Chapter 6: The Room Behind the Locked Door
“Run.””
Dre’s voice wasn’t loud.
It didn’t need to be.
The fear in it was enough.
For a second, I couldn’t move.
I just stared at the picture on his phone.
Me.
Standing outside my own apartment.
A stranger’s camera.
A stranger’s eyes.
Watching.
“You need to get inside the building,” Dre said.
I looked at him.
“What?””
“Not your apartment.””
My stomach tightened.
“Then where?””
“Anywhere with people.””
I shook my head.
“No.””
Dre looked frustrated.
“Bree.””
“No.””
My hands were trembling, but my voice was steady.
“I’m done running from things I don’t understand.””
“This isn’t about being brave.””
“Then what is it about?””
“It’s about staying alive.””
The words hung between us.
And for the first time, Dre looked less like someone hiding something.
He looked like someone who was genuinely scared.
I hated that it worked.
Because a part of me wanted to trust him.
But another part kept remembering the picture.
The lies.
The years of silence.
“How long have you known someone was watching me?””
Dre looked away.
Too long.
That was his answer.
“How long?””
“Since Blu arrived.””
My chest tightened.
“Since she arrived?””
He nodded.
“She noticed things.””
“What things?””
“Cars she didn’t recognize. Numbers calling and hanging up. Someone leaving things near her door.””
I stared at him.
“And nobody thought to tell me?””
“Blu didn’t want you involved.””
“You keep saying that.””
“Because it’s true.””
I stepped closer.
“Dre, do you understand how insane that sounds?””
“Yes.””
“You all decided my safety without asking me.””
“I know.””
“No, you don’t.””
My voice cracked.
“You don’t get to decide I’m better off being lied to.””
Dre looked like he wanted to argue.
But he didn’t.
Instead, he said quietly:
“You’re right.””
That stopped me.
Because I wasn’t expecting agreement.
“I should have told you.””
The street was silent.
“Then why didn’t you?””
Dre looked down.
“Because Blu was the first person who believed me when I said Eli was dangerous.””
I blinked.
“What?””
Dre leaned against his car.
“Before Blu left, I tried to warn people about him.””
“People?””
“Everyone.””
“And nobody listened?””
He shook his head.
“They liked Eli.””
I thought about what Marlo said.
How Eli was charming.
How people trusted him.
“How did you know?””
Dre looked at the apartment building.
“Because I saw what he did.””
I waited.
But he didn’t continue.
“Dre.””
His jaw tightened.
“He destroyed someone’s life.””
“Whose?””
He looked at me.
“Mine.””
The answer surprised me.
“You?””
Dre nodded.
“I was younger. Stupid. I thought I could help Blu.””
“What happened?””
“I confronted Eli.””
A cold feeling moved through me.
“And?””
“He made sure everyone thought I was the problem.””
“How?””
Dre gave a bitter laugh.
“Same way he controlled everything.””
He looked at his hands.
“He lied.””
The simplicity of the answer made it worse.
“He told people I was obsessed with Blu. That I was causing problems. That I couldn’t accept their relationship.””
I frowned.
“Did anyone believe him?””
“Enough.””
The rain started falling again.
Soft at first.
Then heavier.
“And Blu?””
Dre’s expression changed.
“She believed me.””
“Then why did she leave?””
“Because she was scared.””
“Of Eli?””
Dre nodded.
“But also of what would happen if she stayed.””
I looked at the building behind me.
My home.
The place I thought was safe.
Now it felt like a place someone had been studying.
“What are we supposed to do?””
Dre pulled out his keys.
“Get somewhere else.””
“No.””
He stopped.
I looked at him.
“I want answers.””
“Bree—”
“I’m serious.””
My voice lowered.
“If someone is threatening me because of Blu’s past, then I deserve to know why.””
Dre stared at me.
Then slowly nodded.
“Okay.””
That surprised me.
“Okay?””
“Yes.””
He opened his car door.
“But you need to understand something.””
“What?””
“The truth is worse than what you think.””
Twenty minutes later, we were sitting in a small diner three neighborhoods away.
Bright lights.
People everywhere.
Exactly the kind of place where nobody could easily disappear.
Dre sat across from me, looking exhausted.
I hated seeing him like that.
Because it reminded me that whatever this was…
it was bigger than a simple secret.
“Tell me about Eli’s brother.””
