daniel. But, what if it was the date of his death?

I touched the door handle again and pressed the code 1408.

A few seconds felt like forever before I heard a “click.” The small screen turned green, and the door opened slowly.

Damn! This is crazy!

I pulled the map from my pocket and stepped out of the room. The door creaked softly as I opened it slightly. I held my breath, trying to listen for footsteps or anyone guarding the area. Safe. And I moved to open the next room, quietly but surely.

The corridor of this house was silent and still. The dim light from the hanging lamps on the ceiling made my shadow appear clearly on the wall. I read the writing on one of the doors and matched it with the map.

Now, I knew where I was. It took just one turn to reach the red-marked spot on the map.

When I turned the corner, I found a door with a large red X marked on it. As I got closer, the door required a code to open it. Without thinking twice, I tried entering 1308 and 1408. Neither of them worked.

I bit my lip, frustrated. Next to that door, there was another door slightly open. Indicating that the door was unlocked. I tried entering it and found many files neatly stacked on the table. The files were arranged by year. 2019, 2020, 2021, and this year, 2022.

I grabbed a file from 2022. When I opened all the documents, my eyes immediately focused on a name written in large letters at the top of the page: Personal Data of Donors.

Below it were personal data of someone, complete with their photos. Angelo, 16 years old. Kyle, 10 years old, Bella, 10 years old. I flipped through the pages. Everything listed there was personal data of children. On the last page, I found proof of an Organ Sale Transaction. On the next paper, it read: Agreement for Organ Sale from the Subject Who Failed in Biological Weapon Development.

I felt nauseous. My body reflexively took a few steps back. At that moment, the door opened forcefully, slamming against the wall and causing it to shake. David stood in the doorway, breathing heavily, his eyes sharp like a knife piercing straight into me. 

“What are you doing here?” He looked furious, his face truly terrifying. This fear wasn’t just ordinary fear, but the kind of fear that came from realizing I was at the center of a crime.

He stepped closer to me, grabbing my arm roughly. “I warned you, Hanna.” His voice was cold. “Now you’re in my world, and there’s no way out for you.”