Six

“Wait. Wait. Hold on. You don’t dare tell me what to do. I’ll drive this down your throat so hard enough to pop a vein so your blood sprays like champagne if you don’t tell me who the hell you are.”

I pressed the bottom of the pen and the tip clicked out, pinching his neck. Then I pushed it closer, making sure he felt the sting. I wasn’t bluffing. I was ready to drive it down his neck if I had to.

This night had already been hell, and I wasn’t about to undo it. I didn’t mind calling an ambulance later if he bled out, but I needed answers.

I needed to know who was after my life. I wasn’t ready to die. My sister had already died. Death wasn’t going to find me tonight.

“Who I am doesn’t matter,” he said flatly. “It’s what I came here for that you should be asking.”

“Answer my question!” I snapped.

“Fine, fine. My name is Flynn.”

“Now why did you come here?”

“I came for something…” His voice slowed, deliberate, drawing me in.

Before I realized it, the suspense in his words had caught me. For a split second, I let my guard slip—just one heartbeat—and he took it.

He jabbed me hard from behind, twisted my wrist, and threw me back onto the couch. I crashed into the cushions with a grunt as he yanked the door open.

“Fuck!” I roared, scrambling up.

I shot to my feet and ran after him.

“No, no, no!” I chased after him, but all the smoke from the motorbike was all I saw.

I was too late. He was already on his bike. And then… he drove away. I ran as fast as I could, but the speed of the bike was something I could not match. I screamed again.

“Arrghh!!!”

“I knew I should have popped his vein out. I stained my arm with blood.”

After I had screamed out and cursed the hell out of him, I finally calmed down and walked inside the house, shutting the door behind me.

Then my eyes caught something on the floor.

What’s that? I thought as I moved closer and grabbed the white card on the floor. I turned it upside down. My eyes widened. I couldn’t believe it.

It was this house address written on it. Someone had sent the intruder here, giving him the address.

I thought this house was supposed to be a secret. What the hell is going on?

---

About ten minutes later, someone arrived at the door. I made sure to get something more dangerous than a pen. I had found a bread knife in the kitchen.

I was very sure I was going to use it. The pen attack had been less threatening, giving the intruder a chance to flee. This time I wouldn’t.

I waited until the last password was inputted, then the door opened.

I immediately struck. But then I stopped—it was Daniel.

“What the hell? Are you trying to kill me?” he said.

“Oh, it’s you,” I said, lowering the knife.

Daniel looked around, frowning. “What the hell happened here?”

I turned back. “What the hell happened here? Last I checked, she told me this was a secret house. And I came here only to be ambushed by someone who tricked me and fucking fled.”

“No one knows this place. So how did anyone figure out we’re here?”

“Something isn’t right. Were you followed?”

“I can’t say,” I replied. “I was too busy thinking about everything that had happened tonight.”

I was still raw from grief. I didn’t want to suspect Daniel either, he’d been my friend for years. Accusing him would ruin everything, so I let the thought go for now.

And he was not out of point, too. I could have been followed.

“Chloe, we need to leave. It’s not safe anymore,” Daniel said, voice tight.

“No, I can’t. Not tonight,” I answered.

“A lot of people want you dead.”

My fingers tightened around the white card in my pocket. “And so do I, Daniel. I’m not going to hide or run.”

“If you won’t go, then at least don’t do anything reckless,” he pleaded.

“If there’s going to be a fight,” I said, staring at the whiteboard full of faces, “then I’ll set the trap. I’ll catch them off guard.”

Daniel looked like he wanted to argue, but he didn’t. He knew me too well. “Fine,” he said finally, “but we do this smartly. No charging in alone.”

“Agreed.” I let the word out like a promise — to Zoe, to myself.

“Now, what you need to do is learn everything you can about Chloe. Tomorrow you are going to be meeting the family and having your wedding with Vincent.”

“You can’t let them think something has happened.”

“Alright. Tell me everything you know about Vincent.” And then I listened carefully as Daniel told me more about my sister. I couldn’t help but smile.

We had different characters and yet we had identical faces. But one thing was sure, we both had anger issues. I laughed silently in my mind, listening to Daniel.

Then, after a long while and with the night growing late, I was getting tired myself. Daniel was about to leave.

“Daniel, hold on. Please do me a favor. Help me write down the address of where Vincent Lanchester lives. Address is not something I’m good at memorising.” After saying this, I turned to look at the whiteboard, making sure I was busy enough so he could do it.

“Alright, try to memorise it. Tomorrow is going to be a long day.” Then Daniel took a paper and wrote it down. He bid me farewell and left.

I turned back and walked to the table where he had dropped the book where he wrote the address.

I reached for the slip of paper, expecting nothing.

But the handwriting.

My stomach flipped. The same crooked “L” at the start, the same slash of the “T.” I yanked the card from my pocket and held it beside the paper Daniel had just written. It was identical.

My heart beat increased. It was Daniel’s handwriting on the white card.

“My God,” I whispered.

Was he trying to kill me?