« FUCK, ALAN, WHAT THE FUCK IS YOUR PROBLEM, ARE YOU TRYING TO DIE? »
Jack was holding the girl, preventing her from screaming. Alan, on the other hand, was slightly shaken; he had reacted on instinct, but now that he was starting to come to his senses, he understood that he was screwing things up. Saving this girl, with whom he couldn't even communicate, was pointless—except for putting them in danger.
« Yumiel, I'm really sorry, I acted on instinct, I… I don't know what came over me. »
She exhales, then steps closer to him and holds out her hand to help him up.
« It's okay, Alan. It can happen to us, and besides, thankfully the situation is under control thanks to Jack. I shouldn't have blown up like that—sorry—but next time, let me know if you're planning to die for someone else. »
« Ahahah, yeah, don't worry. And anyway, I'm not planning on dying anytime soon. »
yumiel smiles slightly. « Good. I still need you to get us to that damn forest and out of this country. »
She nods at Jack, who snaps the girl's neck. After taking her heart and her brain, yumiel places her in the bedroom where the other bodies were and closes the door. Then she returns to the living room, where Jack and Alan were sitting on the couch.
« Okay, I'd like us to go over how the day should unfold if this incident happens again. And also figure out how we're going to organize ourselves to reach the forest where our werewolf is. »
Jack looks at Alan, waiting for him to speak.
« So, about that incident—if it were to happen again, it's normal to eliminate the threat. I completely understand. »
« Alan, I can understand being reluctant to kill civilians, but for me it's the same world as London. People here just haven't experienced this yet, but it's the same—I make no distinction. The only thing pushing me to act discreetly is that I don't know anything here: neither the threats that could come down on us nor the language. »
Jack listens, simply saying: « You didn't explain yourself very well, but we got it. »
« Let's not dwell on it. All day long, your reactions and decisions have been perfectly logical, given how the world has turned. This place is just an exception, that's all. »
Alan clears his throat slightly before continuing.
« As for the Da Hinggan Ling forest, it's about 500 km as the crow flies. We have several options: by car, which would take us around 8 to 10 hours; by helicopter, about 2 hours; or by plane, less than an hour—but I'm not in favor of that. »
yumiel takes some time to think, but Alan isn't finished, adding one more detail.
« I should also point out that the forest is roughly 300,000 km². That's bigger than England. So I hope you know where those werewolves are—otherwise this is going to take a while. »
She shoots Jack a deadly look. He shrugs. Still, she doesn't take her eyes off him.
« It's fine, we'll just ask the brains… uh, I mean the people there, hahaha. »
Alan, witnessing the scene, says: « Makes you wonder how he's survived this long. »
« Anyway, we'll go with the helicopter. Priority to brains for the language, which is going to become essential to ask for information—and to finding a helicopter. »
« I approve, » says Alan.
« I approve too, » says Jack.
« Perfect. Then all that's left is to wait for nightfall. »
They all went back to doing whatever they wanted. Alan would sometimes go out to smoke, accompanied by Jack. yumiel kept watching TV.
It was only a few hours before nightfall that Jack burst through the door and rushed inside.
« Yumiel, we saw police outside doing patrols. »
« They must be looking for us, but in a city with this many people in the streets—good luck to them. »
After saying that, she stands up and heads for the exit.
« We're going to buy ourselves some time by starting with this building. I open the doors, you go in and take care of the people inside. We need to act before they do—otherwise they'll eventually find us. »
Jack smiles. How could he say no to delicious brains waiting for him? As he goes out, he runs into Alan coming back from the roof. Seeing them leave, he understands.
« You're going to take care of this building—that's the right call. Either way, to find us, they'll do racial profiling. »
Alan goes back into the apartment, while yumiel and Jack go down to the floor below. She starts opening each door, and Jack goes in and takes care of every person inside. When he comes back out, he hands two hearts to yumiel.
They continue like that until they reach near the bottom of the building, leaving just a few floors untouched before going back up to get Alan. The three of them settle on the couch, waiting for night to fall.
Alan had picked up a phone and was browsing the Chinese internet, then he turned his phone around and said:
« For the helicopter, I might have an idea. Look. »
He shows a rich Chinese man who owns an entire building with a jacuzzi, a restaurant, and lots of rich-people stuff—but most importantly, a helicopter on the roof.
« Ah, perfect. Where is it? »
« That's the thing… I have no idea. I can't read Chinese, and the address is written in Chinese. »
yumiel turns her gaze toward Jack, who answers her silent question by shaking his head from side to side. She lets out a sigh.
« If I understand correctly, we're stuck. »
« Seems like it. »
The sun was starting to set. She stands up and heads for the door.
« Since I get the feeling that waiting for Jack to gain the ability to speak Chinese is going to take forever, we'll do this my way. »
They leave the apartment and start going down the stairs toward the ground floor. On the way down, they run into a man. yumiel asks, looking at him:
« Do you speak English? »
At first surprised, he searches for his words, then steps back, waving his arms in refusal. The next instant, a hand goes through his torso, and then his heart is torn out.
« There you go, Jack. One more. We'll eventually find a translator. »
The three of them continue down to the ground floor, waiting for the last seconds when the sun's rays were still visible, before leaving the building.