Family Portrait (Fam Series #1)

Chapter 125 - Royal Park Station, Parkville

Adeline -

Suffocating.

Drowning, in silence.

Stephen's got what Jack has. I can't remember the name of the condition, but he's coughing non stop and no longer wearing his mask. Neither am I, for that matter. They just completely disappeared.

We're still locked in the office. It's getting pretty late. Zac Fisher has gone on a man hunt for something to open or break the door. I still have to pee and I'm absolutely exhausted. Nobody's missing me at all because nobody's contacting me. As always, I'm just...nobody.

Stephen suddenly starts coughing a lot more violently as I look over at him, standing by the door. He suddenly collapses as he continues coughing.

'Stephen?' I ask, almost repeating my exact same moments from my nightmare with Jack yesterday. And it ends the same way as well, as Stephen's life slips away in my arms.

I'm a murderer.

I suddenly sit up with a jolt and a fright as I struggle to catch my breath. Looks like I must've fallen asleep under my desk again.

'STEPHEN!' I suddenly yell, as I run over to my manager and hug him, almost crying. Oh my gosh, he's okay. He's alive, it's not real, he's fine.

'Nice to see you too, Adeline?' Stephen says, sounding confused and off guard as he tries to stand away from me, breaking the hug.

'Oh Stephen, please please stay. Don't leave' I say, a few stray tears rolling down my face anyway.

'I don't exactly think we're going anywhere tonight' Stephen says, still sounding confused as he misinterprets what I've said and gestures to the time old enemy - a door with a lock.

'Yo, Stephen? She awake yet?' Zac suddenly yells from the other side of the door, giving me a heart attack.

'Yeah' Stephen says back tiredly.

'Okay, can you guys hide behind your desks or something?' Zac asks.

'Why...?' I ask, a little concerned.

'Well, it's like this. I found a gun in the desk of the security office, and I'm gonna shoot at the lock' he reveals.

'You found a GUN?' Stephen exclaims.

'Yeah, a real working one with bullets and everything' Zac says back casually.

'How do you know it works?' I ask.

'I practised shooting it a couple of times at your ex husband's cardboard cutout. Not important. Anyway y'all, I'm about to shoot so go hide' Zac says.

'I do not get paid enough to work here' I say, groaning as I push my desk over and hide behind it.

'You don't seriously believe he has a gun, do you?' Stephen asks.

I shake my head as a loud bang suddenly hits the door, making both of us jump, followed by:

'FUCK! YOU GOTTA BE FUCKING KIDDING ME!'

'Zac, what happened?' I ask, running to the door.

'The stupid bullet ricocheted and hit me in the bloody thigh. Now get down!' Zac yells, as he shoots at the lock again.

'Zac, how about you shoot around the lock? Maybe grab something to carve instead?' Stephen asks.

'Carve? What am I, a chipmunk?' Zac asks incredulously.

'Go find something less dangerous and then try to get us out' Stephen orders, as Zac runs off.

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