Chapter 65: Silent Alarms

As Jason drove towards the Global News Network office, Kate sat beside him, scribbling something in her notebook, the silence between them thick with the weight of unfinished thoughts. Jason's eyes flicked to her occasionally, the familiar sight of her concentrated face pulling at him in a way he couldn't shake.

There was always something magnetic about her—her focus, her intelligence, her quiet strength—but it was more than that.

He loved her. And she didn’t know.

"Jason," Kate broke the silence, her voice sharp. "We need to talk to Clark."

Jason’s grip on the steering wheel tightened.

"I know," he replied, his voice a little rougher than he intended. "But I was thinking that—"

His phone rang, cutting him off. He glanced at the screen. Oliver. Jason’s pulse quickened. He’d been expecting a call, but not this soon.

"Oliver," he answered, keeping his tone controlled despite the sudden rush of adrenaline in his veins.

"Sir, we need you at Franklin Road near Henley Beach," Oliver’s voice crackled through the phone.

Jason’s heart skipped a beat. "What’s happened?"

"It’s bad, sir. We think we’ve found the house we’ve been looking for—the one connected to Ryder’s killer. The one with the Rubaiyat clues." Oliver paused, his voice grim. "But it’s worse. The killer’s struck again. And this time, he’s taken a girl."

Jason’s grip tightened on the wheel, knuckles whitening. He turned his head slightly, glancing at Kate. She was looking out the window, her brow furrowed in concentration, completely unaware of the storm of emotions brewing in him.

"Okay," Jason said, his voice low but steady. "Where are you?"

"I’m on my way to the scene now," Oliver replied, urgency in his voice. "We need to move fast. The girl’s been gone too long."

Jason’s jaw clenched. He could feel the weight of the moment settling in his chest. "Take the forensic team, secure the scene, and don’t let anyone touch anything until I get there. I’m coming now."

He ended the call without waiting for a reply. His heart raced, but he forced himself to breathe. This was bigger than the personal stakes—it was a life at risk, maybe more than one. But as always, the case felt intertwined with something darker. Something personal.

Kate turned toward him, her expression concerned as she caught the change in his demeanor.

"What’s going on?" she asked, her voice quiet but steady.

Jason swallowed, his chest tight. There was no easy way to say this. "A girl’s been abducted," he said, his eyes flicking to her, then quickly away. "Oliver thinks it’s the same killer who murdered Ryder... and your parents."

Kate’s breath caught, her hand instinctively gripping the edge of the seat. Her face went pale, her eyes wide with disbelief. For a long moment, she couldn’t seem to process the words. She just stared ahead, her grip tightening on the seat, as if holding onto something solid would keep her grounded.

"What? You mean... the same one?" Her voice cracked, and Jason could hear the tremor there—the raw edge of a pain she had never fully let go of.

Jason nodded, trying to keep his voice even. "Yes. And we’re running out of time."

Kate’s eyes flickered with a storm of emotions—fear, anger, confusion—before she closed them briefly, her breath hitching. She didn’t speak at first, as if gathering her thoughts, her strength. Jason’s heart twisted at the sight of her struggling, the sharp lines of her jaw tightening with determination.

"This is insane," she finally said, her voice barely above a whisper. "How could... how could someone keep doing this?"

Her words hit him harder than he expected, the helplessness in her voice cutting through him like a knife. He wanted to reach out, comfort her, but instead, he focused on the road, the hum of the tires filling the space between them. It was always like this, wasn’t it? She needed him, but he couldn’t give her the one thing she might want most: answers. Peace.

Jason kept his eyes on the road, the weight of his own feelings pressing down on him. He could only stand by her—he couldn’t save her from this, no matter how badly he wanted to.

"Jason," Kate said after a long pause, her voice small but steady now, as though she had steeled herself. "We need to catch this guy. We need to stop him before he kills again."

Her words were firm, but there was something else in them—something deeper. A trust, maybe. A belief in him that he didn’t feel he deserved.

"I know," Jason said, his voice rougher than usual. He cleared his throat, trying to keep his emotions in check. "We will, Kate. We’ll stop him."

He caught another quick glance at her, her profile outlined by the glow of the dashboard lights. For a moment, the ache in his chest felt almost unbearable—the deep, painful longing that always gnawed at him when they were this close. But it was fleeting. He couldn’t afford to be distracted.

The case. The killer. The girl.

Jason shook his head slightly, trying to clear his thoughts. "We need to get to that crime scene," he said, his voice firm again.

"Oliver will need our help."

Kate nodded, her eyes narrowing as she processed the information. She took a deep breath, steadying herself, before asking, "How long until we get there?"

"Ten minutes," Jason replied. He glanced at her once more, the emotions roiling inside him threatening to spill over, but he pushed them back. He had to.

There was no time for anything else.

The rest of the drive was filled with silence, but this time, it was different. It wasn’t just the tension of the case that weighed on them. It was something unspoken, something only Jason knew.

The line between duty and desire was never more blurred than now, and as they raced toward the crime scene, Jason couldn’t help but wonder if he’d ever have the courage to tell Kate how he really felt. Or if it even mattered.

The killer was still out there. And time was running out.