The seawater felt colder as dawn began to break. Axel Drake swam away from the shore, trying to shake off the remnants of sleep. Last night, his mind had been filled with images of mysterious footprints in the sand. He hadn't slept well, and swimming in the ocean was the best way to calm his thoughts.
SPLASH!
He paddled steadily, letting his body float for a moment. The sun had yet to fully rise, and the morning waves were calmer than usual.
Suddenly, something in the distance caught his attention.
A black object was floating on the water, bobbing with the current.
"What is that?" he murmured.
He swam closer, squinting to get a clearer look. The shape resembled... a suitcase?
His blood surged with excitement. If it was indeed a suitcase, it might contain something useful!
Without hesitation, Axel Drake picked up his pace, cutting through the waves toward the black suitcase.
SPLASH! SPLASH!
When his hand finally grasped the suitcase, he let out a relieved breath. It was quite heavy—a sign that something was inside.
"Ha… this is a jackpot!" he gasped.
He started swimming back to shore, dragging the floating black suitcase along.
On the beach, Nova Sinclair stirred in her sleep. The emerging sunlight disturbed her eyes, making her slowly awaken.
She blinked, her body still heavy with exhaustion. But something felt off.
The beach was empty.
Nova Sinclair lifted her head, scanning her surroundings.
"Axel Drake?" she called out.
No response.
Her eyes swept across the shore until they stopped at a figure in the water.
Someone was swimming back to the beach.
As she focused, Nova Sinclair recognized Axel Drake, looking triumphant as he dragged a large black suitcase across the water.
Curiosity overtook her sleepiness. She got up and quickly walked to the water's edge.
"Axel Drake! Where have you been?!" she shouted.
Axel Drake, still half-swimming, looked up with a victorious expression. "I found something! Look at this! A suitcase!"
But just as he reached the shore and proudly stood up...
Nova Sinclair froze.
Her eyes widened.
Her mouth opened, then…
"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!"
Axel Drake looked at her in confusion. "Why are you screa—"
Then, he felt the cool breeze against his skin.
His bare skin.
Suddenly, everything clicked in his brain.
Shit. I forgot I was swimming naked.
Nova Sinclair staggered back in horror, covering her face with her hands. "YOU PERVERT! EXHIBITIONIST! YOU DID THAT ON PURPOSE, DIDN'T YOU?!"
"NO! IT WASN'T ON PURPOSE!" Axel Drake shouted in panic.
With lightning speed, he grabbed the black suitcase and used it to cover his lower body.
Nova Sinclair was still shrieking as she ran behind a palm tree. "You're disgusting! I don't want to see that!"
Axel Drake's face burned red. He cursed his own stupidity. In his excitement over the suitcase, he had completely forgotten that he wasn't wearing anything!
Still using the suitcase as a shield, he hurriedly ran behind a large rock to retrieve his abandoned shorts.
"Damn it, I'm going to be remembered as the pervert of this island," he grumbled.
Meanwhile, Nova Sinclair remained behind the tree, trying to calm herself while muttering, "Great. I'm stranded on an island with a psychopath."
Axel Drake hastily grabbed his shorts and put them on, cursing himself under his breath. "Damn. I'm such an idiot."
Once he felt appropriately dressed again, he walked back to the beach, where the black suitcase still lay on the sand. From the corner of his eye, he could see Nova Sinclair sitting with her arms crossed, her face still twisted in anger.
Axel Drake took a deep breath and cleared his throat. "Listen… I'm sorry. That was a total accident. I forgot I wasn't wearing anything."
Nova Sinclair glared at him. "Forgot? FORGOT?! How does a man forget that he's naked?! Do you think I'm stupid?!"
"I swear, it wasn't intentional," Axel Drake raised his hands defensively. "I was too focused on this suitcase. I had no weird intentions, okay?"
Nova Sinclair still looked doubtful, but she finally huffed and turned her attention to the black suitcase.
"What's inside?" she asked, ignoring the earlier incident.
Axel Drake let out a relieved sigh. At least he wasn't being socially executed.
"Not sure yet," he replied. "I want to open it, but if it belonged to someone else from the ship, we need to be ready for whatever's inside."
Nova Sinclair nodded. "Let's hope it's not a dead body."
Axel Drake bit his lip. "Yeah… let's hope."
He knelt and examined the suitcase more closely. It was made of thick leather, looking expensive and exclusive. The zipper was tightly closed, though there were slight scratches at the bottom—possibly from hitting ship debris or rocks in the ocean.
"If this belonged to someone, they must have been rich," he murmured.
Nova Sinclair crouched beside him. "Just open it. Maybe there's something useful inside."
Axel Drake nodded, then carefully pulled the zipper.
ZZZZZIIIPP!
The suitcase opened, revealing its contents.
At first, they both remained silent.
Inside the suitcase, there was a neat stack of clothes—expensive shirts, trousers, and even a suit. But beneath the clothes, something more suspicious caught their eyes.
"What… is this?" Nova Sinclair reached in and picked up a small black box. When she opened it, they found several rolls of cash in various currencies—dollars, euros, and even yen.
Axel Drake raised an eyebrow. "Is this owned by a businessman or… a criminal?"
Nova Sinclair swallowed hard. "This much money… this isn't an ordinary suitcase."
Axel Drake dug deeper. Besides clothes and money, there were other, even more suspicious items:
A large folding knife.
A small pistol with two magazines of bullets.
Several documents and passports with different identities.
They exchanged looks, realization creeping into their minds.
"This belongs to someone dangerous," Nova Sinclair whispered.
Axel Drake picked up one of the passports. The name on it was "Marcus Langley." The man in the photo had a serious expression, his sharp gaze exuding an air of distrust.
Nova Sinclair bit her lip. "Was he on the same ship as us?"
Axel Drake shook his head. "I don't remember his face. But this means one thing… if this suitcase made it here, then he probably did too. Or… at least, he was here."
Suddenly, the air felt heavier.
They sat on the sand, staring at the suitcase's contents with mixed emotions.
Nova Sinclair finally spoke, her voice low. "We need to be careful. If the owner of this suitcase is still alive and he's dangerous… we're in trouble."
Axel Drake nodded in agreement. "We don't know if he's still on this island or if he's already dead. But one thing's for sure—this guy isn't ordinary. A gun, multiple currencies, fake passports… this isn't some regular businessman's suitcase."
Nova Sinclair took a deep breath. "So, what do we do now?"
Axel Drake thought for a moment, then said, "First, we need to hide this suitcase. If its owner is still alive and looking for it, it's better if he doesn't find it."
Nova Sinclair hesitated but eventually nodded. "Agreed. We don't know who else is out there."
Axel Drake closed the suitcase again and lifted it. "Let's find a safe place to stash it. After that… we need to be more cautious."
As they started moving, far in the jungle, a CRACK! sound echoed.
Nova Sinclair froze mid-step. "Did you hear that?"
Axel Drake tensed immediately. "Yeah."
They exchanged glances.
They were not alone on this island.
Axel Drake slowly placed the suitcase on the ground, his grip tightening around the handle. His breath grew heavy, his heartbeat pounding.
Nova Sinclair swallowed hard, her body rigid. "What was that?" she whispered.
CRACK!
Another branch snapped—this time, even closer.
Axel Drake grabbed the folding knife from the suitcase and shut it carefully. His eyes scanned the jungle, trying to pierce the darkness between the trees.
"Someone's there," he murmured.
Nova Sinclair took a step back, eyes wide. "We need to go. Now."
Axel Drake nodded, but before they could move…
The leaves rustled, and something emerged from the shadows.