The Model Spy

Chapter 12 - All That's Left

I blinked several times until the blurry room around me became clear again. The sun was setting outside the window, engulfing the room in a pink glow that made me wonder if I was still in a dream-state.

I wasn’t quite sure where I was, or if I was even conscious. I sat up in the bed I had been laying in, removing the blankets from my lap. Instantly I inhaled a whiff of Zach’s Axe spray. It was strong and spicy. I held back a sneeze, pinching my nose tightly.

As if on cue, Zach shifted in the chair next to his bed.

His arms were folded across his chest which was rising and falling slowly with every breath he took and his legs were stretched out in front of him. His head was bent forward as he dozed quietly. It was the most relaxed I had ever seen him.

Suddenly everything came back to me: the blood, the threat, and my head hitting the pavement before Zach had time to catch me. I remembered drifting in and out of consciousness as Zach carried me to the car, how I leaned on him and staggered through the hotel’s lobby, my head aching and my vision beginning to darken.

I was next.

It wasn't only the blood that made me uneasy. It was the fact that this murderer knew not only my car, but my name. It had to have been someone I had met, which was what angered me the most. The culprit had been in front of me the entire time. But who?

Slowly, not wanting to frighten Zach from his restful sleep, I placed my hand on his arm. His skin was warm beneath my touch, but I had been shivering since I read the warning painted on the car.

Gently I reached out shook his arm. “Zach,” I whispered.

He opened his eyes and looked around his room for a second, noticeably confused. When he remembered the day’s events, I watched as he kicked himself back into spy-mode. He sat up, straightened his back, completely alert. I played with the blanket in my hands.

“How is your head?” he asked quietly.

Now that he brought it up, the stinging pain at the back of my head came back. My brain pounded against the front of my skull and I brought my hand to my forehead as if to suppress it.

“There’s only a small bump,” he said. “You didn’t bleed or anything.” He tried to meet my eyes. “You’ve been out for hours. I was so worried…I was watching you, making sure nothing happened, but I fell asleep.”

“I don’t blame you for wanting a rest,” I said finally. “Zach, what are we going to do?” The warning in blood flashed before my eyes once more. Elizabeth’s body on the floor, the note on her back, blood-soaked and menacing. My parents…I forced them painfully out of my mind. Not now.

He left his seat and sat with me on his bed. His hand slid across the blankets and found mine. I tried to calm its shaking before he grabbed ahold of it.

“It was Elizabeth’s blood on the car. Whoever killed her was able to sneak out of the room when the security guard was preoccupied, probably when he left his post to see what all the commotion was about.” And the lights were off. No one could see anything, not even an agile figure sneak his or her way out of the room. “They were able to beat us to the car and write the warning and get away without being seen by us.”

With his free hand he fumbled at the one bedside table until he picked up his phone. Using his thumb to slide through the pictures, he zoomed in on one of the car, the warning written clearly in fresh blood.

“See how the letters are written? As if someone with bloodied hands simply wiped their hands across the glass. You can see that there is more blood in the beginning of the sentence than at the end.” He zoomed in more, but I didn’t pay attention to the clues hidden among the threat. All I could see was “You’re next.”