*Peeeeeeeeep…*
There has been a constant ringing in my ears since the explosion.
My head and chest hurt from the shockwave.
I could only stare ,stunned, at the fiery debris that was burning away my mother's love.
All the pieces littered the streets.
Car alarms were beeping.
Windows were broken, glass shattered.
"J…"
H… How? What? Wh… Why?
I couldn't comprehend what had happened.
Wh… who would blow up my mother's bedroom like this?
It… It's inconceivable… insane.
M… My father!?
Did he respond to my ruse with Sophia just now!?
Th… that couldn't be. I acted natural and denied accusing him. How could he possibly catch my and Sophia's intentions?
And Elise did the heavy lifting. My father doesn't rely on other people. There's no conceivable reason for him to realize it was all a ruse to defy him.
Th… then why did my house explode? It's senseless. He wouldn't gain anything from it.
W… was it a coincidence? A gas explosion?
My instincts screamed at me that it was not, but I buried it.
It had to be a coincidence…, otherwise…, OTHERWISE…
"JACK!"
Elise pulled my hand. Her voice and force drew my attention to her.
My heart rate increased when I saw her expression.
Absolute panic and terror.
She said words to me, but her voice didn't reach me through the ringing in my ears.
Only my instincts damned me in catching a word I read from her lips. It made me lose the last of my composure too.
HURRY
Ken! Why Why Why!?
What does she know? Did she predict this? Was this by design?
Because if this isn't a coincidence, then, THEN…
IS MY FATHER AFTER KEN!
NONONONONO!!!
IT'S IMPOSSIBLE! ELISE IS WRONG! THIS CAN'T BE!
I… I couldn't think… I couldn't… I… I have to do something! I have to act!
I followed my instincts, and my gaze shifted back to my house.
The fire was spreading through the wood. The roof was slowly collapsing.
I inspected the damage. I felt like it wouldn't take long before my house was ashes.
…!?
My mother's bedroom was above the living room. Above the crime scene.
Above all the evidence that would be destroyed when my house collapsed.
Why!? It was all documented! It's still admissible in court!
D… Documented!? M …my father has the police in his pocket…
Is… is that why he did it?
Y… yeah. That's got to be it. He isn't after Ken. He hasn't caught on to me yet.
I looked back at Elise. Her anxiety was terminal.
W.. was she right, or was I?
I looked back at my house, past my undamaged car, at the front door.
Nobody had come out of the house yet. Wh… why?
How many seconds had passed!? How many seconds were left before everything caved in!?
I looked at Sophia. She was completely stunned and lost.
What was she doing! Do something! Save your colleagues!
I switched my gaze frantically between Elise, the damage, my car, the front door, and Sophia.
Nothing happened! Nothing changed! Nobody did anything!
I… I had to do something!
What what what!?
Rush to Ken's house? Rush into my house?
Wh… what do I do…
I can't do both…
My gaze settled on Elise after Sophia.
My eyes went wide. My instincts gave me an epiphany.
My mind snapped into alignment.
We can do both.
I acted! Every second counted! I commanded!
"ELISE START THE CAR! SOPHIA PROTECT HER!"
Both women turned in shock toward the sound of my explosive voice, but I was already moving.
I vaulted over the barricade and rushed toward my house!
"JACK" "Jack."
I outran my name being called by the women far behind me.
I held my breath against the potential smoke as I crossed the front entrance.
Nobody was in the hallway. I kept running towards the living room.
I entered. I inspected the entire room for important information.
Four people were here.
Heat radiated from the ceiling, and smoke covered it.
The explosion had rocked the room. Things had fallen over.
The investigation lights laydestroyed on the ground, contaminating all evidence.
And my mother's bookcase had fallen over, pinning someone.
That's why everyone was still here.
Two officers just kept staring with a lost gaze at the victim.
Only Diego was trying to unpin him, but his strength wasn't enough.
"GO OUTSIDE!"
The lost officers turned around in shock, but I was already rushing past them to the bookcase.
I stopped next to Diego. He had his fingers hooked under, lifting it a tiny bit.
