Chapter 310: The Shop's Secret

Behind Carter, police officers were setting up a perimeter, indicating something serious had occurred at the shop. I couldn’t help but feel uneasy as I glanced at him. “Is it okay for me to be here?”

“Don’t worry. All the cameras have been turned off.”

That reassured me. He wouldn’t put me at risk.

“You should’ve been inside. It’s freezing out here.”

I just wanted to see you sooner. He offered a soft smile. For a brief moment, I almost forgot how he used to be. Why had I once thought of him as so frightening? I gently pushed him toward the door. “What happened today?”

“I had some people stir up trouble at the shop. As soon as they heard we might call the police, they tried to pay to make it go away. But when money didn’t work, one of them shut the place down.”

I stopped in my tracks. “They were planning to force their way in?”

“Yes. A bunch of thugs, really. They didn’t expect us to be prepared. We had backup waiting outside, and when the scuffle started, they ran into the underground tunnel.”

I’d figured out where the tunnel was, but now I worried. With so many people around, I feared the decoy might have gotten into trouble.

“Did anyone get hurt?” I asked, anxiety rising. I had only wanted to cause a bit of a stir, not for things to get out of hand.

Carter’s face grew dark. My stomach twisted. “What happened?”

“They’re badly injured. They meant to scare them, but the situation escalated. They broke into a secret underground base. If that secret leaks, the whole shop is done for. That’s why they never planned to let anyone leave today.”

“Do you remember the guy who used to fix our cars? He stepped in to protect them. He got hurt, but at least he’s alive.”

I remembered him well. I’d added him on WhatsApp, chatted with him a few times. He hadn’t been at the shop long, so he likely didn’t know anything too important. I’d gone through his posts. He was a cheerful guy, came from a small town in the mountains to support his family. He had a younger sister who was excelling in school. He was kind, too. When he couldn’t afford to buy food for stray cats, he’d give them half of his lunch. I had always liked him. The first time I met him, his bright personality reminded me of a little sun.

But then, he was caught up in something he didn’t ask for. For that, and I hadn’t witnessed the events firsthand, I could imagine how dangerous it must have been.

Once inside the shop, I saw the police had taken control. Officers were investigating, looking around. There were barricades everywhere, and the floor was stained with dark red blood. Carter and Nelson reached an agreement, giving us permission to enter the scene. The sight of blood stains on the floor made me nauseous. Carter’s bodyguards were young, strong, and if they were merely injured, the fight had been fierce.

“Where’s Captain Tucker?” I asked.

“He’s in the basement,” Carter answered.

“What’s down there? What’s the secret?”

“Hard to explain in just a few words. You’ll get it when you see it.”

Carter followed us down the hidden passage. Just as I expected, the entrance was right in front of us. The tunnel was unfinished. The walls had only been roughly coated with cement, and the air was thick with a musty, rotten scent, mixed with the overpowering smell of blood. The last time I was here, I was a spirit. I didn’t have the ability to smell anything.

Carter looked at me, his expression full of concern. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah,” I replied, though my voice was tight. “Is this the place you’ve been before?”

I nodded and pointed down one of the paths. “Yes, the room I went to was down that way.”

I slowed my steps as I walked down the familiar route. The closer we got, the harder my heart beat. My palms were slick with sweat.

“Don’t worry,” Carter said gently, patting the back of my hand.

The door to the room was already open. As I stepped inside, I was hit by the sight of the stone bed in the middle of the room—it was empty.

“I saw my own body lying here,” I said. “This is the same room.”

My emotions overwhelmed me. I saw a man with dark skin enter. They were talking about… skinning…

As I spoke, Damian, wearing gloves, opened a nearby cabinet. It was filled with sharp tools. The sight of them made my tears fall freely.

“They must’ve… dismembered me in this room. Skinned me!”

Luke’s eyes narrowed as he studied the assortment of tools. His anger was evident, and his hands clenched into fists. Carter stood motionless beside him, his gaze icy and unreadable.

“This place,” I said, trying to steady my voice, “it might hold some answers about the bodies.”

There were many rooms below, and this was only one. I wiped away my tears quickly. “What’s in the other rooms?”

“You’ll find out soon enough,” Carter replied.

I stepped into the next room, and the sight left me reeling. The other rooms had been bare and unfinished. But this one was something entirely different. It was filled with medical equipment—machines of all sizes, an operating table, and tools that looked more advanced than any I had seen in a hospital.

“Is this an operating room?” I asked, my voice shaky.

Carter nodded. “And several procedures can be done at once.”

I had expected something strange, something eerie, but not this. What kind of operations were they carrying out here?

I followed the sound of voices to another room. Nelson was standing by the door, his face serious and stern. He looked up when he saw me. “Mrs. Bolton.”

“Captain Tucker, what’s going on here?” I asked, my voice low.

He stepped aside, allowing me to see into the room. Inside, there were rows of cages, each holding young people—boys, girls, teenagers, all mostly under 25. They were locked in separate cages, organized by age. The stench of unwashed bodies filled the air. Their hair was unkempt, their nails long, and their faces were dirty, making it almost impossible to recognize them. The only clean part of their faces were their eyes, wide with fear. They huddled together in terror, as though they had forgotten how to trust anyone. In front of each cage were stone troughs, and it was clear—they were being kept like animals. My mind raced as I thought about the surgical equipment I had just seen.

“Who are they?” I whispered, my heart aching.

Nelson’s expression darkened. “Most are orphans, with no families to claim them. Some were adopted, but others were taken.”

The memory of the recent missing persons reports flashed through my mind—especially the many missing middle school students. Had they all been brought here?

“These people, they’ve been raised for this… could it be…?”

Nelson finished my thought. “Exactly. It’s an organ farm. The repair shop is just a cover. Down here, there’s an underground operation selling organs. And it’s not just about transplants—it’s far worse.”

He guided me into another room. The scene before me was enough to make my stomach churn.