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One second, it had only been one second. That's all the time it took for the life to be pulled from Ryan's body. A young person dying can be one of two very impacting things. One, it can be the most traumatising thing to ever happen to someone because the person that died was so young and they barely lived or two, it can be rather comforting in a strange way for the exact same reason. The person barely even lived which means they hadn't experienced as much and therefore never felt as though they missed out on anything. For Milo and Cassie it was a mix of both. They obviously felt bad and horrible for what had happened but they also sort of felt relieved it was Ryan that had died instead of someone less deserving. Not to say Ryan deserved to die but there are people that would have deserved it less than him. They were still in his bedroom, completely shocked and trying not to hyperventilate whilst the blood slowly ran down the wall and gradually spread out across the carpet. In any other situation this scene would have looked quite artistic. The contrast between the red and white, Ryan's gracefully posed body, the muscles looking defined and almost like they were carved from stone, and the generously placed duvet that was barely covering Ryan's manhood. "Oh my god I'm going to be sick" said Cassie, turning away from Ryan and putting a hand on her stomach."What have I done?"Said Milo, almost a whisper and then instantly being pulled back to reality by what Cassie had said. Milo walked over and quickly put his hand over Cassie's mouth. "No, you can't be sick.""Why?" Asked Cassie through Milo's hand, confused and still feeling ill."If you vomit everywhere your DNA will be all over this room" answered Milo, sounding serious."Milo, you can't serious think we're going to get away with this" said Cassie, removing Milo's hand. "We just killed someone. No, not even someone. We killed Ryan. It's not like we aren't unrelated to the victim. He's someone we go to college with and he's also someone everyone knows hates us.""True but loads of people hate Ryan" replied Milo. "It's not our fault that we're the only ones that don't stand for his bullshit.""First of all, we didn't stand for his bullshit. We're going to have to start speaking about him in past tense" said Cassie, gesturing over towards Ryan. "And second, he recently got you arrested and questioned by the police. If that isn't going to get seen as a motive I don't know what is.""Fuck... I need time to think" replied Milo, pacing around the room and then returning to Cassie. "I know you think we're not going to get away with this but just think about it for a second. Ryan has always had everything he's ever wanted and yes, it's definitely terrible that he died. However, with what we've been doing we could finally get what we deserve. Are you really going to let Ryan take that away from you even after his death? I know that I'm not.""Your reasoning is a little wonky but I think I get the picture" said Cassie, thinking about it and swallowing hard. "Alright fine, we can deal with this however you want to deal with it but we're not done with this conversation. He may have been an asshole but he didn't deserve this.""Alright yes, okay" replied Milo, letting out a breathe of relief."So, what do you want to do?" Wondered Cassie, biting her lip."Well first we get the fuck out of here and then everything else we can figure out later" responded Milo."Okay" said Cassie, nodding and then opening the door so they could both leave. However, as they were walking down the corridor, they heard the sound of police sirens getting closer and people downstairs sounding panicked. "Shit, what's happening now?""The people left from the party must have called the police" replied Milo, grabbing one of Cassie's hands and pulling her back towards the bedroom. "We'll have to go this way.""You've got to be kidding" said Cassie, seeing that Milo was pulling her towards the balcony."Shit... the gun" replied Milo, running back quickly and picking the gun up from the floor as Cassie opened the doors to the balcony."Are we really going to do this?" Asked Cassie, breathing heavier. "We're running from the police and debating whether to jump from the first floor of a house.""Well if we're really going to try and figure this out probably I don't see any other choice" answered Milo, smiling comfortingly and then once again taking one of Cassie's hands.They both let out one last breathe and then jumped. Not too far and not too high because they were aiming for some bushes below the balcony that looked like the softest option. A few branches broke, there was so stabs and cuts to their skin, and there was the occasional tumble out onto the grass but overall it went alright and they were both fine. Milo was the first up, ducking down just as quickly when he saw the police entering through the front door. He quickly helped Cassie to her feet and they proceeded to scurry across the garden, trying to be as stealthy as possible. Eventually they made it to the fence at the back of the property, almost giving up because of how high it seemed. They had come this far though and Milo was determined for them to succeed. So, mustering all the strength he had, Milo knelt down and then slowly lifted Cassie up and to the top of the fence. When she was comfortably perched, she reached down as far as she could so she could reach Milo's hands. Trying their hardest not to make too much noise, Cassie pulled and Milo climbed until they were sat opposite one another."You ready?" Asked Milo, raising his eyebrows and nodding in the direction of the other side of the fence."I guess so" answered Cassie, smiling nervously before they both swung their other legs over and then jumped again, not as far a distance as the balcony but still quite a way. "Do you even know how to get back from here?""Erm... maybe. That's not my main concern right now though" said Milo as they started running through the miles of forest behind Ryan's house. "My main concern is getting as far away from Ryan's house in as little amount of time as possible." - THE JOB - Intro song: Fidelio - Tom Hillock - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdW0TYok5NI Neither Milo or Cassie had a car so they had just had to as fast as they could. It was very tiring and occasionally they both wondered if it was worth it. I mean, if they got arrested by the police at least they'd be getting a ride somewhere. They ran and they ran until eventually they came across a road. Acting as normal as possible, they both walked out from the the tree line and started walking down the street. There were people around but no one seemed to be paying them much attention because this was one of the areas between the poor and rich neighborhoods which mean Milo and Cassie could be from wherever. They turned a corner and that's when Milo spotted a bus stop. Luckily the bus arrived only about 5 minutes after they decided to stop there and since they had both gotten the bus to Ryan's house they both had tickets already. As soon as they sat down, Milo felt his phone going off."Who is it?" Wondered Cassie, feeling like everyone was watching them."It's Ani" responded Milo, reading the messages. "She's saying her dad had to leave because of an emergency.""You don't think" said Cassie, looking at Milo and insinuating."I think it's most likely" replied Milo, sighing as the bus started moving.When they next could, Milo and Cassie hoped off the first bus and then waited for another one. The second bus would take them to Ani's house. They thought it was a good idea to go there and explain what had happened, prepare her for the news about Ryan inevitably coming out. Milo texted Danny and told him to meet them there as well. It didn't take long to get there, only about 10 minutes. Danny had borrowed his dad's car which meant he was traveling faster, therefore he arrived at pretty much the exact same time as Milo and Cassie. Ani let them in and then led the way to her bedroom, trying to move as quickly as possible so as not to get asked too many questions by her mum."I'm so glad you guys were already out of there" said Ani, not having a lock for her door so just blocking it with a chair instead. "My dad got a call and then sped out the house. I barely had any time to try and stop him.""Don't worry about it, we're pretty sure he got the call after we had just left" replied Cassie."Can someone please remind me what the plan was exactly" said Danny, looking at something on his phone. "Why?" Asked Milo, raising an eyebrow."Because there's loads of police cars outside Ryan's house" answered Danny, showing everyone his phone screen. All his friends and people from the party were videoing police surrounding the house and asking people questions. "What did you guys do?""Danny... we're so sorry" said Cassie, tearing up slightly and causing Danny to look more worried."Guys, my dad is there" replied Ani, pointing to where her dad was climbing out of his police car and speaking to some officers. "This has to be serious if the police chief was called.""What the fuck did you do?" Questioned Danny, raising his voice."We didn't mean for it to happen" responded Milo, moving his hands in a 'calm down' movement. "We were just doing what we said we were going to do, threatening him with the gun and making him leave us alone.""Well apparently that's not the only thing you did" said Danny, violently gesturing towards his phone."The gun went off" replied Milo bluntly."What?" Said Ani, covering her mouth for a second. "I took the bullets out.""There was still one in the chamber" replied Cassie, biting her lip."Crap... I always forget about that one" said Ani, closing her eyes and shaking her head slightly."Well maybe you shouldn't" replied Cassie, not meaning to sound rude be being a little stressed."Did you hit Ryan?" Wondered Ani, Danny listening closely but Milo didn't say anything."Oh god... is Ryan dead?" Added Danny, breathing heavier and putting his hands on his head."We're so sorry" responded Cassie, repeating what she said earlier."Oh my god... oh fuck" gasped Danny, turning around so he wasn't looking at them and putting his hands over his heart before crouching down into a little ball. "You killed my best friend.""Danny, please liste-" said Milo, placing a comforting hand on Danny's shoulder but instantly getting interupted by Danny pushing it off and standing up."Don't touch me... just please, don't touch me" replied Danny, trying to calm his breathing. He then left Ani's bedroom and the house after saying "I need to be alone right now.""Milo... you killed someone" said Ani, not entirely sure what else to say but hoping the tone she spoke in would get across how she felt and how he should feel about everything."Well I obviously didn't fucking mean to" replied Milo, sighing and rubbing his temples.•A week past and by that point everyone was back at college. The news that Ryan had died had spread like roots of a tree, forever growing and reaching as far out as possible. Ryan's family was rich, we've already established this. However, because of that it meant the news of his death wasn't just secluded to the town they all lived in. The news had traveled across the country to places they regularly visited or places they owned or to other people just as rich as them. None of them had seen or heard from Danny since he left Ani's house. Not for lack of trying though. Ani reached out first because she didn't know what they should do. Sure herself and Danny hadn't actually been there when Ryan was killed but they had technically helped premeditate his death. Ani supplying the weapon and Danny helping the killer get in the house. Danny didn't reply, too busy dealing with Ryan's grieving parents and his own parents not letting him go anywhere on his own incase someone came for him as well. Milo tried next but it was obvious why Danny hadn't replied to him, still not full knowing how he felt about one of his possible new friends killing his old one. By the end of the week Danny didn't need to be involved as much because Ryan's parents were now talking to the police about what they should do and how they were going to catch the person that did this. That's when Cassie attempted contact and Danny actually replied. Well, she messaged him asking how he was doing and he replied with the simple answer 'we'll see'. Deep down Cassie was glad Danny had replied despite the small response but she didn't know whether it was because he possibly had a crush on her or because he had nothing better to do in that moment whilst sat on his bed in the dark. Either way, it was good to know he hadn't decided to kill himself or something.During those days that passed, Milo and Cassie also explained every little detail to Ani because she wanted to know everything. She wanted to know what the specific circumstances had been to make the gun go off. She wanted to know whether Ryan died straightaway or if he suffered. She wanted to know what went through Milo and Cassie's heads when they decided to leave and not turn themselves in. They explained everything, hoping Ani would see where they were coming from when they told her their reason for leaving. She did, sort of. It was strange, something had definitely changed between all of them. They all liked one another still but now there was a small part inside all of them that kept telling them not to trust everyone else. Something was different in college as well, it was clear to see as soon as they all came back on the first day. People were crying, there was protest mainly conducted by Ryan's friends saying they were going to hunt down whoever did this, there were candle sat by flowers and pictures of Ryan outside the college building and inside as well, there was even a couple of news people interviewing students in the hopes to find out who Ryan was as a person. One of them even came up to Milo, Cassie and Ani but they quickly walked away after nothing interesting was said."Why are they all crying so much?" Wondered Ani as they all sat round a table and looked over at people crying and comforting one another."Fuck knows" responded Cassie, rolling her eyes subtly. "Ryan used to bully the shit out most of them." "Really they should be thanking me then" said Milo, shrugging his shoulders and smiling. "I did them a service.""That's kind of fucked" replied Danny as he walked up to them, speaking in a monotone voice."Danny, how have you been?" Said Ani, turning to face Danny and biting her lip."How do you think?" Replied Danny."Yeah, sorry... stupid question" said Ani,, mentally hitting herself."Are you lot not heading inside?" Questioned Danny, his face emotionless."Why? What's inside?" Countered Cassie, all of them glancing at the building."There putting on an assembly for Ryan" responded Danny. "In fact, maybe you shouldn't go. You might feel too guilty."He was right. Milo, Ani and Cassie all followed Danny into college after that and headed for the lecture theatre. Danny didn't sit with them, obviously going to sit with his rich friends instead. Well, was there any point in differentiating between the two anymore. Might as well just say friends since it was unclear whether Danny still liked Milo and the others anymore. However he had decided to come up to them when he didn't have to. They all sat through the assembly, listening to people sob whilst teachers and fellow students said things about Ryan and a photo montage video played on the big roll down screen behind them. It was all very depressing and obviously didn't make anyone feel less like crap about what had happened. It was necessary though. Milo needed to feel guilty about what he'd done otherwise it didn't mean anything. If it had just been some random person that broke in and killed Ryan, they would have just forgotten about him immediately. However, since it was someone Ryan knew, his death meant more to the people involved. The atmosphere around the college had changed. There was no more bullying because the bullies were mourning their friend. However, that might have also been because a couple students started a rumor saying there was a serial killer going around punishing anyone that was horrible to another student. Those couple students had quickly been expelled and then shortly after that another rumor started saying they had been killed by the supposed serial killer. Whatever the case, things were different and it was sort of off putting. Somethings apparently never changed thought because near to the end of the day someone came up to Milo and asked him for some tutoring. At first Milo was going to refuse for obvious reasons but then he had the sudden urge to do it.I won't explain everything in too much detail because you already know everything that goes down in one of these situations. Milo goes over to the rich person's house, tutors them, keeps an eye out for any loose change, waits to be alone if possible, takes the money, and then gets paid before leaving and heading home. Cassie, Ani and Danny weren't involved in this little heist. Milo didn't know why he didn't tell them at first but he soon realised it was because he needed a little break from everything that was going on. He felt wild and free when he was stealing and currently he'd felt as though he was being trapped in a cage. Everyone constantly reminding him about what he had done. He remembered, he knew. Milo would remember what he did for the rest of his life and he'd probably never make up for it. However, like he had established in Ryan's bedroom after his death, he wasn't going to let it control the rest of his existence.