Chapter 2

the second chapter! Enjoy!

Chapter Two

The next week, Allie and Ryan are the same as usual, both harassing me about being so “antisocial” when Allie suddenly changed the subject.

“So, I was searching the web, and I found this writer person that does really dangerous exposes and stuff.” She says, looking both Ryan and me with a glint in her eyes.

“Dangerous how?” Ryan asks.

“They, like, infiltrate these major companies and spill all their darkest secrets and stuff. It’s really dangerous for them.” Allie continues.

“Do you know if it’s a girl or a boy? And why do you seem so interested?” I ask.

“Well, I can’t tell if they are a girl or a boy, but they do really good work. And I’m interested because it’s so espionage-like and dangerous.” Allie says.

“Well, I for one don’t agree with how this person is carrying out their business,” Ryan says. “If they really want to expose the bad company, they should just turn it over to the police. Let the professionals handle it.”

“Whatever. I don’t care.” I say and walk away.

“But, Kati, you should really check them out! Search up Exposegenius13 on SwagTalk.com! You’ll like them!” Allie calls after me.

I keep walking and decide to ignore her. Allie doesn’t know what she’s talking about. Espionage? Yeah right. Obviously this Exposegenius13 whoever it is isn’t a spy. After the boring school day where Allie had somehow got Ryan to check it out, and is now interested I get home and go to my laptop.

I type in on the internet searcher SwagTalk.com and go to log in. I type Exposegenius13 in the username and type in realityevilizer as the password. For some reason I can’t shake the disappearance of Angelina Horowitz. Something is up. She was an investigative reporter too, so maybe she got into some trouble with her last assignment. Investigative reporting is dangerous work.  And icon pops up on my screen and it says AllieBaby wants to chat. Allie? Jeez. I decide to accept a message chat and decide to fuel her fantasy of an espionage ridden expose writer.

AllieBaby: OMG is this really you?

Exposegenius13: It’s really me. Do you need anything?

AllieBaby: Really????? You mean it?

Exposegenius13: It depends on if I have the time for it though.

AllieBaby: Well, I think I have a case for you.

Exposegenius13: I’m listening.

AllieBaby: Recently a bunch of people have gone missing in my town. The latest one was an investigative reporter named Angelina Horowitz. I’ve been curious to know what’s going on. The police are at a standstill and don’t have any evidence to move the case forward. Maybe you can help.

I lean back in my seat and think about it. So, Allie has been worrying about that too. I have to be really careful though. 1. More people have gone missing previous to my moving here. 2. This is a town that I live in, and a small one at that. 3. If Allie and Ryan find out I’m really Exposegenius13 they’ll never leave me alone, and may want to get in on the case. But this case just nags at my mind. I have to say yes. I lean forward again and type:

Exposegenius13: I’ll do it.

AllieBaby: Really?! That’s awesome! Do you need any information on anything?

Exposegenius13: Give me any details you can about the people who went missing. And do you have an idea about who might be behind the kidnappings?

AllieBaby: No, I don’t know who might be, but, people have been disappearing for a long time. They range from kids to teens to even full grown adults and elderly people.  I heard that 10 years ago, a whole family went missing.  Their house was empty since they left and all their stuff was confiscated by the police. Though a new family just moved in, so if you want to investigate it, you’ll have to clear it with them. The reporter who just went missing is a 25 year old young woman name Angelina Horowitz. She worked for Raising Daily Times Newspaper as their sole investigative reporter.  I was really close with her.

Exposegenius13: You said that Ms. Horowitz was the sole investigative reporter and that you knew her well. Do you know what her last assignment was?

AllieBaby: Well, Angelina was single and in such a small town like Raising, she could never find something interesting to report on, so she did regular articles for the newspaper. But, this new really big company came to Raising recently and she found it weird. I think she went there incognito to see what was going on.

Exposegenius13: So you think that she encountered some issues in this new company. What’s the name?

AllieBaby: Collector’s Soil and Gardening.

Exposegenius13: Do you know who runs it?

AllieBaby: No, that’s the weird part. Nobody in town knows what they do and we never see any products of theirs, but we’ve heard of them. We don’t know who runs it either. It’s like they existed but never really made a difference before they came to our town.

