Julia's heart raced as she took in her surroundings. The dimly lit room seemed unfamiliar, and the realization that she was tied to a chair sent a surge of panic through her veins. She strained against her restraints, her eyes darting around the room for any sign of an escape route. Her gaze landed on Anna, her friend who was also bound and seemingly unable to speak.

Anna's eyes pleaded with Julia, her muffled attempts to communicate only adding to the sense of urgency. Julia's mind raced, trying to piece together what had happened. She struggled to remember how she ended up in this nightmarish situation, her memories hazy and fragmented.

"How did you get here Anna? Why are my hands and legs tied? Where are we? What's this place?" she began sobbing.

Anna felt so helpless as she watched Julia cry. Her emotions got the best of her and she sobs silently.

"My brother is dead" Julia muffles hiccupping. "And is because of you he died. You caused his death, Anna" she croaked the last words bitterly and Anna shook her head repeatedly crying.

Julia couldn't care less about Anna's present predicament. She's seen all the injuries on Anna's body but that wasn't what was on her mind. Not that she didn't care about her, but the death of her brother is causing her so much pain and bitterness that she doesn't care to know if Anna was doing okay or not. She didn't even remember telling Anna about her parents and how they'd been caring for her and her sister.

"You took him away from us, why? Why did you let him die? He was our only hope of living. Now who is going to take care of us?" she wails. "Do you know who I'm feeling pity for right now? My poor mother who is battling with her life in a coma for the past two days now."

Anna's eyes widens when she heard the bad news and more tears rolled down her cheeks. She wished she could take off the tape on her lips and explain the whole truth to Julia but it was only a wish.

"Did you ask for them to bring me here also so I could be killed like my brother?" Julia asks weakly after a few minutes of silence.

Anna's eyes widens in disbelief and she stared blankly at her. Of all the allegations Julia had accused her of, this one knocked her off completely and her heart broke into pieces. Tears clouded her eyes and she sat there wishing for death to swallow her.

Just the echoes of their sobs could be heard in the basement. Julia cried until she fell asleep again. While Anna stayed wide awake but she was drowning herself in deep thoughts.

"I was right after all, Drake's family thinks I'm behind his death. This means his friends also think the same about me, no wonder the cops haven't found me yet. Now Julia thinks I sent for her to be killed as well" Anna thought inwardly and sobbed silently.

"All I need is just a chance to prove my innocence. And helping Julia escape this godforsaken place is the only way out. I can't bear to lose her just as I had lost her brother. I don't mind risking my life for hers. I know if she succeeds in escaping here she'll tell the cops to come and save me from this hell that I am in" Anna resolved.

An hour later, the kidnapper arrived and his presence caused both girls to wake up from their slumber. His mask was off his face. "I see you two were enjoying your nap," he said and gave a wide grin.

Anna scowls at him and he met gaze with hers. "What now little tramp? Why are you glaring at me like I said something bad?" he laughs and Anna gave a manly growl. "Or did you miss me?" he dared asks.

"Go to hell, you bastard!" Anna cursed under her breath. She wanted to say those words aloud but it only came out as a muffle. She groans and gritted her teeth in anger.

"Why did you bring me here? Do you want to kill me as you killed my brother?" Julia's petite voice rang in the basement.

Anna glanced at Julia and her eyes were pleading for Julia to stare back at her, but Julia's gaze was fixed on the psychopath in front of them. Anna doesn't want anything that will provoke him and if there's anything that provokes him it'll cause him not to hesitate to hit Julia.

The basement was filled with the psychopath's laughter and that was sounding irritating to Anna's ears.

"It's not funny you crazy perv! Give me my necklace!" Julia yells and Anna's eyes widen for the umpteenth time. Anna wonders what necklace Julia was talking about.

"How brave of you little brat" he applauded with a wicked smirk. "I see, you are just like this bitch here," he said pointing at Anna.

"You are crazy to have kidnapped me down to this place. The cops are going to find you wherever you are hiding us!" Julia hissed with her tiny voice.

"Mmm-mhmm!" Anna made a sound trying to get Julia's attention. When she finally succeeded in getting her attention she shook her head trying to send a signal for her to stop talking.

Anna knew the psychopath in front of them is not someone to be messed with, he can be so heartless as to hurt a kid without feeling remorse about it. And now Julia is crossing the line by provoking him.

Two steps and he was squatting in front of Julia twitching his jawline. He gripped Julia's right arm and twisted it roughly.

Julia grimaces and squeals, "Ouch!". He knew he was hurting her but he cared less about her feelings.