•The next day at college, Milo met up with Cassie and Ani so he could give them the shares of the money he took. He didn't expect Danny to be there as well. One because he hadn't told him in the hopes he wouldn't get guilt tripped again, and two, he didn't expect Cassie of all people to message and tell him. Either way, they were all waiting behind the college building for Milo when he arrived with his bag already partly open. As you may have guessed they were all shocked and a little taken aback by how Milo was deciding to spend his time during these unprecedented times."Milo... what the fuck?" Questioned Cassie. "How you lost your mind?""Obviously not" responded Milo, rolling his eyes. "If I had lost my mind I would have taken a lot more.""You piece of shit" said Danny bluntly, crossing his arms. "First you kill my best friend and then you pretty much forget you've done it. Moving on as if nothing has happened.""Okay, seriously. I'm sick of the fucking guilt trips" replied Milo, sighing and putting the money back in his bag."Good... you should feel fucking guilty" said Danny viciously. "You should hate yourself for what happened.""You don't think I do? Do you think I've been perfectly fine ever since I literally shot someone in the head? Because I fucking haven't" replied Milo, speaking just as harshly. "I can't sleep. I've tried but I fucking can't. The only time I actually get any rest is when I'm literally too tired to do anything else and I just pass the fuck out. I obviously regret what happened. I'd change it if I could but I fucking can't. And you know what, if it makes you feel any better, I do hate myself. I hate myself so much it's unbearable. So I don't need you to constantly remind me how much I should despise myself because I already fucking know.""So if you care so much about what's going on why did you go tutor someone and then steal from them?" Asked Ani, raising an eyebrow."At first it was a distraction from my very quickly deteriorating mental state but then I realised something" answered Milo. "If we don't behave the exact same way we've been behaving this entire school year, what do you think is going to happen?... People are going to start thinking we're involved.""We are involved" said Cassie."Obviously I knew that but we can't have people thinking that" replied Milo. "Everyone already knows Ryan didn't like us.""He hated you actually" clarified Danny, thinking about it. "Straight up wanted you dead.""Right... anyway" said Milo, glancing at Danny. "Some people are probably already keeping an eye on us and some were even getting slightly suspicious of Danny because he's been seen talking to us so much.""I suppose he's right" replied Ani, biting her lip. "If we act like nothing has changed whilst but also pretend we're heart broken about Ryan, maybe everything will slowly go back to normal.""Some of us are heartbroken about Ryan" said Danny, scowling."Right... sorry" replied Ani, instantly feeling bad. "You all know what I mean though.""Yep" said everyone at the same time."This isn't going to go away though, not as simply as you're all assuming" said Danny, picking up his bag from where it had been sitting on the ground. "Ryan's parents aren't going to stop until they find out who did this and they have the resources to keep going forever. I don't doubt all the shit we've been doing will slowly start to catch up with us.""I miss when Danny was a little depressed but also slightly optimistic" sighed Cassie after Danny had walked away."Yeah... me to" said Milo, deep down knowing what Danny had said was correct.•The following day, everyone was at college again. Milo, Cassie and Ani were all sat around the same table they keep sitting at outside the front of the college whilst Danny was sat with all his remaining friends on an exact same type of table not to far away. Slowly but surely everyone was starting to settle down after the assemblies and people getting questioned by police if they were at Ryan's halloween party. Obviously some people were still going a little crazy like Ryan's friends, the police, some parents, and obviously Ryan's parents. However most things had gone back to normal. Well, as normal as things were going to be from now on. Danny was minding his own business when one of his friends nudged him in the side."What do you think is up with them?" Asked the guy, gesturing over to Milo and the others. Instantly all of Danny's other friends started listening in."What do you mean?" Countered Danny, genuinely not seeming too interested."Like, why haven't they said anything about Ryan?" Clarified the guy."Why would they? They didn't really get along with one another" answered Danny. "But I suppose you're right, they could be more sympathetic.""They're fucking weird man, Ryan always knew that" said the guy. "I wouldn't be surprised if they had something to do with his death.""I hate to say it but they are smart enough to do something this fucked up" replied a girl who looked more terrible than most. Danny assumed it was because she was extra distraught since she regularly hooked up with Ryan.Danny didn't say anything in response, just continueing to look over at Milo and the others whilst they minded their own business. However, Danny was pulled from his thoughts and everyone else from their conversations when two police cars sped down the road and pulled up in front of the college. Everyone instantly stood to attention, not really knowing how to react because they didn't know what was happening. Danny stayed seated, Milo and the others doing the same. Well, they had been doing the same until it was clear the police were heading in their direction. Cassie and Ani looked Milo who thought he knew what was coming. So trying to avoid any sort of struggle, Milo started to stand up and took a couple steps towards the officers. However, they walked straight past him. Milo turned and watched as the officers walked up to Cassie."Are you Cassandra White?" Asked an officer."Yes" answered Cassie, starting to sweat."Cassandra White you're under arrest for the murder of Ryan Clement" said the second officer as the first one started handcuffing Cassie. " Anything you say or do we'll and can be used against you in the court of law. Do you understand?""Yes" replied Cassie, breathing heavier and almost crying as she was led towards the police cars."Hey what are you doing?" Shouted Milo, walking after them with Ani not too far behind. "Why is she a suspect?""Milo stop or they'll arrest you as well for obstructing the law" said Ani, blocking Milo from walking any closer to the police car Cassie was put into."Cassie, don't say anything. We'll figure something out" shouted Milo as they watched a tear roll down Cassie's cheek and then as the two police cars sped off down the road until they were gone from view. Milo and Ani just stood there, not entirely sure what to do. Danny still with his friends, definitely not looking as pleased as them. Soon enough everyone that had been watching outside the college carried with whatever they had been doing whether that be heading inside or hanging with friends, completely moving passed the fact that one of their fellow classmates had just been arrested for possibly killing another classmate. As Ani started grabbing their things in a slight panic, Milo spotted a black car out the corner of his eye. It had been there the entire time they had been outside but he hadn't payed too much attention to it till now. Noticing that the unidentifiable figures inside were looking straight at him and Ani. Then just as quickly as Milo had spotted the car, it was driving away in the same direction as the police cars and Cassie. ———————————————————————————Credit song for this chapter: 99 Problems - Hugo - https://youtu.be/HuS-3zxOKQY
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After the events of Cassie being arrested in front of everyone for a murder she was actually a part of but no one was supposed to know that yet, Milo and Danny wanted answers. The only person they could think of asking those questions to was Ani since it was her dad that had probably put out the arrest warrant for Cassie in the first place. They were all in that same park they had been in when Danny first said he wanted to help them, sitting around the exact same table. Well, Milo and Ani were sat at the table whilst Danny was just pacing just to the side of them."Ani, what the fuck happened?" Asked Milo, trying to stay calm."I don't know" answered Ani. "Shouldn't you really be the one telling me that since it was you and Cassie that were actually there.""Well don't know either" said Milo. "We were careful, no one saw us.""Maybe someone did" replied Ani, thinking it was the only reasonable explanation."But who? Everyone was either passed out or not paying attention" said Milo, trying to think of every small detail."Do you think she's alright? What do you think they're doing to her?" Questioned Danny, biting his lip."They're probably just questioning her right now" responded Ani. "She wasn't just asked to come down to the police station for questioning, she was fully arrested. It means they aren't asking her speculation questions, they asking her questions that infer she is the prime suspect.""We have to do something" said Danny, breathing heavier and if he was trying to hide how he might have been feeling about Cassie he was doing a bad job. "You know there's talks about not letting her come back to college. At least that's what some of my friends are saying. I mean, who knows? It'd make sense, the college not wanting that kind of publicity." "Well you know what they say, all publicity is good publicity" replied Ani, trying to lighten the mood."No, it's not. That is completely and utterly wrong" said Danny, finally standing still and looking at Ani. "Whoever first said that statement had obviously never murdered someone.""Alright, yeah... my bad" replied Ani, sighing."Okay, let's just stay as calm as we can until we figure out all the details" said Milo. "Ani, the best me and Danny are going to be able to do is just be patient whilst you try and find out what evidence your dad has on Cassie.""How am I supposed to do that?" Replied Ani, panicking. "This is an open case and a very important one at that.""I don't know, you'll just have to figure something out" said Milo, shrugging. "That's what we've been doing ever since we started all of this, we just have to carry on doing just that.""I mean, sometimes my dad brings cases home in the attempt to stop bribed officers tampering with evidence" replied Ani, thinking about it. "I guess I'll just have to hope he does that despite no rich people wanting to buy anyone off this time.""Alright, great. Go with that" said Milo, smiling and then glancing between Ani and Danny. "See... everything is going to be just fine." - THE JOB - Intro song: Fidelio - Tom Hillock - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdW0TYok5NI Cassie had been in a holding area most of the time she had been in the police station. It was a completely stone room with one very uncomfortable bench and an extremely cold atmosphere. Cassie really did wish she was literally anywhere else right now. That was until a couple officers, different to the ones that had arrested her, appeared in the doorway and then led her to an interrogation room. Cassie was sat directly opposite Ani's dad, someone she knew to be quite unnerving and intimidating. Milo had sort of told her what his interrogation with Ani's dad was like and even then Cassie hoped she would never have to experience it. So, now Cassie no longer wished she was anywhere else, she just wished she was dead. Too soon? Maybe."How are you doing today?" Asked chief Amari after looking at Cassie for a couple of minutes."Not great if you could believe it" answered Cassie, swallowing thickly. "So I suppose in that case, why don't we start off simple? Something quick and easy" said chief Amari, conveying a smile that had nothing behind it. "Why'd you do it?""Do what?" Replied Cassie, trying to act dumb but maybe going too dumb."You know what" said chief Amari, rolling his eyes. "But let me be more clear just in case. Why did you murder Ryan Clement?""I didn't" replied Cassie, only saying that because she was satisfied with that answer."Really? Because we have evidence to say otherwise" said chief Amari."Prove it" replied Cassie, nervous but intrigued."Alright" said chief Amari, smiling and then sliding some pictures across the table. "First of all, your fingerprints are all over his bedroom door handle and secondly, they're all over the balcony door handle as well. No one else's except Ryan's fingerprints. Pretty strange don't you think?""Not really" replied Cassie, shrugging and inspecting the photos. "They're door handles, they're made to be touched. It's literally they're only purpose.""Okay, do you want to know some of the more damning evidence?" Asked chief Amari, raising his eyebrows."I guess" answered Cassie, less intrigued to know these."There was DNA found on Ryan's penis and two of his fingers. The pointer and the middle to be exact" said chief Amari. "We had samples sent to the labs and recently got the results back. Obviously at first nothing came up but once we found your fingerprints and arrested you and therefore took a DNA sample, boy were we surprised to see the DNA samples were identical.""That still doesn't prove that I killed him" replied Cassie, feeling slightly embarrassed."True, but it does help solidify you being the only other person present in the room and those DNA samples were pretty fresh when we first found them" said chief Amari. "Now I won't say anything definitive but I think it's pretty clear how and why those samples got there. Well I mean, anyone that knows anything about you could figure out what was going on. Fill in the blanks if you get what I mean.""I get what you mean and by the sounds of it, it sounds as though you're trying to slut shame me" replied Cassie, not standing for it even in this situation."Like I said, I won't say anything definitive" said chief Amari as he smiled again and then stood up, heading for the door. "We'll talk again in a bit.""You still don't have anything worth while" replied Cassie, starting to slightly shout as chief Amari got further away. "All you have is that I might have been sleeping with him. That's nothing.""See you soon" shouted chief Amari, a smile evident in his voice. Cassie just sat there alone, knowing she was probably being watched through the two way mirror and trying her best not to get visibly angry. Well, not anymore angry than she already was.•Later on Danny was with his friends. Ever since Ryan's death they'd all been spending a lot of time together because they thought it felt right. Danny was sick of how many times one of them had said they all need to stick together in times like these as if things like this happen every other week. I mean, maybe this was the normal amount of time they all spent together but it just seemed like a lot to Danny because he would usually prefer to stay at home and do something more efficient with his time. Don't get him wrong, Danny like his friends. However he only like them up to a certain extent, just like most things really. He liked them when they were just being teenagers and being annoying with each other but when they started saying horrible things about other people who weren't around to defend themselves, Danny wasn't as much of a fan. This was the case now since out of no where Cassie was brought up and then from there everywhere wouldn't stop talking about her. Sure, Danny was a bit off with Milo and the others currently but he still didn't like the things that were being said. He was trying his best not to agree with anything said whilst also trying not to defend Cassie too much either."Honestly it's no surprise that she had something to do with it" said a girl. "She probably tried to get with Ryan and then when he definitely rejected her, she killed him.""Cassie is all breasts and no brains though" replied a guy. "Milo and the other chick probably helped her with it.""God she's such a fucking slut" sighed the girl. "We should have known something was wrong with her when she started acting so differently near the start of the school year.""We don't know though" said Danny, continueing to scroll through his phone instead of looking at them."Sorry what was that?" Replied the girl, raising an eyebrow."I said we don't know though" said Danny, partially repeating himself and putting his phone down."What's up with you Danny?" Replied the guy, letting out a small awkward laugh. "Are you on her side or something?""No, I'm not on her side" said Danny, rolling his eyes. "It's just... we don't officially know if it was Cassie that did it. We want whoever killed Ryan to go to prison and rot and I don't want the police just finding someone that could be guilty instead of the person that is actually guilty.""I guess so" replied the guy, thinking about it. "I bet she does of have a tight cunt though.""Dude... seriously?" Said Danny, disgusted."Whether she actually did it or not, she's still a whore" replied the girl. "That fact will always be true.""You know, thinking about it, you did disappear part way through the party Danny" said the guy, smirking and obviously insinuating something."Fuck off" replied Danny, laughing to make it all seem like a joke. "I just decided to head home.""Really? That's not like you" said the girl, laughing now as well."Yeah well, I drank a lot and thought it was best I got some sleep" replied Danny, trying not to make it noticeable that apparently his friends didn't know him very well since it was quite like him actually to not stay long at parties."Why didn't you just stay in one of Ryan's hundreds of spare bedrooms?" Asked the guy, now seeming like none of it was a joke and he was actually trying to figure out if Danny had something to do with it."I don't sleep well in beds that aren't my own" answered Danny, smiling and just like he had at the party, the urge to leave and go home.Whilst Danny was somewhat being questioned by the people he supposed to be closest with, Ani was at home pumping herself up to go look for whatever her dad and the police had on Cassie. Neither of her parents were home, her dad being at work and her mum out shopping for dinner. There was no reason she should be afraid to go searching but apparently there was. She didn't know if it was because her dad might find out or if whatever they have on Cassie was extremely concrete or if it was because the last time she went through her dad's things someone ended up being shot and killed. Despite all that though, Ani knew she was going to have to do this because she cared for Cassie immensely and technically, if we're being specific about this, she wasn't the one that pulled the trigger.Ani left her bedroom and walked trough the house back to her dad's office, retrieving the key from the light and then unlocking the door. It was just like it had been when she was in there last, mess everywhere and no order to anything. Well, except for one box that was sat on the end of the desk and looked way more new than everything else in the room. Ani was relieved because she had been right about her dad bringing the case home also more nervous because now it meant she actually had to search through it. Ani walked out the office again and grabbed some washing up gloves from the kitchen, not wanting her evidence to be everywhere. As soon as she was in the room again she immediately started going through the box, not wanting to stop and then lose the small amount of confidence she might have acquired. Most the stuff inside was papers about who was involved in solving the case, Ryan as a person, his parents, his friends including quite a bit about Danny, his possible enemies, and what there had been at the crime scene. Ani figured that was probably the best place to start looking. Once again, there wasn't much inside apart from a pair of boxers that Ryan had presumably been wearing before or whilst he died and a couple of doorhandles. Ani had no idea how those things could be evidence against Cassie but she took pictures of them anyway and then began reading through some of the papers in hopes of understanding what her dad was thinking.