C404 Letters

At the Mooney residence, Although Mark had told everyone that he would contact the Gupta family, he still had a worried expression on his face. He took out his phone and immediately called Victor. The call was connected almost instantly. “Mr. Gupta,” Mark said, “we have a problem.” Victor's expression changed. “Mr. Mooney, what is going on? Is it serious?” Mark took a deep breath before explaining everything. Victor listened quietly. When Mark finished, there was a brief silence. Then Victor laughed. “Mr. Mooney, you don't have to worry about that.” Mark frowned.

Victor sounded completely relaxed. “The Capsey family owes me a favour.” Mark's eyes widened slightly. “You know them?” Victor smiled. “I know them very well. I will contact the old man right now. I will explain everything and tell them not to overreact.” Mark finally relaxed. “That would be a huge help.” “Don't worry. I'll handle it.” Mark nodded. “Thank you, Mr. Gupta.” He was about to end the call when another question came to his mind. “Mr. Gupta?” “Yes?” “Do you know where Capsey's old man is?” Victor chuckled. “He is at a private hospital.” Mark froze. “A hospital?” “Yes. His health hasn't been very good lately, but he is still kicking.” Mark smiled. “I understand.” He shook his head. “Thank you again.” “No problem.” The call ended. Mark felt a little lighter. He immediately sent a message to Kelvin. Mr. Wood, it is sorted. Everything is fine now.

At the Wood residence, Kelvin's phone vibrated. He quickly checked the message. The moment he read it, a wave of relief passed through him. He looked up at everyone. “It's sorted.” Tracy immediately looked at him. “What happened?” “Mr. Mooney contacted the Gupta family. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. David leaned back. “Thank goodness.” Valeria nodded. “At least that problem is solved.” Kelvin smiled. “For now.” Back at the Mooney residence, Mark returned to the living room. This time, he was smiling. Peter noticed immediately. “What is it?” Mark laughed. “It went well.” Peter looked curious. “What happened?”

Mark sat down. “Father, you once told me that you didn't know the whereabouts of Capsey's old man.” Peter nodded. “Yes. Why?” “Well…” Mark smiled. “I know where he is.” Peter immediately became interested. “Where?” “In a hospital.” Peter raised an eyebrow. “A hospital?” Mark nodded. “He is receiving treatment there.” Peter remained silent for a moment before nodding. “But he is fine?” Mark smiled. “Yes. Victor said his health hasn't been good lately, but he is still alive and doing well enough.” Peter nodded. “Good.” The room felt a little less tense. The threat of exposure had been pushed away. At the Gupta Military Base, night had finally arrived. After the exhausting day of training and hunting, all eight of us were completely exhausted. We barely had enough energy to talk.

Yet there was one problem. We still hadn't showered. Amanda looked at everyone before crossing her arms. “So we are really going to sleep without freshening up?” I laughed. “Silver, if you want to bath, you can go to the river.” Amanda stared at me. “At this hour?” Everyone laughed. She rolled her eyes. “Very funny, Cracker.” Chris laughed. “Come on, Silver. Think about it. The river is only two kilometres away.” Amanda looked at him. “You go with me.” Chris immediately stopped laughing. “No, thank you.” Everyone burst out laughing again. Eventually, there was nothing else we could do. We were too tired. One by one, we settled down and fell asleep.

Early the next morning, Hammer and the other coaches arrived at the base. Surprisingly, we were already awake. Nobody wanted to be caught sleeping when training started. Hammer looked around. “Good. At least you're learning.” He then remembered something. “Before you leave for your morning run, I need the list of everything you require.” Everyone immediately gathered around. Samantha began listing things. “Food.” “Fresh water.” “Clothes.” “Personal items.” Then the women started adding more things. “We need underwear. Panties. Boxers.” “Sanitary pads.” “Soap.” “Shampoo.” “Toothpaste.” “And other things.” Hammer looked down at the growing list. His eyes widened. “You expect us to buy all of these?”

Sarah nodded. “Yes.” “Because we will be here for some time.” She paused. “And we didn't exactly have time to pack properly.” Hammer sighed. “Fair enough.” He folded the list. “We'll get everything.” Amanda smiled. “Thank you.” Hammer looked at his watch. “All right. Time for the run.” We all prepared ourselves. But just as we were about to leave, something occurred to us. I looked at the coaches. “Aren't you all coming with us?” They all shook their heads. “No,” Sniper replied. “We have to prepare for the tasks you will do when you return.” Hammer nodded. “And I have to buy all these things.” He looked at the list again. Then he suddenly stopped us. “Wait.” Everyone looked at him. “Since I'm going to the city…” He looked at Laura. “How about we deliver the first letters?”

Laura's eyes immediately lit up. “No problem!” Samantha looked confused. “How are we going to write them?” Nobody answered. Instead, everyone suddenly rushed back inside. For the next few minutes, the base became surprisingly busy. Everyone found something to write on. We sat down and began writing letters. Some people wrote long letters. Others wrote only a few words. But every letter came from the heart. When we were finished, Wolf was waiting for us outside. He was holding a camera. “Come on, everyone. Take some pictures. We can attach them to the letters.” We immediately gathered around. Everyone started taking pictures. Each letter was accompanied by one individual photograph and one group photograph. We were all wearing our military clothes.

