SWNOVELS Chapter 98
Chapter 98: Video Feed
Drexel POV
Leo rushed to me and covered me with his long trench coat. Disregarding as to how I looked or how I smelled, I walked to where Steven was and sat beside him to look at the security videos
"There is nothing out here," Steven grumbled
"Take a bath and come back!" He scrunched his nose
Not that I cared, but I got up with a grunt and walked to the room where Kimberley guided me to. I think I need the bath to clear my mind. I was too tired
Kimberley led me to the same room where Penelope stayed. And as soon as her scent assaulted my mind, it soothed me a little. I watched the sheet which was still crumpled by her, the rose petals that were lying in the trash and strewn around, drops of blood that were on the floor. My blood boiled and I let out a growl
Kimberley closed the door behind me. I didn't waste time and rushed to take a bath. The stall of her shower was still smelling of her shampoo
When I looked at myself in the mirror, my face looked... gaunt. There were nicks and bruises on my body. Mud caked up everywhere. My hair was a mess and my eyes were red. Did I cry?
Gods, give me strength. I needed to gather myself
I wore black slacks and a white polo that someone had laid for me on the bed. Looking at the sheets in which Penelope slept, I sat at the edge of the bed and ran my fingers through them. "Penelope..."
The security videos didn't catch any movement
I sat with them for hours, playing and replaying them over and over. Kimberley brought food for us, but Steven and I had lost our appetite
"Are these all?" I asked, as I looked at the last one for the third time
"Yes," replied Henry who was also tased by the kidnapper. He couldn't see the face of the man who kidnapped him
Mateo was sitting all coiled up, a bruise on the left side of his cheek
"Can you tell me in detail what happened?" I asked him
A muscle feathered in his jaw. Sucking in a sharp breath, he said, "I was taking a bath when I heard my bathroom door open. Before I knew it, someone had sprayed gas on me. It made me woozy. I struggled to maintain my composure when I was hit by a blunt weapon. I grappled in front of me to get out of the shower stall and see who it was. Through the smoke of the gas and steam, all I could see was a man with a gas mask. He wasn't that tall but he was lean."
I closed my eyes, my mind scanning all those
who were lean and not so tall. "What about his smell? Anything specific?"
Mateo shook his head. "It was as if the man didn't have any smell."
That part was baffling. As werewolves, our sensory nerves could pick up every damn smell on this earth. Why couldn't anyone detect the kidnapper's smell? The kidnapper was extremely smart. Not only did he fuck up the camera feed, he made it look like there was no one, rather everything was going just as it was. He implanted a virus 1n the security code and carried out his job easily. Rage bubbled inside me for the lack of good software program on Steven's computers
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Steven got up as he grabbed the hair of his scalp. He began pacing the room, anxiety rippling off him. He had sent a team of warriors to hunt for Penelope. And I had sent my team to hunt for her. It was the biggest joint hunt that had ever taken place amongst the packs
"Is there a video outside Penelope's room or on her balcony?" I asked
"No..." Henry replied
Just as I was about to ask them to rewind the video and show me again, a young pup came running inside
"Jean!" Steven growled
Jean was panting, his shoulders were tense and his eyes wide. He opened his palm and we saw a USB inside it. "This is the camera feed of the garden that overlooked Penelope's balcony. This one is not connected with our main security system because we had changed all of it. I think the man who installed the cameras forgot to change this one." He rushed to Steven and gave it to him. "This may contain the images of the kidnapper, but I am not sure how clear those images would be!"
Steven grabbed the USB in his shaking hand
He looked at me and a shudder passed through my body
"Play it," I said in a low, menacing voice
Steven inserted the USB in the computer and Henry opened it. "Tt doesn't support the system
The software is too outdated," he informed
"Then get the fucking software!" I snarled at him. I was growing impatient
Henry downloaded it from a site and installed it
Even though it took him merely five minutes, it felt like ten years to me
As soon as he installed it, the video started playing. My eyes were fixed like a hawk on the entire video feed. The video was at an angle and only half of it came into view
There was nothing but heavy rain outside her room. The lights of her room came on and off. I
watched the video with clenched fists, looking everywhere to find one clue. We continued to watch heavy downpour for another twenty minutes in which I grew frustrated. I wanted to pick up the laptop and smash it across the floor when all of a sudden, a movement caught my eyes. "Stop!" I rasped
Henry paused the video
"There!" I pointed at the area in her balcony that was shrouded in darkness. A saw a hand emerging out of it, as if there was a ghost. "Now play it in slow mode." The drops of rain spoke silently about the kidnapper, as they sprayed erratically around him