•The next day, Ani had messaged Milo and Danny to meet her behind the college building because of what she found out. They had created a temporary new groupchat without Cassie in it because they knew the police had her phone and were probably looking through it. It was around lunch time when they were all free and could meet which meant there was the high possibility of someone seeing them all together but trying to help Cassie was more important. Milo and Danny stood waiting, occasionally glancing at the other and exchanging quick pleasantries that Milo assumed probably weren't really pleasant on Danny's side. Luckily Ani soon appeared and apologised for being slightly late, her teacher had wanted to speak with her."So, how did it go?" Asked Milo, referring to Ani's search."Yeah, did you find anything?" Added Danny, biting his lip."It went well and I did" answered Ani, smiling but also not knowing if this was a smiling moment. "Most of the stuff they had was about Ryan and who he was a person but the actual physical evidence they had against Cassie was a bit strange.""Right" said Milo, slightly confused and concerned."All it was was some boxers and a couple of doorhandles" replied Ani, shrugging her shoulders."How are they evidence in the first place, let alone against Cassie?" Questioned Danny, squinting his eyes."God knows" responded Ani, crossing her arms."I think I know" said Milo, thinking about it. "Cassie had obviously been there to 'seduce' Ryan and I remember him mentioning something about maybe fingering her a little bit.""You've got to be kidding me" sighed Danny, rubbing his temples and closing his eyes."Well what did we expect? Cassie tends to go all out" said Milo. "What I'm thinking is, what if Cassie had done something with Ryan as well before she managed to leave and open the gate for me?""You mean what if she jerked him off a little bit" replied Ani, understanding."So Cassie's going to prison because of a handjob" said Danny, trying not to raise his voice. "I don't know if it's worse if he finished or if he didn't even get to do that.""And what about the doorhandles?" Wondered Ani, chewing the inside of her lip."Oh that one is easy to figure out" responded Milo. "When we were escaping, Cassie was the one to open the bedroom door because she was closest and she opened the balcony door because I was picking the gun up from the floor.""It really should be you in there instead of her" said Danny, shaking his head slightly."Yeah... I know" replied Milo, trying to think of something to do."So, what now?" Said Ani, looking between both of them."Not sure" replied Milo. "Everyone just carry on like normal and I'll try and think of something.""Well we've been listening to you this entire time and look where it's gotten us" said Danny. "Someone's dead and now someone else is in jail for something they didn't do.""Danny I'm seriously doing the best I can" replied Milo, trying not to get annoyed."Well your best fucking sucks" said Danny, grabbing his bag and walking away, Ani leaving soon after because she couldn't help but partly agree and leaving Milo stood there alone with his thoughts.•Later on that same day, as the sun was starting to set and most people were heading home for the day, Ani was once again her dad's office but this time her dad was there as well. She had thinking about everything going on and obviously she thought it wasn't right but something she couldn't understand was why her dad didn't think it wrong. She knew her dad was a very strict person and liked to follow rules. However, she also knew he occasionally didn't follow some rules if it meant he could make some extra money out of it. Ani had knocked on her dad's office door and then quickly walked in, not waiting for a reply. This was probably in the list of reason why the conversation they were having quickly evolved into an argument."Dad I just don't understand" said Ani. "You know Cassie, you've met her hundreds of times probably. You know she would never do anything like this.""You're wrong, I don't know that" replied her dad. "And maybe you don't know her either because the more I'm finding out about her, the more I'm wondering why you would ever become friends with a person like that.""Wait, are you seriously trying to slut shame Cassie and then make me feel guilty for not treating her the same way" said Ani, raising her voice slightly. "Dad that's so messed up.""Ani you are a smart girl, you don't need to and shouldn't be hanging around people like her" replied her dad. "Cassie and Milo are honestly below you.""First of all, Cassie is smart and second of all, even if she wasn't Milo is definitely smart" said Ani. "You just don't want me hanging out with Milo because he makes you feel stupid every time you talk to him.""Mind your tone" replied her dad through gritted teeth."I mean, he seemed to get out of custody quite quickly when you tried to arrest him for stealing" said Ani, not listening. "You're angry at Milo for being smarter than you and you're angry at Cassie for having more freedom than you.""You better think very carefully about what you say next" replied her dad, standing up from the desk and putting his palms flat agains the surface."Oh trust me, I've thought carefully about this because I've thought about saying it most of my life" said Ani. "You're arresting all of my friends and ruining my life... fuck you dad.""Ani, get the hell out of my office before I fucking throw you out" shouted her dad, clenching his fists and suddenly punching the desk."Gladly" said Ani calmly, walking over to the door. "I've said what I needed to."At the very same time Ani was slamming the door of her dad's office shut, Danny was walking through the police station. He knew Ani's dad wasn't currently at work because he'd been waiting outside the building for quite some time, watching and waiting for most people to leave. Once inside he'd ask the woman at the reception desk if he could visit Cassie but obviously he wasn't allowed. One because she wasn't allowed any visitors unless part of the case and two it was past visiting hours for the police station. The woman quickly changed her mind and gave Danny a pass when he slid £200 across the desk. Danny was expecting to pay a lot more but lucky for him the woman turned out to be desperate for cash. Once inside the main part of the building, Danny walked up to the officer guarding the door to where Cassie was being held. Once again he was told no but also once again the person blocking his path moved out the way for some money. This time Danny had to pay £500 but he didn't really care. He threw in a little extra so that the officer would turn off the security cameras in the room whilst he was talking to Cassie. Danny honestly didn't know what he was doing there but it felt right."What are you doing here?" Asked Cassie as soon as she saw Danny walk into the room."I, erm... I guess I just wanted to know how you were doing" answered Danny, sitting close to the bars that were blocking his last bit of progress to Cassie."How do you think I'm doing?" Said Cassie, sounding miserable."Well from the sound of your voice I'd say you're doing great" replied Danny, smiling and making Cassie laugh a little."Oh really?" Said Cassie, smiling as well."Oh yeah, this place is obviously doing wonders for you" replied Danny, laughing now as well."Why did they even let you in here?" Wondered Cassie, moving closer to the bars. "The only people they've been letting in her possible lawyers of me and the occasional person they say is for the case but I just think is here to shout horrible shit at me.""I bribed the woman at the front desk and the officer outside the door" responded Danny, gesturing behind himself."I guess that money of yours does come in handy sometimes" said Cassie."Yeah well I was just taking a page out of my friend's books" replied Danny. "That's probably why Milo and Ani haven't been able to come visit you yet.""How are they? Are they alright?" Questioned Cassie, sounding worried and swallowing hard."Why are you asking that?" Countered Danny. "You're the one in jail right now. They should be asking those questions to you.""They're my friends, I just want to know how they're doing" responded Cassie, her usual tone of voice returning for the first time the entire conversation. "I care for them and like you pretty much said, if they could be here they would be. If it was them in here they'd be asking the exact same questions because they care for me as well.""They're not the only people that care you" said Danny, looking at Cassie deeply and causing Cassie to not know how to reply."Erm... so, have you guys come up with anything yet?" Replied Cassie, swallowing hard again and trying to move things on because she knew what Danny was inferring. "Like, how am I getting out of here?""We've found some stuff out" said Danny, deciding to move on as well. "How we're getting you out of here I'm not too sure. Milo is probably thinking of something as we speak though."Danny was correct because as he was trying his best to comfort Cassie, Milo was sneaking along the side of Ani's house. There was a lot of foliage which mean Milo had to do his best not to stand on any loud twigs or brush past a bush to quickly. Milo slid along the wall until her reached the window he was hoping was the correct one. From knowing the layout of Ani's house from all the times he'd been over and now with the extra information of where her dad's office was located, Milo had thought he'd figured out which window would lead straight into the office and where all the evidence was. Milo crouched down and then took a deep breathe, trying his best to calm his nerves. He then slowly but surely tilted his body slightly so he could peak through the window, instantly moving back again when he witnessed Ani's dad almost violently jerking off to a video on his computer. A shiver ran down Milo's spine as he covered his face with his hands, glancing back again and searching for the case box whilst trying not to look directly where chief Amari was touching himself. He spotted the box under the desk just as chief Amari came, shooting his load out onto his desk and partly onto his trouser leg, getting annoyed as it stained the black fabric.Milo moved back further as chief Amari grabbed a tissue to wipe the desk and his leg with, quickly throwing it in the bin afterwards and turning off his computer before standing up. He watched as the police chief walked around the desk and then left the office, the sound of the lock turning coming soon after. This was it, the time Milo had been waiting for and that he wished with all of his heart had come sooner. Milo somehow managed to gradually pull the window up to create enough of a gap for his fingers, thus making it easier for him to open it all the way so that he come climb through it fully. It was a lucky thing Ani's house wasn't that old otherwise the floor might have been creaking extremely loud. Milo walked over to the desk and crouched down, one hand on the desk for support as he grabbed the box with his other hands and lifted it up. As Milo was putting the box on the desk though, he noticed he'd put his other hand in something wet. Quickly realising the only thing it could be, Milo proceeded to have a miniature panic attack whilst grabbing a tissue and cleaning his hand. Apparently chief Amari wasn't very good at cleaning up all the evidence of his activities either.Something Milo had thought about doing was just taking the evidence box and destroying it. However, that would make it so obvious that someone was working with Cassie and that it probably was her that had killed Ryan. So the thing Milo settled on doing was just tampering with the evidence instead. He opened the box and searched for the boxers and the doorhandles, very quickly finding them because he knew what he was looking for. The boxers were the exact ones Ryan had been wearing before climbing into bed naked and waiting for Cassie to return which meant the DNA on them was probably Cassie's spit from when she licked her palm and jerked Ryan off a little. Milo opened the small bag and then spit on two of his fingers, quickly lowering them and smearing his spit inside of the boxers as well. The next thing Milo did was open the little bag containing the bedroom door handle, simply grasping it in his hand so that his fingerprints were all over it. He didn't bother putting any evidence of his presents on the balcony door handle because his DNA on all three would just seem a bit overly suspicious. Milo then closed the bags, put them bag into place where they had been in the box, closed the lid and then slid the box back under the desk. Milo climbed back out the window, closing it behind himself, and then snuck back around the house where his bike was waiting. And that was it, in an attempt to pull some of the blame from Cassie, Milo had thrown himself into the lion's den.————————————————————————Credit song for this chapter: My Beauty - Lumen - https://youtu.be/UPVduXszOnY
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A couple days after Milo incriminated himself in probably one of the town's biggest cases, let alone murder cases, nothing much had seemed to happen yet. He'd known from Ani mentioning it multiple times in the past that evidence is usually checked for DNA or fingerprints or whatever more than once if it's for an important case but Milo obviously didn't know how regularly the checks would be. He was hoping for straightaway but that just seemed a bit naive. Milo was arriving at college and as soon as he was stepping off the bus he was being bombarded with questions from Danny."How's it going with thinking of something? Have you got anything yet? Cassie has been in jail for over forty-eight hours now, do you know how fucked that is?" Asked Danny as they walked towards the college building. "Milo, are you listening to me?""Careful Danny, we wouldn't want any of your friends to see us talking" answered Milo, not even looking at Danny."Milo, she's one of your best friends and you're not doing anything to help her" said Danny."Right, listen up. You do not have to tell me that Cassie is one of my best friends, obviously I already fucking know that and also, I am doing something to try and help her. In fact, I've already done it" replied Milo, turning to Danny and speaking harshly. "I understand that you're sad your friend is dead and I get that you're angry at me, you might even hate me, that's completely justified. However, do not fucking tell me I'm not doing anything to help literally one of the only people I care about because I am doing everything I can to help Cassie.""What's going on here?" Wondered Ani as she walked up to them, seeing that Milo and Danny were having some sort of stand off."Nothing" responded Danny, backing off. "We were just talking about Cassie.""What about Cassie? Did something happen?" Said Ani, concerned."No, she's fine" replied Danny. "Well, you know, as fine as she can be.""Oh ok, that's good" said Ani, relieved and then seeing a police car pull up in front of the college. "Oh god, what do they want now?""More like who do they want now?" Corrected Danny, both of them looking worried."Hopefully me" said Milo, glancing over at them."Milo what do you mean? What did you do?" Replied Ani, panicking."Everything we'll be fine" said Milo, smiling as the police officers reached him."Are you Milo Bellamy?" Asked one of the officers."I am and I think you already know that since you're the same officers that took me in for questioning that first time" answered Milo."You need to come down to the station with us" said the second officer, ignoring what Milo said."Okay, sure thing" replied Milo, maybe being a little too enthusiastic.Danny and Ani watched as Milo was led away by the police officers and over to the car, where he was very quickly shoved into the back. Just like when Cassie was arrested, everyone watched in shock as another classmate in under a week was taken to the police station, quickly moving on though after the police car had disappeared out of view. The two of them just stood there as a second member of their group was taken. Slowly but surely they were all being caught. - THE JOB - Intro song: Fidelio - Tom Hillock - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdW0TYok5NI Milo was once again sat in the same interrogation room he had been in the first time he was here getting questioned. It shouldn't have been but it was oddly comforting knowing his surroundings at this point. The slightly cracked stone walls, the two-way mirror that definitely needed cleaning of handprints, the subtle scratches from people's fingernails on the cold metal table, the uncomfortable chair that squeaked every time Milo made even the smallest of movements. Then there was that all to familiar sound of someone making their way down the corridor outside followed by the sudden noise the door made when it was pushed open. And also just like before, Ani's dad was the person questioning Milo. Well, attempting to anyway."Here again I see" said chief Amari, smiling cockily."Why are you acting surprised?" Replied Milo, smiling the same way. "I'm assuming it was you that ask the officers to collect me. You should have been expecting this.""Right, I forgot you were like this" said chief Amari, rolling his eyes and sitting down a bit away from the table. "If you're so smart, I bet you can figure out why you're here.""I bet I can too" replied Milo, swallowing hard because he was trying his best not to make eye contact with chief Amari's crotch. The image of him in his office playing on a lip suddenly. "I here because I apparently have something to do with Ryan's death.""Correct" said chief Amari, moving closer and thankfully blocking the view of his body. "I hate to say it but I'd like to think you'd be smarter if you were going to kill someone. You know, you'd at least wear gloves and maybe even a disguise. So instead of asking why you killed Ryan Clement, I'm going to ask what you