Dre looked up.
“You heard that.””
“Yes.””
He sighed.
“His name was Noah.””
“What happened to him?””
Dre looked around before answering.
“Noah was different.””
“Different how?””
“He didn’t care about Eli’s reputation.””
“That sounds like a good thing.””
“It was.””
A pause.
“Until it wasn’t.””
I frowned.
“What does that mean?””
“Noah found out what Eli was doing.””
“To Blu?””
Dre nodded.
“And he wanted to expose him.””
My fingers tightened around my cup.
“Did he?””
“No.””
“Why?””
Dre looked at me.
“Because Noah disappeared first.””
My stomach dropped.
“You said he died.””
“Yes.””
“How?””
Dre looked uncomfortable.
“The official story was an accident.””
“And the real story?””
He didn’t answer.
“Dre.””
“The real story is that Noah was about to tell someone everything.””
“Who?””
Dre stared at me.
“Blu.””
I went quiet.
“So Noah knew Blu?””
“Yes.””
“How?””
Dre looked down.
“Because Noah was the person who helped her leave.””
The room seemed to tilt.
“Wait.””
I shook my head.
“You’re saying Eli’s own brother helped Blu escape him?””
“Yes.””
“And then he died?””
“Yes.””
I looked away.
“That doesn’t feel like a coincidence.””
Dre didn’t respond.
Because he knew.
Neither of us believed in coincidences anymore.
My phone buzzed.
I looked down.
Unknown number.
Another message.
*“Ask Dre why he was at the river.””*
I froze.
Dre noticed my expression.
“What?””
I slowly turned the phone around.
The color drained from his face.
“No.””
“What?””
He grabbed the phone.
“Where did they get this?””
I looked at the screen.
A photo.
Old.
Blurry.
But clear enough.
Dre standing beside a river.
At night.
With Blu.
And someone else.
Someone lying on the ground.
I looked at Dre.
“Who is that?””
He didn’t answer.
“Dre.””
His hands started shaking.
“Bree…”
“Who is that?””
He swallowed.
And then he said the name I never expected.
“Noah.””
The entire room disappeared.
“What?””
“That picture…”
His voice broke.
“It was taken the night he died.””
I stared at him.
“You were there?””
Dre closed his eyes.
“Yes.””
The anger came back instantly.
“You told me you weren’t.””
“I wasn’t supposed to be.””
“What does that mean?””
Dre looked at me.
And I saw something I had never seen before.
Guilt.
“I went there because Blu called me.””
My heart raced.
“Why?””
“Because she said Eli was coming.””
I leaned forward.
“And?””
Dre looked at the picture.
“And Noah was already there.””
“What happened?””
His face went pale.
“I don’t remember everything.””
“What?””
“I remember yelling.””
He rubbed his forehead.
“I remember Blu crying.””
A pause.
“And I remember Noah telling me to run.””
“Why?””
Dre looked at me.
“Because he knew something was coming.””
The diner suddenly felt too loud.
Too many voices.
Too many people.
I lowered my voice.
“What happened after?””
Dre stared at the phone.
“I woke up the next morning.””
“And?””
“Noah was gone.””
I waited.
“Blu was gone.””
My heartbeat became louder.
“And Eli?””
Dre looked at me.
“Eli was the only one who stayed.””
A cold chill moved through me.
“Then why did everyone think Eli disappeared?””
Dre didn’t answer.
He didn’t have to.
Because suddenly I understood.
Someone had created a story.
Someone had made everyone believe the wrong person was gone.
My phone buzzed again.
Another message.
This time, no picture.
Just words.
*“Ask Dre who pushed Noah into the water.””*
I looked up slowly.
Dre was already staring at me.
Because he knew.
He knew what question was coming.
“Dre…”
His eyes filled with fear.
“Bree, don’t.””
“Who pushed Noah?””
He looked away.
“Dre.””
The silence stretched.
Then he whispered:
“I don’t know.””
I stared at him.
“But Blu does.””
And before I could ask what that meant…
the diner door opened.
A woman walked in.
A woman I recognized immediately.
Blu.
But she wasn’t alone.
Standing behind her was a man I had never seen before.
Older.
Calm.
Smiling.
And the second Dre saw him…
he stood up.
Because he knew exactly who it was.
“No…”
I looked at Dre.
“Who is that?””
May you like
His face went white.
“Eli.””
