Speculations

Kathleen drives home after Takumi and her agreed to meet again tomorrow to seek help from someone he didn't mention who. She has to call it a day and muster up her strength first.

When her adrenaline faded, her body started aching all over. The wound on her head, that has been covered with plaster, started itching.

She remained motionless throughout her travel until she reached home and found Christian and that son of a beast, talking in the balcony. She banged the car door the moment she stepped out and walked towards their direction. Scott smiled a little self-consciously by the time she stood straight in front of them, eyes nailed on him.

"Love..." Christian mumbled but she signaled him to stop.

"Lots of guts you got there," she snarled hiding a totally inapt sneer.

Scott stiffened. "I already knew what happened."

"Good for you. Now leave."

He frowned and came to a sudden decision. "I will look for her as well and you don't have the rights to tell me not to."

Kathleen cocked a brow, nodding in sarcasm. Once again, him being cocky balked and didn't even seem to care that his fantasies would fail him to even find trails of her betrayed lover.

Soon he'd have reality and it's horrifying than his nightmares. Tucking his hands into his pockets, he crouched his shoulders against a swift brisk wind.

"Do whatever you want. Just stay away from us and our plans."

"Whatever you say. I have the cops to back me up."

Kathleen grinned, evidently mocking. "I'd love to see you try, buddy." Christian's eyes squinted when Kathleen turned to look at him. "What?!" She mouthed.

His answer was almost a whimper and he scuttered backward onto his feet to open the door for her. "I should've known you'd sneak out. Where have you been?"

"At the shop. You can ask Jade," Kathleen frowned, taking two careful steps forward and turned back to look at Scott. His eyes were blank although his mouth moved, still no sound emerged. He was only as if waiting for what she's gonna say.

"No matter how stupid you think that guy is, he is still one of Shane's greatest possessions. Just in case, we'll be needing him to summon her back," Kathleen tapped her red nails against her chin when she remembered what Takumi said back at the shop.

Scott obviously looks like he ain't genuinely hurt nor worried to what's happening. Maybe it's his conscience that kept hunting him and Kathleen is willing to bet that by the time Samantha got herself back, she'd already be warping the facts to fit her view towards the world—a world that would not include the possibility of being taken down by her feelings against any man if she finds out Scott is actually getting married.

"On the second thought, be here tomorrow at exactly 6AM! Got that?!"

Scott's face grew solemn. He only nodded, turned against his heel, and left. He didn't have much choice when Kathleen blurted it that way—he had to believe he knows what he was doing and for a fact that he can't do much as well with only limited information to what happened. He may have realized something supernatural is happening since the investigators can't seem to find any lead at all. Logically, a person who's bleeding to death will not disappear into thin air just like what actually happened to Samantha unless being looked at a different angle.

Both of them went inside the house that's when Christian started raining her questions. She only told him what she wanted him to know—that Samantha's "evidently" been kidnapped, and that she'll be gone for couple of days to look for her.

This is a fight between her and her best friend's bond and as much as possible, she wants him to do nothing with the situation. Everything might get worse in the process and she can't risk his safety knowing they're dealing with no human. Tonight, the Friday before the long Easter weekend, they spent their quality time by talking about Samantha and Samantha alone.

"I can't imagine her being tortured right now," Christian spat out the words with uttermost feelings that he had to accept them and accepting them, to accept the rest. "That's what happens when people get kidnapped, right? Those criminals should contact us right away. I can help with her ransom. She's so small, maybe she's only around one thousand dollars?"

"Stop that, love! We don't know what kind of horror she's going through right now and we don't even have any lead about the syndicates yet."

"Yeah! But why did they only take her? Why not include you?"

"Am I supposed to feel glad with that or what?" Kathleen scoffed.

"No, I'm just being logical. And according to the person who called the ambulance, he was right behind you, guys, on the road so, he should have seen who took Samantha or... maybe this is true?"

Kathleen was left dumbfounded when Christian showed her a newspaper where Samantha's photo is its cover.

Kidnapped or Sacrificed? Samantha Shane Andersen, a psychiatrist in town, gone missing after a mysterious car accident with her best friend, Kathleen Anne Abad. Authorities still found no evidence to whether her disappearance is a work of syndicates or something far more mysterious that evades the human perception. According to the investigators, unknown black tracks were found near the incident area which were said to be demon marks according to some spiritualists who also studied the case.

It took Kathleen a couple of seconds and beyond to find the right words to say. "Oh, that's ridiculous! Do you actually believe these tabloids? T-they're just trying to sell papers for all I care!" Her words lack conviction and Christian could see the ambivalence on her face yet he shrugged the topic off.

"I thought so, too," he sighed and stood up. "Want some white pasta?"

"A-Ah yeah, sure!"

Still in surge of anger, Kathleen snatched her phone out of her pocket and opened a site by the username of "MaTet" who wrote the first article which made the accident famous both online and offline.

The article made her grin for no exact reason. As if she knows, they are only looking for her to raise ratings. She won't be so shocked if reporters will break into her house one of these days. She scrolled and Samantha's photo popped on the lower part of the article. She looks absolutely beautiful with her medical coat on, everything Scott had ever wanted in a woman, and he had long adored... at least that's what everyone thought.

What a really great pretender. Kathleen held her head. Her imaginations weren't up to much beyond this unbelievable reality even if she replayed the scenes from a while ago over and over. Brows drawn down into a deep thought, she fanned the messages she received since the day she got into the accident, checking who they were from. Five unknown numbers which were obviously from the interviewers; Kim, Kaiser, Junel, and another interviewer.

Growling wordlessly, she tossed her phone into the couch. She thought she doesn't have time for their craps. She can't let them know about this either.