Exposegenius13: Thanks for your help. I’ll look into it. Do me a favor, and stay out of trouble. I don’t need you looking into this for me. You’ve given me a great start on the investigation and I will look into this. I’m a professional at this, so leave this to me. I don’t want to hear that you’re the next one who goes missing because you were poking your head in where it doesn’t belong. Okay?

AllieBaby: Okay. I understand. But if you need any information on the town, I’m your girl. I know everything there is to know about Raising.

Exposegenius13: Thanks. I’ll let you know if I do.

With that, I log off the computer and get out my homework. I complete it all within two hours and then I run downstairs. I throw myself on my couch and close my eyes. I mentally arrange all the details of this new case. It doesn’t make any sense. The kidnappings are random in age in seems. I’ll have to look up any old newspaper clippings I can find on the kidnappings. A knock sounds at my door and I reluctantly get up to answer it. When I open the door, Allie and Ryan are standing on my steps all eager.

“Great. To what do I owe this not so pleasant surprise?” I ask.

 

Allie shoves a few sheets of paper at me and squeals in delight. "I just had the most amazing conversation with Exposegenius13! This is the conversation we had! They're really a nice person! I really want to help out!"

I look at her in dismay. "But didn't you just say that you weren't going to? If you really look up to this person, then you really should listen to what they say. Besides, they sound like they know what they're doing. Anyone who's inexperienced would just get in their way."

" I agree with Kati. Allie, Exposegenius13 will contact you if they have any questions. It's the safest thing to leave them to do what they do best and investigate. You'd only be in their way." Ryan says gently to Allie.

"But I want to help!" Allie complains.

"And you will be helping. By leaving them to do it by themselves. They've tackled things like this before, right? So they know what they're doing. Have a little more faith in your idol, idiot. And besides, you've given them a gold mine of information here. Now stay true to your word and stay out of it." I advise.

"And this is why I wanted to include you in the conversation. Your wisdom speaks to our hearts." Ryan says.

I shake my head and invite them to come inside or to leave. They come inside. Not like I care, but I prefer Naomi not see that I have friends. She'd have a heart attack. Of course, it would be in a good way, but then she'd escalate to telling me to dress more like Allie again. And I don't feel like having that conversation again. It's really boring and it gets old quickly. Allie takes this time to ask about the whereabouts of Naomi and I simply reply "I don't know." Surprisingly enough, Allie drops it and lets the conversation go back to whatever is on her mind. But then I hear Ryan say something about Exposegenius13 and I have to tune in.

"Wait, what about Exposegenius13?" I ask.

"Jeez, you really don't pay attention to our conversations do you?" Ryan asks.

"Nope, now continue." I pry.

"I was saying how Exposegenius13 only does investigations alone. They don't have a partner, and they don't work with the police. It's really bothersome for them I guess. But they prefer to do it alone. In every case the news tries to get a report from the local law enforcement but it never happens. They all say that they didn't have a clue that Exposegenius13 was looking into the case.

One officer reported in the last case that "Expose Genius will not have any credit to this investigation for whoever they were, they broke the law, and it was an illegal investigation. The law enforcement is perfectly capable of hiring a detective. Perhaps, if they had talked to the police then they could have been given credit. There are laws to follow."

"Well, that's just stupid." Allie cries.

Personally, if I did talk to the local cops then I would have to follow the law, which would severely limit my research. So I chose not to. Easy enough. Why the media is even getting into my business is annoying. I sigh.

"What do you think, Kati?" Ryan asks.

"What do I think about what?" I ask.

"Stop zoning out! Jeez, we're asking on whether you know this Exposegenius13 person." Allie says.

"How the hell would I know them?! Jeez, use your head, I hadn't heard of them since this morning when you started blabbering about them. Duh." I say annoyed.

"Oh, right. Sorry, I guess I'm kind of obsessed with them." Allie says sheepishly.

My head throbs with a headache that came out of nowhere, and I just sigh and close my eyes. I faintly hear the both of them talk back and forth about Allie's new obsession, but I don't really care to listen in. My body feels sluggish and I hope that I'm not getting sick. I rarely ever get sick, but when I do, it's horrible. I get up off the couch slowly and go get a glass of water. I ask if anyone else wants a drink but they both deny. That's when the house phone rings. I pick it up and answer.

"I know who you are. I know your past. And I know your future." A strange voice says on the other line.