Anna stared with sadness and she began struggling to get herself free so she could stop him from hurting Julia.

"If you don't behave yourself, I'll double your punishment like I've been doing with her" he snarls to Julia's face and she shivers.

"Please I just want my necklace, return it to me" Julia pleaded and he flashed her a half-hearted smile.

"I threw it away already" he chuckles and Julia gasps in disbelief.

"You...you...threw my necklace away?" she stammers and he shrugs in response. "You are so heartless! I hate you! Give me back my necklace, it's the only gift my brother left with me! I want my necklace!" Julia cried out hitting him on his chest with her tied hands.

"Hey stop yelling, I hate noise! If I hear your stupid high-pitched voice again I'll seal your lips up! Get that into that thick small head of yours!" he scolded harshly and tapped his finger on her head and Julia went into loud sobs.

Anna grimaces in her seat as she watches him treat little Julia like an adult.

"I want my-" Julia's words hung in the air when she saw him raise his hand to hit her. Anna tried to force herself out of the chair just to protect Julia, but she fell face flat with the chair. She winces in pain from both the bruises she had sustained.

The psychopath as he's called gazes up at Anna with surprise-furrowed brows and then he burst into laughter. "Don't tell me you just tried to get yourself off the chair? Who are you? Wonder woman or spider woman?" he teases and Julia shot him a nasty glare.

"Time will tell, douchebag!" Julia hisses right at his face. He growled and threw a hard slap at Julia's face sending the poor girl to go to sleep again.

He matched up to Anna and said, "It's your turn to dance to the music. Are you ready?"

***

Detective Alice arrived at the mini-park near Anna's apartment, her keen eyes scanning the grass for any telltale signs of bloodstains. Frustration etched her features as she muttered, "No blood footprints around here. How could he erase something like that?" Despite her exasperation, she pressed on with her search. Moving cautiously, she swept her gaze across the surroundings, her senses on high alert.

Her investigation led her to the woods bordering the park, causing her to halt in her tracks. "Woods? Here?" Alice mumbled in surprise. "Why didn't the neighbors mention this? We scoured the park that day, and there wasn't a hint of woods around." Her astonishment was evident as she absorbed this newfound information.

As she marveled at her discovery, a rush of sound from the woods jolted her into action. Swiftly, she drew her gun and cocked it, her stance ready for any threat. Her weapon was raised, poised to defend herself. She pivoted to face different directions, demanding, "Anyone here?!"

The woods remained eerily silent, no response greeting her ears. "Reveal yourself and stop hiding!" she commanded, repeating the cycle of turns and steps, her senses alert.

Another rustling noise emanated from the woods behind her, causing Alice to spin around, gun aimed. Yet, to her surprise, she found herself alone in the woods. A sense of unease crept over her as her thoughts refocused on her primary objective. "Anna?" she whispered, her voice tinged with a mix of hope and caution. "Anna, is that you?"

"Anna?" she called again, her heart racing as the rustling sounds continued, compelling her to whirl around and point her gun at the source. However, the anticipation dissolved into a sigh of exasperation as a mischievous monkey scampered up a tree. "Damn!" she hissed, releasing a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

Relaxing her grip on the gun, Alice secured it back in its holster, her determination undeterred. She resumed her trek, her steps marked by a mixture of purpose and worry. "I hope Anna wasn't discarded in these woods, like so many cases I've seen," she muttered to herself.

Venturing deeper into the woods, she emerged on the other side minutes later, greeted by a desolate road. "What?!" she exclaimed, wide-eyed, hands on her hips, disbelief etched across her face. "Unbelievable."

Certain of the connection between this road and the murderer's escape route, Alice's thoughts raced. "This must be where he fled with Anna. It has to be. The woods and this road are intertwined. I need to find a clue to validate this intuition." She retrieved her gun, striding a short distance down the road, her gaze darting in all directions.

Mid-step, her foot kicked a small object, causing her to freeze. Bending down, she picked up the item and inspected it closely. "A hair clip?" she murmured, studying it intently. A sense of certainty washed over her—this had to be Anna's. Without hesitation, she extracted her phone, urgently summoning backup from her team.

***

Jay, Nicole, and Brad rushed to the hotel to see Kylie after the news of her sister's disappearance. The three friends had put their gun training and their search for Anna on hold just to be with Kylie and get the whole details of how Julia went missing.

In the hotel room, Kylie was sitting on the bed with Greg and his wife when they arrived. Jay knocked on the door and waited for a response.

"That should be your friends," Greg said and went opening the door for them.

