Reborn In a Murderer’s Embrace

Dexter let out a snort of derision, as if mocking Colin.

He thought Colin would get it wrong.

He thought Colin was just full of himself.

He held onto his faith in Melody with a stubborn grip.

Suddenly, Dexter seemed rather pitiful to me, blinded by gratitude for a past rescue.

"Phoebe..."

When the cops went to investigate, both Dexter and Colin were clamoring to talk to me first. I frowned, eyeing the two men warily.

One was an ex I had completely forgotten due to amnesia, the other a man I had foolishly fallen for after losing my memory. Both of them felt like strangers to me.

Dexter appeared penitent, but his attitude towards Melody was laughable, tinged with irony. There were too many opaque layers to him for my liking.

And Colin... even more so.

Colin was a genius, alright. A single glance at the surveillance footage and he found the missing Melody. There's no way he couldn't have found a thread to follow in the serial killings by now, unless the killer's IQ surpassed Colin's. Or they shared the same spark of genius. Content © copyrighted by NôvelDrama.Org.

But back in the day, the only two to score perfect in the Genius Class were Colin and Carter. Unless Carter wasn't dead...

In the years that followed, the Genius Class never saw another perfect score. Colin and Carter had become almost legendary within school records.

"Phoebe..." Dexter stepped closer. "Melody wouldn't put herself in danger willingly. She wouldn't be caught in a rundown demolition site. It's all a smokescreen, unless..."

Dexter lowered his voice, speaking softly beside me. "Unless this whole thing was Caleb's doing. He had Melody kidnapped, playing a game of cat and mouse."

I gave Dexter a cool glance. His animosity towards Colin was palpable.

"I'd advise you to mind your own business, Mr. Fitzgerald," I said firmly, taking a step back.

Dexter's wounded expression tightened, his eyes questioning why I didn't trust him. "Haven't you ever thought he might be the mastermind behind the serial killings? He's orchestrating them, using the killers to take you out."

I frowned, annoyed by his rambling.

Yet, Dexter's words were a reminder.

If Colin was the mastermind... then indeed, no one could uncover the truth.

He planned, others executed; it mirrored the question marks on his evidence wall - one for the planner, one for the executor.

Could Colin's evasive behavior be because he was the one behind it all?

But if he wanted me dead, then treating me so kindly after recognizing me, being so obedient... that wouldn’t make any sense.

"Phoebe..." Colin stood not far from me, whispering my name.

I glanced at him before looking away.

He hung his head as if he knew he was in the wrong.

I hated being a pawn in someone else's game. Dexter and his friends had gambled with me before, now Colin was doing the same.

Win or lose, it felt bitterly cold.

"We found her!" After a long, uncomfortable silence that seemed to stretch forever, Cory burst in, breaking the tension.

"In an old building scheduled for demolition, we heard a generator running. Melody's in there! She's free, no one's holding her captive. She's just hiding out!" Cory was panting, gulping down a glass of water as he entered.

Colin kept his head down, silent, not daring to look at me.

Dexter, on the other hand, looked thunderous. "Was it you?" he demanded of Colin.

Accusing him, "You had her taken there, didn't you?"

Colin met Dexter's gaze with an icy stare.

"Play by the rules, Dexter. Can't handle a loss? Resorting to framing now?" Stella snapped angrily. "And what's Melody anyway, some kind of saint?"

Stella rolled her eyes, turning to Robin. "Typical damsel in distress, causing trouble as always."