her disappearance

11

CREIGHTON

The fear in Anoushka's voice was something I never want to hear again.

"Just make sure she's safe." I say, tightening my fingers around my phone at the thought of someone hurting Anoushka.

"She will be." Kai convinces me from the other end of the call.

I hang up and throw my phone on the passenger seat before gripping the steering wheel and staring at the dark silhouette of a man.

He was of average height. He wore a mask and a matching black sweatshirt and sweatpants.
It probably wasn't smart to meet with this stranger alone with no weapons but I was a 6'3 man who spent hours at the gym. I was my own weapon.

I grab my phone and turned on the voice recording before opening my car door. "I assume you have something I want," I say once I was in earshot of him.

"Perhaps." he tightly replies, his voice wasn't familiar at all.

I slip my phone into my pocket. "Elaborate."

"What do I get in return?" he asks.

I let out a humourless chuckle. "If you think you're getting anything then you might as well walk away now."

"I heard about what happened to your little friend Anoush. Maybe next time make sure the doors are locked. You never know who is lurking."

I fist my hands. Who the fuck said he could call her Anoush?

I tilt my head to the side. "Tell me. Do you value your life? Continue speaking a word about Anoushka and I will hurt you." I threaten him.

He laughs. "Not before I hurt her."

My brows furrow. "I fucking dare you. You may think you're safe behind a ridiculous mask but touch a hair on her head and I'll find out who you are and you'll regret ever even thinking about her." I say my voice full of malice that I didn't even recognise myself.

He chuckles amused. "That sounds like you care about her. A lot."

Of course, I fucking care about her.
She's all I could ever think about for the past ten years of my life.

"And if I do?" I ask, with a raised brow.

"That is something I can have fun with," he says, an invisible threat in his words.

I take a step closer towards him. "Careful what you do. I may not give away the information I have," he says, making me freeze in my movements.

"Watch what happens if you don't."

"I don't want to spend any longer talking to you so I will hand over the information I have before Isabella was taken."

"Taken?" I question.

"I may have said too much."

I walk closer towards him. "Continue talking," I demand.

He tilts his head to the side. "I know who she was talking to the night she went missing."

Anoshka told me she saw her talking to someone but she didn't know who. Could this be it?

"Who?" I ask.

"Jeremy." he simply says.

I raise a brow and slowly nodded my head in understanding. "Clifford." I finish off for him. "I saw him earlier," I murmur to myself.

"She was with him the whole night," he says.

"And you know this because?"

"I was there."

"Why are you telling me this? What do you get from this?"

He shrugs. "Let's just say I have my reasons."

I nod my head sceptically. "Is that it?"

He doesn't reply and I take this as my opportunity to turn around and get back to Anoushka.