"Good day-"

"Kylie!" Nicole exclaims cutting Jay off from greeting Greg and she rushed inside the room with her shoulders brushing Greg's chest.

"Nicole" Kylie cried out and stood up. Both girls crushed each other with a hug, while the guys and Greg stared at both of them from the doorstep.

"I'm sorry Sir for the way my girlfriend acted rudely. She is not always like that, she's just nervous" Brad apologizes.

"No it's fine, I understand why she's like that. You guys should come in" Greg replied and made way for them to come in. "I'm Greg and that's my wife, Hannah. We are Anna's parents, I guess Kylie must have told you guys on the phone."

"Yes, she did. By the way, I'm Jay and he's Brad" Jay introduced.

"You guys are welcome," Hannah said joining in the conversation.

"Julia has gone missing, Nicole, I'm never going to see her again" Kylie sobs into the crook of Nicole's neck.

"Calm down, Kylie, don't jinx it, please. Tell us how it all happened" Nicole said and releases her from the embrace.

"Yes please, we want to know how Julia went missing. Who took her? Where and how?" Jay asks.

Kylie shared a glance with Greg's wife hoping she'll explain better to them but rather she was expecting Kylie to do the talking.

"This is what happened-" Greg said and their attention was drawn to him. "My wife and the girls went to have breakfast earlier this morning, when they finished up from there, she took them to their house so they can have their bath and have a change of clothes. When they were done changing into new clothes and having coffee, Julia noticed her necklace had gone missing. When she went back to her room to search for it she never came back to them-"

"Like she disappeared?" Jay interrupted and Greg and his wife nodded.

"Why weren't you with them, huh? Why did you leave three ladies all alone to themselves?" Nicole blurted angrily.

"Because I was at the hospital at the time looking after their mother. I didn't see any harm coming to them when I asked them to leave. I mean who would have thought someone would barge into their house and kidnap Julia just like that?" Greg replies calmly.

"He's right Nicole, we didn't see it coming. I wonder why that person took her instead of me" Kylie said and started sobbing again.

"Kylie please don't say that, it makes no difference if he takes you instead of her. The point is whoever is behind this doesn't have any reason to take you, nor your sister" Jay replied.

"What if by chance it's the same person that killed Drake and kidnapped Anna?" Brad asks glancing from one face to another.

"I thought of the same thing as well. That same bastard must be behind it" Greg grunted.

"Language, honey" Greg's wife cautioned and Greg groaned.

"There's no need for that ma'am, he can use more foul language if he wants, we wouldn't mind at all" Nicole butts in and Brad eyed her.

"Have you guys reported to the police?" Brad asks.

"Yes we did, the cop lady named Alice gave us two of the guards you saw at the doorstep. She said she's going to continue her investigation and will get back to us if there are any updates" Hannah answered.

"I don't want anything to happen to my sister, please you guys should do something" Kylie pleaded.

"But what could your friends possibly do at this point, sweetheart? They are not cops nor are they bad guys, they can't do anything than sit and wait for the police reports" Hannah replied to Kylie and she gave a sad frown.

"We might not be any of that but with this, we can help somehow," Jay said and brought out his gun same goes for Nicole and Brad.

Hannah, Kylie, and Greg drew in a sharp breath and their eyes glaze in horror.

***

The beeping sound of the EMCO (Extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) used on Violet never stopped beeping. She has been on it for the last 24 hours without stirring up.

The clock had ticked past 4 pm, and a sense of solitude hung in the air. The absence of onlookers might lead one to assume that she lacked a circle of family and friends to keep her company during this time.

Unexpectedly, a twitch coursed through her left finger. A surprising occurrence indeed, as the doctor had clearly stated that her return to consciousness would only transpire after a week or more. Yet here she was, defying medical prognosis and reawakening ahead of schedule. She saw it as a divine intervention, a miracle from the God in whom she held steadfast belief. If only her children were present to bear witness to this awe-inspiring event, they would be engulfed in elation and relief.

A few moments elapsed after her fingers displayed that first glimmer of movement. Gradually, her eyelids fluttered, revealing her eyes which now rested halfway open. The intensity of the light in the room promptly coerced her to squeeze her eyes shut again. After waiting for a few additional seconds, she dared to pry her eyes open once more. Yet, on this second attempt, her surroundings appeared blurred, as if seen through a foggy lens.

In her blurriness, she was seeing someone standing a few feet away from her dressed in all black. "Dr..a..ke" she struggles to speak thinking it was her son. "Ky...ky..lie" she croaked her daughter's name. "Ju...li..a" she utters inaudibly and her breathing became rapid.

