64 Hours

2 H0urs

~the second hour~

"You know what they say about hope. It breeds eternal misery." -Spencer, Pretty Little Liars

When Unknown sent that abysmal message he also included killing my niece if I did something sketchy with the police. The loss of Lucas stabbed my heart, but I couldn't help putting my narcissistic feelings before him imagining what would happen if Bella was in his place.

What could I do?

I sank back into the carseat, aimlessly sitting in my car outside Lucas's house, my hands tightly clutching the steering wheel as if I would bolt if someone came. I was certain no one else knew about my best friend lying dead on the floor right this minute. I reread Unknown's messages without realizing, my mind still functioning the death of my friend. My brain felt numb with too many feelings; sadness, hate and anxiety. But the most confusing part was that I didn't feel as if Lucas was really dead...that he was actually gone and that I would never see him again.

I was a jerk. Because instead of mourning over Lucas, I was sitting in the car, thinking about how Bella and Aria could turn out with this killer on the loose. If it even was this Unknown guy. Maybe he hired someone and didn't want to get his hands dirty. But I'll never know.

As much as I wanted to hand over Lucas's body over to the police for examining, one warning from Unknown was enough, no matter how much of an idiot I sounded. Lucas was dead. He had no say in this.

I then closed my eyes pensively as that thought came through my mind and felt ashamed. How could I say that? I imagined what Lucas would say if he knew Bella and Aria's lives were at risk. But now because he was gone, my thoughts dissolved into pure emptiness.

My phone rang, the original ringtone of when I bought the phone intruding my shame session. I didn't move for about ten-seconds until I finally got back my senses and swiped my finger over the option to answer. The caller ID had Aria's name.

"Adam, thank God you answered." Her voice sounded concerned.

"Why? Are you okay?" I suddenly sat up, my back erect. If this Unknown person even touched them—

"No, no, I just called because I was worried about you. Did you see Lucas? Is he okay?" I relaxed, but then felt unreserved again as she reminded me of him. I couldn't tell her he was dead. Hell, I couldn't tell anyone, because anyone would call the police as soon as they could.

"Yeah, yeah he's fine," I told her, but my voice cracked halfway through, and I choked on the words.

"So...?" Aria waited for a few seconds. "So, why did he send that voicemail?"

"Uh..." I fell silent. I should've thought this through, and I felt speechless. "Well, you see..." I racked my brains for some excuse.

"Adam?" Aria's tone suddenly changed. "Am I going to need to call services?"

"No!" I blurted out at the absurd suggestion, frantically hyperventilating on the inside.

Suddenly I got a text.

"Hang on, someone texted me," I rambled, relieved for the weak distraction then quickly took the phone off my ear and checked the notification.

It was Unknown, surprise surprise.

5:13 pm: Tell her that he fell down some stairs while his friends were pranking him and you're now taking him to the hospital. Say that or you know what happens.

As soon as I read that I whipped my head to the window to see if anyone was watching me. My windows were only slightly open, but even so, how could anyone even hear this conversation? This was getting out of control. The neighborhood was empty. My breathing quickened.