"She might have gone somewhere. That is what everyone is telling him, but he refuses to listen." A lady said, crossing her arms over her chest. "Of course, she's an adult. She can go wherever she wants to." Another said."Why getting all worked up? Where else does she want to go without you?" A woman pouring cereals into a bowl said, looking at him like he was being a baby. The man clenched his fists, closed his eyes, and began to take in deep breaths. He looked like he was trying to control his anger, and be calm just like they wanted him to be. "First off, she never goes anywhere without telling me. Since we've been married for the last three years, she's never gone anywhere without telling me. Even when she's going to work, or going to see a friend down the road, or a neighbour in the next house, she informs me. If she can't, then she calls, but look at this…" he explained, with his voice still shaking in anger. Everyone followed him, and he pointed to the fridge where a slippe
"Did you hear that?" Charles asked, and the both of them waited, with their eyes wide open, and ears alert, in case the scream came again."I definitely heard someone scream." Vera said, still listening in."And it was a lady." Charles said."Yeah, it's definitely Sarah." Vera added, and they both left the room. Everyone else seemed to have struggled to put on clothes, so they could make it to the living room."Did you all hear that?" Layla asked, looking around. "Also, I can't find my cousin. Do you think he was also…?" She was asking, but just then, the door opened, and Kent walked in. He looked at everyone from face to face, and observed something had gone wrong."Is there a problem?" He asked, still looking at them warily. "We heard someone scream." Someone replied."Sarah?" He asked."It was definitely Sarah. I know her voice more than myself." Sarah's husband said, as he paced around."Does anyone think they can figure out where the sound came from?" The pregnant woman asked.
"That can't be. Katie was my friend." Layla said, storming into the room, but just like that, Katie was also gone. Every room was searched once more, but they couldn't find anything. "Okay something's definitely wrong. This is not to be overlooked." The woman who looked to be three months pregnant said, and her husband, Damien held her. The two oldest women who had teased Charles and Vera about being couples, looked at each other, and shook their heads."Forget about the damn police. I'm leaving before I'm next." The first one said, and the second followed. The both of them walked briskly into their room, and the pregnant woman and Damien followed next."The… the police said not to go anywhere, or… should we just go? Kent, pack up." Layla said, and Kent left to pack up their things. "I'll join you soon." She added, then hugged Vera. "Seeing everyone react like this. I'm starting to think it's really not safe." She lamented."It's… it will be fine. We just have to be extra careful.
Fear seeped into her, dominating her vessels like blood moving in water. All she seemed to think of was death. The cold gun pressed further into her neck, and she gasped. A hand slipped over her baby protectively, and that hand shook like a leaf.It wasn't just her hands shaking, her bones were trembling. Images of different dead people popped up in her head, and she began to wonder if the other women were dead, or just hidden somewhere. What would happen to her? Would they all wake in the morning, and meet her dead?If she screamed, would the figure run or shoot her?Not knowing what else to do, she did the most natural thing everyone in that situation was expected to do. "Please… please, don't. I… I have a baby coming. Please… please I beg you. I won't scream. I don't know you. Can you… Can you just let me go?" She pleaded in a little voice, but the gun only pressed deeper into her neck, making her almost scream."Wanna scream?" The voice came out in a strangled whisper, and she s
"A man?" Damien asked."Great! Now I guess all the women can leave, right?" Samantha asked, getting to her feet."No one is leaving, until we find his wife, and my sister." Katie's brother said, also getting to his feet."We tell the cops first about the new information." Sarah's husband said, and that they did, putting an end to a fight that could have happened between Samantha and Katie's brother.The cops were notified, and they interrogated all the men, asking them questions. Elise refused to partake in the questioning, saying she couldn't recall anything except that the figure was bigger than her, had a really strong grip, and wide shoulders. All the men had wide shoulders, and strong hands, so even the ones with missing women were suspected.At last, they concluded on having nightshifts to stop any more misery from happening, and to possibly have better chances of stopping the criminal, in case they criminal was being fueled by an uncontrollable urge to kidnap.Charles was the
Charles stared at the words. He was to find the culprit, and the missing women? Why would the system ask him to do that? Already the case seemed hopeless, and at that rate, he felt they might just cart them all to jail. He couldn't afford that. It wouldn't be favorable for him. Charles wondered if it would be better to pass on the mission, and just stick to what he could handle, but on the other hand, he needed the intelligence quota. He figured it would come in handy someday. But his only problem was having no idea on how to solve the case. Had it been he had the intelligence quota before the whole thing happened, then there was a chance that he could have figured out who the culprit was.Then, he phoned Vera. "Do you think you can come in?" He asked."Oh, sure. Wait a sec." she replied, and ended the call.Charles waited for her to come in, before clearing his throat. "Vera. There's something I have to tell you." He began."Is it about the case? Do you have some kind of lead?" Sh
Elise began to cry, as she recalled the fear of the previous night, and Vera and Charles shared a knowing look, before she went to comfort Elise."Thank you so much, Elise. This was really helpful." Charles said, appreciating her, and she nodded."I just... When Samantha took apples from the fridge, I realized I also craved them, so I went to take an apple, only to be reminded of the scent immediately I bit into it." Elise explained, sniffing, and Vera hugged her once more. "Thank you so much, but can you not tell anyone about this? We don't want the culprit knowing we're close to figuring him out." Vera said, and Elise nodded. The both of them went out, and Charles smirked, thinking back on Layla and Kent again.When he had first met Kent—without exaggerations— he had smelled strongly of apples that he had wondered if he owned an apple farm.It turned out that Kent, who Vera had been suspecting could actually be the culprit. Vera came back minutes later and sat next to Charles."I
Goosebumps lined Vera's skin, and her heart began to hit hard against the wall of her chest, like it wanted to break out.Never had she in her wildest dreams imagine that Kent would have a gun, and would fearlessly point it to her neck after telling her he liked her.Her eyes became restless, and it felt like she was going to have a panic attack.Her body went stiff but that didn't stop her bones from trembling. She tried to tell herself he wouldn't shoot, but unfortunately her brain was screaming: Shoot! Bang!! Dead!!!She shivered, and closed her eyes tight, as the sweet scent of apples filled her nostrils.The hand was soft, not too big. She'd call it a medium sized hand, but its grip was strong. She could taste blood where he'd slapped her lips against her teeth, and he moved backwards. She followed, not wanting to anger him, and he whispered in her ear."Evidence?" It was a strangled whisper, and she couldn't find his real voice in the whisper. A muffled whimper escaped her, an