spotlight. (book two of missing melody) // katy perry

seven.

{Taylor's POV}

"Are you sure about this?" I ask Nico for the hundredth time, fiddling with my shirt as I speak.

"For the millionth time Taylor, yes. It's what uncle instructed us to do, right?" I roll my eyes at my brother.

"Why do we have to do this anyway?"

"I don't know, why don't you ask uncle? I'm sure he'd be happy to answer that." He smirks, making me groan in frustration. I still feel guilty for what I did to Chloe. I turn around, seeing her still unconscious.

Must have been some powerful drug.

"I don't want to do this anymore, Nico. I don't want to do this to Chloe."

"Well, there's really nothing you can do about that. Even if you regret doing this, what you did was wrong and you couldn't undo that, sis." He laughs evilly, making my blood boil. I swear, if only I could kill him right now, I would.

"You know what, fuck you! Fuck you and Jonathan! Why do we even call him uncle, anyway? It's not like we're related or anything. He just took us under his care. "

"Just be glad he did that or we won't be where we are right now." He yells, looking at me with such intensity that I can feel his anger burning a hole right through me. I swallow hard; I never saw my brother this mad. I guess I pushed him too far. I try to stay silent this time, holding my breath until the car finally stops infront of an old abandoned farmhouse. I stare at it, the worn out exterior giving me chills as I examine it. It looks like it's made for a horror story. I don't like one bit.

"You coming or what?" Nico snaps me back to reality. I hop off the car, hurrying to his side as he carries Chloe carefully.

"You like Chloe, right?" I ask as we get inside, the floor squeaking loudly under our footsteps. He laughs dryly, sending a shiver down my spine.

"Like? Such word does not exist in my being." He sets Chloe on the dust covered couch, carefully lying her unconscious body.

"It was all an act, Tay. Can't believe I fooled all of you." I roll my eyes at what he called me. That nickname would never sound the same. He may only be pretending to actually like Chloe but I never did. Well, at first I did but as time goes by, she really got to me.

"Well, atleast I'm not pretending. I do consider her as my best friend." I look at him, suddenly feeling courageous.

"Oh come on, little sis. Drop the act already." He laughs. "I know you're faking it too."

"No! I'm not faking it anymore, okay? What did she ever do to you?" I yell, my voice echoing throughout the huge dust covered house.

"Nothing." He replies, shrugging. "It's what her mother did. That Katy Perry ruined uncle Jonathan's life."

"All you think about is that Jonathan! What he's facing right now is all because what he did to Chloe and Katy. Can't you see, Nico? Jonathan's using you. He's a sick sadist who wants everything for himself." I run outside, not wanting him to see me cry. I keep running towards the back of the farmhouse, desperately trying to wipe my tears away.

If I could turn back time, I never would have agreed in helping Nico, even if he is my brother. He wasn't like this before, though. Before, he was the kindest being that ever walked on Earth. He cares for me, he always did. He became a father and a brother to me at the same time. I turn to him when I have troubles and he helps me overcome them. He used to be so kind; He used to have a heart. I don't know if it is under Jonathan's influence or if he truly did change, but I still think that deep down inside, the Nico I always knew is still there.

I sit on a worn out bench, wooden and rackety. I close my eyes as I take in a deep breath, trying to calm myself as the wind blows freely against my face. My phone starts ringing, disrupting my momentary peace. I answer the call, not bothering to look at who it is.

"Hello?" I ask, tucking a strand of my hair back behind my ear.

"Hey Taylor, it's Katy. I just called to ask about your whereabouts and if Chloe is with you?" My heart stops. Shit shit shit shit shit.

"I- uh- uhm. . . I'm at my grandmother's house right now, Katy. Yeah. Uh- C-Chloe isn't with me, though." I stutter, my voice shrill as I talk. I clear my throat, trying to stop it from hitching.

"Really? Well, Chloe told me before she left that she's going out with you." Katy replies, her voice serious.

"N-no, I'm at my grandma's house right now." I lie, mentally groaning at how awful I am at lying. I never was good at it. I should really work on that.

"Oh. . . Okay, sorry for bothering you. Thanks, Taylor." Katy answers, her voice low.

"It's nothing. I'll call you when I'd get anything about Chloe, don't worry. I- I hope Chloe's okay, though." I reply, trying to sound sympathetic. She ends the call after we say our goodbyes. I sigh heavily, slumping back on the bench.

"Well, you're shit at lying." Nico says behind me, making me jump.

"Gosh, don't do that okay? You scared the living daylight out of me." I exclaim, pushing him on his chest. He chuckles, making me roll my eyes.

"You're such a sissy." He sits on the bench, crossing his legs.

"Chloe's going to wake up soon so we better strap her on to some chair or something." Nico says casually as if we were discussing the weather. I open my mouth to protest but nothing came out.

"Why don't we just place her in a basement?" I suggest, trying to lessen the harshness on her. She is my best friend, probably my only one.

"Yeah, whatever. Jonathan's going to come over tomorrow, anyway." He stands up, mentioning for me to follow. He wraps his arm around my shoulder, resting it on them as we walk side by side towards the door just like he always did in the past. He opens the door for me, allowing me to step inside first.

"Come on, help me get her ass down the basement." Nico says, making me glare at him.

"Hey!" I furrow my eyebrows angrily as him, scrunching up my nose as I look at him, a usual thing I do when I'm mad.

"What?" He asks innocently, carrying Chloe as we walk towards the basement door.

"Why does it always have to be the basement?" I ask, silently thinking back to mystery stories I've read and seen in the past.

"You suggested it." He says, making me shrug.

"Why don't we place her inside a room? I'm sure there is one in here."

"And lock her from the outside? Possibly." We stop walking, closing the door leading towards the basement.

"So you really think it's a good idea? I mean, come on." I ask as we climb up the stairs, each step making an eerie sound.

"Well, it's not like she could escape that easily even if she tried. This farmhouse is like in the middle of nowhere." I reach out to open the last door in the hall, seeing how big it is in the inside as we step in. Dust soon falls from the roof, making me cough loudly as my hands fly around infront of me, desperately trying to fan away the dust.

"Where are we, anyway?"