What is his intention?

I couldn't stop thinking about the message when I was at the hospital where Noel was getting his surgery done. I felt sick and disgusted...and useless. I could only pray for him to be alive. Something wasn't sitting right with me that entire time. I couldn't comprehend why the killer was after Noel instead of me. I was the one to witness the murder, not Noel...then why? He doesn't even know that I was involved.

Anxiety and unease filled my chest as I kept tapping my feet on the ground restlessly, waiting for the doctor, while Hazel's weeps were crystal clear in the cold and quiet hallway. Not a word slipped out of her mouth ever since the incident. She just kept crying for hours like that. The only words that ever came out of her mouth were, "It's all my fault...I shouldn't have brought him there.."

I don't know how long they'd known each other but they certainly value each other like family.

The door of the surgery room swung open.

I immediately looked up when I heard the door crack open and saw the doctor walking out. 

We stared at him anxiously, expecting him to enlighten us on his situation.

He looked at us and smiled. "Your friend is alright. Fortunately, the knife didn't hit any of his vital points. He held on quite well for someone with such blood loss." 

"Thank you, doctor." Hazel smiled in relief, and clasped her hands together in gratitude to God.

Relief washed over me and I heaved a sigh. 

 "When can we meet him?" 

"Probably tomorrow." He replied, patting my shoulder. "You should call his parents. We need one of them to fill the requirements. It should have been done prior to the surgery but since he was struggling to hold on, I prioritized him." 

I nodded. I'd almost forgotten to inform Mr. Ryan about the incident since everything happened so quickly and unexpectedly.

 After the doctor left, I pulled out my cell phone and dialed Mr. Ryan's number.

"Oh, Rai! How've you been?" 

 I cut the greetings short and got to the point. "We have a situation here." 

His voice softened in concern. "What's the matter?" 

"Noel was attacked." 

"What?! How did this happen? Is he alright?" His voice grew more worried than ever.

"He's alright. He just got his surgery done. We're in the Fairbanks Hospital." 

"I'm coming right away." He replied in an angry tone before ending the call abruptly. 

It wasn't more than 20 minutes before we saw him coming in with his face ablaze in flames of anger. The tall and muscular bodyguards followed closely behind him.

He looked like he would crush anyone who was in his way. 

Soon, his eyes met my gaze and I stood up to greet him. 

"Where's Noel?" 

"In that room." I pointed at the room on the other end of the hallway. 

He gave me a small nod before approaching the room. He stood there with his hands inside his pocket, peeking through the small see - through glass circle. His face relaxed into a softer expression as soon as he saw his son. His brows furrowed in concern when he caught the sight of his miserable state.

He stood there quietly for some time, keeping a watch on Noel. After a brief moment, he heaved a sigh and walked towards us with a much relaxed expression. 

"Did you call the cops?" He asked.

"Yes. They're on their way." Hazel replied. "Good." He forced a smiled."I appreciate your care for Noel all this time. I think it's time that I take over the job. You two should go home and get some rest."

"Alright, then. We'll take our leave. If you need our help in any way, please don't hesitate to call us." I gave a small smile.

We turned around to leave but suddenly felt a hand grabbing my shoulder tightly. I turned around and saw the director peering so deeply at me that it made me uncomfortable. 

"I-Is there anything you need?" I asked, not meeting his gaze anymore. 

"Is there something else that I need to know?" He asked, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

I felt conflicted. Should I tell him about the note? I wasn't sure if it would be right to tell him that the one who assaulted Noel was the murderer.

"We don't know the whereabouts of the assaultant yet. After the police investigation, we might hopefully get a lead." I replied, trying to sound as calm and truthful as I could.

"Oh, alright." He removed his hand from my shoulder, dejected by my answer. 

"We'll be on our way, then." I smiled at him before leaving the hospital along with Hazel. 

I decided to come back in the morning and find out if he saw any bit of the killer's face. 

.....

A woman was humming a lullaby. I couldn't make out her features but I could tell she was beautiful. She craddled me in her warmth. The lullaby was familiar, just like the woman, but I couldn't remember her. I felt safe and loved. The warmth around me deepened and spread further until it started to hurt. My eyes snapped open. I was surrounded by flames and the woman was no longer humming, instead, she wasscreaming. Blood gushed from a wound in her head and she was reaching out for me.

