Chapter 22 What About Now?
Lina’s POV
Something felt off. The room was unnaturally still, and the only sound cutting through the silence was the faint hum of the AC.
Noel's eyes were still fixed on his laptop screen and his hands never stopped moving on the keyboards.
Then he typed something slowly…paused…clicked…scrolled, then finally opened an untitled file.
He shot me one quick glance, but didn't say a single word.
Without lifting his eyes away, he slowly passed the laptop to me, turning the screen towards my side.
I stared at him at first—suspicious of whatever he was about to show me.
I was suddenly unsure, and maybe terrified of whatever truth was behind this screen and why he wanted to drag me into this.
Despite my doubt, I didn't hesitate—I took the laptop from him at once, though my hands were sweaty.
The file had no name—it was an untitled document. No dates, no description, no prior modifications either.
Just a blank icon waiting to be opened.
I hesitated for a second, then I finally clicked on the file…and BOOM…a video instantly opened.
I stared closely at the screen, expecting to see something crazy….if not crazy, then maybe close to it. But for a moment, nothing happened—just a dark screen with faint background noises. Slowly, figures started to reveal themselves on the screen causing my brain to think farther than its limit.
Then a child suddenly popped up on the screen—it was the missing child from seven years ago. The same case Noel and I had been working on before he suddenly disappeared. Soon, the child began speaking in tongues before a man came from behind to shut him up by pinning him against the wall.
It looked like an exorcism, but everything felt too controlled, too normal for it to be one. I still couldn’t piece everything together; my memory was struggling to keep up.
I remembered the child in the video, but I couldn’t properly recognize the man’s face. I knew him—I definitely knew him—but why couldn’t my brain recall who exactly he was?
And then, just when I thought my memory had betrayed me, it hit me like a wave.
It was him.
Noel’s father.
Noel’s father was the one in the video—pinning the child to the wall, stopping him from speaking in tongues.
“This…” I whispered slowly, almost too calmly. “This is the case we were working on seven years ago, before you left.” I finally remembered.
Noel gave me a slow nod.
My eyes stayed glued to the screen as the video shifted angles from left to right. The child kept screaming and yelling strange words, but Noel’s father didn’t let go. He pinned the boy so tightly that it soon began affecting him too—as if something was burning him from the inside.
I remembered this footage. I had seen it before, but only a brief clip.
But now… this seemed to be the full footage from the investigation drone we used back when Noel and I were still partners seven years ago.
Back then, the case had abruptly come to an end when Noel vanished without a trace.
I still couldn’t put all the pieces together. I kept watching, hoping to spot something—anything—that would connect it all.
And then, the truth revealed itself. The thing I had been doubting… was exactly what it was.
It was an exorcism.
Noel’s father was performing an exorcism on the missing child.
I had always known this case was more than an ordinary missing-child report, but I had no proof—not back then.
Just when Noel and I were about to crack it open seven years ago, he disappeared, and the case was quietly buried like it never existed.
But now… everything made sense.
Perfect, terrifying sense.
I finally understood what made Noel disappear seven years ago.
Noel disappeared after discovering that it wasn’t a missing-child case—but a kidnapping. He found out that his father realized the child was possessed and needed deliverance. Believing it would be a successful exorcism, his father kidnapped the boy against his parents’ wishes.
But the exorcism killed the child.
When Noel found out the truth—that his father was responsible for the kidnapping, the possession claim, and ultimately the child’s death—he was forced to destroy all evidence. And he vanished. Not to escape the case… but to protect his father and the family name.
Everything hit me hard, like a rock to the chest.
Noel didn’t just vanish.
He disappeared to bury the truth.
I blinked sharply, arranging the puzzle pieces in my mind—each revelation leading to the next. And now, I don’t even know what’s really happening anymore… or whether the case from seven years ago has anything to do with the five children who went missing last week.
My heartbeat stuttered for a second and it made me question my life this whole year.
So Noel knew all of this! He knew!
But he decided to keep it to himself. As if that wasn't enough, he suddenly vanished, only to return when a similar case surfaces again.
What's going on now?
Noel sat still beside me, his breath was briefly shaky while bracing his trembling hands against the edge of the table.
“What…what exactly did I just watch?” I stammered, my eyes slowly rolling towards Noel's angle.
“I swear, Lina,” Noel swallowed hard, “...I swear, I didn't mean to leave. The minute I found out about what my dad did, I needed to protect him…at all cost.” Noel's voice was barely above his breath. He seemed even more confused than I was.
“Why?” I cried.
He shook his head softly, “He didn't mean to take the boy…he didn't mean for any of it to happen. Dad was just trying to help.”
“Why didn't you tell me? You could have talked to me about this…you shouldn't have ran!” I bawled, almost sounding like a critic.
“I had no choice, Lina,” he said softly. “I had to protect my dad. I needed to take him far away. If you or any other team member found out the truth… if you realized that my dad was the one behind everything… you’d arrest him, and it would ruin my career as well.”
He paused and glanced at me.
“And what about us, Lina? We were dating. If the truth had gotten out seven years ago, it would’ve dragged you down with my family. You would’ve been ashamed of me. You would’ve hated me.”
I sighed, “And what about now? You think it's too late for me to hate you?” I asked, my eyes burning with fury.