Chapter 23 Chapter 23
The police were already working on it, but she wanted to do her best to support them. Valerie had never aspired to be one of those journalists who wrote pointless stories filled with lies, uncovering the private lives of famous people. She wanted to accomplish something, so she chose to work for a reputable newspaper instead of a tabloid.
Her destination was a public green area, a park with trees, colorful flower beds, and a lake in the middle, where people would frequently take walks. Since the incidents, it had become emptier, but to Valerie’s disbelief, some people still strolled around without a care.
Valerie walked over the gravel path, glancing around attentively until she reached the spot where one of the women had supposedly disappeared.
Her purse had been found here, the only evidence that she had been here at one point. Valerie left the path and ventured on until she spotted something strange. The bark of a nearby tree appeared slightly different than the others nearby.
Stepping closer, she narrowed her eyes and used her smartphone to take a photo of it. The bark was tinted a darker color here, the shade looking suspiciously similar to blood.
It was roughly at the same height as Valerie’s head, so she wondered if it originated from the missing woman. Maybe the culprit had slammed her against the tree? Valerie’s stomach churned just thinking about such a violent act, and she suddenly felt very uncomfortable, turning on her heels to leave the eerie spot.
Walking back to the gravel path, she passed a young woman busy talking on her phone, wearing sunglasses and seeming oblivious to the horrors that had happened in the park. Valerie gritted her teeth and moved on, passing a pavilion in the middle of the park.
It was white with a dome roof, looking like it was taken straight from a fairy tale. The structure was lovely, but knowing something terrible had happened in the vicinity destroyed the beautiful image in Valerie’s eyes. In the case of the second victim, the young accountant, the police found her discarded jacket after searching the green area.
It had been left in the pavilion, its edges ripped in some parts, mainly at the ends of the sleeves. Valerie walked up the steps and stood in the middle of the small pavilion, an ominous feeling of foreboding creeping over her. She sensed something was wrong, but didn’t know what it was.
The pavilion was quite secluded from the rest of the park, surrounded by dense bushes and trees. It would be easy to lure someone to a supposedly romantic spot to ambush the person when they least expect it. Maybe the woman had been caught off guard by the culprit or planned to meet them, not realizing the danger it put her in.
Valerie was abruptly ripped from her thoughts when a faint pulse originated from the mark on her wrist. Covering it with her hand, she furrowed her brow.
This hadn’t happened in a while, and she wondered what it could mean this time. Was it another warning? Her breath hitched when she realized this was likely true. A numbing coldness seeped into her body, petrifying her. She wasn’t safe here anymore.
Valerie didn’t see anyone in the vicinity, but that didn’t mean she was alone. “Oh my God,” she whispered, hurrying back to the gravel path to leave this secluded area fast.
Her sneakers made a crunching sound as she ran, her black hair flying after her. Fear made her lose control of her thoughts. She didn’t want to be kidnapped. She didn’t want to be a victim, either. Her legs moved faster, carrying her to the end of the green area. The traffic on a busy street became visible between the trees.
However, the pulsing of the mark didn’t stop, not even when she reached the sidewalk with many other people around her. She ought to be relatively safe here; nobody would dare do anything to her with so many witnesses nearby.
Nonetheless, she glanced around inconspicuously, meeting the annoyed gazes of some people behind her. She still had no clue where this strange feeling originated from, if someone was after her right now, or if Maxwell had something to do with it.
Valerie knew the latter was unlikely since she had never felt any sensation through the bond. He never hurt himself; he didn’t feel emotional pain either. Compared to her, he was like a brick.
She returned to the parking garage, entering through a door and walking up the stairs to the floor where her car was. The pulsing abruptly intensified, and her steps quickened.
The half-broken lamps close by flickered, some having turned off because they were old and malfunctioned.
It was an unsettling sight; for once, she would have preferred it if it were Maxwell messing with her. He liked to play around with the light when he wanted to annoy her, but now he wasn’t anywhere near her. She was alone. Or at least, she hoped she was.
It was hard to tell.
Passing countless rows of cars, her eyes roamed over them, trying to spot her car that had to be here somewhere. An intense fear grew within her when she heard footsteps that weren’t hers.
Ice-cold fright flooded her body, her spine going rigid in the process. Tensing up, she looked over her shoulder but again didn’t see anyone. She finally spotted her car and ran towards it as fast as she could.
Pressing the button on her key, she unlocked it from afar, ripped the door open, and sat inside, locking the car from the inside. She didn’t take the time to put on her seatbelt, flooring the gas pedal as she raced out of the parking garage, nearly grazing a wall by accident.
The pulses of her mark became painful for a moment, and then they vanished abruptly—as if she had imagined the entire thing. She drove down the street, stopped at a red traffic light, and leaned her forehead against the steering wheel. Valerie took a deep breath to calm her galloping heartbeat.
This had been a strange occurrence, making her wonder how much danger she had been in just now.