were doing in his bedroom?""Oh, well that's an easy question" replied Milo, scoffing. "We were sleeping together.""Come again" said chief Amari, a little aback."Yeah... me and Ryan were sleeping together" replied Milo, smiling."There wasn't anything about that in his report" said chief Amari, checking through the papers he had in front in himself. "No one said anything, not his friends or his parents.""Yeah well they wouldn't" replied Milo. "It was a secret.""A secret?" Repeated chief Amari, raising an eyebrow."Yep" said Milo. "I'm sure you've heard from multiple people, including Ryan himself when he accused me of stealing, that we didn't get along very well. In fact, I'd go as far to say he hated me.""I did actually say that" replied chief Amari, thinking about it. "Why would he want you arrested though if he was secretly sleeping with you?""You don't have to like someone to sleep with them" said Milo. "I didn't like Ryan but I slept with him and he didn't like me but he slept with me. I think it was because Ryan didn't really like himself for sleeping with me but he couldn't stop. So he tried to get rid of me the only way he knew how. Getting me arrested for something we both now know wasn't true.""So you're saying Ryan Clement hated you and himself and tried to get you taken to jail for stealing because him and you were secretly sleeping together and that's why your DNA was found in his bedroom" replied chief Amari, squinting his eyes. "I don't know if I'm convinced.""Well I didn't actually know I was here because my DNA had been found in his bedroom, you only just told me that" said Milo, obviously lying. "But yes, I understand why it might sound confusing. Why don't you try telling me where my DNA was found exactly and then I can explain myself further.""Alright, your fingerprints were found on the bedroom door handle" replied chief Amari."I had to get in somehow" said Milo, laughing a little."Okay, what about your spit being found on the inside of his boxers" replied chief Amari, raising an eyebrow."Simple, Ryan loved a good a blowie" said Milo like it was obvious."A what?" Questioned chief Amari."A blowie... a blowjob" responded Milo, clarifying and pretending to think. "A BJ, head, oral, cunnilingus... fellatio.""Okay yeah, I think I get it" said chief Amari, swallowing hard and not very subtly readjusting himself."Some of my spit must have just spilled out when I was getting down to business so to speak" replied Milo, smirking. "You won't tell anyone this though will you? I don't want anyone knowing me and Ryan were going at it like dogs in the night.""God you're almost at bad as your friend" said chief Amari, disgusted."Was that your attempt at slut shaming?" Wondered Milo, finding it a little funny."It wasn't an attempt" responded chief Amari, leaning forward and speaking in a hushed voice. "I think you're both vile disgusting whores. Your generation is too free to do whatever you please, your parents don't care and this is what happens. You all fucked till you either die or get pregnant and then you end up ruined other people's lives in the process.""Jesus, Ani was right about you. She told us you were an asshole but I didn't believe her because I try not to judge a book before I've read it" said Milo, speaking the same chief Amari. "But not that I've spent some time with you, I can see she was dead on.""Milo, are you verbally attacking a police officer right now?" Replied chief Amari, smiling and thinking he had all the power."Nope, I'm verbally attacking my friend's shitty dad" said Milo, smiling now as well. "And can you really call yourself a police officer when you so blatantly don't care about the law?"The 'questioning' ended after that, chief Amari knowing he was getting angry and deciding to leave before he assaulted Milo. It must have been quite irritating actually, thinking you have all this power but then watch as it's taken away from you so easily by a teenager. Twice now. Milo carried on smiling to himself long after he was left alone in the interrogation room, knowing he'd done what he came here to do and also pissed chief Amari off in the process.•A little while after that, the police literally had no legitimate reason to be holding Cassie and Milo The evidence that once only pointing towards Cassie as being the only suspect was now pretty much useless because there was another set of fingerprints and DNA on them. There might as well have been hundreds of fingerprints on them, that's how pointless they were now. Neither Milo or Cassie were questioned about how Milo's fingerprints somehow just appeared because the tragic thing was sometimes things were just missed, much to the annoyance of chief Amari. The un official conclusion was that Milo and Cassie were both whores and that they had both been having secret sexual hookups with Ryan, maybe sometimes having them altogether. Milo hadn't used his one phone call the entire he was there because he hadn't needed to, deciding to save it for this very moment and let Ani know they were getting out. She had of course then let Danny know and now they were both waiting outside of the police station, trying their best to act like they didn't really know each other whilst also trying not to act too excited. There was a couple times when the doors opened and they both jumped up from where they had been sitting but it had only turned out to be some random person leaving for the day. However, soon enough someone they did know was walking out the building. The first of them to leave being Cassie."Cassie oh my god" shouted Ani, running over and instantly pulling Cassie in for a hug. "They actually let you go.""Yeah I was surprised about that as well" said Cassie, smiling and wrapping her arms around Ani. "Why was that by the way?""It was Milo. I mean, we assume it was Milo" replied Ani, separating. "The police turned up at college again and then brought him in for questioning.""Has he come out yet?" Wondered Cassie, looking back at the building. "No, not yet but he said everything was going to be fine right before they took him" responded Ani, biting her lip."Hey" said Danny, walking up to them slightly awkwardly."Hey" replied Cassie, acting just as strange."Are you alright?" Asked Danny, looking deeply at Cassie and her noticing straightaway. she was grateful he had come to visit her whilst she was in there but now everything between them was starting to get muddled and slightly confusing."Yeah man, fuck off" answered Cassie, wanting things to go back to normal but pretty much failing to hide the subtle smile that appeared on her lips, Danny knowing the sentiment was there and smiling as well."Jesus you guys are sensitive" said Milo, appearing behind them all and smiling. They made their way over and hugged Milo, him being appreciative but also becoming very uncomfortable with the human contact very quickly. "Cassie, are you alright?""Yeah I'm good" replied Cassie, smiling as well. "Overall it wasn't as bad as it seems.""They could really do with some windows or something though" said Milo, all of them laughing."Thank you for doing whatever it was you did" replied Cassie, quickly hugging Milo again."Anytime... you've got my back and I've got your's" said Milo as they separated again, still smiling."Thank you for doing something" whispered Danny when he could. "I shouldn't have doubted you.""No worries man, it's all good" whispered Milo, gently nudging one of Danny's arms.As they all started to walk away from the police station, laughing and trying to act as normal as possible given everything that had been going on, Milo just so happened to glance across to the other side of the road. Sat there doing nothing just like it had been at the college those few days ago was the same exact black car, some more blurry figures inside watching Milo and the others. Milo knew it was the same car because the number plate was the same, trying his best to memorise it when he thought it seemed suspicious the first time he saw it. Before thinking of anything else to do, Milo suddenly took a few steps in the car's direction and just like before at the college the car quickly pulled away and then disappeared down the street. The other's had obviously seen something just happen and they were all stood there with looks of concern."Milo, what was that? What's wrong?" Questioned Cassie, swallowing hard and biting her lip."I'm not to sure" responded Milo, squinting his eyes and looking in the direction the car drove off in. "But I'm sure we'll find out soon enough."•That night, Cassie and Ani had both received messages from Milo telling them to come over to his house. They had arrived at pretty much the same time, knocking on the door and waiting for a response. Milo answered rather quickly and then let them in, leading them past his parents that didn't even acknowledge anything was happening and then up to his bedroom where he promptly locked the door. Well, I say locked. What he really did was block it from opening by pulling out a drawer far enough so that it would block the door's path. It's not like anyone else in the house actually cared what was going on though, Milo's parents hadn't even noticed he'd been arrested twice since the start of the new school year. Straightaway Cassie and Ani were wondering two things. One, why wasn't Danny invited to this little meeting because they were assuming it was about the job and two, why did Milo look so serious."Oh god, what's happened now?" Asked Cassie, sighing and then flopping onto the bed."Has Danny been arrested now? Is that why he's not here?" Added Ani, trying to think of every possible scenario."Nothing's happened and Danny hasn't been arrested" answered Milo, rolling his eyes."If he isn't incapable of getting here why isn't he here?" Said Cassie, raising an eyebrow."Danny isn't here because I called you to this meeting to talk about Danny" replied Milo."What about him?" Said Ani, sitting down on the bed now as well, soon followed by Milo so they were all comfortable. "Did he do something?""Look, if this is about him coming to visit me when I was in jail he only did it once and nothing happened" replied Cassie, not making eye contact. "Sure it was nice but was it necessary? Maybe.""Alright let's just move on from that quickly" said Milo, him and Ani glancing at Cassie. "It's about how he's been acting. Like, obviously he can upset or angry or whatever about Ryan dying but we've got to acknowledge he's becoming distant because of it.""Can you blame him though?" Replied Ani. "Ryan was his best friend and now he's gone forever. If it were me and that had happened to either of you two, I'd be completely wrecked. Probably more than Danny is. He's coping with it extremely well considering.""Well yes, he is but a thought keeps crossing my mind" said Milo. "Should we still trust him or should we be wary?""Why wouldn't we be able to trust him?" Wondered Cassie."I'm not saying we can't but it's just... why would he be on our side anymore if you get what I mean" responded Milo, not really knowing how to phrase it. "I killed his best friend for god's shake.""I mean, think about it. That we know of he hasn't told anyone about everything that's been going on and if he didn't want to help us anymore why would he waste his time coming to see me in jail?" Said Cassie. "As much as I hate to say it, Danny hasn't really done anything wrong.""I suppose you're right" replied Milo, thinking about it."I think we can trust him" said Ani. "I know we're all dealing with a lot but Danny is somehow dealing with a ton more.""Alright, I trust you guys and if you trust him then so will I" replied Milo, smiling. "I will be keeping a small eye anyway though.""That's fair, he is still friends with all those other rich assholes" said Cassie, smiling and everyone laughing.Talking about all those other rich assholes, Danny was currently with most of them at someone's house just like he had been a lot recently. Hanging out, remembering Ryan and occasionally chatting shit about other people they thought could have been involved. A large proportion of the conversations that had taken place that evening were about how Milo had also been taken in for questioning and then somehow let go, along with Cassie as well. Obviously the argument was not on their side and everyone was saying how they should both still be in jail and maybe even prison. Danny had tried his best to avoid being involved, either scrolling through his phone or leaving to get a drink or pretending he needed the toilet. All his friends must have thought he had the weakest bladder. However, since Ryan had been Danny's best friend and vice versa, it was slightly difficult to avoid conversation when the chosen topic was Ryan."So Danny, what do you think about all of it?" Asked some guy, most people turning to face Danny."What do I think about all of what?" Countered Danny, not listening."About Milo and Cassie getting set free" answered the same guy."Oh, I... I guess they should still be in jail" said Danny, shrugging his shoulders."I guess they should be rotting in hell" replied a girl, Danny instantly seeing how he'd been speaking to Milo recently and sort of hating how he must have looked."That's a bit harsh isn't it" said Danny. "Saying someone should be rotting in hell.""Well if they're a killer then no, it isn't harsh" replied the girl."If you say so" said Danny, smiling to try and lighten the mood again."Are you alright Danny?" Asked the guy, raising his eyebrows."I guess" answered Danny, slightly confused at the line of questioning. "Why?""Oh it's nothing, you just seem a bit off recently" said the guy. "Is something going on?""No, nothings going on. I'm just dealing with a lot currently" replied Danny."Yeah, aren't we all" said the girl, the mood dying extremely quickly and forcing people to either walk over to other people having different conversations or to go do something more efficient. That's when Danny spotted Charlie out the corner of his eye when he turned back to look at his phone screen."Hey man, you good?" Wondered Danny, putting his phone down and noticing Charlie looked out of it. In fact, now Danny thought about it, Charlie had seemed a bit off quite a lot recently. "Charlie, did you hear me?""Yeah... I'm great" responded Charlie, not even looking at Danny and speaking in a monotone voice."Really? Because you don't seem like yourself" said Danny, raising an eyebrow."In what way? In the way that one of our closest friends was just brutally murdered or in the way that I'm pretty sure I might have seen who did it" replied Charlie, sweating a little."Sorry, what was that?" Questioned Danny, now speaking in a hushed voice and not wanting to push Charlie too much in fear he might have an emotional outburst. "Charlie what did you just say?""I said I think I saw who killed Ryan" responded Charlie, turning to face Danny and looking scared for his life. "I saw Milo and Cassie running away from the back of Ryan's house on the day he died.""Right" said Danny slowly, trying to speak comfortingly and supportively but definitely looking just as sweaty and panicked as Charlie, if not more.————————————————————————Credit song for this chapter: Crimson And Clover - The Shacks - https://youtu.be/5sUeNgPLijE
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*The Day Of Ryan's Death*Charlie had been woken up very early by his dad, not that dissimilar from how Danny had been woken up on the first day of college. They had been planning on going hunting together in the woods for quite some time now, it was something they enjoyed doing ever since Charlie's family came into a lot of money. However, they hadn't a chance yet because college had just started again and Charlie had been having all that tutoring from Milo. Somehow they were blaming Milo for this as well. Sure, Charlie was a little disappointed her couldn't attend Ryan's halloween party but overall it didn't matter, Ryan would be having one every year so missing just one wasn't going to mean much. Charlie hopped out of bed and instantly climbed into the shower, cleaning himself very quickly and not very efficiently. He was going to be wandering around the dirty woods in a bit anyway. After his shower Charlie put on some thin clothing because downstairs was all the gear they were going to be wearing whilst hunting and it was rather thick. They knew some people hating the idea of hunting and they also knew those same people would hate them for doing it. They didn't care though. Charlie's dad just assuming it was because those people couldn't afford to go hunting. Charlie knew better than his dad and knew the real reason was that those people just didn't want to see innocent animals dying. Charlie understood this and could see where they were coming from, however, he enjoyed it so he was going to carry on doing it. So, there they both were, stood in the middle of the woods in the forest that was pretty much surrounding the small town on all sides. Most of it was technically off limits to hunters but with a little flash of cash here and a good word there, most the time they got away with it. Charlie's dad had been noticing though that Charlie was becoming more and more distracted the further they traveled."You're not going to catch anything if you keep staring off into the distance like that" said his dad, looking serious."Right, sorry. It's just, did we have to go past Ryan's house?" Replied Charlie. "You know, where the halloween party happened that I actually would have enjoyed going to.""It's where all the best catches are" said his dad, shrugging his shoulders."Sure" replied Charlie, rolling his eyes as they carried on walking."You know this is going to be a lot more fun if you aren't moaning and groaning all the time" said his dad, really focusing on the bushy areas in front of them."Don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying myself" replied Charlie. "But there are better times to do things like this.""So you want to go home then, is that it?" Questioned his dad, standing up straight and raising his voice."No dad, that's not what I said" responded Charlie, sighing. Luckily the argument that was about to start was interupted but the sound of a gunshot. "What was that? I mean... I know what that was but where did it come from?""I bet it's that asshole Murray from next door" said his dad, angry. "I told him we were going hunting this morning and he looked a little too excited about the idea of it.""But how would he know which exact area we're in?" Wondered Charlie, raising an eyebrow."Like I said, this is where the best catches are" responded his dad. "Now go look for him and tell him to bugger off before he scares everything away.""Why do I have to?" Said Charlie, slouching in defeat."Because obviously you aren't going to shoot anything" replied his dad. "You go deal with him and I'll catch us some food.""Fine" said Charlie, rolling his eyes and walking a from his dad, further into the foliage. The more distance that grew between himself and his father, the closer Charlie got to the back of Ryan's house. The thought had crossed his mind to maybe climb over the fence and hang out with his friends for a bit but then he would have to deal with his dad's anger later and he really couldn't be bothered with that. So he just carried on walking, trying to keep an eye out for someone that was probably Murray and also trying not to get accidentally shot by this person that could be Murray. Maybe the gunshot had come from Murray or maybe it hadn't, that didn't matter though because the thing that caught Charlie's eye was two people appearing over someone's fence and then running through the trees. A flash of ginger and a patterned dress and Charlie instantly knew who it was."What the fuck?" Said Charlie to himself as he watched Milo and Cassie hurrying away from Ryan's house and looking extremely worried about something.