Chapter 27- Lured

Lanie's POV:

I gulped as I read the message, it’s quite tempting and temptation is not good. Any temptation won’t do me any good.

I don’t want to be fooled with this message, but I can’t ignore the fact that there’s a possibility that I can find a clue that will lead me to a better theory about the things I’m investigating right now. 

I’m already exposed to danger and I know that my life is at stake because of someone who wants me dead. They knew things about me while I didn't even have a clue who they were.

And this message can be a bait to lure me. 

There’s a big possibility that this message will put me in danger, I know that because I’ve been in danger many times already and it all started because of that damn video, it puts me in an unfavorable situation. I want to avoid all of this, but it’s too late for me now to go back, I’m already involved and getting more and more involved with all of this happening.

I put the cellphone in my pocket and started walking in the direction that the unknown sender sent me.

Yes, temptation is not good, it’s a sin, but there’s a temptation because there are people who can be tempted and I must say that I am one of them.

“Lanie!” 

I waved to those people who called me, some of my classmates invited me to join them to play arcade games but I just answered them with a smile.

I just walk straight without being hesitant with it. I can feel my body having an adrenaline rush and I know that I am bringing myself into ldanger, but I still have the courage to go there and see what I need to see. I am not afraid to take a risk, I’m more afraid that the people around me will be in danger instead of me.

I passed by all the buildings and headed to the old building that is farther from the rest of the buildings in our school, the building 3 that the sender told me to go to. 

I sighed before I looked at the surroundings. This place doesn’t give me a good feeling, it gives me a big ‘BEWARE’ feeling about this whole place, but it’s too late, I’m already here, my curiosity won over me.

This building is in an isolated location and it’s at the end of the school’s huge wall, it’s located far from the other buildings we have here in our school and this place is not the usual spot that the students may want to hang out.

In short, this old building is creepy.

I choose to enter the building rather than scaring myself with my thoughts. The first floor is clean and it’s also wide though it seems old, but you can see that they are still taking care of it.

I headed to the stairs and climbed up to the second floor. This floor is just like the first one, but the thing is there’s more things in here, plus the expensive paintings that are hanging on the wall.

I didn’t bother checking the surroundings that much, I just went straight to the stairs again and headed to the third floor.

I just passed by the third and fourth floor and headed to the fifth floor. The difference of this floor to other floors is that there’s a mini floor and rooms here.

I let my eyes roam around and went to the hallway that is in between the huge rooms.

“Laboratory 1.” I read at the signage that is on the first door that I saw.

I passed by with it, also the next few rooms and headed to the room that I’m looking for.

The rooms are huge and wide, there's also gaps in between each room and that makes me feel exhausted because it’s kinda far from each other.

“Laboratory 6.” I said as I finally saw the room I’ve been looking for.

I composed myself first before holding the door knob and opened the door.

The darkness enveloped my eyes, but that’s not the one that caught my attention, but the scent of the abyss that’s attacking me, l can smell it throughout the room. The abyss scent is the first thing that welcomed me.

I looked for the switch and when I saw it, I immediately turned it on.

In this room, there’s only a long table and laboratory equipment, it’s also clean but there’s nothing special except for the abyss scent that can be smelled in the whole room.

My eyes shifted on the mini second floor in this room and when my eyes landed on it, I saw that the mini floors are connected to each other on the whole floor. It seems like they put an extra floor in the whole fifth floor that is connected to each room and if my observation is correct the mini floors are encircled in the whole floor.

I slowly walked my way inside the laboratory.

I passed by the side where the tables are, I also took a glance to the huge cabinets where the equipment is placed in but there’s really nothing strange in here.

I was fooled, that’s what I thought and that’s why I decided to leave the room, but when I’m in the middle of the room, I suddenly heard a noise coming from the second floor of the laboratory.

I looked at the second floor with my forehead creased.

The second floor is too high, so even if I tiptoed to see what’s in there I can see nothing that’s why I decided to head over there and see what’s in there. I head over to the narrow stair, I think only two people can walk up together using this stair.

I slowly walked in the staircase, I think I climbed ten flights of stairs before I finally reached the second floor.

This floor is also empty, it has benches on each side of the room and a few cabinets that are still hanging on the wall. It looks like a hallway, it is six to seven meters wide.

I looked at the laboratory downstairs to see if there’s something strange but I found none.

I take a look at the whole mini second floor again and I’m right, all the mini floors are connected with this whole floor, the evidence is right in front of me, it’s the exit but there’s no door on it.

I continued walking in the hallway. I’m almost at the dead end of the space that’s occupied by the laboratory when I see a black book on the floor. I think the noise that I heard earlier came from this when it got dropped.

I immediately picked it up and looked around my surroundings. I’m not the only one here, I’m sure of that.

I walked fast while holding the black book. It was a burned book and if I base on its look I can say that it was burned just a few minutes ago. I don’t need to look at what book it is, just by looking at the book’s cover and the index card that is stuck between the pages I already know, it’s one of the books that I borrowed from our library.

I got nervous because of the sudden goosebump that I felt. I continued walking fast and found the way where I could go downstairs. I want to go back to the laboratory, but I can’t since I’m already far from it and halfway of this connecting floor.

I walked really fast when I saw the wide stairs a few meters away from me. I think it’s the main staircase to this floor where I am though it was on the opposite side of the stairs that I used earlier that’s why I didn’t see it.

I rushed toward the stairs. I’m about to let out a sigh of relief when I got near the stairs, but I got surprised when a person that’s wearing full black cloth from head to toe suddenly appeared in front of me.

All I can see is the person’s chocolate colored eyes. From the looks and from the body built I’m sure that it’s a man.

I instinctively step backwards, but before I could run away, he tightly holds my arm.

He’s tightly holding me in my arms and before I knew it, he already changed our position.

He’s in the stair baluster while I am in the middle of the stairs and with just one wrong move I’m going to fall.

He let go of my arms, but his steel like hand immediately held my neck.

I don’t like the look he has when his eyes shifted to the stairs.

He’s not talking, but the visible anger he has in his eyes is enough for me to get scared and nervous.

I tried to free myself from his grip, I also dropped the black book that I am holding to use both of my hands in removing his hand to my neck, but he’s too strong and our height difference made it more difficult for me.

“Ugh.” I groaned as he used both of his hands to choke me, he’s really choking me to death I can’t inhale air anymore.

I can feel my knees and body getting weak, but I still tried kicking him, but it won’t even reach him.

“Lanie!”

“Maelanie!” 

I don’t need to see them to know whose voice those shouts came from because I’m sure it’s from Page and Yshmael. It was then followed by other voices, but I don’t have any energy left to know whose voice it is.

I saw my assailant’s eyes widened, and he looked like he didn’t expect that my friends would come and find me here.

But the surprised look he has suddenly turned to anger.

And my eyes widened when I realized what he is planning to do.

His grip on my neck became tighter and when I thought I was about to pass out he suddenly let go of me.

And to my horror, he pushed me towards the stairs.

❤