Chapter 9

Ray

I entered my house to meet a very tense atmosphere at home. I saw my mom in front of the TV which had a news channel going on and Rhys was sitting on the couch watching mom frantically pacing in front of the TV while talking on the phone with someone. He looked like he was scared. I was oblivious to what was going on. Rhys saw me entering and immediately his scared expression was replaced with a relieved face and he jumped out of the couch and ran towards me yelling “Ray you are alright!” I Crouched down to get him into a hug. He hugged me so tight that he knocked the air out of my lungs.

I heard my mom talking on the phone “She is here. Come back soon”

“Mom was worried about you” Rhys whispered to me, “She is very angry. Where were you”

“Miss Pressley, Raylynn. Where the hell were you?” I heard my mom growl at me.

Mom calling me by my full name means trouble. But what did I do? Was it because I was out late?

“I was with the girls. I even texted you.” I replied.

“That was in the afternoon. You said a little late. It is almost 7.30 pm now. What were you all doing out so late? Are you even aware of what all is going outside? Do you not know that it is not safe out there this late particularly for young girls? Are you out of your mind? Do you want us to be worried sick about you when you are enjoying out so late?” And she kept yelling but I stopped listening by now because I was now crying. My vision blurred as tears started rolling out of my eyes and I kept my head low, all the while I was still on my knees holding Rhys. I felt Rhys hugging me again and I held onto him tightly. “Stop It! She is crying. She will not do it again.” Rhys yelled at mom as he couldn't take it anymore to see me like this that he yelled and mom stopped shouting. By now even Rhys silently started crying because I could see tears falling out of his eyes too. I heard my mom take a deep breath and then she said “Go to your room. We will talk about this later.”

I kissed Rhys on his cheeks and said “I am OK. Got some chocolates for you. I will give it to you post-dinner.” He gave me a weak smile and I made my way towards my room and straight away dashed towards the bathroom after throwing my bag on the floor. I took a warm shower to soothe myself and get myself back to normal. After a long shower, I changed into my pajamas and decided to just get my homework done before dinner. Before beginning my work I connected my phone to the charger and turned it on to receive multiple messages and notifications about missed calls. There were over fifty missed calls from mom and dad. No wonder mom was so angry. I saw messages in our group from the girls stating that even they were scolded by their parents for being home late. So I wasn't the only one to receive scoldings. But this was not the first time we were coming home late so I did not understand why were they making a big deal about it now all of a sudden. I heard a knock at my door and went to open it to see my dad standing outside.

“Can I come in?” He asked.

“Sure” I replied and opened my door wide for him to enter.

He came over and sat on my bed and patted the space next to him indicating me to sit. I went and sat facing him. I noticed he was still in his formals which meant he just arrived and came straight to talk to me. I think even he was worried or else he saw mom worried and came to talk to me concerning that. I was looking at him expectantly for him to speak but he took his time as if he was mentally preparing about what all he needs to say.

“So I was on the phone with your mom and she was worried sick about you as you came home late. Where were you?” He asked looking at me. His expression was calm, unlike mom.

“I was with the girls. We went to the cafe after school and then decided to go to the park and hang out. I had texted mom that I will be with them and will be late as I knew my battery was about to die and I didn't want her to be worried.” I replied.

“I see! But Ray you shouldn't be out this late henceforth” He stated. “Things are getting bad out there for girls. I don't know how much do you know or are updated about the current situation. But I think you are old enough to know this. There is someone out there who is sexually assaulting and killing girls. Police have found multiple bodies of young girls discarded around along with blue rose who was sexually assaulted over and over which finally caused their death. Your mom was just terrified to death about you after being worried for the past whole week when the news came out.” said my dad. I was just watching him with wide eyes. How come I did not know about this? Neither did any of the girls said this.

“I didn't know,” I said.

“Of course you didn't. We thought about not worrying you girls as it wasn't big news till today, the police just found one body last month and another last week. We thought it is not a big deal and you girls will be safe if you are with us or at home. That was until today we came to know that they found four more bodies and the Mayor announced all young girls need to remain cautious.” he replied. Concern was written all over his face.

“I am sorry, I will be more careful henceforth and will be at home on time and keep you guys informed regarding my whereabouts,” I said, looking down at my lap as I couldn't see my dad’s face. I felt really bad now.

“Good! Come have dinner” My dad said

“I will after some time if I am hungry. I am not hungry now.” I replied.

He got up and ruffled my hair and said “At least come and have some dessert so that your mom is not guilty.”

“I looked down again and was straightening my hair back to normal and replied “OK but let me complete my homework first. It is not a lot as it was just our first day.”

“Oh yes! That reminds me, how was your first day? And how are the girls?” my dad asked still standing.

“It was good, Girls are good, and we were telling each other what all we did during our vacation and how much we missed each other. There is a new guy who joined our class and he is Balfer’s cousin. And then we went to the cafe after school. The cafe is new and it is admirable. The milkshake which we had was impressive. I am thinking of taking Rhys there too, he will love the milkshake and the park is not far away from the cafe. So I guess I should go with him this weekend over there if both you and mom are OK with it?” I asked

“Of course you should go but please be careful Ray. Even if we go in broad daylight, we still need to be careful. If it's a psychopath, he doesn't need to necessarily wait for nighttime. Rather he might strike at times when there are fewer people around so he can go unnoticed.”

I nodded and said, “I will be careful.” To which he flash his smile and said “OK. But don't skip dinner. Come as soon as you finish your work.” Saying that he headed outside closing the door of my room.

I sighed and took the books and went towards the study table to get started with the homework. But before that, I started thinking about what all my dad said moments ago about the killing of girls and that they were even sexually assaulted. I felt bad for the victim and their family. They might have had plans for their future. Some would have been earning members of their family. The family members would have been waiting for them at home like usual unaware of what was happening with them meanwhile. Then I started thinking about how worried mom and dad were because we were enjoying ourselves in the park and I instantly felt guilty.

I shook my head to clear it of all the thoughts and started with my homework. I was soon almost done when I heard my door knock and slowly open making a creaking sound. I turned around to see who it was.