I squatted, hooked my fingers under too, and rose.
The bookcase lurched upwards while my joints creaked, almost breaking.
"KKKGGG"
It rose past my underhand grip. It flew out of my hands as I grasped at it.
The momentum carried it above my head. My hands followed and I caught it before it came down again.
"Ggghhh"
I let out a groan as I held the bookcase overhead now, my muscles barely supporting its weight.
"Grab him!" I yelled at Diego.
"Y… yes!" He snapped out of his stunned state from witnessing my supernatural performance, and moved.
He dragged his injured and unconscious colleague out of the pile of romance novels, and then lifted him.
I dropped the bookcase. It crashed to the ground with a heavy thud.
I was already turning around and yelled 'Move!' to Diego while rushing out of the room.
I entered the hallway. The other two officers just ran outside the house.
I looked back, Diego was also running towards the outside with his colleague in his arms.
I ran outside after confirming that Diego would make it.
Fresh air filled my lungs again. I looked around.
Elise had just stepped outside the driver seat, having started my car. Her face was filled with relief upon seeing me unharmed.
Sophia was also standing by the passenger side, gun out and aimed at the ground.
The other two officers stood to the side at a distance, looking with stunned silence at the state of my house.
Officers Rock and Sprout weren't here yet. Only a few onlookers who had come out of their houses were on the street.
I heard Diego's footsteps behind me. They would make it.
I rushed to Sophia while Elise was moving to the other side of my car.
I stopped in front of her and spoke.
"Everyone's safe. We have to go now, we're in a hurry."
"J… Jack you can't. You have to…"
"I can't stay! I'll come back later! Just trust me! Come with me if you want!"
I entered the driver's seat before she responded just as Elise entered the passengers seat.
I closed the door, put my seatbelt on and put the car in reverse.
I looked out the window as Elise closed the door on her side.
I inspected Sophia's conflicted expression as Elise quickly put her own seatbelt on.
I saw the inevitable conclusion. Sophia wouldn't abandon her colleagues here.
*Click*
I pushed down the gas pedal as I heard Elise's seatbelt clicking shut.
I kept looking through the rearview as I drove down the barricade and steered counterclockwise to the right side of the street, avoiding the gathered onlookers.
I looked once more at my house as I put my car in drive.
Four officers stared at me in absolute disbelief. Diego had made it out. He had laid his unconscious colleague in a stable position on the ground.
I pressed the gas and drove away just as I saw my house cave in.
***
It hadn't even been a minute since I drove away from my house, but I was already plenty of streets away.
I was driving at high speed, almost like street racing. I felt the acceleration push me back into my seat.
I constantly shifted my gaze to inspect my surroundings, to keep up with my driving speed and react in time to avoid an accident.
I also looked at Elise in between. She looked back and forth between me and the blur of streets outside the car. Her expression was conflicted yet contemplative. She wanted to say something but was debating the words and if she should.
My father's shadow? Is that why she's hesitating?
I looked in the rear-view mirror at the car's empty back seat, the only place where it could be sitting.
And there was still no way for me to become aware of its presence or attack it from my driver's seat. I had to assume it's still here.
Goddamnit! I wanted to talk to Elise too about all the shit that just happened! That shadow is so annoying!
…I slowed down my driving a bit, moved one hand of the steering wheel and put it casually in my coat pocket.
I moved my fingers and typed a message to Ken on my hidden phone, and sent it.
*Ping*
Elise's own phone went off with a notification sound, as I pulled a handkerchief from my pocket and covered my nose with it.
*Hachu*
I faked a light sneeze as Elise started reading the text message I had sent in her name.
The message I had sent to Ken saying that we would arrive soon, and the instructions on how we would kill the shadow potentially lurking on our backseat once united again.
I put my handkerchief in my pocket as Elise looked towards me from her phone again.
She knows now we can still talk casually without giving non-important details. I wanted to ask her, so I did.
"Are you alright?" "Are you alright!?" We both said at the same time.
…The car grew silent again.
