Hunter started with the drawers first. But they barely had anything worthy. Some of them were even empty, reducing his work greatly. He then moved to the cupboards. Other than some clothes thrown haphazardly inside, there was nothing significant inside.

If not for the truth that the house belonged to Mia and he had seen her sign the document with his own eyes, he would have assumed this to be a rundown place where the homeless took shelter. It was too dirty for him to survive the minutes.

Time passed and sweat trickled down his back, drenching his shirt in the meanwhile. Besides the boxes, he had searched the entire place and ended up with nothing.

Hunter stopped in the middle of the hall to take a breather, his eyes falling on the huge boxes, 'Do I have to search all of these now? Will I be able to get out before the sun sets?' He wondered and squatted beside the smallest box in the pile.

He opened it, only to hear some clanking when he moved it closer to him. It was filled with crockery and cookware. Yet, he did not close the box immediately. Instead, he lifted each plate and saucer to check if something was hidden underneath them. And once he was done, he arranged them neatly, his OCD taking over him without mercy.

Hunter then moved to the next box filled with books and other stationery and this time, he was as careful as ever as he went through it slowly. Most of the books were related to photography and architecture and Hunter did not find anything crucial among them.

Yet, he did not give up and searched all the books, running his fingers through the edges lest he overlooked something in his haste.

He was exhausted and sweating profusely when he finished all the books. "Mia, do you want to open a library at home? Why do you have these many books?" He grumbled and started arranging the books back in the box.

With a sigh, he collapsed on the floor, utterly drained and defeated. He disregarded the dust below him, suppressing his OCD again. "Will I be returning home without gaining anything today? Is there no way for me to find Mia?" He mumbled and looked out of the half-open window.

The sun had already set and only the faint light from the street lamps passed through the windows. He still had a lot of boxes to search, which was practically impossible. "Looks like I will have to come again another day to finish the rest." He cried in his mind when he thought of the task ahead.

"Mia, I am going to charge you for this. Beware!!" He promised and dusted his pants which were now coated with dust, as he stood up.

He started closing the windows one by one, his cell phone torch illuminating his path as darkness filled the place. He did not forget to close the drapes too and once he was done, Hunter had to strain his eyes to see if any other window was left open.

But a sound outside the house caught his attention and he stiffened in his place immediately. 'What was that?' He wondered and tried to listen again, only to meet with silence.

However, the silence did not last long. Once again, he heard the sound of men speaking in hushed voices and they were coming right from the patio.

Hunter's first instinct was to retrieve his gun and prepare to attack if they were to barge inside. But he stopped suddenly when a notion hit him. 'Why would anyone come to Mia's house? What would they get here? Is it Ryan?'

Barely had the thought popped up in his mind when the door opened and he heard footsteps coming closer to him. He ducked immediately and looked for an inconspicuous place to hide. He switched off his torch and almost crawled on his knees as he moved towards the kitchen, which was slightly behind the living room, giving him a view of the people entering the house while he remained hidden.

"We need to move all the boxes here as quickly as possible."

Hunter heard one of the men speak and his brows drew together in confusion.

"Yes. This place stinks. I wouldn't have accepted the task if not for the hefty amount." Another man complained, his gruff voice filled with disgust.

"Cut it out and let's start working. We need to empty the house before anybody finds out."

"How are we even going to see inside? This place is as dark as a hell hole." The man with the gruff voice asked and Hunter peeked from where he was to see who the men were. However, he could see nothing besides their silhouettes and he pursed his lips thoughtfully.

"Idiot. You have your phone for a reason and the phone has a torch for a reason."

"Ohh..."

"That's why I tell you to use your mind at times. It is there for a reason too." The first man sassed, and if not for his difficult plight, Hunter would have started laughing and even thought of befriending the first man. They could become good buddies. The man's humor was to his liking.

"Whatever." The second man scoffed and they started working, moving the boxes out of the house individually.

Hunter had no way of escape. The kitchen had a tiny window that could not fit his muscular build and to leave the house, he had to use any other window or the door.

'How do I get out of here without getting caught? What do I do?' He wondered, his lips forming a thin line in worry.

Hunter could only pray that the men cleared the room first instead of looking in the kitchen and his prayers were answered when the men next shifted to the room.

Hunter took this opportunity to escape his hiding and bolted towards the half-closed door. However, this time, the door was not silent. Instead, it creaked a little and in the silent house, it was as loud as a bell gong.

"Who's there?" The man with the gruff voice shouted and Hunter cursed under his breath, glaring at the door for giving him away.

Without waiting, he sprinted out of the house at his full speed, not daring to look behind him. Although he did not mind killing the two people, it would only be a mess for him to discard the bodies, that too without getting noticed.

'And I do not want to stain Mia's house with blood.' He reduced his speed when he saw a family walking towards him, making it seem as though he was jogging at that time.

The family of four did not doubt him as they kept walking, talking to themselves, while one of the kids kept giggling and hopping in the front.

Hunter only calmed down once he was inside his car, secured to his seat. But he did not start his car immediately. Instead, gears started to turn in his mind.

"Who were the men? Why did they want to move Mia's things? Did Ryan order them to do so?"