With somewhat of a plan in place, the two walked out of the toilet at separate times, and when Brandon went to sit next to Dave, Cody went ahead and took the very first seat in front of the reception area. The front row was mostly empty for a number of reasons, one of them being the fact that everyone could easily keep an eye on your movements.
"So what happened? Is everything okay? Did you speak to him?" Dave asked nervously as he looked around the room.
Brandon was unsure whether he should say anything or not or how much of the plan he could afford to reveal. After all, Dave was just a student, and it was easy to crack him. In fact, just being here had put a lot of pressure on him.
"Look, the only thing I will say is that in this place, it's best if you don't trust anyone," Brandon said. "Keep to yourself, keep quiet, and if worse comes to worst, I think you will know what to do. You're a good kid, and you have a good set of instincts on you, so trust your instincts when in the clutch."
Dave smiled, he liked the compliment, and since he had never heard such words from Brandon, they meant a bit more to him. The effect was so good that he was suddenly brimming with more confidence.
At that moment, the doors opened, and one of the men with a gun walked down. Without paying heed to anyone, he headed over to where Brandon was.
"The doctor would like to meet you about the results of the patient that you brought in." The man said.
Taking a deep breath for the first time and sliding his pair of dark sunglasses on even though they were inside the building and he could see fine, Brandon was getting in the mode to react to whatever was going to happen next.
The elevator ride was the same as before. The only difference was, Dave was told to stay downstairs. Honestly, Brandon preferred it this way, and before entering the elevator, he looked toward Cody.
Whatever happened, the two of them would need to work their hardest to get out of the situation. While in the elevator, Brandon started to think about a particular person.
'That's an interesting kid you know, Zain. I wonder what's the story between you two.' Brandon thought.
When the elevator door opened, Brandon headed down the hall and walked to the office and double doors that he was in before, but before he reached the door, the guard pulled on his shoulder and stopped him.
"Not yet. You're not allowed to go in yet." The man said. "Just wait here till the doctor comes out."
Brandon felt like it was a little strange, but what could he do? When darting his eyes around the place, Brandon was trying to look for clues, clues about where that teenager's friend would be kept, it might even be the same place as where Pink's mother was at the moment.
With only one guard on him, Brandon was confident he could take him out but then what would he do? He still needed the medicine. While he waited there and guessed multiple situations in his head, the Doctor had finally come out of one of the rooms.
"Oh, it looks like you are here already. My men do quick work, and they are trustworthy as well, just like me." The Doctor smiled as he walked over.
"I have some good news for you. I can cure the old woman you brought in. However, the bad news is that she will need to continue to take medication for the next six months. On top of that, this infection can be passed through the air.
"Which means that all those sick people that are at your museum, they too are in need of treatment for the next six months."
In Brandon's head, this was one of the worst-case situations. For one, it was the fact that they needed to rely on the Doctor for a long time. Even if they had the name of the medicine, what if something went wrong? What if the people got worse?
A disease or illness that took six months to heal was nothing to scoff at. Of course, there was also always the chance that the Doctor was lying just to get them on the end of their stick.
"Thank you for that," Brandon answered. "What is the name of the disease? And you spoke before about wanting something. What is it that you want."
The Doctor didn't speak straight away, pretending to still be deciding, even though he had thought about what he wanted to ask for a while now.
"I was thinking, I want to talk to your leader and talk about our two groups teaming up." The Doctor requested. "I mean, after all, we are a large group of people, we have a lot of supplies and my knowledge, and I'm sure it is the same for your leader as well.
"So, in return for helping your group, I suggest that our two groups become one." The Doctor smiled.
Immediately, Brandon had a bad gut feeling, but maybe this was the best outcome. Maybe they could use this to their advantage.
"And…who would be the leader then? You should know that too many cooks spoil the broth. It would be the same here. In the first place, there are those that follow me, and those that follow Ryan, adding one more would be.."
"We can sort out the finer details later, don't you think? Anyway, if you accept, the medicine for the first month will be delivered at once."
When thinking about it, Brandon wanted to say no, because he knew how the general public would react. The people would feel indebted to the Doctor, and they would start looking up to him, and at the same time, the current control that Ryan and he had would start to fade bit by bit.
Just this was enough for Brandon to judge the Doctor as a dangerous man who understood his means and power well.
"Anyway, if you can't decide now, then I will give you the time to think about it." The Doctor said, not saying anything else at all, and began to walk away back to his room. "The old woman has taken her medicine and will be fine, she has supplies to last a while, but whether you believe me or not about the situation you have on your hands, that's up to you."
Closing the door behind, Brandon wanted to cook up a storm there and force the Doctor to comply, but in his work, he had dealt with these types of people before, and that just didn't work. And since threats wouldn't work with these people, there was nothing he could do for now.
'I should be patient. When I know what is happening, when I have more answers about where the medicine is and what the disease is, then Cody and I can act out our plan. I just hope everything will work out in the end.
Walking back, Brandon was going to exit out of the elevator. Although it wasn't worded, it was clear that Pink's mother was a hostage. Since they weren't told what room she was in, and even if they did have her, she was now a hostage to the medicine as well.
The plan was to stay there for a few days. And try to work things out. This was the plan that was going through Brandon's head until he had walked past a particular room.
"Stop! Stop! Just Stop it!" The sound was quite weak, maybe most people wouldn't have heard it, but for some reason, Brandon was able to hear it instantly.
'That voice belonged to a woman, and it sounded young. I can't be sure it's her, but for someone to scream like that… they're in danger. Everything is telling me in my body not to do a deal with this man, so then why am I hesitating!' Brandon shouted in his head, trying to convince himself, but he never needed it in the first place.
Using his leg, he kicked the back of the guard in front of him, causing his knees to cheek and for him to almost fall over. After that, using his arm, he had gotten the other in a chokehold. Pressing tightly on one arm and pushing his head forward, the man's entire face was starting to glow red.
The guard tried his best to break free, but he was an untrained man, and against Brandon, it was useless until, in a desperate attempt, he pulled on the gun in his hand, and a loud bang resounded throughout the entire area.
———
Downstairs, the gunshot resounded, and everyone stood up in a panic and huddled within their groups. They were already at the edge, and the gunshot had made it worse.
"Did you hear that...it sounded like a gunshot. What is happening?" One of them asked.
The guards seemed distracted, unaware of what was going on, and before they knew it, without anyone even noticing, the double doors by the entrance were pushed open. Cody had escaped, and he only had one thought in his mind.
'I must get help!'
*****
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