The Essence Of The Darkness
Episode 54: Stealing Time

"You okay?"

Akram lowered his head towards Elana, while his gaze sharply looked at the entirety of the woman. Now Nathan's doctor has set up the equipment in the ambulance that will take Elana to Xavier's house, while Elana is sitting in a wheelchair with Akram standing next to her waiting in a special elevator lobby which is usually used as a pickup place by Akram.

Elana looked up at Akram, then nodded her head. His two hands were both*** nervously. He was just told that Akram decided to send him to Xavier's house to undergo the process of administering the antidote to the poison that runs through his body.

Of course Elana was shocked and scared beyond measure. The shadow of Anastasia's death file that Akram had given her immediately appeared in his mind, making him shudder, overwhelmed by a terrible horror. Although in front of Xavier's eyes it seemed meek, but Elana realized that Xavier's cruelty emblazoned in the file was undeniable.

And now he had to give his fate into Xavier's hands....

Dr. Nathan explains that there is currently no other path they can take. Elana had to accept the antidote, and only Xavier had it. Xavier so cunningly injects the poison into Elana's body that it makes its position in the wind. Even an Akram Night must compromise with Xavier to save Elana's life.

Akram's eyes glanced at the two hands of Elana who were still holding each other** nervously, making Akram thinning his lips, filled with guilt.

Akram then knelt in front of Elana's wheelchair, using one knee to support the body while his two large hands cupped the tiny hands of Elana to the point of drowning completely. Her facial expression looked solemn as she forced Elana to return her gaze.

"You will be guarded by my men. I'll make sure that Xavier won't be able to hurt you" Akram said his sentence in a serious tone. "You believe me, don't you?" ask her in a demanding tone.

Elana gulped, but she nodded her head. He has no one in his life, except Akram. So, in the situation between life and death like this, Elana had no choice but to trust Akram.

Akram opened his mouth about to speak, his expression showing that Elana's nod seemed to be unsatisfactory to him. But at the same time, Nathan's doctor comes closer and informs him that the ambulance is ready to take Elana, causing Akram to abandon his intention.

Without a word Akram stood up, then leaned towards the wheelchair to scoop Elana's weak body into her sling, asking Elana to put her hand around her neck.

Afterwards, Elana was laid to the bed prepared to enter the ambulance. His hand was still holding Elana's hand to calm her down when the medics led by Nathan attached the supporting medical equipment to Elana's body to be used along the way to Xavier's house.

When Akram was about to remove his grip from Elana's hand and let the medic lift Elana's bed into the ambulance, Akram's watchful eyes saw a ray of fear flashed in Elana's eyes. Like the eyes of a little child who is left sleeping alone in a dark room when a rainstorm hits.

Elana said nothing, but terror filled her eyes as if shouting a plea to Akram to hold him back.

"You're gonna be fine. Twenty hours and you'll be home in my protection" Akram made his promise in a raucous voice, he kissed the woman's lips, and forced himself to take his hand off Elana and move away.

After that, Akram just stood petrified and let Elana's bed lifted into the ambulance, followed by doctors Nathan and Elios who rose to accompany him.

A long time later, Akram was still there with a pushy look towards the empty street where the ambulance disappeared on the corner.

The next twenty hours would definitely be the twenty longest and tormenting hours of his life.

***

***

The ambulance followed by a convoy of cars full of bodyguards Akram entered the large gate like a palace hidden at the end of a magnificent housing and as if separated from the others.

Elana knew that this elite area in the center of the city indeed contained magnificent houses that could only be reached by wealthy people, he said, but he did not expect that there was a magnificent palace hidden in this place.

It seemed, Xavier had built a castle of refuge for himself here, an untouched place where he could do as he pleased and behave as a mysterious rich young master.

The cars they were carrying were stopped by an army of security guards in the courtyard. They did not snatch the weapons of the bodyguards sent by Akram, only checking the parts of the car as if avoiding the possibility of explosives tucked in there. Meanwhile, Elios appears to be conversing with someone who introduces himself as Regas, Xavier's assistant, and talks about all the procedures and rules that must be mutually agreed in the process of administering serum to Elana.

Afterwards, Elana's push-bed was lowered from the ambulance and with Elios and Nathan walking on her right left side, also followed by the bodyguards, they were all escorted to walk into the house.

Just like the exterior of Xavier's house that looks like a medieval castle, the inside is just as beautiful. The floor and walls are covered with a beautiful layer of beige marble with golden sepulchres, combined with paintings of the renaissance flow that so fit hanging along the walls of the hallway.

Elana looked at it all while lying down as her bed was pushed through the hallway, while her heart pounded even more as they reached the end of the passage. The large door of the room located at the end of the hallway opened, and there appeared a patient bed and wheelchair that had been prepared in the middle of the room, and there was the patient's bed and wheelchair, likewise, a tool shaped like a digital screen is large enough, being turned on to produce a constant bib sound that attracts attention.

The entire room seems to have been specially prepared to handle Elana.

Elios immediately arranged for the bodyguards to spread to important points for care. Afterwards, she and Nathan push Elana's bed into the room.

