"This is the Rare Population Genetic Research Institute. If you want to know the secret behind your body, come to the biology lab in Westvale, room 302 on the third floor. And please, don't bring anyone with you." The person's tone sounded polite, but there was an unmistakable firmness that left no room for argument. As soon as the message was delivered, the caller hung up, giving Thora no chance to respond. When she tried calling back, all she heard was, "The number you have dialed is not in service." Thora had originally planned to visit Marlon at Clearwave Sanatorium, but this unexpected call made her change her plans. On her way to Westvale, she called Luke. The man thought she wanted an update on the Military Hospital surveillance and reported immediately, "Ms. Green, the surveillance footage from Military Hospital has several layers of encryption, some of which are tied to the military's internal network. I'll need more time..." Thora cut him off. "I need you to check two things for me. A phone number and an address." She quickly recited the number she'd just received and the address for the Westvale biology lab. It didn't take long for Luke to respond. "Ms. Green, records show the Westvale biology lab was officially shut down 10 years ago. The number you gave me was their main contact back then, but after the lab closed, it was also deactivated. There's no record of anyone using it now." "That's impossible." Thora's voice dropped. "Someone just called me from that number." The sound of Luke typing grew faster as his tone turned serious. "I checked the landline records of the villa. The last valid call was two days ago when Howard called the mall to make a reservation. Since then, there haven't been any inbound or outbound calls. Whoever called you probably used a signal spoofing device or a virtual base station to erase all traces. My access can't find anything." Thora narrowed her eyes, her fingers absently rubbing the steering wheel. Even Luke can't trace the call record... That meant either the person had skills better than Luke's, or they had the ability to disrupt signals and rewrite logs. Luke sounded worried. "Ms. Green, do you need backup? I can get Harvey right now..." "No." Thora refused without hesitation. "You keep working on the Military Hospital surveillance. I'll handle this." She hung up and pressed harder on the gas. Whoever the caller was and whatever their intentions, since they reached out first, she had every reason to go meet them. ... The biology lab in Westvale was overgrown with weeds, but room 302 was spotless, as if someone cleaned it regularly. There was nothing except a silver safe in the center of the room, about waist-high. The place was otherwise empty. Thora circled the safe and knocked on it with her knuckles. The safe felt cold and hard. It was made of military-grade alloy, resistant to break-ins and heavy force. It was also fitted with a biometric self-destruct system. If it detected tampering or forced entry, the contents inside would be incinerated instantly. As Thora tried to figure out how to open it, the stone on her necklace suddenly vibrated and glowed green, floating directly toward the safe. She blinked in surprise but quickly regained her composure, gripping the stone and pressing it near the safe's keypad. Instantly, she heard a series of clicking gears inside. The safe door popped open. Thora scanned the inside carefully. There weren't any files or equipment—just a translucent, glowing card, hovering on a cushioned pad. After making sure there were no traps, she reached in and took the card out. A few lines were printed on the card in fluorescent writing, glowing in the dark. Name: Thora Green Blood type: Not entered in Blue Star Database Gene sequence: Contains unidentified segment No. 734 Physical condition: Perfect Related project: Project Spirit Wolf Project Director: Samuel Blake Those were the only pieces of information written on the card. It looked like some sort of project ID card. Project Spirit Wolf? Samuel Blake? The words echoed in her mind. Before she could think further, the glow on the card began to fade. In less than three seconds, it turned blank and crumbled to dust between her fingers. A classic self-destruct design—there was no evidence left behind. Thora searched the room but found no more clues. She sent both keywords to Luke, wiped her prints and tracks from the room, and finally left. Clearly, the other party had no ill intent—they simply wanted to pass on information. Thora hadn't met any resistance from entry to exit, not even security cameras. She wasn't the type to get stuck on things she couldn't figure out. If she couldn't figure it out for now, she'd just wait and see. Since the other party had made contact once, there was bound to be a second time. She put the stone back around her neck and tucked it under her collar before leaving for Clearwave Sanatorium. The mystery of her background and origin could wait. Marlon, on the other hand, couldn't wait any longer...