*Present Day*"Dude, why didn't you say anything sooner?" Asked Danny, trying to stay as calm as possible."Why would I?" Countered Charlie, breathing heavier."Maybe because this is serious" answered Danny, glancing around to check no one was listening."Danny, I saw two people from our college escaping in the woods after hearing a gunshot and then pretty much straight after that Ryan turns up dead because of a gunshot" said Charlie. "Ryan must have known something he wasn't supposed to and they killed him for it.""You can't say for sure that that's what happened" replied Danny, trying to reason with Charlie."What else could it have been?" Said Charlie. "It's the only plausible explanation.""So I'll ask again, why haven't you said anything to anyone yet?" Replied Danny, biting his lip."I haven't told anyone because I'm scared they'll come after me next" said Charlie, sweating a lot. "I know too much and I'm going to turn up dead because of it." - THE JOB - Intro song: Fidelio - Tom Hillock - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdW0TYok5NI The next day at college, Danny had messaged everyone in the new groupchat they had created after Cassie's and Milo's phone were searched through, telling them they all needed to meet because he had something important to tell them. Once again they decided to gather behind the college building because it turned out to be quite a useful place to meet if you were trying to have a secret meeting. As soon as everyone arrived they could instantly see that Danny looked terrible. It was clear he hadn't gotten much sleep the previous night and something was very obviously effected him. The more all of them thought about it the more none of them knew what that something could be. As far as they were concerned all their hardships were behind them. Milo and Cassie weren't main suspects in Ryan's murder and no one was suspecting them of stealing. To be fair none of them had actually stolen anything in a while but it still counted. The only things that were still off were the fact that technically they did still kill someone, so that guilt was going to be with them for the rest of their lives, and the mysterious black car that was watching them at the college and at the police station. Overall though, everything was fine."What the fuck happened to you?" Asked Cassie as they all walked up to Danny."What do you mean?" Countered Danny, breathing heavy and checking himself over."She mean's you look horrible" answered Ani. "And honestly, she isn't wrong.""You're extremely sweaty dude" said Milo, crossing his arms."You also smell different" added Cassie, slightly sniffing Danny. "Like, you don't smell like your normal self.""How do you know what I normally smell like?" Questioned Danny, forgetting why he was here suddenly and smirking."Screw you" responded Cassie, rolling her eyes."Anyway, moving on from how Danny looks like he's taken every drug imaginable, why are we all here?" Said Milo, trying not to be too concerned just yet."Right, so I was at a friend's house last night and something happened. Well, someone told me something not great" replied Danny. "It was Charlie who told me to be exact.""Alright, what did Charlie have to say?" Said Ani, raising an eyebrow."Don't freak out... but apparently he saw Milo and Cassie running away from the back of Ryan's house right after he heard a gunshot" replied Danny, wincing at his own words. "Presumably the gunshot that killed Ryan.""You've got to be fucking kidding me" said Cassie, putting her hands on her head. "What was Charlie even doing in the woods anyway?""He was hunting with his dad" replied Danny. "I'm pretty sure I did mention this to you at some point.""And he's sure it was Milo and Cassie that he saw?" Questioned Ani, swallowing hard."He's pretty convinced yeah" responded Danny. "So much so that he thinks if he says anything to the police or whatever that you'll kill him next.""Well I suppose that's good" said Milo, thinking about it."How is that good?" Replied Danny."Because it means he isn't going to tell anyone" said Milo. "For now at least.""He told Danny though" replied Cassie. "What's to stop him gaining a little more confidence and then spilling everything to the cops.""Cassie had a point" said Ani. "You two are obviously already on thin ice. The police and my dad are most likely still keeping an eye on you and if Charlie does decide to say anything, they won't need proof of him seeing anything because they already have the DNA evidence.""Fuck... we're fucked" replied Cassie, flailing her arms around. "Every time I think we're fine, we actually fucked.""We are not fucked, we just need to deal with this somehow" said Milo, trying to remain calm."Oh what, like how you dealt with it last time?" Replied Danny. "Yeah screw that, I'm not having another one of my friends die.""Hey, I never said anything about threatening him" said Milo, doing his best not to raise his voice."However, maybe that's exactly what we need to do" replied Ani, biting her lip."Ani... seriously" said Danny, looking disappointed. "You're the last person I would have thought would suggest that.""What's that supposed to mean?" Queried Cassie, crossing her arms and raising her eyebrows."I don't mean with a gun like last time" said Ani, clarifying. "I just mean, we could go to his house and verbally threaten him.""Peacefully but also not peacefully" replied Milo, weighing the options in his head. "I mean, I don't see why not. It's the best we've got right now.""I suppose what happened last time couldn't happen if we didn't bring the gun" said Danny, sighing."Alright, so how are we doing this?" Wondered Cassie."I guess just like last time pretty much" responded Milo. "Danny could go over to Charlie's house after college pretending to be a supportive friend and then he could let us in.""One, I am a supportive friend and two... sounds like a plan" said Danny."I can't believe we're doing this again" replied Cassie, groaning."Don't worry, this time it'll go a lot smoother" said Milo, smiling comfortingly.•Part way through the day, Danny asked Charlie if he could come over after college so they could hang out more. At first Charlie was a little confused because usually they would just either hang out with everyone or Danny would prefer to go home instead. Danny had seen Charlie's confusion and then said the real reason was so they could talk more about what Charlie had said and maybe they could sort something out. Charlie had then agreed and said it works out perfectly because his parents wouldn't home until later on. So, straight after college finished, Danny followed Charlie back to his house and they both chilled out on the sofa, spending all their time there until Danny received a message Milo saying they were on their way. Danny was obviously nervous because of what had happened last time but also because this time he was going to be in the room as well, not hiding the fact that he was involved with everything that had been going on. He knew Charlie would hate him forever and honestly Danny would probably hate himself as well. However, it wasn't Danny's fault Charlie was in the woods when Ryan was killed and now had the power to put Milo and Cassie in jail if he ever felt like it."Hey man, is it alright if I just go get a drink?" Asked Danny, standing up from the sofa."Yeah sure, the kitchen is just through there" answered Charlie, pointing down one of the hallways and then standing up as well. "I'm just going to go use the bathroom whilst you're getting it.""Alright, cool" said Danny, walking into the kitchen and then listening closely to the sound of Charlie walking upstairs.It was no or never, Danny had to let Milo and the others into the house. Without even realising it, Charlie had just made it ten times easier for Danny to let them in. Danny was first assuming he was going to have to somehow sneak behind Charlie towards the front door and let them in without Charlie hearing and then trying to escape. Danny supposed the universe was on his side in this current moment as he unlocked the front door and pulled it open, moving out the way as Milo and the others entered the house quietly. Danny closed the front door again and they all walked through to where Danny and Charlie had been hanging out."So where is he?" Asked Cassie, looking around."He said he was going to use the bathroom" answered Danny, gesturing upstairs."Alright then, let's go" said Milo, heading towards the stairs but then getting stopped by Danny."First, let me just check" replied Danny, starting to preform a pat down on Milo."I didn't bring the gun with me if that's what you're looking for" said Milo, smiling. "We agreed upon this before, you can trust me you know.""Just making sure" replied Danny, finishing his inspection.Milo carried on smiling and shook his head slightly as they all started making their way upstairs. They arrived at the closets bathroom but there was no one in there, some of them thinking Charlie might have done a runner before Danny suggested the en suite in Charlie's bedroom. None of them knew where that was so Danny had to lead the way, all of them being as quiet as possible until Danny made sure Charlie was actually in there. He was just finishing up in the bathroom as Milo and everyone else entered the bedroom, Danny closing and locking the door behind himself."What's going on?" Questioned Charlie when he walked out the en suite, worry instantly filling his body because of who was in his bedroom."Hey Charlie" responded Milo, smiling. "We just wanted to talk.""About what?" Said Charlie, not doing a very good job of acting dumb."Let's not overcomplicate things, we all know you saw something in the woods on the day of Ryan's death" replied Milo, stepping closer to Charlie. "We just wanted to get a clear picture of what it is you think you saw.""I don't think I anything, I know I saw something" said Charlie, pointing at Milo and Cassie. "I saw you two running away from his house.""See, did you though? Because specifically remember being at home at the time of the murder" replied Milo, pretending to think. "Isn't that the same with you Cassie?""It is indeed" added Cassie."Bullshit, I know I saw you" said Charlie, obviously trying to think of something else to say. "I also know more than that. I know everything you've been up to.""Really? And what would that be?" Wondered Milo, raising an eyebrow."Why would I say when you'll just deny that as well" responded Charlie."Alright then, how did you find out all that other stuff?" Said Ani, crossing her arms."Danny told me" replied Charlie, obviously lying but now knowing Danny was involved seeing him as his only excuse."Come again" said Milo, squinting his eyes."Danny told me everything" replied Charlie, lying through his teeth. "I told him about seeing you guys in the woods and then downstairs just then he was telling me about all these other things you've done.""You fucking bastard" said Cassie, turning to face Danny and punching him a couple times on the arm. "We talked about still trusting you and for some stupid reason I agreed that you were alright. Guess I was fucking wrong.""Wait, you guys have been having secret meetings without me" replied Danny, emotionally hurt and physically hurt because of where Cassie was smacking him. "Well if the meeting is about someone specific you don't usually invite that person" said Milo, rolling his eyes."Stop hitting me" shouted Danny, blocking Cassie's hands but didn't think she would start kicking him instead."You're a piece of shit rich guy like the rest of them" shouted Cassie, pretty much fighting Danny."I didn't tell him shit... he's lying, believe me" groaned Danny, wrapping his arms around Cassie's body and holding her tight against his own so she couldn't hit him anymore. However, she very quickly managed to bite one of his arms and then knee him in the crotch. "Fuck.""Charlie, are you bullshitting right n-" said Milo, turning back to face Charlie but before he could finish his sentence, Charlie was shoving him backwards and running back into the en suite and closing the door behind him. "Shit... Charlie, open the door.""Fuck you" replied Charlie, holding the door closed as Milo and Ani tried the best to force it open.This entire situation had vert quickly progressed into complete anarchy. Danny and Cassie were pretty much having a wrestling match in the middle of the room whilst Milo and Ani were putting so much pressure on the bathroom door that the hinges were starting to bend. Meanwhile inside the en suite, Charlie was looking around for something he could use as a weapon when he noticed something that meant he didn't have to find anything. Suddenly, without either of them expecting it, the bathroom door opened and both Milo and Ani fell forwards onto the floor."What the hell" said Ani, rubbing her head."Oh fuck" shouted Milo after looking up and seeing the en suite connected to two bedrooms. He quickly sat up and shouted back to Danny and Cassie. "Guys stop fighting, the bathroom had two goddamn doors.""And what?" Questioned Cassie, still fighting."He's getting the fuck away Cassie" responded Milo, standing up and pulling Ani to her feet as well."Shit" sighed Cassie as Milo and Ani started running through the en suite in the same direction as Charlie, not paying enough attention as Danny then released himself and ran towards the bedroom door. "Danny stop."Everyone ran around the top floor of the house, trying to find Charlie before he managed to get to the stairs and then out of the house to freedom. The upstairs turned out to just be one massive loop because soon enough Milo and Ani were reaching the landing they had walked past when reaching the top of the stairs. Luckily Charlie wasn't that far in front, only just getting to the stairs. However, just as he put his foot on the first step, Danny appeared from the second hallway and grabbed ahold of him. They had a very brief and honestly not very entertaining struggle before Charlie managed to pull himself free of Danny's grasp. Something Charlie didn't account for though was the amount of force he used and the amount of balance he had. Cassie arrived just as it happened, herself and the others all watching as Charlie's feet slipped and he went tumbling backwards down the stairs. Danny had tried to grab him but to anyone else it might have looked like a push. Some of them covered their mouths in shock as Charlie connected with pretty much every step until eventually his head collided with the large cypher at the end of the bannister, knocking him unconscious and leaving him in a crumpled heap on the floor, a small amount of blood slowly running down the curve of the cypher."At least you can't blame me for this one" said Milo after a bit, all of them still frozen as a small crimson red puddle gradually started spreading out from beneath Charlie's head.————————————————————————Credit song for this chapter: Ultraviolence - Lana Del Rey - https://youtu.be/EJSk2RySqKg