"Excuse me? I think you have the wrong number." I reply.

"I don't think I do. You'll never find out what happened. You better stop while you're ahead, otherwise, there's no guarantee that you'll live to tell the tale." The voice threatens and the line goes dead.

My blood runs cold and I slowly put the phone down.

"Who was it?" Allie asks.

I ignore her and go to the window and look out into the street. No sign of anyone, I then draw the curtains closed and lock all the windows and doors.

"Kati, what's going on?" Ryan asks.

"Shush!" I chide him. I then pick up my cell and call Naomi. She doesn't pick up, but that's not surprising. I leave a message and tell her to call me when she's on her way home. I turn to Allie and Ryan and tell them to call their parents and tell them that they're staying for dinner. Both comply, surprisingly.

"Okay, we've obeyed your every command like faithful dogs, now will you tell me what's going on?" Ryan asks. I look at him closely and I decide to tell them.

"The person on that phone was someone who threatened me. He said specifically that he knew who I was, that he knew my past and that he knows my future. He told me to stop while I was ahead otherwise there will be ‘no guarantee that I'll live to tell the tale’. It was kinda freaky." I say and sit down with my back against the couch.

"Oh my god, do you think he had the wrong number?" Allie asks.

"I said that, and he said, "I don't think I do." I just don't want some weirdo attacking you guys." I say.

Ryan walks over to where I sit and puts his arm around me. "In that case, we should all head over to my house, since we won't be alone in this spooky house that is being watched by a psycho who wants to hurt our dear sweet Kati."

"Good idea." Allie says and goes to the door. I jump up and get to it before she does and unlock it by myself and walk outside.

If this psycho is out here, he won't do anything. Not in public. I go back inside and get my keys. I leave a few lights on in the house, and lock the front door. One full agonizing minute later we arrive at the MacMillan's house and are eating soup and laughing together safely. A full four hours later I am relaxed and happy. I look at the clock and see that it's 11:00pm to my surprise. Allie had left a while back and I gather my keys to leave too. Ryan walks me to the door and waves good bye as I head across the street to the safety of my home.

When I open the door, I look and see Naomi on the couch.

"Naomi! I thought I told you to call me when you were on your way home. Jeez, you never care to do anything my way." I say angrily. How many times to I have to tell this woman to call me? I leave her on the couch after taking off her shoes and putting a blanket on top of her to keep her warm and listen to her slow, quiet breathing.

In my head I recount the events of the day to myself. I don't understand why, out of the blue, I got a call like that. I've always done investigations by myself without any threatening calls like that. Maybe last investigation I slipped up and let something slide that could lead to my identity? No, that's not right. I did everything in the shadows, nobody could know that it was me. I can't think of anybody who would know, and this fact alone worries me. However, the call alone tells me that I'm on the right track. I am going to continue the investigation, with or without this psycho watching me. With this new plan strong and resolute in my mind, I calmly go upstairs to my room, after locking the front door, and go to bed. That night, I dreamt of danger.

 

In the dream, I walk barefoot in a cold linoleum hallway. I wear a light white dress that stops at my knees and my hair is loose around my face. I'm scared, but I don't know what I'm scared of. My heart pounds dangerously violent against my chest. My feet grow cold from the absence of heat in the spacious hallway. I glance nervously over my shoulder and quicken my pace into a run. There are now rooms that run adjacent to my fleeing silhouette; the doors all the same colorless metal with no handles, no numbers, no distinctive marks.

Behind those doors is something hidden. Something evil. Something I must run away from. I reach the end of the hallway and burst through the door to an empty yard. The grass is bright green and lush, despite the biting cold. A water fountain stands alone, turned off, a cold stone statue in a euphoric yard.

Suddenly alarms blare in the distance, and I turn my head over my shoulder. A dark figure stares from the shadows. I open my mouth to gasp, and fall to the ground instead, a bullet in my chest.

 

I jolt up from the dream, drenched in sweat and my heart racing a mile a minute. It’s hard to breathe. My cell phone chirps an alert, letting me know that I’ve received a text message.  It reads: 1 new message from Ryan. Ryan? Since when did I have his number? I don’t ever recall having it out into my phone. I open the message and read a large and very enthusiastic hello from him. I decide to ignore him and get ready for school. I run down the stairs and look for Naomi.

