Chapter 19

Out of the two people that had attacked me and Blake almost a year back, one was dead and the other one, although on the run from the police, was roaming free. And this second person was the one behind all this mess today. He was the one who had been stalking me and following me around. It was his presence that had put me on the edge for these past few weeks. 

He was also the one who was responsible for Kol's sudden disappearance. Not exactly disappearance, though. I suspected that Kol was still at his house. He was living inside that dark house with no lights. But he was not alone. This person, who I had decided to randomly call B, was with him. B was holding Kol captive in his house.

I did not know the reason why B was doing this or what his motive was. But after spending an entire night thinking and analysing the sequence of events over and over again, I had come to a conclusion. My guess was that B was on the path of revenge. He was avenging the death of his accomplice and his targets were me and Kol; me more than Kol probably. 

B was under the impression that he and his accomplice had come under the police radar mainly because of me and Blake. Before we had crossed paths, those criminals had not gotten upto any major crimes. But when they had murdered Blake and that too in front of Kol, making him a witness, they had suddenly found themselves in the spotlight. Since then, the police were onto them.

The chase had partially ended with the death of his accomplice. But even then, his and B's connection to Blake's murder was the main highlight of the news. This had probably fueled B's rage towards all of us and he had come searching for me. 

B had not just been following me around, but he had been trailing Kol as well. He wanted to pounce on both of us. When Kol isolated himself after his heartbreak and his fight with me, it gave B the perfect opportunity to corner him. He took Kol captive in his own house. 

For someone who had committed most of his crimes in the heat of a moment without any second thoughts, this time B seemed to be acting in a precisely calculated way. He had first learnt more about us, our lives, the people around us and then he had made his move. 

The sudden full stop on keeping a tab on me and following me around after my fight with Kol was the driving factor in my arrival at a conclusion. Earlier I had assumed that Kol was right about me being paranoid because all the strange things had come to a halt as soon as he had told me so. But now I realised that there was a reason behind the halt, and I was most definitely not paranoid. 

Kol and I were both B's targets. B had been successful in getting his clutches on Kol, but I was still left. And B was now using Kol to lure me into his trap. This understanding was the one that was still giving me hope that Kol was alive. Until B got his hands on me, he wouldn't touch Kol. But once we were both in his grasp, he wouldn't hesitate even for a second to end our lives. 

I took in a deep breath, my fingers tightening their hold on my phone. 

It was time to call Detective Freddie, or Fred as I called him. He was the detective back home who had been in charge of mine and Blake's case. He was the most understanding, smart and efficient person I had ever met. Although he had tried to convince me to identify the culprits and then to charge them for vandalising our home, he had not imposed his thoughts on us. He knew how scared I, mom and dad were. He had understood that we did not want to lose another family member. 

And he had helped us change our lives. He had personally played a part in us changing cities and identities. 

Blake's case was still open. 

Deep down, I knew that Fred was still hoping that someday I would have a change of mind and gather up enough courage to do the right thing.

He was right to hope, though. That day had finally come.

I scrolled down the list of contacts and stopped at Fred's name. 

After taking in a deep breath, I clicked on call. 

He did occasionally call us to see how we were doing and if everything was all right. There was no obligation or need for him to do so, but he still did. That was how genuine and empathetic he was as a person. To not like him was an impossible task. 

Knowing that I had his support was the strength that I had been living with all these months. All the plans of escaping again overnight if something were to happen were again because I knew I could rely on him. He had my family's back.

Fred picked up on the third ring.

"Good morning, hello!" His cheerful voice rang out of the phone, inevitably making me smile. 

"Hi, Fred," I said, "how are you?" 

"Great. What about you, my dear? Mum and dad?" he asked. 

I sighed. "Fred, there's something I need to tell you…"