Chapter 26: Chapter 26

When there's no proof and no clue as to why things are the way they are, always trust your instinct; it rarely lies.

- Grace Chanbee

[Amber's POV]

My parents had gone for an all-night dinner party at the House of Levites, a five-star hotel, commemorating their 53rd Annual anniversary which only the high class was invited to.

It was more of an event for people above the age of 18 and my parents already informed me that I was 17 and was to become a full fledged adult by next year April.

My aunt's place had been quite okay especially because she was nice to me. Unlike our house which was jam-packed with several servants, she just had a few staff and I even preferred there because it wasn't too extra and although it was also lavish, it was simple and there was less drama.

She was actually a divorcee and I could tell it was hard for her to actually cope with her triplets whose disturbance and too many questions kept getting on my nerves. My dad had informed me that they were sweet kids, but honestly, they were more troublesome than they were sweet.

I was so stressed out from listening to their uncultured chatter all at once and having to smile even when they quarreled over stupid stuff that my head ached and I felt so weak till I could take it no more.

While Tessy and Tania started bickering and dragging a plastic chair which they both claimed belonged to them, Tasha, on the other hand, was playing with my hair and pulling it all in the name of making braids even though I pleaded with her to stop.

My ability to stay awake was beginning to dwindle and with every hair Tasha pulled and every cuss word the other two made, I kept on drowning alive slowly till I felt numb. I mean, it's crazy cause I could hear what they were still saying and see them, but it was like they were zoned out.

I couldn't move nor say anything and I felt really tired. I just lay sprawled on the bed, alive but in a way, dead.

"What's wrong with her?" Tania suddenly asked, waving her hands in front of my face.

Of course, I couldn't blink because I could practically do nothing anymore.

"I think she's asleep," Tasha said, finally leaving my hair alone.

"But she doesn't sleep with her eyes open," Tessy countered.

"It could be because of the accident. I heard mum telling someone her life has changed since she got into an accident," Tasha suggested.

"Oh. We probably shouldn't disturb her rest then. If mum sees us here while she's asleep, she'll punish us," Tania said.

"True," They chorused.

They finally left the room tiptoeing so as not to make a noise. I was so free and happy they had left me to my peace. Soon, I had closed my eyes and didn't know when I went into the sweet abode of sleep.

It was another day presently. After exchanging pleasantries with my aunt, I had gone into the yellow sprayed Maserati the driver had brought to pick me up and I was on my way back home and mum had even called to say Justin was around and waiting for me.

Being around Justin was really hard and it was extraordinarily tough pretending like I only saw him as a friend and confidant, nothing more. I wished that I could tell him how much my heart beat for him, how much my body craved for his, how much my ears longed to hear him say he still loves me.

Did he even love me? Well, if he did, he certainly didn't show it at all. He treated me like a patient and it was as though we had never even been close. Things had been worse for me as fatigue always engulfed my body and my head suddenly always banged, but his motivational words always soothed and calmed my spirit.

Staring into his emerald green eyes always brought sparks in my eyes and butterflies in my belly. I liked seeing him smirk and playfully bop my shoulder, even shake his head to make his hair fall back in place instead of touching it with his hands.

These days, he didn't even bite his lips to make me know when he was lying but it wasn't as though I ever asked him if he still felt something for me. My greatest fear was that he was going to say no without biting his lips, a confirmation that he didn't like me anymore which was going to make me regret all my life so it was best I remained mute and let sleeping dogs lie.

The driver cornered into our estate and he stopped at the entrance where the security men tried to identify him and ask him some questions about his driver's license and stuff like that.

I stared out the window, ignoring the conversation ongoing between the driver and the officials and just took a look at my environment.

A van that wasn't ours came in the opposite direction and was also stopped by the security men. I eyed the van; it was a rickety old Chevrolet Express van and it seemed like the outdated version, even the pale white colour spoke volumes of how long it had existed and been in use. It was a surprise as to how it still managed to work perfectly, even though it drove at a low speed.

Looking at the plate number of the van, it kept on playing and replaying in my mind's eye, for reasons I couldn't fathom. Ignoring why my heart kept on staring at it like there was a peculiar connection it had to it, I adjusted in my seat as the driver turned the key in the ignition proceeding to move forward.

However, as we drove past the van, something struck me. There was a man in the van and he looked in the other direction like he was trying to hide from us, another thing that was quite surprising was that a girl with brown hair was also there. Her head was faced down but as we passed by, I noticed red stinging marks on the man's neck.

I couldn't tell the driver to stop because even though I instantly had the gut feeling that something was wrong about them, I didn't know what and worse, I felt it was crazy for me to stop people over a suspicion that was unclear.

