Duplus

Chapter 12

Amaani's POV:

The desert was quiet. All I could hear was the scorching sun as it shone down on me, it's rays hitting the sand making it glow like a pool of gold. I adjusted my suit for the fifth time again, scratching the area where it itched me. A dry wind blew, taking my cloak with it which revealed the odd suit that I was wearing.

I licked my dry lips.

It had been hours and I could find nothing in that barren place. I thought about clicking the earpiece Usama gave me for contact and giving up. But I knew I had to bring back something. Anything. Broad shoulders looked quite concerned when I was leaving. It was like I was looking at a different person.

As I was lost in my thoughts, the tip of my boots hit something hard in the ground, buried in the sand and I jerked forward. That jerk caused me to fall flat on the ground. My mouth filled with grains of sand and I quickly spat them out. Groaning, I got up. Thank Allah no one was there to witness my very embarrassing tumble. I quickly got up before anyone could see me even though I knew that there wasn't a soul in sight.

I narrowed my eyes at the source behind my fall. The sunlight reflected back from the smooth surface that was peeking out from the kilos of sand. My hands automatically reached for it, curiosity taking the better of me. And who knew; maybe it was an important clue.

I pulled the thing out.

It was round, shiny, and metallic. Blue lines were present like stripes, except they were going everywhere. There was an opening from each side which made me guess that it was some kind of modern, techno bracelet.

As my eyes inspected every angle of the bracelet with wonder, a beeping noise hit my ears. I got startled and looked around to see where it was coming from. It took me a second or two to realize that it was the bracelet. "Welcome Lx16," a robotic voice boomed from it.

I blinked twice. Lx16? What kind of people would keep a name like Lx16? The name made me think that it might just be a possibility that the bracelet belonged to mystery girl. Not knowing what to do with it, I just leaned my face closer to it. "Ummm... Hello?" I knew that was the dumbest move I could pull but it was the only thing I could think of. A blue light flickered at that.

Whatever I was doing, it was somehow working.

Hesitantly, I thought of putting it on. As soon as the bracelet touched the skin of my wrist, it blinked like crazy. A green light flashed out of a tiny hole on the front and scanned my wrist. My eyes widened with amazement and shock as they moved along with the light. My veins appeared on my skin like a hologram and it creeped me out.

To my horror, the bracelet tightened on my wrist on its own like a very advanced computer. It was like it was meant to do what it was doing. Like it was designed for that very purpose. "Scan complete. Access granted." The robotic voice spoke again, taking me by surprise once more.

The blue light didnt fade away, instead it remained there, illuminating the stripes-like lines on the bracelet.

That bracelet was an important clue for sure!

Instead of relief, I felt worry wash over me. The bracelet recognized me. It recognized me as Lx16! If I brought it back to Broad shoulders and the others, all sorts of suspicions would be confirmed. That I was mystery girl.

With that thought, I pulled my sleeve over the bracelet that was fastened on my wrist. I couldn't let something that important go and I couldn't possibly show it to Broad shoulders. Not if I wanted him to sign my execution papers. I shuddered at the thought.

I got up on my feet, dusting off my clothes. There was definitely more to come and I knew that for a fact. The bracelet was there to prove it and if I could find something else, it could be my ticket out of the interrogation site and the sharp claws of Jaber Suleman.

I started walking towards-well, nowhere. For miles and miles, there was nothing but sand. My willpower was what kept me going. With each step that I took, the sand engulfed my boots inside itself, trying to pull me back. But I went onward.

15 to 20 minutes had passed and I still couldn't find a thing, let alone a living person. Just when I was on the verge of losing all hope, the noise of vehicles rang in my ears. I quickly looked towards the direction where the sound was coming from and from the far distance, I could make out the black figures of motorbikes.

The only thing that flashed in my mind was; run.

And I ran. With all my might and with all the strength I could muster. Saira's words repeated in my mind.

"There could be Kazefandrian spies hiding there for all we know. So, avoid any interaction with anyone except the mystery girl. It shouldn't be hard since she looks exactly like you."

Saira had looked pretty serious when she had said that. Besides, motorbikes only meant trouble. Especially, since advanced motorbikes like those weren't available in our community. It was way out of our league. It was either from Kazefandria or from the other side of the world.

I looked behind me every once in a bit to see how far they were. But to my horror, they were closer than ever. I could make out the color of the bikes and the riders' outfits. It was like nothing I had seen in my life before and I was sure any person would think the same way. They had holographic screens for Allah's sake!

I gasped for air as my legs pushed me forward. I was running what whatever strength I had left but it was all in vain. They were getting closer and closer, the sound of the strong engine ringing in my ears like alarms.

I stopped as one of them swerved and spun around, halting in front of me. The momentum caused the sand from under the tires to hit my face and I was blinded for a second. Without wasting a moment, I looked behind me, reacting quickly to run the other way.

My heart shot up to my throat as my eyes fell on the other motorbike that stood behind me. The riders revved the engine at me as if giving me an order to stop wherever I was. My eyes darted here and there, finding a way to get out of the situation. As all hope shattered in front of me, I sighed.

"Hands up, Lx16! You are under arrest!"

Ya Allah. Save me!