Looking at the pictures afterward, I couldn't help smiling. We looked completely different from the people who had left the city. We looked like soldiers. But deep down, we were still the same group of people who had left everything behind. Hammer looked around. “Bulldog and I will return to the city.” He collected the letters. “We will deliver these and buy the supplies.” He looked at the rest of us. “The rest of you prepare yourselves for training.” We nodded. We started our morning run. Hammer and Bulldog went in the opposite direction toward the city. By the time Hammer and Bulldog reached the city, it was still early in the morning. Most families had not yet left their homes for work. Their first destination was the Capsey family residence.

The previous evening, Victor had already contacted them. He had spoken to the family and reminded them of the favour they owed him. After a long discussion, they had agreed not to go to the police. They still wanted Faith back. But they had agreed to wait. Hammer and Bulldog stopped outside the house and knocked. Knock! Faith's father opened the door. The moment he saw the two men, his expression became worried. “Is something wrong?” His voice was tense. “Did something happen to my daughter?” Faith's mother quickly came forward. “What happened?” Hammer smiled calmly. “No, Mr. Capsey. Nothing happened.” He reached into his bag. “Your daughter sent us to deliver this letter to you.” Bulldog handed him the envelope.

Faith's father stared at it. “Our daughter?” Hammer nodded. “She asked us to give it to you.” He and Bulldog turned around and left without another word. Faith's father remained standing at the door. He looked down at the envelope. His wife stood beside him. “Open it.” He nodded. They went inside. Faith's father carefully opened the letter. The moment he began reading, his expression softened. “Dad, Mom. I know you two are upset that I left when you clearly refused. Well, I have started my training, and my new small family here is very welcoming. Yesterday we went hunting. I promise I will be safe and come back alive.” Faith's mother's eyes immediately filled with tears. She wiped them away quickly.

Her husband continued looking at the photographs attached to the letter. Then he saw Faith. She was smiling at the camera, dressed in military clothes. He shook his head. “You are as stubborn as your grandfather.” He looked at the photograph again. “Be safe, my child.” Faith's mother took the pictures from him. “Look how much she has grown.” She smiled through her tears. For a moment, both parents seemed to forget all the drama of the previous day. Faith's mother suddenly smiled wider. “I am definitely framing these photographs.” She looked at the group picture. “Look at her friends. They all look so young and dedicated.” Faith's father laughed softly. “She certainly found herself another family.”

Hammer and Bulldog continued to the next family. The Stokes residence. They knocked and handed Amanda's letter to her parents. The moment they received it, they quickly opened it. Amanda's mother began reading. “Father, I just wanted to inform you that I am safe and happy training with my friends. Mother, I know you like money. Miss Mooney promised us that we would get paid when we return to the city. For now, you can take all my savings from my bottom drawer.” Amanda's mother immediately stopped reading. She looked toward her husband. “Her savings?” Then she suddenly ran toward Amanda's bedroom. Her father couldn't stop laughing. He remained seated, looking at the photographs. But his smile became even wider when he saw his daughter smiling at the camera in her military clothes. “She looks happy.” He held the photograph carefully. “And that is all I wanted to see.”

The next destination was the Wood residence. Hammer and Bulldog arrived while the family was having breakfast. The Chambers family had already settled into the house next door after David completed the payment. However, Tracy had insisted that they continue eating breakfast together. When Hammer and Bulldog arrived, Tracy immediately invited them inside. “Come in and have breakfast with us.” Hammer smiled politely. “Thank you, but we can't stay.” Bulldog nodded. “We still have several letters to deliver.” Tracy understood. “All right.” Hammer handed over the envelopes. Then the two men left. Everyone immediately gathered around the table. Tracy opened Samantha's letter.

She began reading aloud. “Father, Mother, I am sorry to have given you such a huge task of looking after my daughter, Monica. I miss her a lot, but for now, I will keep training. The pictures I attached are for her.” Tracy looked at the photographs. She laughed softly. “So they really left to train.” Kelvin smiled. Tracy shook her head. “We shouldn't worry too much then.” She looked at Samantha's photograph. “She looks happy.” Kelvin nodded. “At least we know she is safe.” He then picked up Sarah's letter. He opened it carefully. “Hello, Dad and Mom. I hope Tristan is doing fine and not crying. I am out of words to describe how I feel being away from my son, but every day I will keep reminding myself that you two are taking care of him. Father, don't forget about the foreign languages. The company still has to continue without me. Those two percent shares from Spanish National Bank I planned to give them to Tristan.”

Kelvin stopped reading. He shook his head. “Even when she is away, she is still talking about business.” Everyone laughed. Then he looked at Sarah's photographs. She was smiling. Tracy took one of the pictures and stared at it. “She really looks happy.” Kelvin nodded. “That is what matters.” Across the table, David and Valeria had been listening quietly. The moment they heard the two letters, both of them froze. They looked at each other. Then David noticed another envelope. Chris's letter. He picked it up. When he opened it, he stared at the page. There were only two words. "For Tristan." David blinked. “That is it?” Everyone laughed. Valeria shook her head. “So he got nothing good to say when he has just disappeared?” David picked up the photographs attached to the letter. There was a picture of Chris with the others. And another of him smiling.

David stared at his son for a long moment. Then his expression softened. “Well two words are enough.” Valeria nodded. “Maybe.” She smiled. “But I still think he could have written more.” Everyone laughed again. They had proof. They had photographs. They had letters. And even though the letters were short, they carried something far more important than words. They carried reassurance. Their children were alive. They were together. And they were coming home.