Her vision was getting a bit clearer and she realized the person standing in front of her wasn't any of her children. It was him again, the serial killer who had murdered her son.

***

Julia woke up a few hours later with a slight headache, she helped herself into a sitting position and gave a sharp sigh. When she gazed up, the first person her eyes fell on was sleeping Anna.

Julia's eyes widen in petrification at Anna's present state. This wasn't how she had met her earlier, the fresh wound on Anna's face and body threw panic on Julia. "An..na?" she croaked in her tiny voice.

Anna didn't stir up, Julia looked more terrified. She crawled to where Anna was tied and she whisper-yells, "Anna, Anna can you hear me?" She waited for Anna to stir up but she didn't and this caused Julia to break down into sobs she glanced around in search of their kidnapper but he was nowhere to be found.

"Anna please say something, don't leave me here all alone with this monster if not he's going to kill me, please talk to me" she cried and buried her head in Anna's thighs sobbing loudly.

A soft sigh escapes Anna's mouth and Julia snaps her head up at Anna. "Anna! Anna are you okay?"

Anna flutters her eyes open slowly, stared down at Julia, and gave a slight nod. "What did that monster do to you? Look at your face and your whole body, what did he use in torturing you this way?" Julia asks feeling pity for Anna and at the same, she was very angry at the man behind Anna's present predicament.

Anna blinks her eyes weakly and stared down at her thighs. Her lips were still sealed, how do Julia want her to answer the question she'd just asked? That was her only thought.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot your lips are sealed. Hold on, I'll help you take it off" Julia said and Anna raised a brow at her wondering how she intends to do that.

Julia went on her knees and said, "Bow low", Anna stared at her for a few seconds and she bowed low. Julia brought her face closer to that of Anna's. She opened her mouth and used her teeth to slowly pull off the tape from Anna's mouth.

Anna whimpered and sighed, she wiped her mouth with her arm. "Thank you, Julia."

"I'm sorry Anna for all that I said, I didn't mean to-"

"It's. it's okay. It's not your fault Julia, you were angry at me that's why you said all those things-" she paused and pants heavily.

"I just want you to know that I never lured Drake to my house so he'll be killed. I wish I had died instead of him but he killed him even before I could get to him. I never had the chance to say goodbye to Drake, that alone is killing me inside and I wish I'll die with all this torture I've been facing for the past two days now" she continues and went into sobs.

"Please don't wish for death. I might have said those bad things to you earlier but I don't want you to die especially when you haven't made that murderer pay for all the pain he has made you and every one of us go through" Julia replied.

"I don't think I'll make it out of here alive. Just worry for your safety. No matter what, I promise I'll get you out of here safe and sound even if it means me dying in the process," Anna said in all confidence.

Julia frowns at her and shook her head. "If you are not leaving here with me then I'm staying here with you" Julia stated and Anna gasps. "Just look at how he has disfigured your beautiful face and body. And now you want me to leave you here so he can kill you? I can't let that douchebag hurt you again."

"Julia you are still a young powerless girl, there's nothing, I mean absolutely nothing you can do. Do you think I was happy with the way he slapped you earlier? I felt like strangling him when he touched you. So please, don't interfere anymore, and don't talk back at him whenever he's talking. I don't want him to hurt another of my loved ones, okay?"

"I know I'm powerless but I'm smart" Julia replies.

"No doubt you are smart, but not by talking. He transferred his aggression over what you did to him onto me. If you keep talking back at him he'll hurt me more and even kill me before I can get you out of here. So please, just listen to me" Anna begs and Julia stared at her quietly and nods.

"Okay, I'll do as you say" she replies.

"Thank you. I've been wanting to ask this question since I saw you here, how did he find you, were you alone?" Anna asks.

"I was at home and-"

"Your home? But how did he find out where you live?" Anna cuts in.

"I wouldn't know, it's such a mystery. At first, when I saw you here I thought you told him where we lived but I never knew he was such a mysterious monster that we both fell victim to. It's just like in horror movies."

"It's understandable to have thought that. Were you alone at home?"

"No, I was with your mom and Kylie."

"My mom?!" Anna exclaims with wide eyes.

"Yes. Your mom and dad were with us throughout this morning at the hospital."

"Really?!" Anna yells again and Julia nods.

"Then towards mid-noon, your mom took us to a cafeteria to eat and from there she took us home to have a bath and change up our clothes. After we changed into new wears, we had some coffee, it was during our cup of coffee that I noticed my necklace wasn't on my neck. I usually pull off my necklace whenever I'm about to have my bath and I'll put it on back when I'm done but I forgot to do that after my bath. When I went to my room to get my necklace that was when that demon appeared from nowhere and showed me my necklace that was in his hand. When I asked for it, he silenced me by sending me to sleep and that was how I got here" Julia continues and Anna stared at her in bewilderment.

