WHO AM I

CAT AND MOUSE

The car was silent as Lila sat frozen, gripping her phone. Renzo knew. He knew they were watching him. It wasn't just a coincidence. It wasn't paranoia. He had texted her directly.

"Well... that's not creepy at all," Jasper broke the silence with a nervous laugh.

"What do we do now?" Kira asked, turning to Lila. "Are we... still following him? Or is this the part where we run for our lives?"

Lila stared at her phone for a moment, then back at her friends. "He's playing with us."

"Playing?" Noah repeated, his eyes narrowing. "You think he's toying with us?"

"Look at the message," Lila held up her phone. "He's not threatening us. He's inviting us to keep going."

"Okay, so we're dealing with someone who gets his kicks from messing with people," Jasper sighed. "Fantastic. Should we, like, hire a professional or something? We're amateurs."

Noah shook his head, already putting the car in reverse. "We don't need professionals. We need to be smarter."

"Smarter?" Jasper raised an eyebrow. "Bro, we literally just fell out of a tree trying to 'sneak around' like ninjas in the park."

Lila couldn't help but smile at that. "Okay, yeah. We're not exactly secret agents, but we're not backing down."

"Wow. You're way too calm about this," Kira commented, eyes wide. "I'd be freaking out right now if someone was stalking me."

"Who says I'm calm?" Lila retorted, holding up her shaky hands. "I'm terrified. But we need to find out what Renzo's up to. He has some kind of agenda, and we're already caught in his game."

"Yeah, but how do we win this game?" Jasper asked. "Because right now, it feels like we're losing pretty hard."

Noah took a deep breath, glancing at Lila through the rearview mirror. "We take it one step at a time. First step, let's figure out where he's going next."

They decided to park a bit further away, allowing Renzo to take the lead while they watched from a distance. As they sat there, the tension hung in the air, broken only by Jasper's constant tapping on the car door.

"Okay, to lighten the mood," Jasper said, turning to Lila, "quick question. If Renzo was a supervillain, what would his evil name be?"

Lila smirked, glad for the distraction. "Renzo the Menzo. Sounds like a budget Bond villain."

Kira burst out laughing. "I was thinking more like 'Renzo the Riddler' since he's playing mind games with us."

"What about 'Renzo the Really Annoying Guy Who Won't Let Us Spy in Peace'?" Jasper added, making Noah chuckle despite the situation.

Their laughter was short-lived, though, as they spotted Renzo heading toward a fancy-looking building on the outskirts of town. Noah's brows furrowed.

"That's the Grand Villa," he said. "The most expensive hotel around here."

Lila's eyes widened. "What is he doing there?"

"Probably buying it for kicks," Kira muttered, still laughing at her own joke.

"Wait," Jasper said, sitting up straight, his expression serious for once. "Doesn't that place have, like, a penthouse suite? Only billionaires can stay there."

Lila exchanged a glance with Noah, her heart racing. This was getting stranger by the second. Why would Renzo be going to a place like that? Was he involved in something bigger than they thought?

"Should we follow him inside?" Kira asked, already half out of the car.

"We can't just walk in there without a plan," Noah said. "This is a high-end place. We'll stick out like sore thumbs."

"So... we're dressing up like rich people now?" Jasper raised an eyebrow. "I always knew my sense of fashion would come in handy one day."

Kira grinned, nudging Lila. "It's like 'Ocean's Eleven' but with way more awkward moments."

Lila bit her lip, unsure whether to laugh or scream. Things were escalating quickly, and she wasn't sure they were ready for what was coming next.

"I have a feeling this is just the beginning," Lila said softly, watching as Renzo disappeared into the building.

And in that moment, something clicked in her mind. She couldn't explain it, but something about Renzo's behavior, about this whole situation, was beginning to make sense.

But whatever it was, she wasn't going to figure it out by staying in the car.

"We're going in," Lila declared, her voice filled with determination.

"Going in where?" Jasper asked, his eyes wide.

"Into the Grand Villa," Lila said firmly. "We need to find out what Renzo's hiding."

Kira grinned. "Well, this should be fun.

With Renzo leading them to one of the most exclusive spots in town, the group realizes they've only scratched the surface of what's really going on. And as they prepare to enter the lion's den, Lila can't shake the feeling that they're about to uncover something much bigger than they bargained for.