watcher

chapter 6

Abhi's POV:

I stood outside the heavy oak door of the guest suite, my hand resting on the brass handle. I could hear the faint, rhythmic beep of a heart monitor from the doctor’s private equipment inside. The low-frequency hum I’d triggered was vibrating through the walls, creating an atmosphere of dread that only I was immune to.

I pushed the door open an inch. The room was dim, lit only by the glowing green numbers of the medical machines and the stark, white text on the TV screen: "I SEE YOU, MAYA."

You were there, buried under a mountain of white linens. Your skin was pale, your breathing shallow and heavy from the sedative. You looked like a porcelain doll—finally still, finally quiet. For the first time, I didn't have to chase you. I didn't have to hack a camera to see your face.

I stepped into the room, my wet boots silent on the thick carpet. I sat on the edge of the bed, watching the way your eyelashes fluttered in your sleep. I reached out and brushed a stray lock of damp hair from your forehead. You were burning up, just as I’d feared.

"They think they saved you," I whispered, my voice thick with a terrifying tenderness. "But they just brought you to a place with better locks."

I pulled a small flash drive from my pocket and plugged it into the medical monitor. Within seconds, the doctor’s tablet downstairs would show "normal" vitals, even if you stopped breathing. I was the only one who truly knew your heart was racing.

I leaned down, my lips inches from your ear.

"Sleep, Maya. When you wake up, the world will be gone. It’ll just be us."

Abhi's POV:

I sat in the velvet armchair by the bed, the only light in the room coming from the pulsing green glow of the heart monitor. I had silenced the TV. I didn't need the screen to tell you I was here anymore; my presence was a weight in the room, thick and undeniable.

I watched the clock on the wall. The sedative the doctor gave you was wearing off. Your fingers twitched against the silk duvet—a small, frantic movement, like a bird trapped in a cage.

"You're coming back to me," I whispered.

I leaned over and picked up a glass of water from the nightstand, holding it ready. I had already disabled the landline in the hallway and looped the security footage in the kitchen; the elderly couple downstairs was currently watching a recording of an empty hallway from twenty minutes ago. They were sipping tea, thinking they were heroes, while I was feet away from my prize.

Your eyes flickered. A soft, pained groan escaped your lips. The fever was breaking, leaving you damp and shivering.

"Maya," I said, my voice no longer distorted by a phone speaker. It was clear, calm, and terrifyingly intimate. "Don't scream. You’ll only scare the nice people downstairs, and we wouldn't want anything... unfortunate to happen to them, would we?"

I reached out and placed my hand over yours, pinning it gently to the mattress.

My eyes are blurry where am i ?how did this guy found me again? my head it's spinning what should I do?

Abhi's POV:

I leaned closer, my face entering the faint circle of light from the medical monitor. I could see the confusion swimming in your eyes—the way you squinted, trying to make sense of the shadows. Your hand underneath mine was burning, a stark contrast to my rain-chilled skin.

"You're in a very expensive house, Maya," I whispered, my thumb tracing a slow, possessive circle over your knuckles. "And as for how I found you... did you really think a few blocks of rain and a stranger's car could hide you from me? I am the signal in the air. I am the code in the machines. You might as well ask how the shadow finds the person walking in the sun."

I picked up the glass of water and held it to your parched lips, my other hand moving to the back of your neck to help you sit up. I was being gentle—the kind of gentleness that feels like a threat.

"The fever is making you forget," I murmured. "I'm the only one who didn't give up on you tonight. Not the manager, not the man in the blue jacket, and certainly not these old people downstairs who can't even see that their 'secure' home has been wide open to me for the last hour."

I watched you struggle to focus, your breath hitching as the reality of my face—just inches from yours—finally began to click.

"Drink," I commanded softly. "You need your strength. We have a long drive ahead of us before the sun comes up."

i throwed away glass making a sound maybe somebody will come to help me.. please somebody..

Abhi's POV:

The glass shattered against the hardwood floor with a sharp, violent crack. Water splashed across my boots and the expensive rug, the sound echoing in the quiet room like a gunshot.

My hand, which had been supporting your neck, stiffened. The tenderness in my expression vanished, replaced by a cold, sharp-edged flickering in my eyes. I didn't pull away; instead, my grip on your hand tightened until it was almost painful.

"That was a waste of a perfectly good distraction, Maya," I hissed, my voice dropping to a dangerous, jagged whisper.

Downstairs, the laughter stopped.

"Arthur? Did you hear something?" the woman’s voice drifted up from the kitchen, faint but curious. "It sounded like glass breaking in the guest room."

I didn't panic. I didn't even look at the door. I pulled my tablet from my belt and tapped the screen twice. Suddenly, the smoke detector in the kitchen—the one I’d bypassed earlier—began to chirp a low-battery warning, a persistent, annoying beep... beep... beep... designed to draw them away from the stairs and toward the utility closet.

"They're busy now," I said, turning my gaze back to you. I leaned in so close I could feel the heat radiating from your feverish skin. "You think breaking a glass is going to save you? All you've done is make me lose my patience. And believe me, you liked me much better when I was being patient."

I reached into my bag and pulled out a small, black zip-tie.

"Now," I whispered, "are we going to walk out of here quietly, or am I going to have to carry you out through the basement?"