In the Dark

Chapter 20

Perrie's POV

"Jade? Baby, are you okay?" I asked, stepping into our dark bedroom.

I'd just gone to drop Aurora off at school, and I was expecting Jade to be up and on her way out for work, but when I got back, all of the lights were off and everything was still in the same place.

Her car was still in the driveway. Keys still on the table. She hasn't moved. She was supposed to have returned to work by now. I'm scared she'll lose her job, and it was the one thing that gave her a sense of normalcy when she couldn't remember anything.

She didn't respond to me when I walked in. I walked over to the bed where I could see the outline of her body underneath the covers. Covers that she had pulled over her head. I couldn't imagine what she must have been feeling.

Well, I sort of could. I've been in the same place. Looking for someone after years away, only to find out that they're gone. Learning about the tragic way they left.

But she's also going through a lot more than just what she found out yesterday. Her whole life is upside down. I feel terrible. I want to help her, but I don't know how. I don't know what to do. I can't bring her parents back.

"Jade?" I whispered, gently peeling the covers back to reveal her face. "Jade?"

I lightly tapped her, but didn't get a response. My heart started to race.

"Jade!" I shouted, now tapping her back harder.

I snatched the covers off her completely and rolled her over onto her back

Her eyes slowly opened, and she laid there, blinking up at the ceiling.

"Jade?" I called again, and her eyes moved to mine. "You scared the shit out of me. Are you alright?"

"Yeah." She sighed, sitting up in bed. "Sorry."

I sat down on the bed next to her. "You didn't get up today..."

"I wasn't feeling it." She sighed again.

"Is there anything I can do?" I asked, putting my hand on her knee to comfort her.

"I need to find out what happened!" She said, suddenly tossing the rest of the covers off her legs and jumping out of bed.

"What?" I asked, jumping up and running behind her. She made it down the stairs in no time. "What are you going to do?"

She snatched her laptop from the coffee table and sat down on the couch with it.

"I have to do research. You were right. That old lady didn't make any sense." She said, already typing fast.

"I searched but never found anything." I said. "There's not a single news story or article about that. As far as the internet knows, they were still alive. Even the house that was there looks different. You saw it."

"Yeah. That's why I don't believe her." She said, shaking her head. "I have to find more information."

"But how?" I asked. "Where?"

"Someone has to know something! She said they were murdered... and me too, Perrie. That's impossible if I'm sitting right here. And then she said rumors were that I killed them and disappeared. Why would I do that? I'm not a killer. Especially my own parents. That's sick. Something else happened. It had to." She said, still shaking her head. "And where is she getting these rumors? I don't see anything anywhere."

"I wish I knew the answers." I sighed. "I really hope you find something."

"Me too." She said, furrowing her brows at her screen as she typed and scrolled.