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"You can't be serious" said Cassie. "How has this happened again?""Calm down, he could still be alive" replied Milo."Definitely... in fact, I think I can see him breathing" said Danny."Someone go check on him" replied Ani, nudging Milo. "Milo... go.""What? And get fingerprints all over him? Yeah, no thank you" said Milo. "I've already done that once already and I'd prefer to never have to do it again."All four of them were still stood at the top of the stairs, looking down at an unconscious Charlie lying at the bottom below them. From where they were it was still unclear whether he was dead. The actual fall down the stairs could have killed him or it might have been the blow to the head he took when he came into contact with the big cypher thing. None of them really knew what to do, all you know what happened the last time something like this happened. The people involved left. In the space of under two weeks Milo and the others might have killed two of their classmates. Well, they definitely killed one but the second one was still to be determined. That's when Milo started thinking of what they should so in this new situation."Alright, no one touch anything" said Milo, starting to head downstairs slowly. "We can't have our fingerprints anywhere like last time.""What about mine? I've been touching things all over this damn house" replied Danny, panicking."You're fine since you're actually friends with Charlie" said Milo. "Plus, it could work with what I have in mind.""Where are you going?" Wondered Ani, biting her lip."Im going to check if he's actually dead or not" responded Milo, reaching Charlie's body."I don't know if it'd be worse if he was still alive or worse if he was dead" said Cassie, sighing and rolling her eyes."How would it be worse if he was still alive?" Questioned Danny, raising an eyebrow."Because he can live to tell the tale about how we technically broke in, pretty much admitted to killing Ryan and doing other illegal things, and then decided to assault him by pushing him down the stairs" responded Cassie like it was obvious."I didn't push him" clarified Danny, feeling guilty either way."Do you really think the jury is going to see it that way" replied Cassie, raising her eye brows quizzically."Alright, I think we're good" said Milo, pressing two of his fingers to Charlie's neck. "I think he's still with us.""Oh thank god" replied Ani, all of them making their way downstairs now too. "So what now? Please say we can just apologise and then leave like nothing happened.""Yeah we can probably apologise but something definitely happened here" said Milo, pursing his lips and glancing around at the damage. A couple broken bannister posts, some pictures knocked from the wall, and blood staining the white cypher and carpet. "We're going to have to come up with something else.""Like what?" Replied Danny, swallowing hard."To be clear, I do have an idea but you guys can't always look to me for the solution" said Milo, smiling and seeing everyone staring at him. "What if something were to happen to me? What then? Who would come up with the plan if that happened?""Well is anything ever going to happen to you?" Replied Cassie, squinting."No but you get what I mean" said Milo, rolling his eyes."We do but can we have this conversation somewhere else" replied Ani, gesturing to everything around them. "What were you thinking?""Alright so, I suggest we make it look like a robbery gone wrong" said Milo, waiting for people's initial reactions but seeing they wanted more information. "Okay... we steal some stuff to make it look like the people breaking in still did what they came here to do, we take Charlie with us for now to make it seem like he was a witness to the people breaking in so they took him too, and finally we leave someone behind to help back up the story.""Who's the person that's staying?" Replied Danny, everyone turning to look at him instantly. "Seriously... oh for god sake.""It makes the most sense since you actually know him. Also, you'll have to tell the police something along the lines of you getting hit over the back of the head with something and going unconscious because otherwise they'll wonder why you weren't taken as well" said Milo, now looking at everyone. "So, is everyone alright with that plan.""I think we're going to have to be" replied Cassie, sighing."What are we doing with Charlie though?" Wondered Ani, concerned."We're just going to take him with us for now and then maybe we'll have more time to convince him not to say anything" responded Milo, smiling comfortingly."Yeah, like that went well last time" added Cassie, wincing as she looked at Charlie's body. "The only thing is where we're going to take him" said Milo, thinking. "Obviously it can't be any of our houses but that doesn't leave us when any other options.""You could take him to my family's beach house" replied Danny, instantly knowing how some people were going to react to that sentence."You have a fucking beach house" said Cassie, shaking her head slightly. "God I hate you.""Or you could just get caught with Charlie's unconscious body and then definitely get taken to prison" replied Danny, smiling at Cassie."No, your beach house works" said Milo. "Will anyone ever come over?""Probably not since it's pretty much winter" replied Danny. "Hopefully by summer we won't still be holding him captive.""Wait, was that something actually working out for us for once?" Wondered Ani, smiling."I believe it was" responded Milo, everyone else smiling too. "Alright, let's get to it. Me and Ani will collect some stuff to steal and Cassie you can find something to hit over Danny's head.""Hang on, you're actually going to knock me out" said Danny, concerned."We have to make it believable and Cassie is the one out of us to most likely hit you over the head violently with something anyway" replied Milo. "Just make sure whatever it is you hit him with is also something we're taking with us.""Got it" said Cassie, smiling and going upstairs to look for something. "Come on Danny.""Oh jesus" sighed Danny, slouching and slowly following Cassie.Milo and Ani began walking through the house, looking for anything they could pretend they were stealing. Well, technically they were stealing it and who's to say they weren't going to sell it on later like Milo did with the telescope. However, right now it all just seemed like some sort of act. They were obviously looking for things that looked expensive but also weren't taking everything they could see. They had to make it seem like whoever it was that broke it wanted to take more but didn't have enough room in their bag or car or whatever. Occasionally they would smash something or break another thing because for some reason that's what people tended to do when they were breaking in somewhere, destroy the place as they robbed it. Ani felt sort of bad but Milo was quick to remind her that the people that owned the house could afford to pat for all the damages. Whilst Milo and Ani were downstairs, Danny was watching silently as Cassie collected a few things here and there but mainly looking for something to smack him over the back of the head with. Danny winced as Cassie inspected sports trophies, heavy books and even a couple lamps. Eventually though she settled on a smallish sculpture that seemed heavy enough, smiling maniacally as she turned around to face Danny."Guys, I think I've found something" shouted Cassie, causing Milo and Ani to hurry upstairs to Charlie's bedroom."Yeah, that should work" said Milo, feeling the weight of the sculpture. "It'll do the job hopefully without leaving any lasting damage.""Hopefully?" Repeated Danny slowly, becoming more and more unsure about this."Alright, turn around I guess" said Ani, smiling and trying to calm Danny down."See you on the other side" whispered Cassie into one of Danny's ears before quickly swinging the sculpture and bringing it down on Danny's head. They all watched as Danny went limp and fell forward, landing on the floor with his eyes closed."Did it work?" Asked Ani, biting her lip."I think so" answered Milo, smiling once he'd checked out a now unconscious Danny, a small cut appearing on the back of Danny's scalp and causing a small trail of blood to run across his face. "I don't know how long he'll be out for though so let's hurry up.""Yeah we should probably leave right about when since I think Charlie's parents have just got back" said Cassie, peaking out the window and seeing a couple climb out a car at the end of the driveway."Alright, everyone grab a part of Charlie" replied Milo as they all ran downstairs.In that moment they were all incredibly grateful for how long most of the driveways were in this specific area because it was taken an enormous amount of time for Charlie's parents to reach the front door. They all slowly but also quickly lifted part of Charlie's body and gradually made their way through the house until they were at the backdoor. Using one of his feet since his hands were busy, Milo pushed the door handle down and then kicked the door open. They all exited the house, Ani kicking the backdoor shut again once they were all out, and then made their way to the back fence just like Milo and Cassie had done at Ryan's house. This time though, Milo checked over the fence to make sure their weren't any other teenagers that might see them. Once he said the coast was clear, they lifted Charlie's body and dumped it rather ungracefully over the fence, following soon after just as Charlie's parents were entering the house."Charlie we're home" said his mum, almost instantly noticing all the carnage everywhere and the small puddle of blood at the bottom of the stairs. "Charlie... Charlie.""Honey what's going on?" Asked his dad, walking through the front door."Call the police, something has happened" shouted Charlie's mum as she ran upstairs towards Charlie's bedroom. "Charlie... Charlie are you in here?""God... what the fuck?" Muttered Danny, rubbing his now bloody head as he came to and as Charlie's mum burst through the door."Where's Charlie? Oh my god my baby is gone" screamed Charlie's mum, running around frantically and not helping with Danny's headache. "Charlie where are you?" - THE JOB - Intro song: Fidelio - Tom Hillock - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdW0TYok5NI Very quickly after Charlie's parents arrived home, the police were turning up and the entirety of Charlie's house became a crime scene. Danny thought it was a bit over the top but he supposed they were right to do that considering it look as though Milo and the others had completely trashed the place. The last thing Danny remembered was the sound of Cassie's voice in his ear saying 'see you on the other side' and then there was just darkness. The next thing Danny knew he was waking up to the sound of Charlie's mum screaming and his head pounding, blood covering his fingertips when he touched the back of his head where the pain was coming from. An ambulance was called but the paramedics said his injury wasn't that bad, just a mild concussion. Danny was taken to hospital anyway so they could give him the proper treatment like scans and tests just in case there was something wrong with him the paramedics couldn't make out from just their ambulance. Danny received a CT and had a consultation with a neurosurgeon but overall everything came back clean, Danny was fine all things considered. The only thing he was told to do was stay in the hospital for a little bit whilst his mind became more clear and he could get some food and drink in him. It didn't take long for the police, specifically chief Amari, to appear and start asking questions."So, Daniel Connolly is it?" Asked chief Amari, pulling out a notepad."I go by Danny but yes, I suppose so" answered Danny, swallowing thickly."Alright Daniel, just explain to me what happened" said chief Amari, completely ignoring Danny's request."Well that's the thing, I don't remember what happened" replied Danny."You can't remember a single thing about your evening?" Questioned chief Amari, raising an eyebrow."I can remember some things like going to Charlie's house and hanging out with him but most things after that are a blur" responded Danny, thinking because some things he genuinely couldn't remember."Okay then, just tell me all the things you do recall then" said chief Amari, sounding slightly annoyed."Me and Charlie were hanging out, we went up to his bedroom, there was a noise from downstairs and then Charlie left" replied Danny, pursing his lips."And then what happened? What occurred after Charlie left his bedroom?" Wondered chief Amari."Like I said, I don't remember" responded Danny, shrugging. "Charlie left and then I was waking up on his bedroom floor with his mum yelling and my head hurting.""Right... see all of that just seems a bit suspicious to me" said chief Amari, squinting his eyes."How so?" Asked Danny, feeling slightly guilty about what had happened to Charlie and now all the lying but also not wanting to be caught."It's just that, Charlie apparently went downstairs after you both heard a noise and then he was apparently taken by whoever broke in" answered chief Amari. "Why didn't you go with Charlie and why weren't you taken by whoever broke in?""I guess we didn't think the noise was a big deal at the time" said Danny, noting that chief Amari had pondered the question Milo had mentioned. "And I don't know why I wasn't taken as well. Maybe it was because Charlie saw the people breaking in and I didn't. You know, wound on the back of my head and all.""I suppose so" replied chief Amari, obviously still suspicious."Have you got any ideas who it might have been?" Said Danny, deciding to try and get some information out of chief Amari that he could pass onto the others. "Like, have you caught anyone yet?""No, not yet... but I have my theories" replied chief Amari, definitely inferring that the theories he had were about Milo and most likely Cassie as well. "Anyway, I'll leave you to get rest up and get better.""Alright" said Danny, wanting to try and find out more but also glad the chief was leaving."Oh, if anything else comes to mind that you remember, don't be afraid to come down to the station and let me know" replied chief Amari, his smile definitely not comforting in any way."Okay, will do" said Danny, smiling as well but knowing it must not have looked very confident. He carried on smiling as the chief left his hospital room and walked down the hall out of sight. "Thank fuck that's over."•Whilst Danny was recovering hospital and being questioned by the police, Milo and the others were transporting a still unconscious Charlie to Danny's beach house. And very slowly might I add. Not all of that was their fault though, there was a lot going on in the town apparently. Well, to be fair, that might have been their fault. Ever since the shocking discovery of Ryan's murder reached everyone in town, news started spreading a lot faster. Maybe it was because no one had anything better to do or maybe it was because this might have been one of the most interesting times to live here, whichever reason it was it was rather inconvenient for Milo and his friends. It had only been about half an hour or so since the incident with Charlie had occurred and already most the people in the town were talking about it. Everyone small little bit of information they caught from a passing conversation was about how someone else was probably dead or being sold in sex slavery. The tones of the conversations were very different though depending who was talking about it. Rich people seemed to be more worried whereas poorer people were acting as if it was all some sort of joke, not caring about another teenager possibly dying.As Milo, Cassie and Ani all gradually made their way through town towards the beach, they had to dodge a lot of things. The weather was quite alright today which meant more people were out and about. There were people walking their dogs or just going for a stroll, there were people driving somewhere, some people were relaxing in their front or back gardens, and there was the rare few that had heard about Charlie's disappearance and though they were going to be the ones to find him. Milo didn't think he could sweat this much, feeling it run down his face every time they came close to be caught and that tended to happen quite a bit. Mostly the stuck to the trees, thankful that most of the town was surrounded by forest and actually connected to the beach. However, occasionally the trees stopped because of a road or street and then started again on the other side. This meant they would have to check if anyone was coming or standing at a window in their house before quickly carrying or dragging Charlie across. Maybe they were also sweating because Charlie was not the lightest person to carry across town, having a similar build to Danny or Ryan.As well as other residents of the town being possible witnesses, the was an abundance of police cars and officers roaming the streets and searching most areas for any sign of something suspicious. Ever since everything started going slightly wrong, chief Amari had upped the amount of officers that should be working and patrolling the town. He wanted the town to seem like a safe place so that most people didn't bat an eye if he did something a little illegal. There were a few times on the journey to the beach when a couple of police officers would wander into the woods or take a second glance into the tree line because they thought they might have seen something, meaning Milo and his friends would have to duck down behind some bushes or branches until it was safe to move on again. It wouldn't surprise any of them if they were to find out chief Amari put an arrest warrant out for them specifically just because he had his suspicions. Plus, it wasn't even just police that might have been keeping an eye on them. More than once Milo, and sometimes Cassie and Ani, would spot a black car sitting on the side of the road or in a car park with some figures inside that seemed to be watching them again. It was scary and off putting for many reasons. Some of which included who the people were, why they watching, and also how they knew where Milo and the others were even when everyone else didn't. It wasn't always the same black car from the police station and college but it definitely had the same vibe as those ones. Mysterious and ominous.Eventually they all reached the beach, surprised but relieved there weren't that many people enjoying the remaining few hours of sunshine they had before night came. They lugged Charlie's body along the length of the beach until they reached where all the rich people's beach houses were, massive constructions that could have normal houses of their own. They knew which one was Danny's because he had informed Cassie about what it looked like when she was looking for something to assault him with. There was a flagpole out front that had the union jack flag blowing at the top, it built like most american houses so wooden slates, and it was a slightly sky blue colour with white frames bordering all the windows and doors. Apparently they had reached it just in time because it seemed as though Charlie was beginning to stir from his little nap. They all pushed themselves just that little further so they could get him inside, Cassie quickly retrieving the spare key from under one of the many plant pots out front. As soon as they were inside, Milo found some zip ties in one of the kitchen drawers whilst Cassie and Ani sat Charlie in a smallish wooden chair in what seemed to be the room in the centre of the beach house. Was this their new normal? They all thought."There we go" said Ani, rolling a small towel up and wrapping it around Charlie's head so it was pretty much gagging him and stopping him from making any noise."I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing that you thought of doing that" replied Cassie, smirking."This is fine" said Milo, smiling as they all stood back and looked at the mess they were in. "This is completely fine."