Chapter 1
The sun shined brightly, warming my heart. Tara and I sat on a bench, surrounded by elongated trees that surrounded us like a fortress. My head rested on her shoulder, as I took in the gorgeous view of the green, luscious park. The chilling gale blew my hair in agreement. My phone pinged, scaring the life out of me. Who on earth is deeply disturbing me?
‘You certainly look stunning in blue 💖 Who’s next?’
‘10…9’
Blood drained from my face. It was a chilling countdown. The spine chilling thought of someone stalking me left me paranoid. I only had 10 seconds. I had to save the next victim - before it was too late. Tara and I hopped on a bus. I rushed to a seat and frantically called my family. I didn’t have parents, only a brother. My brother Noah’s phone wasn’t reachable. The worst case scenarios invaded my mind like a tsunami, bombarding me with concern and worry.
Abruptly, the bus stopped. I looked at Tara who called Noah but she shook her head. Diamond like tears were trapped in my eyes, I sat defeated, not knowing what to do. My ears detected police and ambulance sirens screaming in urgency. I glanced out of the window where I saw the crowd that had put a full stop to my bus journey. Millions of people had gathered. Every second was alarming as I was running against the clock. The clueless civilians on the bus muttered about the tragic incident.
Bright yellow tape was taped to the lampposts where the accident occurred. Not a single soul was allowed to go in. I checked my messages from the unknown number, conscious of time.
‘5…4’
My heart pounded like a wild beast. My palms were sweaty resulting in my phone constantly slipping away. My mind raced faster than a train. My mind pictured every place my brother could be at right now: the gaming club, cinema, fun fair. My phone lit up with another message just as I glanced out the window in distress.
‘3…2’
That’s when I saw it. I gave it to Noah for his birthday last year. Summer or winter, he would wear it whenever he left the house. It was his precious treasure, my gift to him: a blue striped hat…but it was covered with scarlet blood. His blood.
‘...1 oops.’
My phone vibrated in my hands. Thunder and lightning struck the dark, gloomy sky with a mighty force. As tears rolled down my pale cheeks, rain fell down heavily. I pushed my way through the remaining, small crowd. My hair was soggy like noodles but I didn’t care. I fell to my knees as Noah was soaked in his own velvet blood. He was stabbed brutally resulting in a mass of blood loss. I couldn’t hold my tears back anymore.
I cried my heart out just as the rain washed Noah’s blood away. He lay lifeless before me, before the paramedics took him away from me, leaving me devastated and heartbroken. My phone vibrated on the floor where I had dropped it to hug Noah. I picked it up at a leisurely place.
‘When will you notice me, Maya?’