Nathan's eyes were fixed on the people in white lab coats like medics and seemed to be preparing everything there, and he decided to approach them.

“I will make sure that any liquid that will be put into your body, safe for you,” Nathan turns to Elana with a soothing look, then steps away leaving the side of Elana's bed.

Left alone with Elana, Elios looked around the room, his facial expression doubtful and filled with vigilance. The man seemed to be scanning everyone with the situation around them, then sighed while looking at Elana.

“They said that Xavier was having a sudden business. She was nowhere to be seen until what time, so she could not welcome us,” Elios turned his back to the room door to make sure to go back, then looked at Elana with a smile. “I don't believe it at first. However, given that Xavier has not appeared so far, I suspect that what Regas said is true. You can be a little calm, Miss Elana.” continued softly.

Elana nodded her head and her heart felt warm. Elios and Nathan, these two men are loyal and may even be friends who always accompany Akram. However, the two of them have treated Elana like a friend as well, worrying about her condition and trying to calm her in their own way. It made Elana moved to want to cry.

The officers moved in to help move Elana from the push-bed to the patient's bed, then began to attach the tools to her body. They moved so fast and effectively that Elana became panicked. His eyes glanced at the doctor Nathan who continued to stand nearby. Elana's gaze clearly showed fear, as well as a desire to be saved, and Nathan's doctor immediately gave it to her. The man's hand** Elana's fingers, calms her down.

“I've confirmed it. The antidote has complete and original certification, and it is really for your antidote, will not be harmful to you.” Nathan put on his most gentle smile. “Patience yes? You'll heal, Elana.”

Again all Elana could do was nod her head. He lay still and according to when the intravenous needle was thrust into his body to insert a hose into his veins and drain the infusion of liquid which this time felt so warm, mixed with his blood and spread throughout the body while bringing that warmth to numb the freezing that had once ruled him.

Elana felt so comfortable that her eyes were closed, her breathing changed in order as a pleasant warmth began to surround her body, it felt like she was cradled in an embrace and swung with great care.

“Infus it will make Miss Lana haunt and then fall asleep,” one of the medical personnel from the Xavier side who was working with doctor Nathan to handle Elana said with a smile, and, “Maybe we can let Miss Lana rest and wait outside.”

“Waiting outside? No, we won't do it!” Elios interrupted quickly and cautiously. They certainly wouldn't leave Elana in here alone.

Who knows what Xavier will do to Elana alone when they let go of the surveillance?

Regas stepped forward, immediately taking over the situation effectively. “Mari, I'll show you the comfortable waiting room you used to use for twenty hours You wait for Miss Elana. The bodyguards sent by Mr. Akram can be arranged to surround the entire side of this room both on the outside and inside. From our side, I alone will be the guarantee of safety for Miss Lana,”bRegas spoke in a convincing tone before leading the way to a giant glass door that was on one side of the room and filled the wall.

Elios and Nathan exchanged looks. Finally, inevitably they follow Regas steps that open the glass door and show another room attached directly to the room.

The room was like a lounge specially made to relax all day. With large sofas filling it, low tables were glazed. Even with dry kitchen pantry equipped with coffee maker, electric heater and various kinds of pastry cakes in ceramic dish shelves placed there. On the wall, a giant-sized television is installed that almost meets the entire side, a modern look that looks contrasted with the classic feel of the black dish machine located right next to it.

The most important of all was that, when the transparent glass door was closed, they could clearly see the appearance of Elana who was asleep on the bed and was receiving an infusion, right in front of their eyes.

“You can do surveillance from here. Obstructed by sterile glass, but will not block your view from Miss Elana,” Regas handed a black tool with a digital display screen the size of a phone to Nathan before speaking. “This is an infusion liquid droplet monitoring tool that is connected with wireless network. You can analyze in real time the drip speed according to the setpoint, check the condition of the droplets, and also know the rest of the infusion fluid. All of our data is displayed in realtime with detailed digital data so you can control Miss Lana's condition from time to time without having to interrupt her break,” Regas now turns to Renault doctors seeking approval. “Because, Renault doctor said that the effect of antidote serum is like a sleeping drug that will make Miss Lana sleep soundly throughout the process, it is good Miss Lana is left to sleep and rest without interruption.”

Nathan turned to Elios, exchanged glances before nodding his head. He took the device from Regas' hands as a form of approval.

“Good, we will wait here and keep an eye on. Likewise with the bodyguards guarding the outdoors, they would remain on alert until the whole process was complete,” Nathan's gaze sharpened towards Regas. “But that doesn't mean we won't rush into the room if we feel that something is harming Miss Elana. You should also know that the entire side of this house has been surrounded by Mr. Akram's men who are ready to storm if they get the danger code from us.”

Regas smiled broadly at Elios' threat. The man nodded his head leisurely, showing clearly that there was absolutely no ill intention on his part to hurt Elana.“I told you, didn't I? I am willing to guarantee Miss Elana's safety with my own life,” she replied straightforwardly and instantly closed the conversation

***

***

“It feels weird, doesn't it? Why did Xavier, who had thrown poison at Elana to force her to steal time with Elana, even leave the location when Elana arrived at this place?” Elios took out his laptop and put it on the table. He scanned the entire network in this room and installed a network protector with a special path to protect all his laptop data before then turning on his laptop and starting work.

