>>Matthew
And it suddenly clicked in my mind.
Don't tell me
I had a bad feeling in my gut. I frowned and turned my head to look back from where we came.
Zhou-Lin already found that out.
"Ah," I stared back into her eyes, "Is that the secret you shared with him?" No wonder he took her with him. He must have forced it out of her why she's dressing up as another person.
"W-what are you talking about?" Her voice cracked, "Aren't you insulting me by saying that?" I could clearly see her pupils shaking but when I didn't say anything back and only stared at her.
She got unnerved, "B-boss, why are you looking at me like that?"
"Did the bullies have anything to do with this as well? "
"Oh!" She looked away, "That's Bizy and Imani!" She pulled her arms away from me and I let her. She ran towards them. They were far, a human shouldn't have been able to see that far but I guess the panic in her helped.
A woman...
I feel so stupid. I can't believe I didn't notice. I kept my eyes on her and she slowed down before she reached them and glanced back at me.
I saw her flinch when she saw me staring at her and she shot her head around and ran again.
But why?
Why is she doing this? Her ID card says she is a male and until a few days ago something was wrong with her scent too.
I don't know if her bullies knew anything about it but the fact remains she's been hiding her identity for years.
Why?
I saw her reach Imani and meet both of them as my phone began to ring. I took it out of my pocket as I kept my eyes on my mate and then answered the call.
"Boss," It was Lily, my secretary, "Hi, you called,"
"Lily," My mood was turning sour, "I got a call from our client in City D,"
"Yes?" There was a slight tremor in her voice. I know she knows what I was going to talk about.
"They told me someone else was at the meeting the last time it was held." My voice got lower, "Care to explain."
"S-sir," I could hear the fear in her voice, "That, ah, I'll come to you!" She said, "I'll explain it, boss! Please don't get angry!'
"..." I saw my mate leave my sight with the other two of my employees.
"Boss?"
"Fine," I ended the call immediately after saying that, and a dread-filled feeling coursed through my veins.
It seems Clio's hiding a lot of secrets.
That's not good. I wasn't as worried about it before as I am now that I know she's a woman and she's not even willing to acknowledge it.
I'll need to do something about that.
***
>>Clio
As I trudged back to my apartment after spending like two hours with my coworkers, a heavy burden on my shoulders mirrored the overcast sky above. The atmosphere was thick with the scent of impending storm.
I bit my lower lip as I kept thinking about what Matthew said.
'You smell like a woman'
My heart dropped once again as I recalled that and I couldn't help but feel tense. How can one 'smell' that!!?? And he was so sure about it too! How!??!
I remember he also said something about the scent on my first day at work.
Is Matthew really not human? I shook my head. What is happening? Nothing made sense!
A distant rumble of thunder echoed, while I was lost in thoughts. I had so much on my mind including how to take care of my debt.
But how do I return Nolan's debt?
I owe him a lot...
I want to leave City A too but can I even afford to go back? I guess I'll have to look into another job to finish my education. And then there's mom's medical bills. I'll have to forget my own treatment for getting healthy for a while...
...
I let out a sigh
I guess leaving the country is still out of my hands...
So much for being free again...
I felt so lost I felt like crying. Everything was a mess and my secret was out. Both times, involuntarily... But Zhou-Lin is more dangerous. I doubt Matthew would tell anyone about it but... It's not like there is a guarantee he won't...
The cold droplets of rain came crashing down with utmost speed and splashed against my skin, mingling with the tears I couldn't hold back.
...
I let out a scoff.
WOW
It seems like nothing wants to show mercy to me.
I wiped the tear that streamed down my face with my sleeve and took a deep breath.
The rain intensified and I bit my lip harder to get a hold of myself before I broke down into a crying mess. I quickened my pace to run towards my apartment while I wiped the tears that were managing to run down my cheeks.
Hell...
I hate this all so much!!
The world blurred as water streamed down my face, merging with the tears that I was still trying to fight back
God! Damn it!
Why?!?! Why is my life such a big mess!??
Before I came to City A, everything was fine, it was even looking up! But this damned City ruined me again!!!
I ran like crazy, ignoring my surroundings as my place came into view. I ran up the outer stairs to go straight to the second floor hallway where I stopped right outside my apartment.
But by the time I reached the shelter of my apartment building, I was drenched. And though being in wet clothes should have been enough to get me distracted, it didn't. Rather, it was something I completely forgot about.
The murders...
My apartment door was open. From outside, I could directly see the white chalk lines on the ground and the blood there but the bodies of Kagan and Dani weren't there.
They must have been taken away by the police...
A sense of dread went down my veins once again. OH SHIT! This problem completely slipped my mind because of the other problems at hand...
My frown was deep, so deep, it etched lines across my forehead and my head began to hurt.
They're really dead...
I grabbed my left arm with my right hand to console myself a little bit. Just how did I end up in so much mess? How am I supposed to help myself? Another tear rolled down my cheek as the headache increased.
God...
I wiped my cheek with my wet sleeve but right when I was absorbing the gravity of the situation, I realized something. It was something the corner of my eyes caught and I paused to look at it closely.
My apartment door was gone.
I stared at the unusual scene with suspicious eyes...
What...? Why is the door gone?
And with that realization, came another. I looked back into the apartment and noticed something odd.
I shook my head
No, I must be imagining it. I was so frustrated, I wanted to delude myself but it didn't work. I gulped and went inside to get a closer look because there was a high chance I just couldn't see properly from outside.
I turned the lights on and then opened the bathroom door to peek inside.
!!!
There was nothing there.
I closed in and went further in and my heart dropped.
I wasn't wrong. No matter how much I wanted to be wrong. I wasn't...
I stood dead still in my place, letting the water fall off of me and form a pool under me as I realized all my personal things were gone.
It seemed that I had been robbed.
A sinking realization gripped me, an acknowledgment that the currents of adversity were pulling me further into the depths of despair. It was no longer just strings of bad luck; it was a relentless cascade of challenges that seemed to multiply, each one building upon the last.
Lightning struck in the sky and a loud bang resonated in the air which was followed by the lights turning off.
Great... I don't think things could turn worse than this...
Frustration coiled around my chest as the weight of the world bore down on my shoulders. The stormy clouds of my life refused to disperse and I felt deep weariness settled within me
I walked back out to the hallway and leaned against the bricked fence.
I wanted to cry but I was so devastated and my mind was so full of things, the tears couldn't even find their way out. Almost as if they were confused about what to focus on and then come out.
I let out a scoff and glanced down to shake off the wet tendrils of hair clinging to my face, when my heart leaped into my throat.
!?!?!?
Holy Shit!!
There, on the rain-soaked ground, stood a figure cloaked in all black. I could see the person clearly from the second floor hallway as the sound of loud rain echoed in the background.
The person stood quietly in the rain, all of him covered and getting drenched yet his dark eyes met mine. His gaze was strong and direct and there was no way I wouldn't recognize who it was.
It hit me like a lightning bolt and my heart dropped to the pit of my stomach.
Oh no...
It was the serial killer,
The Head Hunter