第1章厨房春潮-我的妺妺h

Don nodded, though he wasn\'t sure what to say. The power he had used was still unfamiliar to him, and the fact that it had surfaced in such a dire situation left him with more questions than answers. But for now, all that mattered was that they were alive.

The sound of the bunker door creaking open drew their attention. Charlie peeked out, his face pale and his eyes wide with fear. "Is… is it over?"

Amanda shot him a look of pure venom. "You coward. You locked us out."

Charlie\'s mouth opened and closed as he searched for an excuse, but Don cut him off with a cold glare.

Charlie didn\'t could see words wouldn\'t work so he backed away, stumbling over his own feet as he fled the scene, leaving Don and Amanda alone.

———

About an hour later, the once peaceful setting of Amanda\'s farm was disrupted by the flashing lights of police cars and an ambulance parked near the scene of the battle.

Officers and paramedics moved about, assessing the situation and gathering evidence. Amanda and Don were seated on the back of the ambulance, their injuries being tended to by a paramedic while an officer questioned them.

The officer, a middle-aged man with a stern expression, short brown hair, and a square jaw, jotted down notes on a small notepad as Amanda finished recounting the events.

"And that\'s how that thing died," Amanda concluded, her voice steady but full of exhaustion.

The officer paused in his note-taking, narrowing his eyes at her. "Your story is inconsistent with what Officer Gates reported."

Amanda blinked in confusion. "Inconsistent? How is my story different from Charlie\'s?" She glanced at Don, who looked equally perplexed. "I\'m not lying about him hiding in my bunker and leaving us out to die."

The officer\'s gaze remained skeptical as he continued, "There are other parts of your story that don\'t add up. Like how a trained officer like Gates did nothing despite having a firearm. It doesn\'t make sense. His side of the story, where he was forced to protect the two of you, is more believable."

Don could hardly believe what he was hearing. His irritation quickly turned into anger. "Do we look like we were protected?" he challenged, his voice rising with frustration. "If Charlie was so brave, why do I have injuries, while he doesn\'t have a scratch on him apart from some stains on his uniform?"

The officer\'s expression hardened as he warned, "Watch your tone, son."

Amanda, sensing Don\'s rising anger, placed a calming hand on his shoulder. "It\'s fine, Donnie," she said softly before turning back to the officer. "If there\'s nothing else, I\'d like you to leave my property."

The officer shook his head. "We\'ll leave when we\'re done with our investigation into the creature. These things don\'t usually come this far from the forests, let alone reach farmland. We need to ensure there\'s no nest or den nearby."

Amanda frowned but knew there was no point in arguing. The thought of more of those creatures lurking nearby was too terrifying to dismiss. She simply nodded and said, "Fine. Do what you need to do."

The officer added, "It\'s in your best interest to have officers here until we reach a conclusion. Our department will formally send a request to have this area taped off for investigation."

Amanda sighed, knowing the officer was right despite her frustration. She glanced at Don and said, "Let\'s go."

They moved away from the ambulance and toward Amanda\'s truck. As they walked, Amanda rubbed her hands together nervously. "This is a mess," she muttered, her voice filled with frustration. "Why my farm of all places?" She paused, then sighed again, this time with a hint of guilt. "I shouldn\'t be so insensitive, considering someone died. We should count ourselves lucky."

Don, however, wasn\'t so sure. Throughout the ordeal, he couldn\'t shake the feeling that the creature had been particularly targeting him. He mulled over the events, knowing that guessing wouldn\'t get him anywhere. If he wanted to guarantee the safety of himself and the family, he would have to agree to the offer from the Elite Hero Program (EHP).

He remained silent, his thoughts heavy as they reached the truck. Amanda, visibly shaken, turned to him and said, "We should probably not say anything to Samantha about this. She won\'t let the police off the hook, especially if she finds out what that bastard Charlie did."

Don was reluctant to agree. He saw this as an opportunity to get Samantha even more invested in him. But he respected Amanda\'s wishes and figured she had her reasons. "You\'re right," he said, nodding. "But what should we tell her instead?"

Amanda thought for a moment before replying, "I\'ll just say a mutant was loose and caused a casualty in the area, so they\'re investigating to see if there might be more. That way, Samantha won\'t be too concerned, especially if I tell her I\'ll be staying with you all longer. You just need to wear long sleeved shirts until your wound heals."

Don considered her plan and realized it might not be such a bad thing if Amanda stayed around the house more. It would give him more opportunities to build on their relationship. "Alright," he agreed, though he was still considering other possibilities in the back of his mind.

Amanda nodded, relieved. "I should probably go grab some more clothes from the house," she said, looking back toward her now wrecked home. "Could you check if the truck still starts? It was shaken up a bit when the police car exploded."

She handed Don the keys before heading toward the house. Don watched her go for a moment, then turned his attention to the truck. Before he could get in, his eyes caught sight of Charlie, who was in the midst of giving his report to other officers.

To Don\'s irritation, Charlie was even getting a pat on the back from some of his fellow officers, who were praising him for his "good work."

With his enhanced senses, Don could hear them telling Charlie how brave he was, completely oblivious to the truth. Don\'s eyes flickered with hate, and he clenched his fists, thinking to himself, \'Charlie will get what\'s coming to him. I\'ll make sure of that.\'

He slid into the driver\'s seat of the truck, gripping the steering wheel as he tried to calm his anger. But the image of Charlie\'s smug face wouldn\'t leave his mind. Don knew he had to play it smart, but the urge to make Charlie pay was growing stronger by the second.