Open Heart {Under Revision}

Chapter 24- Verity at Nightfall

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" I shrieked and jumped out of bed, carefully trotting and flattened myself against the wall near window. Then I used my index finger to part the curtain and peered into darkened Roxbury Avenue. There were few people lugging (most probably drunk) on footwalks but right under a brazen streetlight, a black beast of a car waited—purring.

"We don't have time." Dr. Ramsey said from other end but I couldn't see him from windows—black tinted, "Stop staring at my car from there and come out."

Swash.

I scrambled away, "What, you got x-ray vision now?"

He grumbled brutishly, "Perhaps I do, better hurry, Charlotte. We need to find what happened to him before others."

"Who are others?" I surveyed my appearance in mirror and let out a low groan. It was so disgraceful that even Dr. Ramsey's car door wouldn't open for me.

"I'll brief you about them soon. Just not via phone." there was...a slight undertone of warning in his voice.

"Alright, let me get dressed." I said, opening my wardrobe.

"No time for that." he impatiently ordered, "Just come out with whatever you are wearing."

I looked at myself. A tank top and lacy boy shorts. Stupendously not.

"Five minutes."

"Three." with that he hung up.

Only when his voice faded from my mind, I realised the deepshit which currently threw itself at me. Dr. Banerji was missing? And holy heck...Dr. Ramsey was outside my apartment—my boss, my freaking boss was right outside my apartment and was asking me to come with him! Which was more concerning? The fact that my boss at this hour scowled in his car or disappearance of a famous diagnostician?

I let out a soft curse and changed into yoga pants and a simple black hoodie. Now was not the time for dressing to impress. I was perfectly sure Dr. Ramsey wouldn't even spare a look at me so I just twisted my hair and clipped it before dabbing cleanser on my face and slowly tip-toed out of apartment. My nerves played jazz as the elevator took me down. Every day at Edenbrook—no, at Boston was becoming weirder. Dr. Whitmore spoke correct. If Naveen disappeared, did that mean the patients...what was—I steeled myself. The first thing I would do was gonna grill Dr. Ramsey about this matter. I would make him sign some pact or code that this relay happened two ways.

It wasn't cold at all tonight or hot but dingy-orange clouds blanketed the sky to stow away full-moon light. No stars peeping through either. Just obstructing dirty orange linen which neither moved nor dripped down its contents. A low gale gyrated in neighbourhood, squelching the silence by rustling of leaves against each other. There was distant hint of rain in air but when it would come, the answer wasn't spared. Ever since I arrived, there hasn't been banter by rain gods in Boston but it wasn't something I was keenly looking forward to. All fixins' directed towards an ominous announcement.

But everything vanquished when Dr. Ramsey's car came into view.

Recognition drew in me upon seeing the vehicle. It was Jaguar...XJ? Yeah. I may have little knowledge about automobiles technology apart from basic physics but I did have keen eye to identify the models. Sylvan...oh, he loved cars. He loved them so much and he had to spread that sickly love to me as well.

A muscled ticked near my jaw and I allowed myself to take in few composing breaths before marching. Just like Dr. Ramsey, his car was beautiful. Sleek, so sleek that I could see my reflection. If the sky wasn't black tonight, this vehicle compensated for that. The windows—unnaturally black tinted, obstruent to eyes from outside and left no one to ponder who the passengers were. It even struck being recently purchased.