Beneath the prefect lie

Footsteps slapped against wet pavement when rain hammered down on the silent street. Elena moved fast, fingers tight on her bag, shoulders hunched under the weight of the storm. Muddy puddles burst beneath her white shoes, each step a small explosion. Above, thunder cracked like broken timber, rolling through clouds so thick they choked out the light. Nights like this always got under her skin. She could never stand how they dragged on forever. That evening brought back memories she could not shake. The way the room felt, sounded, even smelled - it matched too closely. A flicker in the hallway light made her pause. She stood still, caught between then and now. Nothing had changed, yet everything was different. Footsteps quickened as Elena clenched her teeth, moving ahead without pause. Silence hung heavy near the campus, broken only by muffled beats drifting from a bar somewhere close. A sharp buzz broke the silence. The device jumped in her hand without warning. Unknown Number. Frowning came first, then she opened the message. “Happy birthday, Elena.” A brief grin flickered across her mouth when - suddenly - a new notification popped up. She blinked, then stared again. “Do you want to know how your mother really died?” Elena stopped walking. Her heartbeat slowed. Then raced. Her eyes locked on the words, her chest tight, air caught deep inside. She could not move, each second stretching longer than the last. Three years passed before she stopped listening. People kept repeating it every single time. Car accident. Nothing suspicious. Move on. Shaking took her hands while the keys clicked fast. “Who is this?” No reply. Water dripped from her strands while dread crept up inside. The road stood bare, and she scanned it fast. Something felt wrong. Very wrong. Another message entered. “She was murdered.” Elena’s breath caught. “No,” she said right away, voice barely above a breath. It wasn’t her mother who got killed. She couldn’t be. A sudden alert made her grip tighten just as the screen lit up again. “And the people around you know the truth.” A flash of lightning split the sky above the pavement. A chill crept up Elena's neck. Her breath caught mid-air. Eyes darted sideways without moving her head. Silence pressed harder than before. Something in the shadows held still - too still. She turned quickly. Nothing. Only darkness. Out of nowhere, her breath caught - images flooding back: shattered glass everywhere, cold hospital lighting, her dad weeping next to her mom who would never move again. Her eyes stung with tears. This must have been some kind of joke. Nothing else made sense. The pieces fit only one way. A sharp ring split the quiet - she jerked like something had stung her. Sophia. Elena answered quickly. “Where are you?” Sophia asked loudly. “You left the birthday dinner without saying anything.” Home I go, she said, her voice barely holding. “You sound strange.” “I’m fine.” But she wasn’t. Sophia sighed. “At least text me when you get back. And stop overthinking everything.” A low sound slipped out of Elena just before she hung up. Heavier still fell the rain. Her feet moved once more, quicker now. Out of the corner of her eye, something caught her attention. A vehicle sits on the opposite side of the road, painted dark. It remains still between buildings. The machine hummed beneath its metal skin. The panes showed no light. Elena slowed down. Earlier, the car sat parked right in that spot. Hadn’t it? Her stomach twisted. A crack of light spilled across the pavement when the driver’s door swung loose. The night air rushed in, sharp and sudden. Out came a lanky figure, moving without rush, clothed head to toe in dark fabric. Elena froze. Out of nowhere, his stance felt unsettling - so quiet, so frozen, just staring. A chill crept in even when miles away. Watching her. Fear tightened like a chain around her neck. Forward he moved, just a single pace. Then another. Without stopping, Elena spun away, her feet moving fast. She did not look back, just kept going. Beneath the dim streetlights, her pulse raced loud in her ears. Each footfall cracked hard on the slick pavement. Glancing behind wasn’t an option now. The anonymous messages. The black car. The stranger. This wasn’t how things usually were. Out of breath, she made it to her apartment building at last - dashing through the entrance just in time. The lock clicked shut behind her like a held-in sigh. Silence. Her breath was the single noise inside the small space. Breathing deep, Elena pressed her back to the door. A shaky stillness settled over her. Last, a single buzz came through her phone. Unknown Number. Her fingers trembled as she pulled the cover loose. A picture came along with it. Fear hit Elena like a frozen wave. Her breath caught sharp in her chest. Her mother appeared in the photograph. Beside a man she knew right away stood Elena. Adrian Vale. He was the one person at her school everyone stayed away from. Beneath the image, handwriting spelled out a quartet of terms. “She trusted the wrong person.”