Evolution (Evolution Series Book 1)

Chapter 9

Chelsea wasn’t at school the following day, and I couldn’t find out anything from her mum, who was a blubbering mess when I called her. I was so not good around highly emotional people. If I could, I would avoid them at all cost.

My own mother knew more than she was letting on, and I was going to get it out of her one way or another. But that would have to wait until later. Aiden and I were at his house, waiting for Anna and Dave to get back to let us know if they were able to figure out anything about my vision.

“Why do we have to wait for them to come here? Can’t we just go to them?” I asked. Even at the best of times, I was not good at waiting. All this sitting around and doing nothing was doing my head in. I wanted to be out trying to find Chelsea. And if my vision was really a vision, then she was in some serious trouble.

“Neither I nor you can teleport yet, so we’re just going to have to sit and wait,” Aiden said, not taking his eyes off the TV. He was playing some car racing game on Xbox, which was really starting to get on my nerves.

Aiden’s phone rang—it was Ben. “What’s up?” he said, answering the phone.

His expression quickly went sour. Aiden didn’t say anything, he just listened to Ben who sounded pretty pissed off. I couldn’t hear well enough to make out what he was pissed off about. All I could pick up were snippets, and it was something about Chelsea.

“Why don’t you come over to mine?” Aiden suggested. “Yep. See ya soon.” He hung up the phone.

Aiden switched the TV off, then turned to me. “You’re not going to believe this. Ben has just come back from the police station.”

“What. Why?”

“They were questioning him about Chelsea’s disappearance. Apparently, someone said that they saw him with her the night she disappeared.”

I was gobsmacked. There was no way that Ben could have taken Chelsea. That boy worshipped the ground she walked on. And why the hell would he abduct her after he finally got her to like him? It just didn’t make any sense.

“I know, I know.” Aiden looked as bewildered as I felt. “He’s coming over now, so he can tell us all about it when he gets here.”

Dave and Anna suddenly appeared before my eyes. They were sitting almost exactly where they had been just before they disappeared yesterday.

“Ben!” they exclaimed in unison. I guess they had already heard about him from our thoughts. At least we didn’t have to waste time explaining.

“I don’t know who would have told the police, but there is no way it could have been him,” Aiden said.

Dave scoffed. “Of course it wasn’t him.”

The front security intercom buzzed. I could see the video monitor from where I sat. It was Ben. “Geez, that was quick,” I muttered. He had only called a few minutes earlier.

“He was just around the corner when he called,” Aiden said, getting up to let him in.

A moment later, Aiden returned with Ben, who looked seriously pissed.

Aiden ducked into the kitchen, while Ben joined Anna, Dave, and me on the sofa.

“I suppose you all heard that I’m officially the prime suspect,” Ben said, running his fingers through his sandy blond hair before folding them behind his head.

“I heard that the police questioned you, but prime suspect... how?” I asked

He thought for a moment before answering, “I dunno. Apparently someone reckons they saw me with Chelsea around midnight the night she disappeared. That basically means that I was the last person to see her, and that makes me prime suspect.”