There was no activity that Elios could do while waiting for the long process of infusing Elana, other than to report the current conditions to his master Akram, who had just finished doing so. Elios doesn't like to spend his time watching TV, sleeping and relaxing. So, he decided to wait while finishing his mountain work as Akram Night's assistant that he had not touched yesterday because of his focus on Elana.

Meanwhile, Nathan stares at the translucent glass door featuring Elana sleeping with regular breaths. He glanced at the digital tool in his hand to check, then he shrugged with a long sigh while slamming his body on the sofa next to Elios.

“I also feel suspicious. But until now, nothing strange, right? Perhaps Xavier was indeed having some sort of sudden business outside of his original plan. At the moment Elana was clearly in the room there sleeping and receiving the infusion with the perfect procedure as she should have been, while the atmosphere felt so peaceful. So, I think now there's nothing to do even though we shouldn't lower our vigilance,” Nathan is scapegoating, leaning his head against the back of the sofa and contrary to his previous sentence regarding alertness, he said, Nathan closed his eyes.

“Hey, what are you doing?” Elios frowned looking at Nathan's behavior next to him.

“Sleep. What else is it?” Nathan replied with his eyes still closed. “I'll steal time to rest for a moment. You take care first, later we change,” continued Nathan with a long sigh before then fell deeply.

Elios glanced and did not try to prevent what Nathan was doing. He knew that the man must have been very tired for two days leading the handling of Elana's condition to arguably not have time to sleep.

***

***

Xavier's footsteps were soft as he climbed onto the carpet without using footwear. Unlike usual where he always wore formal clothes, Xavier currently wore casual clothes that made him appear much younger than his age.

With black jeans combined with a long matching colored sweater that looks oversize on his slender body, it was still coupled with his disheveled hair and not being neatly combed back like when Xavier was performing in public, Xavier currently looked as if he was preparing to relax all day.

Xavier's steps came to a halt when he reached the edge of Lana's bed, watching the slumbering woman with an inexplicable gaze. For a moment, Xavier turned his gaze to the glass doors and walls that filled one side of the room, displaying the figure of Elios at work and Nathan who seemed to fall asleep instantly exhausted as he slammed his body on the sofa.

Every now and then, Elios watched the glass door, watching Elana's condition vigilantly, seemingly on guard and unwilling to let Elana out of his sight.

It made Xavier smile. Elios is Akram's loyal assistant. The man came from an orphanage of the same age, and Akram took Elios from there, staged him, gave him education and made him his perfect right hand. Elios is truly like a faithful abandoned animal and knows the return of gratitude to the master who saved him. So determined to defend his master and not have a single speck of intention to betray Akram.

That's why Xavier never tried to pull Elios across to his side, because he knew it would be useless.

Elios was staring into this room, but he was unaware of Xavier's presence because Xavier had outsmarted him. The large glass wall that divides the room where Elana sleeps and the room where Elios and Nathan are waiting is no ordinary glass wall. It was an advanced digital display that could display real picture footage with perfect composition and display.

At present, on the Xavier side, the glass walls and doors are like ordinary translucent glass that displays the figure of Nathan and Elios as it is. But, from Elios and Nathan's point of view, the wall was turned into a digital screen that displayed footage of Elana's body figure falling asleep constantly and continuously, disguise the real events that actually happened behind this glass door.

So, for now, whatever Xavier did in the room with Elana, no one else would notice….

Remembering about it all made Xavier's gaze shifted back to the top of the bed and his eyes were glued again towards Elana. This woman was very beautiful, even when her innocent eyes were tightly closed, her beauty still lurked behind her natural look that was not polished by the slightest makeup.

Guilt flowed through Xavier's heart when he saw how pale Lana's body was, how thin her wrist that was currently drooping weakly with the infusion connected to the back of her hand.

Does Akram not take good care of this woman? Didn't she feed him a proportional diet so that Lana wasn't as fragile and weak-looking as she is today?

Xavier sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed. She could not help but touch her hands and rub her fingers against Elana's cheeks, again feeling a throb of guilt when she realized that she was still cold, the impact of the poison he injected into Lana's body.

“I'm sorry, Lana,” Xavier whispered slowly.

Whether Xavier's whispering voice was able to penetrate the sleep realm of Elana, or because of Xavier's hot hand touch that made Elana piqued from her dreams, Elana's eyes opened slowly, and the, first of all, it blinked as if it was trying to gather its consciousness.

Then the eyes opened wide, gaining his full awareness and directly staring at Xavier who was currently very close to him.

Fear instantly smeared Elana's eyeballs, filled with an overwhelming panic that prompted her to open her mouth and was about to scream. Unfortunately, his voice could not come out, because at that very instant, Xavier bent over him and placed his palm right into Elana's mouth to silence any sound that might appear from there.

***

***