AvNeil: Chase Against Time

Chapter Twenty

The countdown had begun.

10
The voice over the speakers could be heard across the room, even with the doors shut. Inspite of the constant punches he delivered on the door bell, the door remained unanswered. It had been nearly five minutes that he stood at her door with a hope that she would eventually open up. She hadn't even as much as peeped out of the door after his departure, as he was told by the constables who were guarded a little farther from her door.

8
He tried to keep his focus on the positive possibilities instead. She could have probably gone to the washroom. Lame, he mentally scolded himself for the thought. She must have probably slept. Yeah, with the speakers blaring at such high volume, his eyes rolled. He had looked up at her window before entering the building. The lights were on. Plus, he had hardly been gone for twenty minutes at max. She can't fall asleep that fast. Can she? The question didn't bother him as much. Because, all he wanted then was to ensure she was safe and sound in her apartment.

6
He was losing what little patience he had. Only seconds away from barging into her apartment, consent or not. It didn't matter to him any longer. Her reactions could be dealt with later. But her safety was something he wouldn't compromise upon. Irrespective of what protest she puts up. She was his responsibility at that moment.

5
His fingers dug into his pant pockets, as he fished for her house keys. He had gotten a copy of her house keys made earlier. Another thing he might have to explain to her. Though, not at his concern list then.

4
He inserted the key into the keyhole and with a twist the lock clicked. Taking in long breath as he counted the rest of the numbers down, "3, 2 and 1.."

The odd warmth whipped around him. Closing the door behind him, he stepped forward. The laptop lay on the coffee table, facing the couch, in the exact same position as he had last seen. Unlike minutes ago, there sat a Bluetooth speaker. His eyes wandered around the room as he walked over to the laptop. He punched the pause button on the video without another thought. Silence soon took over the room.

The air conditioner wasn't on for more than a couple of minutes. The temperature in the room had risen. The fan hung still on the ceiling indicating, it hadn't been on either. Not in the last minute, at least.

*

He had his car halted at red light. The thought of her team and the project constantly bugged him. She was bound by a contract while he wanted more details. She wouldn't tell him. So, he thought of digging into it on his own. He searched for his phone. His pockets held everything but his phone. The confusion crawled upon his features as his nose scrunched up. Raking through his mind, he tried to think of the time when he had last used his phone.

Her apartment.

Without another thought, he took a sharp turn.

*

There sat his phone beneath the paper he had earlier showed to her. Grabbing his phone, he slid it into his pocket. He padded across the room and stopped near the washroom. Silence. Nearly praying for her to be there in the washroom, his palm settled onto the door knob. He pushed the door open while his eyes squeezed shut. He waited for a welcoming scream or scowl. But nothing of that sort happened. His eyelids flew open only to find it dark and empty.

Cursing out loud, he walked out. He studied the room and its condition. Nothing seemed off. Put on your thinking hat, ACP, he scowled himself while looking around for clues. His eyes once again rolled over the room when a photo frame caught his attention. It was tilted to a side as though hastily hung. Boring his eyes at the frame, he marched towards it. As far as he could remember, it was hung properly during his last visits.

The frame consisted the sketch of neatly stacked books. She might be fond of books as he noted the bookshelf that stood at the right hand corner of the same wall. After having scrutinized the position of the photo frame for long enough, he forwarded his hand to re-position it. However, something at the back of the frame proved to be an obstacle. His brows knitted into a frown and he picked the frame off. He was puzzled at the sight of rotating wheel attached within the squared hollow of the wall. He put the frame aside. About to find out the mysterious use of it, he turned the wheel. A screeching sound at the right caught his attention. His eyes traveled at his side to find the bookshelf slide revealing a creek of opening on the wall.

What the, his eyes widened at the sight. He rotated the wheel beneath his hold to find a secret door. It was left open. There was no way, she didn't know about it. In fact, she was well aware of that. That only left him with a single possibility. She had yet again managed to sneak out. That sneaky bum, he growled at the thought of her successful sneaky adventures.

He was about to find out where the secret door led her to. He stood in front of the door that led towards a dark and narrow passage. Ducking his head a little, he stepped into the passage while holding his phone out for the torch light. The walls were rusty and old. But there weren't many spider webs which meant the passage was used quite often. He had to take a couple of turns and descend a flight of stairs before he saw a flash of dim light at the other end. He tucked his phone into his pant pocket. The phone was already on silent mode.

The faint voices could be heard as he slid closer to the door on the other end. One of the voices, he was now familiar with. Ananya Verma.

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He had heard enough to have his head spinning. He wasn't in a mood to tolerate any. So he stepped out in the view, making his presence felt. Four pair of eyes turned at him. A quick glance at the place. He probably stood at one of the apartments on the building. There was a round conference table at his right where the four were seated. A wide screen hung at the wall in front of him. Apart from Ananya, he could only recognize the curly haired guy out of the other three.

The douche, Ali, he recollected his name. There was also guy who had a bluetooth headphone hung around his neck while a pair of glass sat on his nose. Lastly, there was a girl, probably of the same age as Ananya. She gaped in horror.

Not the concern at the moment, Neil, he scolded himself while his eyes zeroed at Ananya. She huffed in annoyance. In response, he shot daggers at her. There was no stepping down.

"Listen, I can explain," her shoulders slumped in defeat as she stepped forward.

"I'd like to see you try," his lips curved into a smile but his eyes held hers pointedly.

*
Hell is about break loose. 😂

So let me know what are your thoughts on this chapter and of course, what's about to come.

Next chapter would be up on 19th June.