Is this destiny?

In the basement…

Aiden descended to the basement level last, and he smirked at the sight of his three teammates who are waiting for him at the base of the stairs.

"You didn\'t leave…", Aiden stated the obvious, and he didn\'t try to hide provocation in his voice.

"The more I spend time with you, the more I think that you know where we are supposed to go.", Kolya said suspiciously.

"There is no need for excuses. You can admit that you are afraid to go without me.", Aiden responded and moved along the dark hallway without waiting for Kolya to come up with a snarky remark.

Mila and Jasha were two steps behind Aiden, and Kolya followed shortly after.

The hallway was long and curved, and because they moved slowly, it appeared that it took a long time before they reached the first light that flickered from the ceiling.

Kolya clicked his tongue when Aiden passed the third room after only glancing inside from the door. "The light is barely enough for us to see where the walls are, yet Alex pointed out two traps and he is not exploring the rooms."

Aiden halted his steps and frowned. What traps? He told them to watch out for holes in the ground. Fine, maybe he would not notice them in this dark if not for Eve-lens, but Aiden does not understand why is Kolya so dramatic. Instead of thanking him, Kolya is stirring trouble.

"If you have something to say, just say it."

"Did you get insider\'s information about this place? Is that why Maksim didn\'t call you for a talk before the mission?", Kolya asked suspiciously, and Jasha and Mila exchanged glances.

"What talk? What information? Didn\'t he only tell you to provoke me?", Aiden guessed and the way those three paused told him that he was right. Maksim is picking on him. But, why? Aiden does not remember crossing paths with Maksim before.

The only explanation that made sense to Aiden was that Maksim\'s hostility is related to the Voronin family. There is a chance that an Elder praised Aiden, or has some plans for him that jeopardize Maksim\'s position.

Ah, Aiden would love to be higher in the hierarchy than Maksim. He would make him run laps around the base all night long, and if he is slacking, Aiden would add a log for Maksim to carry above his head. And maybe an electric zapper, that activates when Maksim stops moving. Aiden smiled at this thought.

"Will you tell us what your secret is? Or are you expecting us to believe in your magical hunch?", Mila\'s question pulled Aiden out of his Maksim-zapping thoughts.

Aiden exhaled. "I don\'t expect anything from any of you. Actually, you are welcome to take the lead."

Aiden waved to the front and then to the back from where they came. "Pick a direction. I don\'t remember forcing you to follow me."

Mila raised her hands defensively. "There is no need for drama."

"Then don\'t create one.", Aiden said irritably. "You don\'t need to follow me. Go back, check upstairs, do whatever you want and if you find the safe, feel free to crack it open and take contents and leave this damned place without informing me. How does that sound?"

Aiden leaned his back on the wall and crossed his arms over his chest.

"What are you doing?", Jasha asked Aiden.

Aiden shrugged. "I am waiting for you to leave first and I will go in the direction I want."

Jasha was not happy with this development and he tried to pacify Aiden. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because I don\'t have a problem going after someone, if I believe that the person is moving along the right path. All three of you are following me around and waiting for instructions, yet you are acting like I\'m forcing you into something. I don\'t know if those are orders Maksim gave you or not, but I refuse to play this game. There is still plenty of time until the two-hour deadline, so I am not in a rush."

Mila exhaled. "Fine. But we all believe that you know something we don\'t."

"Based on what?"

Kolya glared at Aiden. "Based on you not even looking at the doors we passed by so far. Your logic about the safe being underground, almost makes sense, but how do you justify not exploring the basement?"

Aiden gave a mocking look to all three of them and pointed up at the flickering light.

Mila, Jasha, and Kolya looked up and then their blank gazes moved back to Aiden.

Aiden shook his head in disapproval. "All three of you talk like you ate knowledge beans that blessed you with wisdom, but the only thing you have is an inflated sense of self-importance."

Aiden saw that all three of his teammates frowned and he explained before they burst into bickering: "You are not able to observe your surroundings, from simple things like a hole in the ground to electricity." Aiden paused and pointed up again. "The flickering of lights should tell you that there is something requiring more energy than how much wiring in this place can support, and I bet that something was set up especially for this occasion. We are looking for a room with a high-tech safe, and maybe security around it. You don\'t need to be an Einstein to notice that all rooms we passed so far were dilapidated, without lights or anything that resembles electricity. Anything else?"

Mila\'s mouth was half open as Aiden\'s words sank in. And then her eyes sparkled. "Good looking and smart. I want to keep you."

Aiden could not believe how thick Mila is. Is she not getting it that he is not interested, or she does not want to get it, or… Aiden decided to stop talking to them, because he is not sure how much they are understanding, and it seems that as time passes, Mila is more enchanted by his presence.

Aiden continued moving. "You are welcome to follow after me, but don\'t complain unless you plan to test my patience."

Mila was one step behind Aiden, and Jasha and Kolya followed.

…

On the bleachers…

Sarah is watching Aiden on the screen with hearts in her eyes.

She saw him take on this mission with a clear mind, composed, and reliable as always. That is her husband.

He even helped a teammate who opposed him. Sure, Aiden will punish Kolya later, but Aiden was able to keep his cool and prioritize the mission.

The screens are showing what each of the five teams is doing, and Sarah is focused on the screens that are showing team falcon.

When Aiden spoke to Maksim (before entering the basement), Aiden\'s voice was low, so it was not audible, however, Aiden put the earpiece that Maksim gave him on the same side where his ear stud is, so Sarah was able to hear both Aiden and Maksim and Sarah is proud of her husband.

Aiden was always the leader and he is the only person Sarah would follow without hesitation and without any questions. 

Sarah glanced at the other screens and smiled. She is not sure if everyone has the same mission, but she can see that each of the teams is exploring some areas, and only team falcon is going straight for their goal, while others seem to be moving randomly. Ah, she can see that Aiden\'s team will finish first and she is confident that they will be successful.

Just a little bit more and she will get to wrap her arms around her husband and not to worry about Maksim harming Aiden.

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