Page 58 of Till Death Do Us Part

There was a long pause on the other end of the line. Kyla could hear her mother's heavy breathing.

"You know, Kyla," her mother finally said. "You're always running away from your problems. You can't keep doing that forever."

Kyla felt a sudden surge of frustration. "I'm not running away from anything, Mom!" she snapped. "I just need some time to figure things out."

Her mother sighed. Kyla took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart. "I'm sorry, Mom. I can't make it tonight. I'll come over soon; I promise."

Her mother sighed. "Fine. But you have to make it up to us. We're still grieving, and we need you here."

"I know," Kyla said softly, feeling a pang of guilt in her chest. Both of her sisters’ deaths had hit them all hard, but Kyla was the only one who had to deal with the aftermath alone. She couldn't stay here, not with the police closing in.

"I have to go, Mom. I love you," she said hurriedly before hanging up.

She grabbed her suitcase and headed for the door, feeling a sense of urgency wash over her. She had no plan, no destination, but she knew she couldn't stay here any longer.

As she walked out the door, she caught a glimpse of herself in the hallway mirror—her hair was a mess, bags under her eyes, and her face was ashen. She looked like a woman on the run. And she was.

Kyla shook her head, trying to clear her mind as she left the house. When she opened the door, someone stood on the porch outside—a figure. The sight made her gasp and drop the suitcase she was holding.

PartVI

Chapter56

As I sat with Matt and the security guard in the dimly lit room, the only sound was the soft hum of the hospital machinery. The guard clumsily fiddled with the controls as he pulled up the surveillance footage on the screen. He was a scruffy-looking man in his forties who was in charge of hospital security. The three of us were huddled around a small monitor, trying to make sense of the surveillance footage that played before us.

It wasn’t easy.

I leaned forward, peering intently at the monitor, searching for any clue that could help us solve the mystery of who had attacked John in his hospital bed. My heart raced with anticipation, and a knot formed in my stomach as I watched the footage. How was this even possible? How could this person get away with it so easily?

“I don’t see anyone,” the security guard said while going through the camera from the entrance and the front desk. “I mean, I see people coming and going, but it’s late at night, not many visitors at this hour.”

I still wondered how the heck this person made it through the front desk. Emily hadn’t been able to. I asked the lady sitting there, and she said she hadn’t seen anyone or let anyone go up to his room.

“Could it have been Parker? Rachel’s dad?” Matt asked. He was sitting next to me, helping me look for the possible killer.

“It could,” I said. “It’s actually not a bad theory. We know he escaped from prison recently and, in a spectacular way, climbed up between two walls. Do you think he killed him? As revenge for his daughter? Maybe he found a way to get in where cameras didn’t see him, or he didn’t have to face the front desk. Maybe a back way?”

“Or maybe he climbed the freaking wall,” Matt said and laughed. “You know… like Spiderman.”

I nodded. It was possible; it could have been him. It had been all over the news that John Baker was the main suspect in Rachel’s murder. Maybe he decided to take matters into his own hands.

It made sense.

I kept watching the monitor. Still, there was nothing but the usual comings and goings of hospital staff. But then, a slim figure appeared in the corner of the screen. It was hard to tell who it was, but the person seemed to be wearing a hooded sweatshirt with the hood pulled tightly over their head. They moved with a strange, almost mechanical precision as if they had rehearsed their movements beforehand. This person walked through the sliding doors, then walked to the chairs and sat down. A few seconds later, the person got up and walked past the cameras, then disappeared from view. A few seconds later, the same person stormed past the cameras and out into the night, running faster than their legs seemed to be able to keep up.

“What on earth?” I said. “Please go back and let me see that person again.”

The security guard scrolled back, and we watched it again. Then, one more time, just to be certain.

“I know who that is,” I said and rose to my feet. “That hooded sweater looks awfully familiar.”

Chapter57

Istood in the parking lot, the shadows of flat-roofed buildings looming over me. It was midnight, and the air felt thick with tension. I shivered as a gust of wind blew past me, not because it was cold but because it startled me. I was glad to have Matt with me, and feeling his presence right behind me made me calm. My footsteps echoed in the silence of the night as I approached a dilapidated old minivan, its paint peeling off in chunks. I hesitated before knocking on the door. It was dark and humid outside, and the rusted minivan looked like it was about to fall apart. I could hear my heart pounding as I knocked on the door.

"Janet? Janet, are you in there?" I called out, my voice shaking slightly. I waited for a few moments, but there was no answer. I knocked again, harder this time. "Janet, please. I need to talk to you."

A low moaning sound broke the silence. I couldn't tell if it was coming from the minivan or somewhere else in the lot. It could have been one of the stray cats or maybe a raccoon. I felt a shiver run down my spine, but I tried to keep my composure.

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