• After leaving the hospital because he honestly didn't really want to be there anymore, plus he felt a lot better, Danny headed straight for the beach house. He checked his phone on the way and there was a lot of messages and texts from his friends in groupchats saying things along the lines of 'does anyone know what's happening at Charlie's?' Or 'Charlie tell us what's happening' or the occasional one saying 'oh my god has it happened again?' Danny didn't reply to any of them, too concerned with knowing what's going on and wanting to help sort it all out. It didn't take him long to get to the beach house since he didn't have to dodge anyone and he could just walk down the street without much of a care in the world. Making sure no one was around before knocking on the front door, Danny took a deep breathe before he was pulled back into all the madness."Hey" said Milo as he opened the door and moved out the way."Hey" replied Danny, entering. "How are things here?""They could probably be better" said Milo, leading Danny to where they had a restrained Charlie."Oh right... hey man, how you doing?" Asked Danny, smiling and only get a mumbled response that sounded violent. "What was that? What did he just say?""I think he told you to fuck off" answered Cassie, pursing her lips as if it wasn't the first time Charlie had said something like this."We've tried talking to him and even tried coming up with deals but he won't listen and won't agree to anything" said Ani, crossing her arms. "He's determined to get out of here and tell the police everything.""He doesn't know everything though" replied Danny."He knows enough though" said Milo."How's your head?" Wondered Cassie, checking out where she's hit him."It'll be fine" responded Danny, smiling a little at the fact Cassie even thought to ask."I think we should just leave him here for now" said Milo, seeing people didn't know whether to agree to that or not. "Obviously not forever but just whilst we figure something out. You know, try and come up with other ways that don't include the obvious to make sure he doesn't say anything.""Alright" replied Danny, feeling slightly bad. "It'll also give us a little break I suppose.""If a break is included I'm all for it" said Cassie, putting her hands up like she was surrendering."Okay... sounds good" replied Ani, hesitant but knowing it was the best they had right now."Great, let's get out of here then" said Milo, smiling and leading the way to the front door.They turned off all the lights and locked the front door, sliding the spare key under the same plant pot they first grabbed it from. Danny had noticed someone had taken care of Charlie's head wound, grateful he wasn't going to bleed out when they weren't with him. As far as anyone would be able to tell, no one had been inside of Danny's family's beach house for at least a few months now. They all wandered along the beach until they could walk back up to the road, making sure no one they knew was around and saw Danny hanging out with them. Luckily there wasn't but something Milo did notice was the very same black car that had been around a lot recently, the same numberplate and everything."Alright, everyone act normal but the black car is watching us again" said Milo, pretending like he hadn't seen it. "Try not to make it obvious you're looking.""Who the fuck is it?" Questioned Cassie, swallowing hard."No clue but I want to try and find out" responded Milo, turning and sprinting towards the car as soon as he finished his sentence. The others just watched in shock as Milo got quite close before the car managed to drive away, speeding down the road and out of sight like it had all those previous times. "Fuckers.""Is anyone getting a really uncomfortable feeling from that?" Wondered Ani, biting her lip."Yep" responded everyone, all of them looking incredibly worried.•Whilst Milo and everyone else were making their way back to their separate houses, Ani's dad was becoming more and more suspicious of Milo. There was just something he couldn't figure out. He knew Milo had something to do with everything that had happened recently in the town because for some reason Milo was also around when it took place or he wormed his way in. Chief Amari couldn't figure out why though. Why did Milo possibly throw himself in danger when Cassie could have easily taken the blame? Why would Milo kill Ryan? and now, even though the wasn't any proof to say Milo was a part of this one, why would Milo possibly kill Charlie as well? There was something about Milo that chief Amari didn't like. He was a smart-arse who somehow got out of everything and seemed like an emotionless sociopath yet still had people he cared about and who also cared about him. How could someone like that even exist let alone function properly. Milo wasn't like anyone chief Amari had ever locked up before because Milo for some unknown reason knew what he was doing despite hopefully never doing these things in before.As far as chief Amari was concerned, Milo was the one that had killed Ryan. The only problem with that plan though was that Milo didn't have any way of getting his hands on a gun. He wasn't 18 yet which meant he couldn't he couldn't buy a gun let alone own one and he didn't know anyone that could supply him with one. Or did he? The more chief Amari thought about it the clearer it became. Milo and Ani were best friends, they had known one another for years and not that long ago he'd had an argument with Ani about why her friends were getting questioned for something as insane as killing a classmate. Chief Amari hoped it wasn't true but he had to know for certain. He got up from where he had been sitting on the sofa and walked to his office, unlocking the door and quickly walking over to the guns locker. Chief Amari retrieved the key and pulled the doors open. His eyes searched frantically for anything that was out of place or missing, praying to god everything would be right. However, then he saw it, a small gap that had never been empty previously. Chief Amari closed his eyes and sighed. This didn't confirm that Ani had anything to do with the murder, Milo could have just as easily found his way in here and taken the gun himself. However, as of right now, chief Amari had to entertain the fact that his own daughter might have had something to do with Ryan's death.————————————————————————Credit song for this chapter: Cradles - Sub Urban - https://youtu.be/KBtk5FUeJbk
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Getting some rest was probably one of the best ideas they'd come up with since all of this started. Milo was incredibly tired, barely getting any sleep when they actually had time to. To be fair, there was a lot going in inside Milo's head and he was dealing with a lot as well. Some of that stuff was his fault but it was still more than enough. After leaving Danny's beach house and almost reaching the black car, everyone went their separate ways. Milo was walking down the street that led to his house, taking in the last bit of sunlight there was going to be today and feeling the cool breeze brush past his tired and dry skin. Most the moisture from his body being pushed out when he was sweating across town earlier. He was actually excited to get home for once. Excited to walk past his parents that were so useless they might as well not be his parents, climb the stairs up to his bedroom and finally wipe out on the bed, drifting off into a world where there wasn't a constant threat of being hunted down by rich people or taken to prison. However, Milo would have to wait just a little longer for that sweet relief. He was about three houses away from his own home when he spotted it, a police car parked out front. Milo slowly walked closer and saw that two officers, one actually being chief Amari, were knocking on the front door. This looked serious and Milo instantly knew what they might be here for."Fuck" sighed Milo, rolling his eyes and then turning into his neighbor's front garden so he could somehow get to the back of his house. All the while his parents were finally opening the front door."Hello Mr and Mrs Bellamy" said chief Amari, a fake kind voice evident. "Is Milo Bellamy home?""Who?" Questioned Milo's mum slowly."Milo Bellamy... your son" responded chief Amari, slightly confused and obviously checking the house number he had on his notepad. "I'm sorry, are you the Bellamys?""We are" said Milo's dad."And does someone called Milo Bellamy live here?" Asked chief Amari, squinting his eyes."He does" answered Milo's dad, both him and Milo's mum suddenly changing tune. "Oh, you mean that son... no he isn't home.""Alright, great. May we come in" said chief Amari, rolling his eyes and pretty much pushing past Milo's parents after turning to the other officer and saying "Put out an APB to find Milo Bellamy. I want him found and taken to the police station."Milo silently cursed to himself because for some reason he just couldn't get a break. Milo carried on into next door's front garden and made his way along the fence. Luckily there was a small passage that led into the back garden which meant Milo wouldn't have to go onto his property just yet. When he reached the back of the house, Milo slowly peered over the fence and looked at the back of his house, watching as his parents and the police walked into the kitchen and started talking about something. Chief Amari was no doubt informing Milo's parents of everything Milo had been up to or had supposedly been up to these past few weeks. Milo wasn't too concerned with that though since his parents didn't really care about much let alone him. When it seemed safe to do so Milo climbed over the fence and then quickly moved over to the side of his house, sliding along the edge until he reached the trellis going up the side to the first floor. Milo took a deep breathe and then slowly but surely he started climbing, hoping it wouldn't break and send him hurtling towards the ground. Luckily there was a small ledge at the top which meant Milo could somewhat crawl across safely until he reached his bedroom window. It was closed but there weren't any locks or anything so Milo was able to shift it open rather quickly. Making sure to move it slowly just in case the hinges squeaked, Milo pushed the window up as far as he needed to to make room for himself to climb inside. Once there was enough space Milo entered his bedroom, knowing where the floorboards creaked from years of standing on them and doing his very best to avoid them. Milo walked across his room to his bed and then lifted the mattress, sliding his hand under until he felt the handle of the gun. As he was pulling it out and tucking it into the waistband of his trousers, Milo heard the sound of people coming upstairs. It wasn't a surprise that they were going to search his bedroom first and it was even less of a surprise that his parents let the police do it. However, that didn't matter to Milo though because by the time the police were pretty much breaking open the door to his bedroom, he had already climbed back out the window and back down the trellis. He didn't waste time with closing the window and thank god he didn't because Milo only managed to duck behind the fence again just as chief Amari was sticking his head out the window and looking around to make sure nothing was off. Milo let out a breathe of relief and then started his journey as far away from his house as possible just as about three more police cars pulled up. - THE JOB - Intro song: Fidelio - Tom Hillock - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdW0TYok5NI At some point Milo managed to make it back to the streets instead on hoping fences and crossing people's gardens. However, after only about 5 minutes of walking, Milo heard the sound of a police siren getting closer and closer. Milo panicked and looked around, searching for anywhere he could hide. Surely they hadn't found him already. He was being extra careful and as far as he knew no one had seen him. Plus right now it was only the police that were searching for him and not the entire town. As Milo glanced around, he managed to catch sight of a skip that didn't appear to have too much inside. He guess the people who owned it had gotten halfway through a job an stopped. Milo ran across the road and lifted himself inside, ducking down below the surface just as the police car rounded the corner and went speeding past. Milo shook his head slightly and caught his breathe, hating that he might have to come to term with his life being like this from now on. A murder suspect and on the run from the police. At least his friends weren't in the same position. Wait, did they even know thought Milo."Come on come on" said Milo, searching himself for his phone and finally finding it. He very quickly scrolled through his contacts and clicked Ani's name. "Ani please pick up.""Hey Milo, I thought we were supposed to be getting some rest" said Ani, letting out a small laugh."Yeah, about that" replied Milo, breathing heavy."Milo are you alright? You sound panicked" said Ani, instantly concerned and sitting up in bed. "What's happening?""Nothing much except the police are searching my house" replied Milo, peaking over the top of the skip quickly to make sure no one was listening."Sorry, what was that?" Questioned Ani."I got home and the police were arriving to search my house" responded Milo, biting his lip. "Your dad being one of them by the way.""Jesus, damn it" said Ani, breathing a little heavy now herself. "What do you think they're looking for?""Well, mainly me I think but also the gun" replied Milo. "Why else would they bother searching the house. My room specifically.""Crap, did they find it?" Asked Ani, worried."No, I managed to get inside and grab it before they got to it" answered Milo. "I didn't have time to grab anything else though so they might find some of the money we made from the job.""That's alright though, you can just say that's from tutoring" said Ani, Milo thinking the same thing. "Where are you now?""Hiding in someone's partially empty skip" replied Milo. "I ran away from my house and dived in here when a police car went past.""Did they put an APB out for your arrest?" Wondered Ani, noticing Milo didn't say anything and knowing what that meant. "Oh god... Milo this isn't good.""Obviously this isn't good. If it was good I wouldn't be hiding in amongst someone's rubbish" responded Milo. "What do you suggest I do?""Well obviously you have to get rid of the gun somehow" said Ani, thinking. "My dad probably suspects I was the one that helped you get it so he'll most likely turn up here at some point and search my room too.""Alright, your house is a no go then" replied Milo, swallowing hard."I'd honestly say all of our houses are no goes, they're just risky. You'll just have to figure out some other way of disposing of it" said Ani. "As for yourself, you're just going to have to carry on hiding until we clear your name or something.""That could take days and that's if they even let it happen anyway" replied Milo, rubbing his temples. "Everyone is desperate to find the person that killed Ryan and I know that technically it was me that did it but even if it hadn't been, I'm someone that most people would happily see put behind bars and then be turned into someone's prison wife or whatever they're called.""I think another name is someone's bitch" said Ani, unsure."Exactly... I'm going to be turned into someone's bitch, Ani" replied Milo, sweating."Just try and stay as calm as possible, we'll try and sort something out" said Ani. "In the meantime I'll try and find out everything my dad knows and you should call Cassie for some help.""Alright, I'll do that" replied Milo, taking deep breathes."Milo, please stay safe" said Ani, standing up and starting to find some clothes."Okay, I'll try my best" replied Milo, pausing for a second before hanging up the call and then finding Cassie's name. The time in between it ringing was the longest 10 seconds of Milo's life but finally she picked up. "Cassie I need you to listen closely.""Alright then" said Cassie, sighing because she instantly knew something was happening."I'm in a bit of trouble and I need you to meet me at lover's lookout as soon as possible" stated Milo. Lover's lookout was just a spot that gave you a great view of the beach and the ocean. The only reason people started calling it lover's lookout is for the obvious reason of people started having sex there quite regularly. "Ani already knows what's happening so don't call her and tell her anymore than she needs to know otherwise her dad could get it out of her somehow. Danny doesn't know anything and maybe that's for the best. The less people that know the better.""This is all very unnerving and ominous but sure, I'll see you there" said Cassie, getting dressed quickly."Okay... thank you" replied Milo, knowing this sounded insane."You don't have to thank me but you're welcome" said Cassie, smiling and heading out of her bedroom.They ended the call and then Milo put his phone back in his jacket, once again taking another deep breathe. If you thought about it, it was sort of obvious how Milo's life had come to this but then again he was only 17 and how could his life have come to this? Just over a month ago he was a normal teenager starting his second year of college and just trying to get through life. Now he was still in his second year of college but he was literally trying to get through his life. Milo peeked out once more just in case then jumped out of the skip, making sure he still had the gun and his phone on him. Milo brushed off some of the dirt and then started walking in the direction of the beach. Eventually he just straight up started running but only when there wasn't anyone around to see him, he didn't want to look even more crazy than he probably already did. Lover's lookout wasn't that close but if Milo stuck to the side streets and the back alleys he was sure he could make it. Now all he had to do was think about what he was actually going to do with the gun. The only piece of evidence the police needed to find him guilty of Ryan's murder and throw him in prison for the rest of his life. He had a vague idea of something and that's part of the reason he's suggested lover's lookout to Cassie. If Milo threw the gun into the ocean, it would hopefully be washed out to sea and sink to the bottom and the police would never find it. Plus, even if they did find it, it would take some time to discover and by that point all of Milo's fingerprints would be washed away. Right now, as Milo hid in the shadows and behind bins, the plan seemed like quite a stretch. However, Milo was determined to succeed and that was everything.