Darkness had already settled over Derata by the time Hakiten stood waiting at the corner of the quiet street leading toward Juson's house. The evening carried an unusual stillness that seemed to wrap itself around the neighbourhood, interrupted only by distant sounds of passing vehicles and the occasional bark of a stray dog somewhere beyond the houses. Holding his phone loosely in one hand, Hakiten dialed Juson's number and waited in silence as the ringing continued. Inside the house, Juson answered almost immediately. At that moment he sat inside his room watching Herik, who remained completely absorbed in his own small world, waving a thin toy wand while clutching a tiny shield almost half the size of his body. After exchanging only a few quiet words with Hakiten, Juson ended the call, placed the receiver down, and rose from his chair. Without entering the kitchen or even glancing toward Yokina, who stood preparing dinner with her hair still tied in a bun and wearing ordinary clothes, he walked straight out of the house toward the car parked outside.
The engine came alive with a low rumble before the vehicle slowly rolled away from the house. The sound reached Yokina almost immediately, drawing her attention toward the window. Looking outside, she saw Juson's car disappearing toward the corner of the street where Hakiten waited. Believing the two friends had simply gone somewhere together, she returned to preparing dinner without another thought, unaware that their destination carried far greater importance than an ordinary meeting. A few moments later she carried food into Herik's room, where the little boy remained happily lying across the bed, swinging the thin plastic stick through the air as though imaginary enemies surrounded him. Meanwhile, Juson reached the corner of the street and slowed the vehicle beside Hakiten, who climbed into the passenger seat without wasting a word. Silence accompanied them for several seconds before Hakiten quietly asked whether Juson truly intended to search for Genido. Instead of answering directly, Juson kept his eyes on the road and calmly asked what Hakiten planned to do if they actually found him. The question lingered inside the car far longer than either of them expected.
The road toward Riverside Hospital stretched ahead beneath the growing darkness, but Juson deliberately kept the speed low, allowing time for the hospital to become as quiet as possible before they arrived. Hakiten eventually broke the silence, explaining that they would hand Genido over to the police, although before doing so he intended to ask him several questions himself. Juson listened carefully before asking why Hakiten had never fully explained what had happened inside his house. This time Hakiten chose not to avoid the subject. He admitted that he had never been certain whether Juson would even recognise Genido after so many years, then continued by describing the strange gift Genido had given him and how the Blue Zerre inside it had suddenly gone out of control, causing everything that followed. The explanation caught Juson's full attention, and before he realised it his foot pressed lightly against the brake pedal. Frowning, he demanded to know why Hakiten had hidden this from him inside the hospital, but Hakiten repeated that uncertainty had been the only reason. The answer sounded reasonable enough, and after another quiet stretch of road the hospital finally appeared before them. Juson parked outside, removed the keys, and before stepping out quietly assured Hakiten that once Genido was dealt with, they would return to living their lives as they had before. Whether he truly believed those words himself remained uncertain.
Only a handful of lights still burned on the hospital's upper floor where the pathology laboratories stood, while the ground floor continued serving the few remaining patients occupying its small ward. Standing outside the building, Hakiten wondered aloud how they intended to enter the laboratory area, but Juson simply gestured for him to follow. Without explanation he led him around the left side of the building until they stopped beneath a broken window leading into the same washroom Juson had used only a day earlier. Hakiten instinctively searched for another route, finding the idea of climbing through a broken window increasingly uncomfortable, yet Juson quietly insisted that no better option existed if they wished to avoid being seen. Accepting the plan, Juson first climbed onto the window ledge before lowering himself into the washroom. Hakiten followed after only a brief hesitation, landing quietly inside beside him. Instead of moving immediately, however, Juson remained standing beneath the ceiling light, his eyes fixed upon the glowing bulb overhead. The memory of another terrifying moment seemed to seize him completely until Hakiten's voice finally pulled him back to reality. Together they slipped through the washroom door and into the deserted corridor, remaining hidden until the only nurse still present walked away toward the reception before eventually leaving the hospital altogether.
Keeping close to the washroom entrance, both friends waited until the corridor fell silent before crossing toward the staircase. Their footsteps remained remarkably quiet as they climbed toward the pathology floor. During the ascent Hakiten asked which laboratory they intended to search first, but Juson remained silent until they reached the upper corridor. The very first room standing before them belonged to Genido, the same laboratory where he had once worked among blood samples. Only then did Juson answer, quietly stating that they would begin there. Before either of them moved, Hakiten noticed a faint beam of light escaping through the doorway, revealing that the room was not locked after all. Both men exchanged cautious glances before checking both ends of the corridor and slipping silently into the room, fully expecting someone to be waiting inside. Their carefully prepared investigation had finally begun, yet far away another carefully prepared plan was already moving toward its conclusion.
In the neighbouring city, the wanted doctor walked comfortably through the dark streets without wearing the mask that had hidden his face for so long. Completely convinced that the Derata Fetus Case had truly been closed, he no longer feared recognition as he entered the narrow lane leading toward the small colony where his rented house stood at the far end. The neighbourhood looked entirely ordinary. Children still played outside beneath glowing porch lights while women prepared dinner inside their homes, and every house appeared filled with peaceful domestic life. Reassured by the familiar surroundings, the doctor continued toward his house and soon stopped before the locked front door exactly as he had left it that morning. Nothing appeared unusual. Calmly unlocking the door, he pushed it inward and stepped inside.
The moment he crossed the doorway, a powerful hand seized him by the collar and dragged him violently into the darkness. Before he could shout or struggle, another hand forced a thick cloth tightly across his mouth while the door slammed shut behind him. A few tense moments later the room burst into bright light, forcing him to shut his eyes against the sudden glare. Through blurred vision he could make out only dark figures until his sight slowly adjusted. Standing directly before him was the police officer. Beside the entrance, the old man from the colony sat quietly upon a chair, while the assistant finished fastening handcuffs around the doctor's wrists behind his back. None of the three men showed even the slightest expression. They simply stared at him in complete silence.