"This is so unbelievable" Anna finally utters almost inaudibly. Right then, there was a jiggling of keys and both girls glance up at each other with wide eyes. "He's here" Anna whispers. "He can't see me with an unsealed lip if not he'll be mad at us and might even kill us. You need to put back the cello tape on my lips."

"But how do I do that? My hands are tied" Julia whines almost in tears.

"You have to find a way if not we are screwed" Anna replies in a brittle tone of voice and Julia stared at her dumbly.

***

"A gun? The three of you have guns? Where did you guys get it from?" Kylie asks her in astonishment.

"It's new, we just bought it. We were at the shop getting it when your call came in" Jay answered.

"Why do you guys have a gun?" Greg asks glancing from Jay's face to Nicole and then Brad.

"It's for a purpose" Brad answered.

"It's to get rid of that psychopath who murdered our friend" Nicole answered as a matter of fact and pointed the gun around the room causing all of them to shudder in fear while Kylie held onto Hannah's hand.

"Hey Nico, put that away, remember you haven't learned how to use it yet" Brad warns and that sent more shivers to Kylie and Hannah who were holding on to each other like they were about to die.

"Chill baby, I know that already. I'm just toiling with it to know what it's going to feel like to pull a trigger on-" she trailed off as she pulled the trigger unconsciously sending a bullet flying in the air. There was a scream in the room and suddenly, everywhere went silent.

***

Alice's squads arrive at the scene where she had found a hair clip a couple of minutes later.

"I found this here, there's a 70% possibility that it belongs to Anna. I still need to confirm that with her parents to be 100% sure I'm not mistaken. But for now, I need you guys to take three men each to search all around the woods and see if we'll find her. Got it?" Alice announced to Jack and Liam and they nodded.

"Roger that!" Jack and Liam answered in unison and picked three men each and they entered into different directions in the woods. While Anna took the remaining four men and entered the left-hand side of the wood.

Their search lasted for almost an hour and they couldn't find anything close to a human being. "Boss, my team and I didn't find anyone here in the woods" Jack announced.

"Same goes with my team," Liam said.

"We didn't find anything either" Alice replied in a disappointed tone of voice.

"What do we do now?" Liam asks and Alice sweeps her hair with her hands frustratingly.

"You guys can return to the office while Liam and I will go to the girl's parents and show them this hair clip if it belongs to their daughter" she replied and Jack nodded.

"Guys, let's move it!" Jack said to his colleagues and they hopped onto the police van and drove off back to the office.

"This is getting frustrating every minute. I thought I finally found her but look...Just look how I missed the chance again, Liam!" Alice half-yells holding her forehead with a huff.

Liam placed his hand on her right shoulder and said, "Just breathe, Alice, just breathe."

She gulped down some saliva and inhale and exhale several times. "How do you feel now?" he asked and she heaves a sharp sigh and shut her eyes closed briefly and flutters them open.

"I guess a bit better" she replies and glances up at him. "Liam, I'm trying my best to get this girl back to her parents safe and sound but with every step I take it's as if I'm starting all over again. Anna's parent thinks I'm not doing anything to find their daughter. Now it's not just her I'm looking for, there is also the young little girl, Julia. Just this new lead I found would have been a big change of events for me but look how everything crashed down."

Alice paced back and forth thinking about how she'll fix up the murder investigation that was giving her sleepless nights.

"Alice, I believe in you.." Liam words stopped Alice from pacing around and she gazes up at him. "The case you are investigating now isn't worst than the others you've had in recent times. To you, it might be more serious than the rest of them all, but still, I want you to believe in yourself just as I believe in you that you will get a hold of that psychopath that did this. Just calm down, take a deep breath, and believe in yourself that you can do it. Okay?"

Alice stared at him silently for a moment and she nods. "You should be happy you are a step closer to this investigation than you were yesterday" he encouraged and that made Alice's face beam up with a slight smile.

"Thank you, Liam. I'm glad to have you on my team. You are not just a good teammate but a good friend. You've been supportive of me and I want to tell you I appreciate and value it so much" she said and tapped his shoulder twice.

"Just know I'm always here when you feel down and need someone to talk to. C'mon now, we need to get to the girl's parents and find out from them if that hair clip belongs to their daughter."

"Right away" she replied and they both walked over to the car and drove off.