Reborn in the Enemy's Embrace

My breath hitched. "What do you mean, go downstairs?"

"Dexter’s waiting for us down there," Carol said cheerfully.

My fingers tingled, and I hesitated before speaking, "We need to go downstairs fast." Perhaps Dexter was really on the first floor.

That lunatic didn’t want Dexter involved. He wanted us to turn against each other.

"Dexter’s definitely the mastermind," some muttered. They were all banding together against him.

Now that someone had died, their fear was maxed out, stirring up their survival instincts and deepest malice.

"We gotta find him and deal with him, or we’re done for," Howard muttered quietly. While a few others whispered among themselves, scheming away.

"That annoying voice hasn’t shown up. Let’s use the time we’ve got to find a way out, to the next floor," Howard, being clever, instructed a couple of his group to look for a way out. "Who knows what crazy stuff that lunatic might pull next."

I glanced at Joel cautiously. "We gotta head downstairs too."

"Heh..." Juliet, just standing there watching, smirked coldly. "Thinking about going downstairs? Seems tough."

I frowned, looking at Juliet. "What do you mean?"

"It seems you haven’t figured out what that person really wants," Juliet walked up to me. "He wants us to turn against each other. If that hasn’t happened yet, he won’t let us go downstairs so easily." My nerves tensed up.

"What’s more thrilling than uniting us, building trust, forming bonds, and then turning us against each other?" Joel sneered. "So, this level acts as a buffer zone. All we need for everyone to work together to find an exit. No bloodshed. You’re definitely not Sophia."

Juliet furrowed her brow, looking warily at Joel. "So, are you saying that just because she asks why, what to do, and cries whenever things go wrong, that makes her Sophia?" She pointed at me.

Joel glanced at me, his gaze deep. "The best trickery fools everyone, even the one pulling the strings..."

I didn’t understand what he meant. But suddenly, a chill ran down my spine.

"Sophia... is the murderer," Carol accused as she pointed at me.

Quinn panicked, covering Carol’s mouth, afraid she might say something to cause trouble for me. Then, she looked at me apologetically. "Sorry, miss. Carol’s not in her right mind." I nodded, brushing it off. But, I couldn’t shake the feeling of unease.

"Hmph, do you think you’re right? Let’s see if that person actually starts killing on this level." Juliet didn’t seem convinced. She gave me a cold glance, as if she were betting with Joel.

Joel claimed this was just a buffer level, no one would die. We just needed to find the exit.

But Juliet was convinced that someone would die on this level.

My mind was all over the place, just wanting to know if Dexter was okay.

I have to admit, I was really worried about him.

"Dexter knows the way out. He’s not on the 17th floor. Which means he’s already gone to a lower floor. He doesn’t care whether you live or die,"

Damien said quietly as approached me from behind.

I glanced up at Damien, my voice firm. "No way. Dexter’s not like you. He wouldn’t just leave me to deal with danger alone. I believe he must have encountered danger."

The real killer must have been too scared of Dexter. So, they snatched him away during the chaos.

I didn’t believe Dexter would leave me behind.

"Some people don’t realize the danger until it’s too late," Juliete sneered as she hugged Damien’s arm. "We don’t need to worry about her, She’ll realize it when she’s already in his grip."

"Everyone, come here. Listen to me."

Howard had already formed a group.

When he was in the orphanage, he was already a group leader. Then, he became the president of the class. He was quite talented in gathering people to form a group.

"Listen to me. All of you have seen the situation upstairs. Someone has already died. This isn’t a game. It’s a massacre. Someone wants to kill us. We must fight back. We can’t just wait. Otherwise... we might be the next one to die. We must be united now. If we are united enough, he can’t kill us!"

Howard was brainwashing everyone to make them unite.

"Whoever wants to survive must listen to my arrangements. We will get out of here alive by finding Dexter. We will make him release us!"

"Release us!"

Howard stood on the desk and shouted. Everyone else echoed.

They were certain that Dexter was the murderer, so they mustered their courage to look for him downstairs.

I looked at Howard vigilantly. He had already gathered everyone. Next, he would target the people like us, who didn’t join his group.

"Remember. We can only make sure the obedient ones are safe. As for the others..." As expected, Howard pointed the arrow at us.

That included Joel, Carol, Quinn, Juliet, Damien, and me.

We didn’t have a team.

"There must be something wrong with those who don’t want to be in a team with us. We have to be cautious," said Howard in a low voice. He glanced at me on purpose.

I clenched my fists. I knew that Howard was going to target us.

As expected, Callum looked at Quinn angrily. "What are you doing there? Get over here!"

Fearfully, Quinn curled her body and hid in Carol’s embrace.

Carol protected Quinn nervously. She knew that Callum would take action against Quinn.

"Quinn, get over here," shouted Callum.

Howard found the situation amusing. It was the effect he wanted.

"If you two can’t be on the same side, you don’t need to be in a group with us. You can choose to be with them," said Howard deliberately. He wanted to stimulate Callum. Callum was enraged. He stepped forward to pull Quinn’s hair.

Quinn looked at us in a panic. She called us for help. "Please help me. He will beat me to death."

I glanced at Damien and realized he

was frowning. It was clear that he didn’t want to be nosy. He believed that anyone here could be the murderer. He didn’t want to intervene in other people’s affairs.

As for Juliet, of course, she wouldn’t do anything.

Quinn could only look at me and Joel for help.

Carol hugged Quinn tightly. She was terrified as well.

The moment Callum approached them, he slapped Quinn on the back of her head. Then, he began to punch and kick her.

He didn’t care if he would hit Carol.

"I’m so unlucky to marry you. Get over here. If you are with them, you won’t even know how you’ll die. That lunatie is the murderer." Callum tugged Quinn’s hair and pulled her to the other side.

Quinn cried while shaking her head. "Let go of me..."

"Help."

While she cried for help, she was kicked in the stomach by Callum.

There were so many people watching, yet none of them stood forward. They watched the situation coldly as if it had nothing to do with them.

I took a deep breath and grabbed Callum’s wrist. "You will beat her to death."

"So? Don’t be nosy. She’s my wife. Even if I beat her to death, it will be a family conflict," said Callum angrily.

I took another deep breath. I understood Quinn’s despondency. She must have reported the abuse to the police many times, but domestic abuse was only a safety issue. Each time she reported it to the police, she would only get more beatings and threats.

Under such circumstances, she couldn’t get a divorce.

"Please stop hitting me... I beg you." Quinn begged Callum while crying. There was blood at the edges of her mouth.

"She had a miscarriage because you hit her, yet you’re still hitting her." Furiously, Carol rushed over and protected Quinn. Callum wanted to hit Carol but was kicked away by Joel. "You’re a man. Why are you hitting women?"

Callum fell to the ground. He was in so much pain that he couldn’t get up.

He pointed at Quinn angrily. "Alright. You have helpers now. When we get out of here, I will beat you to death."

Quinn cried out of fear. She dared not look at Callum.