Chapter 52 The night of fear
The air changed the moment Lila stepped out of Damian’s car. It wasn’t just the cold, it was the noise, the thick hum of whispers that crawled across the courtyard. Her shoes touched the pavement, and the flash of blue and red lights danced across the dorm walls.
The police cars, the tape. Students gathering in small, frightened clusters.
Someone’s voice trembled behind her.
“They said it’s another girl.”
“Yeah, I heard she's from Fine Arts.”
“She vanished after night class.”
Lila’s pulse jumped. Every word felt like a nail tapping against her skull. Her body refused to move. Her fingers went cold even though the night wasn’t that chilly.
Damian came around from the driver’s side, his tall frame blocking some of the flashing light. His voice was low, steady. “Stay close.”
But she barely heard him. All she could see were the sirens' red, blue, red, blue lights blinking like warnings from her memory.
It was Serena, then Ruby, and three others
And it's happening all over again.
Her chest tightened, air scraping against her throat. “It’s happening again,” she whispered, not sure if she meant to say it out loud.
Damian’s hand found her shoulder. “Hey,” he said quietly. “You’re safe. You’re with me.”
She wanted to believe him, wanted to grab that word and hold it tight but safe didn’t mean what it used to. Safe was what Serena said the night she disappeared.
Safe was what Ruby said before everything turned red.
Her eyes stayed fixed on the chaos, the officers taking notes, a sobbing girl talking to a detective, the faint scent of rain mixing with the metallic tang of fear.
Her knees almost buckled. Damian caught her elbow just in time. “Lila.” His tone softened. “Look at me.”
She did. His eyes were calm, grounding. “Breathe,” he said, slowly inhaling to show her. “Just breathe.”
Lila nodded, shaky, and tried to copy him. The breath burned going in, but it helped.
Then, she heard her name.
“Lila!” someone shouted from behind them.
Lila turned.
Asher was weaving through the crowd, his hair a mess, his face tight with worry. He didn’t slow down until he reached her. “I’ve been calling you,” he said sharply. “Why weren’t you answering?”
Lila blinked, words tangled in her throat. “I…my phone…”
Asher’s gaze shifted to Damian. “You brought her here?”
Damian straightened, keeping his tone even. “I drove her back from the mall. I didn’t know this was happening.”
Asher’s jaw clenched. “You think it’s smart being with him right now? You think that helps?”
Lila flinched at the sharpness in his voice. “Asher, please he didn’t do anything.”
Damian raised his hands slightly, stepping back a little. “Relax, man. She’s fine.”
But Asher didn’t look relaxed at all. His shoulders were tight, eyes flashing between them. The space around them buzzed with quiet tension. For a heartbeat, it felt like the world shrank to just the three of them, standing under flashing lights and muttered suspicions.
Why do they always do this? Lila thought miserably. Why do they look at each other like I’m the secret they’re both trying to solve?
Finally, Damian took a step back, his voice gentler now. “Are you okay, Lila?”
She swallowed hard, nodded. “Yeah.”
It was a lie, but she needed it to sound real.
Damian’s expression softened. “If you need me, I’m around.”
He waited a second longer, then turned toward the parking lot, giving her space. Asher stood still, watching him go, then looked back at her, his tone quieter now. “You should head in. I’ll check on you later.”
She nodded again, though the words barely registered. Everything around her was spinning.
As she walked towards the dorm, Damian slipped to her right-hand side.
“I'll walk you to the entrance.”
That startled her, she turned and nodded when she saw him.
The walk to the entrance of her dorm was silent. Damian didn’t say much, and Lila didn’t have words left. The night outside looked endless with streetlights stretching in a blur, the world muffled like a dream she couldn’t wake from.
“Don’t let this eat you alive,” Damian said finally, voice soft enough to break the quiet.
She didn’t turn to him. “I’m trying.”
“You’re stronger than you think.”
Lila almost smiled, but it came out as a sigh. “That’s what everyone keeps saying.”
He chuckled quietly, eyes still on the road. “Maybe you should start believing it.”
When they reached her dorm, he slowed down. “ Are you sure you’ll be okay tonight?”
Lila forced a small smile. “Yeah. Thanks for today.”
“Anytime,” he said.
She opened the door, glanced back once before walking inside Damian hadn’t left yet. He waited until she was through the door before walking away.
The dorm felt empty and quiet. Lila dropped her bag on the floor and sat on the bed without even turning on the light.
The silence pressed in on her ears. Somewhere down the hall, a door creaked. She tensed. It’s just another student, she told herself. And it's just a door.
She pulled her blanket up, but sleep refused to come.
Images kept flickering through her head Ruby’s smile, the red scarf Damian had teased her about earlier, the sirens, the whispers about the fine arts girl.
The word echoed until it lost its shape.
She reached for her phone, checked the time. 12:47 a.m.
It was too late to call anyone. And too early to feel safe.
Her thumb hovered over Ruby’s old messages, the ones she never had the heart to delete.
“Don’t skip dinner again, nerd.”
“We’ll laugh about all this someday.”
Her chest hurt. She wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn’t come. She just stared at the glowing screen until her eyes blurred.
She slid the phone under her pillow, rolled onto her side, and tried to focus on her breathing. In, out. In, out.
A few minutes passed. Maybe hours.
Then, she heard a faint buzz.
Her phone vibrated against the pillow.
She blinked in confusion, sitting up. Maybe it was Asher checking in, or Damian making sure she was home safe.
She unlocked the screen.
One new message from an unknown number.
Her heart skipped. She read it once. Then again.
“Red suits you, but not everyone gets to keep their color.”
The words blurred as her pulse roared in her ears. She felt the room tilt.
Her fingers trembled. The phone slipped from her hand, landing face down on the sheets.
Her breath came fast, uneven.
Not again. Please, not again.
She looked toward the window, half-expecting someone to be there, a shadow, a face, anything. But there was nothing just the faint glow of the campus lights outside.
Lila sat frozen, her body stiff, her heart beating so hard it hurt. Every instinct screamed that someone was watching her.
Slowly, she picked up the phone again. The screen had gone dark.
Her reflection stared back at her, her eyes were wide, her hair tangled and her face looked pale.
That’s when she noticed it.
On the back of her phone, near the edge of the case, a tiny red rose sticker glinted under the light.
She hadn’t put it there.
Her throat went dry.
She stared at it until her vision blurred again, her mind spinning.
Somewhere outside, the wind shifted,
brushing softly against the window.
And just like that, the room felt colder.
The rose sticker gleamed faintly in the dark, bright red against her shaking hands.