I fiddled with my fingers nervously and in deep thoughts, searching my mind as to why I felt insecure and so strange when we had driven past the van that had the man and the girl in it.

My head started to get hot from all the thinking and I shook my head slightly, sighing and massaging my knuckles, trying to divert my mind into thinking about something else.

Since I was weak and getting a headache from over thinking things, I should probably just let the people in the van be. It was stressful always feeling weak and dizzy, stressing everyone's asses out and acting like a crybaby.

I didn't want to faint again, I didn't want anyone to panic and so, conclusively, I wasn't going to stress my brain out on things that weren't my business.

*****

[Justin's POV]

It had been almost thirty minutes since I had started the therapy session with Amber. After she got back, I gave her some time to rest and change into something comfy and warm.

One of the servants had informed me that she was ready to be attended to and I had gone to her room. Her parents weren't around, heard they were yet to come back from their previous day's outing which had made me not come that day as Amber herself hadn't been around.

She was scared of staying alone at home without her parents, but who could blame her? In a span of barely two months, her life had been turned upside down and it was amazing to see that as traumatising as everything had been going for her, she still stood strong and brave.

I got to her room and she barely acknowledged my greetings and was doodling around something on a piece of paper at her reading table.

"How are you today?" I asked like every other therapist would.

"Fine," She muttered.

I sat beside her. "Umm... Anything funny happened lately?" I asked.

She shook her head in negativity.

"Good. Still feeling dizzy and weak most of the time?" I asked.

"Yeah," She responded, dropping her pen and finally looking up at me.

I sighed. "But what could be the matter? Haven't you been taking your medication?" I asked.

"I have. I never forget to take them at the right time just so I can get better immediately. It's like it's doing more harm than good," She said.

"And this started right after I began treating you. Saying that sounds really funny, but I'm correct, right?" I asked.

She sighed. "To be fair, my condition also aggravated this way right after I started taking the drugs. Prior to now, I was so not interested in recovering anything that I'd throw the drugs into the bin. Honestly, I used to have flashbacks when I moved in the house and although they were hazy, it was pretty normal and I'd only feel dizzy for a while. This is getting too complicated and tiring," She said.

"Yeah, I know and I'm sorry you have to go through all these," I said, offering her an apology.

She waved her hands. "No need to apologise, it's fine," She said.

I didn't know what to say again and just watched as she turned her attention back to her paper, writing something which I couldn't see from where I sat. I decided to let her be for a while as I rummaged through my thoughts in search of an answer to all the unanswerable questions that kept on coming and piling up one after another.

I heaved a deep sigh and ran my hands through my hair. First of all, I needed to find out about the psychopath who tried to murder Amber in my hometown. I also needed to know the so-called servant who had something against Gilbert Sanders who I couldn't inform just yet because I was protecting Aiden and he also doubted his daughter's own words.

I needed solid proof that Amber had been attacked right in the house and with Amber suddenly experience fatigue and faintness, it felt like it was never going to be possible for her to remember anything. Only she had the memory to know what and what happened to her that day and know why people were after her.

They had made it seem like a car accident but with the state she had been in, it was lucid that she was hit with something and left to die as her body was disposed in my vehicle. Another thing was that if it were really a car accident, she was supposed to have been in her car and not missing.

All what had happened depicted that someone was after her life and no one, not a single soul could point who the exact criminal was. And here I was, with some clues, but no solid proof.

I let my thoughts slowly die down and looked towards Amber who was busy with her paper again which aroused my curiosity as to what she was doing.

If she was doodling, was it love related or what? I was really open to knowing what was on her mind and what she was so interested in.

Without warning, I stood up and grabbed the piece of paper making her jolt as she had been taken unawares. She stood up with a frown on her face, demanding for her paper back but I just turned in the other direction and stared at it.

"26901BH" was written in different fonts all over the paper. For no reason whatsoever, the alphanumerics seemed recallable and oddly familiar.

She collected the paper from me unexpectedly while I remained fixed on recalling what the alphanumerics were about as my brain tried to tell me something was definitely wrong.

"Fed your eyes and now, cat got your tongue?" She asked in a sarcastic tone.

I was alerted as she spoke to me and I looked her straight in the eye like she had an answer to the questions going on in my head.

"What's wrong?" She asked in a concerned tone this time around, seeing I was in no mood for jokes.

"What you wrote... Is that... That's a plate number, right?" I asked, my brain seeming to be getting there.

"Yeah. I just saw it on a van just now and it caught my attention, nothing much," She replied with a shrug.

It clicked. I suddenly remembered everything finally. The incident that led to me bringing home Amber without even knowing should have had something to do with what happened that day as my brain recalled, but I had totally forgotten.