Damn it! I couldn't focus on her expressions, since I had to look around while driving. I could only get snapshots from brief glances at her. That didn't tell me anything! I didn't know what to say!
Eventually, Elise spoke again, taking the initiative so I could focus on the road ahead..
"I'm fine. But you scared me, you know! Suddenly yelling and rushing in like that! Why… why did you do that? You're not wounded, are you?"
"I… I'm fine too. But I need to know first what you told Sophia."
"…I told her that it might be the shadow again, and that it might have wanted to destroy the evidence or attack us, or both."
"Okay. It's a good answer, I would have said the same. And…, uh, from before that, thank you for hugging me to calm me down, and explaining to Sophia. You weren't uncomfortable with that, were you?"
"No, of course not. Well…, maybe a little bit? But I trusted you. I'm glad you kept Sophia out of harm's way."
"Of course. …Actually, now that we're talking about it. We'll have to go back there immediately after we've picked Ken up. So, let's discuss first how we should explain…"
"Hey! Don't change the subject, we can talk about that later!" Elise interrupted me.
My tongue got caught. I glanced at her. The snapshot was neutral. My… my heart raced, because I didn't know what she wanted to hear.
"Please tell me, why did you rush back into your house? I… I want to know."
I stayed silent for a while. Driving, thinking, looking deep inside myself. And then, I gave the only honest answer I could.
"I… I don't know."
I glanced again. The snapshot was similar. Did she expect more? Was… was there more? I… my heart continued speaking.
"I… thought I could save them. And…, my body moved on its own. I… I can't explain…"
I glanced. Her eyes were wide.
Oh no, was what I did a mistake!?
"Did… did I do the right… "
"OF COURSE YOU DID!" Elise immediately yelled.
Now my eyes shot open in surprise. I looked into her blue eyes, but the emotion in them was so complex that I couldn't make out anything in that brief moment.
I focused on driving again and waited for Elise to continue, which she eventually did after finding the right words.
"I'm glad you saved them. But please, promise me that you'll take care of yourself too. If something happened to you, I… I… my heart couldn't take it."
…Her voice. Her tone. It was also so complex that I couldn't catch anything out of it. The only thing I caught was anxiety. I could at least alleviate her of that.
"I promise."
…A moment of silence, and then…
Elise exhaled in relief, before responding.
"Thank you."
I looked again, but she was now looking at the road ahead, and not me anymore.
I only saw a soft smile at the corner of her mouth, but I once again couldn't identify it.
Yet somehow, it made my heart pound in an elevated yet comforting beat.
***
During the rest of our drive, Elise and I didn't talk much.
I only asked her to message Ken that we would arrive soon, as a subterfuge for the shadow's potential presence, to provide a logical explanation for it that Ken would already be ready. Otherwise, my father might think I somehow managed to contact Ken secretly beforehand through hidden means.
I also told Elise that it would be best to halt the discussion about what we should tell the officers until Ken is with us, which she agreed to.
That was all. I drove hard in silence and arrived at record speed at my destination, with the car still unscathed. Well, there was hardly any traffic on the road. I never even had to stop the car.
I parked a few streets away from the massive Sasaki residence looming in the distance.
Ken's parents would recognize the car. Driving all the way to the front entrance was a bad idea.
I was going to kidnap their son after all. It would be awkward if the police showed up to Elise's house.
I already altered my mother's murder to a kidnapping. What would I even alter my friend's kidnapping to? I'd rather not put myself in that sort of situation again.
I looked at Ken's house, trying to formulate a plan on how to get away with this scot-free, but the distance was too great. I had to get closer.
At least the house looked normal and mundane. Nothing was burning down.
Some of my worries were alleviated. I looked at Elise.
She was also looking at the house, yet anxiety was still written across her face.
I still didn't understand why, and still couldn't ask. So I'll just have to find out later.
"Shall we?"
Elise snapped out of her state and looked into my hazel eyes.
Determination welled up in hers. Then she nodded.
It was settled. It's time to quickly kidnap my friend.
Before it might be too late.