As normal, she stands at the counter with no sign of ever being drunk. I grab some toast and get in the car and wait for Naomi. When she finally does get in, she looks at me and says hesitantly, “Are you okay? You’re super quiet today.” I look out my window and simply reply, “I’m fine, I’m just tired.” We arrive at school, and I jump out of the car.

“Kati!!!! I’ve been waiting for you!!! I need to talk to you about something!” Allie says, perky as usual.

“What?” I ask angrily. I so don’t have the patience I need today.

“So, get this, I had this dream last night and it was about you!” She says enthusiastically. My heart contracts in my chest. Could it be? How would she know? Wait. Calm down, you’re jumping to conclusions. She probably didn’t have the same dream as you. Why would she be so enthusiastic then? I tell myself to calm my racing mind.

“Okay. So?” I say, waiting to hear her response.

“Well, there was, like, this yard, and you and Ryan were there and he, like, kissed you! Then you punched him and the dream ended.” She says like it was nothing. I nearly fall on the ground with relief.

“You’re telling me this because…?” I ask.

“Well, I thought it was funny. I mean the dream you was so you. I thought it was real for a minute but then I realized that I was awake so it couldn’t have happened… hey! Where are you going?!” Allie asks. Halfway through her stupid rant I began to walk away.

“To class.” I reply and leave her in the dust.

Throughout the day I avoid talking to Allie and Ryan as much as possible. Until I get to gym, where Ryan is paired up with me.

“So, today, you’ve been super quiet. I mean, even more so than usual. What’s up?” he asks me.

“Nothing, I’m just tired.” I say, which technically isn’t a lie. Even though I slept last night, that nightmare made me wake up feeling like I didn’t sleep at all.

“Okay, let me rephrase, will you tell me what’s bothering you?” he asks with his concern written all over his face.

“No need to.” I say.

“Why not?” Ryan asks. “I want to help if I can.”

“Well, you can’t. I just didn’t sleep well last night that’s all.” I say.

“It wasn’t the creepy caller guy again was it?” Ryan asks.

“No, it was just a dream. No need for concern.” I say. Ryan doesn’t look like he believes me but he lets the topic slide.

After school ends I gladly walk home. I get inside my house and lock the door. I calmly walk to my room and search up anything I can on Collector’s Soil and Gardening. After about an hour of nothing, my nerves are about to snap so I switch my hard music to something more soft. I turn on some nice Jazz and close my eyes. I recount all of the information I have so far on the case, which isn’t much. The sound of a chime interrupts my thoughts. I look at my phone and read the new message alert. I open my phone and find a message from Ryan.

Hey Kati, I don’t see Naomi’s car in the driveway, so if you have nothing better to do, my parents were wondering if you wanted to come over for dinner. Just let me know if you want to or not. -R

Dinner? At the MacMillan’s? Why not? Shellie is there. I pick up my phone and reply.

As long as I get to see Shellie, fine. Do you want me to bring drinks?

After a few seconds my phone chimes.

Nah. It’s okay, we got it. Unless there’s some super special Kati-only soda that only you have.

I laugh quietly to myself and reply: Don’t be stupid.

Throughout the night I laugh and talk with the MacMillan’s and believe for a second that this is what a real family looks like. One with a happy child, a good pet, happy parents that includes a Dad and a responsible Mom. Something I don’t have. After dinner I head home, Ryan following me as usual.

“So, did you have fun tonight?” He asks, as we arrive at my door.

“Yeah, it was alright. I guess fun isn’t as deadly as I thought.” I reply and Ryan laughs at my “funny” joke. I really didn’t think it was as funny as he’s making it out to be, but whatever floats your boat.  I open my door and look around to see my beautiful, gorgeous house in shambles with everything strewn across the floor and all the drawers opened and on the ground.

“What’s wrong?” Ryan asks as I stand in the doorway, frozen.

I slowly walk into the house and tell  Ryan to not touch anything. I head up to my room and find my computer gone, and a not in it’s place. It reads: I told you to leave it alone. This is only the beginning of what happens when you don’t listen. If you want dear old mom to be safe, then I suggest you heed my advice. This is your last warning.

Of course Ryan had to follow me into my room, and he asks hesitantly, “Are you okay?” I simply reply, “No. I’ve been robbed.”