Chapter 24: Chapter 24

The dim and shallow street lights in Shenandoah Drive E illuminated a hollow shadow of the dark figure that stood in the driveway of a Victorian bungalow. With heavy drapes, simple windows, and dark hues, the bungalow had a hint of modernity.

Bob tucked his hand in the pocket of his black hoodie that merged perfectly with the night and pulled out his phone. He verified that the image he had with him was the same as the house before him.

Having confirmed, Bob clicked something on his phone and put it back in his pocket. He looked around warily as if scoping out the area and adjusted his hood to cover his face as he proceeded to the porch of the house.

Since the lights were still on inside, Bob had no reason to believe Adam Mash wasn’t home.

Bob rang the doorbell and waited, feeling a bit antsy.

' Mr Adam should be a reasonable man and should be agreeable with my request. After all, he's Charlotte's biological father. Whether he wants the child or not is another problem however...'

As he awaited an answer at the door, Bob started to have thoughts in his head.

Just as soon as Courtney had given him Adam's address and name, Bob had started digging for information. Of course, he knew it could all be a plot made by Courtney, and perhaps, Adam Mash doesn't even live here.

However, Bob still took the chance. After all, Courtney couldn’t hurt him. She needed him alive if anything, and Bob knew this. Hence, his confidence in doing something as seamless as this.

‘ What If this man already has a family of his own?’ Bob couldn’t help but think. Wouldn’t he be wrecking this home then? Could this be Courtney’s motive after all, so that there could finally be a chance for her to come back to this man? Bob felt a tight choke in his chest all of a sudden, he didn't really understand why Courtney would be doing all of this.

' But anyways... it's been about a while right?'

Bob frowned after it had been almost five minutes and there was still no answer. He rang the doorbell again. But It was still the same result! No one was answering the door even after another while.

Bob was starting to have a bad premonition, but his care for Charlotte wouldn’t let him back off.

He peered a look around and reached for the door knob to see if it was really locked and whether Adam had forgotten to switch off the lights before he left home. He knew this could be counted as an intrusion but he believed it was a minor thing as long as he didn’t harm anyone and try to reason with the man that he was only here to talk. Bob put believe in the fact that Adam was a rational person who would understand his stance.

Creak!

Just as he turned the doorknob, the door creaked open. Bob was surprised the door wasn’t locked!

He looked around again, obviously a bit hesitant, but he knew he couldn’t go back now. He gently pushed the door open and stepped into the grandeur living room that had fluorescent lights that dimly illuminated the modern interior design of the place.

“ Hello!” Bob relaxed his phlegm to bellow out in a low resonant voice that echoed through the house. He noticed something was wrong with the surrounding and couldn’t help but frown. The sofa in the living room had signs that someone had just been there, there was a coffee mug with a seemingly cold coffee still in it on the table. The Tv was still on, but had been muted. Strange!

“ Is anyone home?” Bob called out again as he ventured further inside the house, his voice sounding a little shaky and husky. He was beginning to have a strange feeling, and his intuition told him to run out of the door and never return. But Bob continued pressing on, he was too curious to leave...

He suddenly froze when he heard he a soft grunt echo through the corridor. Bob was startled and grew alerted. His whole existence warned him that it was the best timing to really walk out the door now. He turned around with the aim to follow his gut feelings.

“ugh!” But when the soft grunt came again, he realized someone was actually hurt.

Bob rushed towards the corridor. He slowed down out of shock when he saw blood smeared on the floor of the corridor. His eyes constricted and he quickly covered his nose with a palm when the smell of iron hit his nostril.

Bob, however, didn’t stop as he broke into a jog, following the sound of the grunt and the trail of blood on the floor.

Soon he arrived in the kitchen where he froze as his eyes met the gruesome sight of the horror. The kitchen was a mess of blood and utensils scattered about as though a fight had broken out.

There, resting beneath the countertop was a man seemingly in his mid 40s with a dark brown short hair and quite a tall build. His face was pale and had long grew dreary, and his eyes fluttered in an effort to not shut close.

The man had a knife stabbed in his chest and was covered in a pool of his own blood on the floor. He had blood trailing out of the corners of his lips and a ghastly slash in his neck which he tried to stop from bleeding with his hands.

Bob was still and speechless as he couldn't comprehend the terror before him.

The man on the floor beneath the countertop was exactly Adam Mash!

“ Mr Adam?!” Bob called out as he quickly ran to knee by his side. He held him up to a seat and tried to stop the blood gushing out of his body with his palm. Bob knew this was Courtney’s doing, and he just couldn’t believe she would go to such extent...

“ Like what the fuck, does this bitch even have a care in the world?” Bob cursed as he quickly dialed the emergency line.

“ Stay with me, stay with me Mr Adam” Bob said to the man who was trying to say something but could only let out a choked gurgle. Bob looked away and did everything he could to not retch. The sight was simply horrific!

However, Just as Bob was dialing the emergency number, he suddenly heard a sound that he wasn't expecting to hear at the moment.

“ WHEEE-OOO! WHEEE-OOO!! WHEEE-OOO!!!"

" NEE-NAW! NEE-NAW!!"

It was the siren of the police.

“ The police are here? but who called …” Bob trailed off his words when he saw the state that Adams was in. The man gave up the ghost!

Bob's eyes constricted to the size of a needle. Fear, despair, anger and all sorts of emotions overcame him. His eyes reddened and became moist.

" No, no!" He panted uncontrollably and shook his head as he tried to stand. However, his legs that had grown weak betrayed him and he only plopped on his behind, sitting in the pool of blood.

Clang!

He hit his hands on the knife on the floor beside him which he'd just noticed. Bob had the conjecture that it had been used to slash Adam’s neck.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

He heard the sounds of footsteps approaching and his instincts told him to run, he knew he was in big trouble if he didn’t escape now!

" There's someone in there!"

Bob tried as much as he could, but he just couldn’t move! His body was too shook from the fear and apprehension that a man had died in his hands...

“Freeze! Don’t move!”

The realization dawned on him, and he now knew what Courtney’s aim was all along. Of course she couldn’t harm him, but it didn’t mean she couldn’t frame him. How dumb could he be?

Bob just stared in a lost daze as the police knocked the knife beside him away in a swift sweep of their feet. He put up no resistance as they pinned him on the ground, handcuffed him, and dragged him out of the house.

He could hear the indistinct chatters and commands from the walkie-talkies. The coldness of the guns pointed at him and the bright blue and red lights that made him wince, snapped him back to reality.

His heart raced and pounded in pure despair. Bob's life had successfully been fucked up! and he could envision Courtney’s devilish smile mocking him at the moment. He lost!

…