The Game.

chapter 3 - hope.

I woke up sweaty and breathless, gasping for air at 06:00 a.m the next morning. I keep dreaming about that dreadful day and this bloody sentence keeps echoing in my mind, replaying that moment on and on like a scratched disk, keeping me from having a peaceful sleep. "It will not stop until we all die", she said, but why not say anything else?And what could the messager want from them? Is this sadist doing all of this because they find pleasure in what they are doing to them, or do they have an ulterior motive? Those we found seem to be too scared to enlighten me, making me more anxious and restless.

It has been two days since the boss barged into my office, asking for answers I couldn't give. It has been a week and a half since we found these people in the basement of this abandonned house. It has been three weeks since Amber went missing. All of this time, my anxiety grew bigger, and settled in the pit of my stomach, making me so sick I had to leave work for two days.

When we found those people in that basement, I first felt a sense of relief, even though I shouldn't have. But then, I saw all of it more clearly ; a man with the knife, another on the floor, the blood, that sentence... all of it scared me. I was so scared this might happen to Amber, or might already have happened.

I took in a deep breath and slapped myself out of it. The phone call. We still haven't investigated the mysterious phone call. The little hope that sparkled from this thought got me out of bed. I went across the empty corridor to my kitchen and made myself a cup of coffee. While it was brewing, I went on to shower and got dressed. I drank the coffee and went to my car to leave.

On my way to work, it started raining, and I could help but think about Amber. She has always loved the rain. On our first date, we went for a picnic, and it started raining.I was about to go look for a place for us to hide but then I turned arround, and I saw an angel.

She looked so innocent with that smile on her face, laughing and twirling arround while allowing the water droplets to hit her skin. She shaked her hair as the rain poured on us, then turned arround and smiled at me, and I didn't feel cold anymore. "Will you dance with me, dear?" She asked as she gave me her hand. Once again I couldn't help but fall in love with this woman.

A single tear ran down my cheek as I reminsced this moment. This fear that keeps crawling down my skin. The fear that I would never see her smile that way again.

I was at work by 08:30 a.m, parked my car and entered the building. I went pass Mia on my way to the restroom to wash my face and ignored her when she tried to say hi. When I got out, she was waiting for me with an irritated look on her face.

''Your parents never taught you good manners? What is with you lot these days?" She asked.

"Hi", I said with a soft smile.

" oh, now you say hi to me", she said rolling her eyes at me," I have good news for you. You are lucky it's about the case because now I am in the mood to be petty."

" what good news?", I asked in anticipation.

"The man who was hospitalized is alive and doing well, and wants to speak with us today!"

End of chapter 3.