"Rai, run! You have to live..you have to..."  Her quivering voice pleaded.

I tried to raise my hand to her, but I couldn't move. The flames rose higher and higher, and the woman screamed grew shriller—

I bolted upright, panting and gasping, sweat dripping from my forehead. The bedsheets twisted and clung to my legs.

"What was that..?" I half - expected to see flames surrounding me, but I blinked and slowly recognized my bedroom. 

"It's alright, it was just a dream...no, a nightmare." I sighed. 

I hadn't had such a vivid nightmare in a long time. It felt like something like that actually happened but the memories where deleted from my mind. I'd always had a fuzzy memory of the time I was 3 or 4, but I was sure there was the case with every human. I eventually let the incident slide even though this wasn't my first time having such nightmares. 

"What time is it?" I rubbed my eyes and blinked the grogginess away as I looked up at the clock. It was 8:30am. 

"I have to go check on Noel.." I mumbled.

I got up from bed and brushed my teeth and headed out of my room. I stopped in my tracks when I noticed Hazel sleeping peacefully on the couch in the living room with a book in her hand.

"Did she fall asleep while reading?" I smiled and walked towards her. On my way, I ended up bumping into the marble vase on the table beside her and it shattered on the floor with a loud clank. 

Surprised by the loud noise, Hazel woke up and stared at me, and then at the floor where the broken pieces laid.  

"Ah..sorry about that..." I bent down nervously to pick up the broken pieces, half-expecting her to yell at me. 

"It's fine. It was just a gift anyway." She shrugged, rubbing her eyes.

"Oh, alright." I looked up at her. "I just wanted to ask whether you'd be coming with me to the hospital or not."

"Of course. Just give me a minute." She smiled.

I helped her onto the wheelchair and she made her way to her room. 

We headed out to the hospital soon after.

I pushed the door of the room open and found Noel smirking at us. He had several bandages wrapping around his stomach.

"Finally enlightened me with your presence?" Even in his current situation, he didn't leave out his sarcasm. 

Hazel hurried towards him and wrapping him in a tight hug. 

"Y-You're killing me.." He groaned. 

"I was worried sick about you! I thought you'd die!"  

He scoffed. "Dear sis, do I look that weak? A couple of stabs won't hurt me." 

"Save that explanation for later. We saw how miserable you were." She laughed. 

Noel rolled his eyes and turned to look at me. "Did the police find any leads?" 

"Your father is handling the situation so he might know the details." I said, peering expectantly at him. "Did you perhaps...see his face?" 

"No. His face was covered with a mask. Though I don't get why anyone would try to kill me..." He frowned.

"I am just as confused as you are. It didn't have to be you...it shouldn't have been you.." I bit my lips.

 "What do you mean it shouldn't have been me?" he asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously. "Are you hiding something, Rai?" 

My heart skipped a beat when I realised I almost spilled out the truth. 

I chuckled nervously. "What? No, I am not hiding anything." 

His expression turned even more serious after hearing my fake answer. "I've known you long enough to understand when you're lying and when you're not. If it's something that will help us find the culprit, then it's best to tell us. You know you can trust us, right?" 

I stared at him and then at Hazel back and forth, unsure of whether I should tell them or not. They stared back at me expectantly.

"Fine. I'll tell." I sighed in defeat. Their faces lit up instantly and I began telling them everything that'd happened to me in the past few months — from the encounter with the infamous serial killer and the murder of my late manager to the note I'd found at the amusement park. Although Hazel already knew the first part of the story, she was equally stunned as Noel was when she heard the later half of it.

Noel crossed his arms. "So, what you're saying is that you were a witness to a murder and in order to clean off the evidence of the murder, the killer tried to indirectly kill you. And now he tried to kill me. Is that right?" 

"Yes." I nodded. 

"There's one piece that doesn't sit right in this puzzle. Why did he aim for me and not you?" He frowned and continued, "And based on the note, there will be another victim. According to the pattern, he's trying to murder the people that are around you or close to you so that he can get away with it by framing you for the murder. The people will believe it easily since you already have a criminal record. He tried to kill me, so next will be either the others in the orphanage or Hazel."