"Amber...That van, did it happen to be an old faded white Chevrolet?" I asked.

She nodded. "Yeah. How did you know?"

"Shoot! I was right, Amber. The day I saw you in my trunk laying half-dead, before coming back home, something happened," I explained.

"What?" She inquired, her ears most likely itching for what I had to say.

"It rained that day so I couldn't go home early because driving in the rain all the way from L.A felt risky, so I just waited in a Cafe for the rain to stop or go down a bit. Coming out, there was a man who parked his van behind mine. He asked why I was staring at him and drove off. He had a mask on and I was quite scared but you know, insane people are everywhere so I brushed it off," I explained.

"Okay? What else?" She probed further.

"I caught sight of the plate number of his van and memorising stuff like that is what I do when I'm bored. However, I ended up forgetting about it all after having an encounter with you that nearly sent me straight to my grave and I've been living all this while having forgotten what had happened prior to me going back to my home that day," I said, coming to a conclusion.

"You think this plate number is the same as that one you saw the day you mistakenly took me to your home?" She asked, almost getting the gist.

"Exactly, Amber."

"How can you be so sure about that? And so what if it's the same van? It doesn't mean a thing."

"That man I had seen wore a mask which was surprising but there's something else Amber. Remember that crazy asshole that tried to kill you back in Arroyo Grande?" I asked.

Her eyes seemed searching for a while and she appeared thoughtful, then soon wore a triumphant look. "Yeah! He tried to murder me in the streets and we saw him at the fair as well. He's just a crazy scumbag, why bring him up?" She asked.

"That man I had seen the day I took you to my house had a goatee with the same stature as the psychopath..."

"Wait. Wait. Wait. Do you think that man actually intended on killing me? Like, you think he had something to do with my accident in the first place?"

"You're so freaking smart. I first thought he was an insane wanderer, but then, a crazy person won't be keeping an eye on you. Besides, seeing that there is every possibility he's the same person I had encountered before because of the goatee and stature, I think he knew who you are and wanted to kill you seeing you were not already dead," I said.

"Your theory makes sense. Also, he knew my name, remember? And was wondering if I'm a lookalike or simply pretending that I couldn't remember him. How did he know my name? And if he hadn't thought he had succeeded in ending my life, why then will he just try to kill me?" She asked.

"Now, that's what I'm talking about. You finally understand me," I said excitedly.

"Yeah, I do. You know, I even felt like the people in the van were deliberately hiding their faces and I knew something was wrong but just decided to let it be," She noted.

"You think so?" I asked, becoming more thoughtful as the conversation became deeper.

"I know so. Wait a second! Justin, I think you're right. That vehicle may belong to whomever wants to kill me," She said, panicking all of a sudden.

"Calm down. What's wrong now?" I asked, holding her shoulders.

She panted heavily. "Do you remember the night someone attempted smothering me to death in my own father's house?"

I nodded my head, gesturing for her to go on.

"I scratched his neck with my fingers. Guess what!"

"What?" I asked, really interested in the discussion we were having.

She swallowed. "The neck of the man I just saw in the van had red marks like he had been stung or scratched," She revealed.

I let go of her shoulders as I grasped the information she had just spilled which was very vital. My hunch had been right! The owner of that van definitely had something to do with Amber's attack.

"This is serious, Amber. Tell me, where'd you see that van again?" I asked.

"Just at the entrance of the estate," She replied.

"Okay. You know what? Just sit here and wait for me," I told her.

"But why? The van will surely have left there," She argued.

"We need to be optimistic. Even if the van is no longer there, we may still find some sort of clue," I told her.

"Just..."

"Amber, it's high time we brought these criminals to book and went back to our normal lives," I said.

She sighed then gave the nod.

I was about going when she touched my hand, making me stop right in my tracks and I turned around, looking at her worried little face.

"Yeah?"

"Please, be careful for me," She said.

I smiled, ignoring the urge to kiss her and hug her tightly, feeling her curves against my chest.

"Of course," I said, not minding all the other things I wanted and should have said. Instead, I left the soft grip her small fingers had on my hand and exited her room.

The servants looked both surprised and confused as I ran out of the house but I ignored their stares, focusing only on the intent I had of going all the way to the entrance of the estate to see if the van was still there. I knew it was likely impossible but if there was a way to convince the security guards to give me any detail about them, I was going to be more than thankful.

Something hit me at the back of my head, causing me to yell out in pain and as much as I wanted to turn around to see who had done such a cruel deed, I was just standing there, transfixed; my surroundings became blurry, my head was banging hard, there was an overwhelming surge of fatigue in me and as much as I tried to refrain from falling, the next thing I knew was that I lay on the ground like a log of wood; unmoving, till my eyes gave way to the darkness.