•Whilst Milo was trying to survive whatever his life had appeared to become, Danny was almost not enjoying his life just as much. As soon as he had gotten home, his parents had informed him that a rather large group of his friends had come over at some point and were all waiting for him in the lounge and so that's where Danny had spent all his time ever since. He'd much rather be in bed sleeping or with the others or even hanging out with a restrained Charlie because at least then he could get some sleep. However, once again he was stuck in the middle of a bunch of pointless conversations that were most likely going nowhere. At some point the talks had transitioned onto the topic of what happened to Charlie because no everyone knew that he had gone missing and could be dead. As Danny listened, it honestly surprised him that this had all happened in the space of one day. One evening even. It was only earlier today that Danny had told the others about what Charlie had said and they had decided to go 'threaten' him. Apparently time flies even when you're not having fun."So Danny, what's your opinion?" Asked a guy that Danny had seemed to be getting stuck in conversations with quite a lot recently."My opinions on what?" Countered Danny, zoning back in."Your opinions on what's happened to Charlie" answered the guy, rolling his eyes."Oh... right" said Danny, pretending to think. "I don't know really. He's gone missing, what else is there to think about. It's pretty simple.""Yeah, on the face of it" replied the guy. "But if you look deeper, you'll start to see all these little things that don't add up.""Really? Like what?" Questioned Danny, raising his eyebrows."Well first of all the fact that this has happened to Charlie not that long after Ryan was murdered" responded the guy. "If we're saying that it's Milo that's doing all of this, and by the way we definitely are saying that, Charlie and Ryan had Milo in common.""The only way Milo links the both of them is the fact that he tutored both of them at some point" said Danny."Right... what's your point?" Replied the guy, glancing around at the other people listening and smiling."My point is what's your point" said Danny, furrowing his eyebrows. "What you're saying isn't really much to go off. It isn't going to get Milo arrested if that's where you're hoping it'll go.""Maybe... but I still think Milo had something to do with all of this" replied the guy, obviously thinking he was the smartest person in the room."You want to know what I think?" Said some girl, smirking. "I think there's someone out there, maybe Milo maybe not, that's hunting us down.""What? Like some hunger games type shit?" Wondered the guy."I mean, sort of. But mainly like a serial killer or something" responded the girl. "Whoever it is is picking us off one by one.""I don't know, that seems a little far fetched doesn't it" said the guy, squinting his eyes."Not just a little" added Danny, taking a sip from his drink."Does it though?" Said the girl, smiling as if the possibility of it being true was fun and exciting. "First one of our closest friends and one of the people you'd expect to be a main character is killed off straightaway, shocking the audience. And then slowly but surely the killer starts coming after all of us until hopefully one of us decides enough is enough and fights back.""So basically we're in any cheesy slasher flick from the 80's up until the late 90's" replied the guy, both of them smiling and laughing. All Danny could think was how self-centered do you have to be to literally create an entire storyline or plot to help you cope with the screwed up things happening in your life. Plus the fact that they weren't actually happening to you and you just decided you were the main god damn character. Danny subtly smiled to himself as he thought about how if what the girl was saying was true and actually taking place how she definitely would not be a main character let alone the final person. If anyone in the room it was for sure Danny. "Holy shit" shouted someone as they scrolled through their phone and pulled Danny from his daydream. "Milo's house is surrounded by police and loads of people are saying they're searching for him.""Do they think he's the one that killed Ryan and took Charlie?" Asked the guy Danny had been talking to."I guess so" answered the guy that shouted, everyone starting to cheer."A town wide manhunt, just like in some of those cheesy slasher flicks you mentioned" said the girl, smiling. "I told you.""Looks like we're entering the third act" replied guy, both of them joining in on the cheering as Danny just sat there not knowing what to do. He was so incredibly tired.•Ani was still at home. Ever since her phone call with Milo a little earlier, she'd been trying to think about and come up with reasons why her dad was so convinced Milo was the catalyst to all the problems that had occurred recently. Sure, some of them were Milo's fault but there wasn't a debate about whether he was a good person or not. Milo was a good person, he'd just been dealt a crappy hand in life and sometimes bad things happened either to him or around him. It's how you cope and deal with those things that determines whether you're a bad person and Milo was handling them pretty well all things considered. Ani had obviously also gone back into her dad's office and searched through everything to do with the case that was there. It didn't take for Ani to realise there wasn't actually that much there about Milo. There was the accusation from Ryan of Milo stealing and the recent arrest because of the fingerprints on the door handle but other than those there's was nothing. This meant Ani's dad was going after Milo on pure suspicion and complete hatred alone.All Ani could think was how could her dad even look at himself after some of the things he'd done in the past. He so easily judged Milo for possibly doing these terrible things yet he'd done stuff just as bad. Chief Amari had accepted bribes, confiscated drugs which he then occasionally used himself, let certain people go because he'd benefit, covered up specific crimes because it wouldn't look good for his reputation. Ani even knew of the rare few cases where her dad had actually physically assaulted someone when they didn't listen to him. In fact, she was sure he would have done it to her if she hadn't of been his own daughter. That's not even mentioning all the phobic, sexist and racists slurs he'd been throwing around which is honestly impressive considering he himself is a minority. So, after doing her best to find out more information, the only left for Ani to try was actually called her dad and seeing if he'd tell her anything. She wasn't expecting him to but she needed to at least try, pulling out her phone and clicking his name."Hey dad, could we talk for a second?" Said Ani, biting her lip."I'm actually kind of busy right now" replied chief Amari."Yeah yeah, you're hunting down Milo" said Ani, rolling her eyes."How did you know that?" Replied chief Amari, sounding serious."Dad everyone knows" said Ani. "Loads of people from college are talking about it online.""For fuck sake" replied chief Amari."Well it's not that difficult to figure out when there are police surrounding and searching Milo's house" said Ani. "Dad if you're not careful you're going to start a god damn man hunt and that could be incredibly dangerous for Milo.""Good, maybe that's exactly what we need" replied chief Amari, a smile evident in his voice."You know Milo is innocent right? Please tell me you know that" said Ani, concerned."Ani you can't say that for certain" replied chief Amari. "I know that he is your friend but if he's done something wrong then he needs to be punished.""But he hasn't done anything wrong, that's what I'm saying" said Ani. "You just don't like him and are trying to put all the blame on him.""That's not true" replied chief Amari. "I know for sure Milo has done something illegal.""Alright then, tell me what it was. What is this illegal thing that Milo has definitely done?" Asked Ani, raising an eyebrow and crossing her arms."I'm not going to tell you that" answered chief Amari."Because there isn't anything" said Ani, raising her voice slightly. "Dad, you haven't got anything on him.""No, I'm not going to tell you because if I do you'll just go off and tell Milo everything" replied chief Amari. "I'm not risking him some how getting away again because somehow told him how to save himself.""Dad, I'm not saying that he's guilty but do you have any idea what could happen to Milo if he's sent to prison?" Questioned Ani. "Milo knows how to look after himself but it could be really dangerous.""Honestly, that's what I'm hoping for" responded chief Amari, genuinely shocking Ani. "I'm hoping Milo is taken to prison and treated like the human scum he is. He is not a good person Ani and he deserves to have a shitty life.""Milo is a good person" said Ani slowly. "It's you I'm worried about.""Sorry, what was that?" Replied chief Amari."You're not a good person dad. I'm not ashamed to say I always thought that was a possibility" said Ani, biting her lip and getting a little teary eyed. "You accuse all these people of doing terrible things even though they could be innocent and then you go off and do something just as bad if not worse.""You better mind what you say next Ani" replied chief Amari, obviously not trying to raise his voice."I'm done holding my tongue and watching what I say to and about you" said Ani. "You might be the worse person I've ever known.""Ani you better take that the fuck ba-" replied chief Amari but he didn't get to finish because Ani ended the call, sliding her phone back into her pocket. She might not have found out anything useful but she was happy with what she had said. She was over being afraid of her father.•It had taken a little while but Milo was finally arriving at lover's lookout. He made his way up the road that was more of a path until he reached a spot which he could use to check if the place was really busy. Luckily it wasn't, only one car on the far side, giving Milo a brief pause from all the running and hiding. He made his way up the rest of the hill, not seeing Cassie straight away meaning he was even more surprised by someone grabbing him from behind. Milo jumped and almost swung round and hit Cassie. Thankfully he didn't but in any other situation that interaction would have been quite funny. Milo put a hand over his heart, letting out a sigh of relief and smiling as Cassie apologised and then came in for a hug."Shit, sorry" said Cassie, laughing."It's alright" replied Milo as they separated. "But maybe don't scare some who's currently a fugitive of the law.""Oh my god it's so fucked" said Cassie, rolling her eyes. "The amount of people I heard talking about it on the way here.""Wait, people are talking about it" replied Milo, raising his eyebrows."Yep" said Cassie. "It probably didn't help that there's loads of pictures of the police surrounding your house.""Fuck sake" replied Milo, groaning. "Could this get any god damn worse.""Well, hopefully whatever it is you're planning on doing will help" said Cassie. "What is it you're planning on doing by the way?""I was going to throw this into the ocean" replied Milo, subtly showing Cassie the gun that was still tucked into his trousers."Alright, sounds like a plan" said Cassie, smiling. "Is there anyone around?""Just that car over there but whoever's inside seems preoccupied" replied Milo, gesturing over to the car on the far side that now had fogged up windows."Oh young love" said Cassie, sighing.They both smiled and then walked over to the edge of the lookout, standing quite close to the edge of the cliff but also not close enough that if they were to slip they would fall and possibly die. The thought did cross both of their minds that once this was done, maybe everything could start going back to normal and they could all get that well deserved rest they were all so desperately in need of. However, just as Milo began lifting his shirt to retrieve the gun from his waistband, a bag was thrown over the top of his head and he was pulled backwards. Cassie barely had any time to react before a bag was thrown over her head as well. Both of them yelled and struggled as they were dragged over to and tossed inside the back of the very same black car that had been watching them so often. Obviously Milo and Cassie didn't know this because they couldn't see right now but they had their suspicions. So not only was this not the end of all their trouble, apparently a lot more problems had just decided to present themselves.————————————————————————Credit song for this chapter: Game Of Survival - Ruelle - https://youtu.be/-T5eYF9WiRI
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Their faces were starting to get sweaty from their own breathe not being able to travel far enough away, the bags over their heads blocking its path. It wasn't helping that they were breathing a lot more as well, not being able to calm themselves because by this point not only was their situation scary but also they were becoming quite claustrophobic. Their wrists had been bound as well, the edges of the zip-ties digging into the skin and damaging the flesh. At one point Milo heard Cassie sniff a couple times in a row and he wondered if she was crying but trying to hold it in. Should he be crying too? He wasn't sure. Milo knew this wasn't ideal but he also knew deep down this wasn't where his story ended. It also wasn't where Cassie's story ended. Not long after they'd met Milo knew that despite everything Cassie was one day going to meet someone that really loved and appreciated her and they were going to have a family and grow old together. Sometimes when Milo thought about it he was there as well. Sometimes he was the crazy uncle that appeared with gifts from time to time, other times he was the babysitter for when Cassie wanted to have a date night with her husband, and occasionally Milo was there because he needed Cassie to help comfort him and make sure he didn't do anything stupid. No matter what scenario though Milo was always alone, never having someone by his side of his own. For some reason Milo knew Cassie deserved love and happiness but he wasn't sure if he deserved it himself. In times like these, though hopefully they won't happen often, it's always good to think about the ones you love. However, there are also more useful things to be thinking about like that video that had been randomly recommended to Milo one time about how to escape a situation not to dissimilar from this one. Milo had also thought of this video when he first heard whoever it was that had taken them putting the zip-tie on Cassie. In the video, the person made sure to put their hands together almost like they were making two fists and checking how big their brain was. That way, once you unbend you fingers, there's a little bit of room between your wrist and you can gradually cause friction by slightly moving your wrists. Milo didn't know how long it was supposed to take but he thought the sooner he started the better. He didn't have any idea what he was going to do once and if the zip-tie did break but that was a problem for later. Right now, Milo had one goal and he was determined to score it. - THE JOB - Intro song: Fidelio - Tom Hillock - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdW0TYok5NI Ever since the news broke that the police are searching for Milo as a suspect of Ryan's murder and Charlie's disappearance, all of Danny's friends have been talking about it none stop. It didn't take long for all of them to start arranging a manhunt and then leave Danny's house. He was worried about them leaving and going out there but also he was mainly concerned about them capturing Milo. They asked if he was coming with them and he said he'd meet them later whenever the thing was actually happening so that he could get some stuff together. Obviously that was a lie and he was going to try and get into contact with any of the others. As soon as all of Danny's friends left he quickly put on his shoes and left as well. Luckily his parents weren't home, too busy comforting Ryan's and Charlie's parents, because otherwise they probably would have stopped him from going out just in case something happened to him as well.The first stop Danny made was at Milo's house, hoping the police activity would have died down a bit before he got there. He was wrong though. The police were still swarming the place. Guarding every entrance and having a constant flow of officers going in and out so they could confiscate more things as evidence. Danny couldn't understand why one of Milo's pillows was classed as evidence but surely there had to be a reason. I mean, hopefully they weren't just bagging things in a last ditch effort to find anything incriminating. Danny obviously didn't know if the police had already caught Milo or not since that information wasn't online and everyone was just assuming he was still out and about. Danny's next stop was Ani's house because he guess the others would be there since her dad was currently trying to find Milo as well. By this point the sun had completely set and all the streetlights were coming on. Technically it was still only about half 6 but because of the time of year the days were much shorter. So when Danny arrived at Ani's house he tried not to seem too creepy in case she thought it was someone trying to break in. He glanced around to make sure no one he knew was around and then knocked."Danny? What are you doing here?" Wondered Ani after opening the door, moving to the side so Danny could come in."I want to know what the hell is going on" responded Danny, walking into the lounge area."Yeah that's sort of complicated" said Ani, biting her lip."Well explain it to me then" replied Danny. "All my friends are talking about everything online about Milo so I went to his house but there are police everywhere.""I know" said Ani, sighing. "Everything is sort of going to shit.""Tell me everything you know" replied Danny, sounding serious."Alright" said Ani, taking a deep breathe. "Basically, after we all went our separate ways after leaving Charlie at the beach house, Milo got home and the police were about to search his house. He managed to sneak in somehow and retrieve the gun before they found it but now he's on the run from everyone apparently.""How do you know all of this?" Questioned Danny, raising an eyebrow."When Milo was hiding somewhere he managed to call me" responded Ani. "I told him the best thing to do would be to get rid of the gun because that's all the evidence the police and my dad would need to send Milo to prison.""How do the police even know about the gun?" Said Danny."I guess my dad must have checked his gun locker at some point" replied Ani, shrugging."God, why don't any of you guys include me when shit starts to happen?" Said Danny, frustrated."Honestly I'm not too sure" replied Ani. "Maybe Milo thought it was better if less people knew what was going on or maybe he thought it was too much of a risk because of who your friends are.""I'd thought by this point I would have proved on with you guys" said Danny, sighing. "I helped you take one of my friends hostage for god's sake.""I know and trust me when I say we appreciate everything you've done for us" replied Ani, placing a hand on one of Danny's arms sympathetically."What about Cassie?" Asked Danny. "Does she know what's going on?""I think she probably knows some of it but I'm not entirely sure" answered Ani. "I tried calling multiple times but there was never an answer.""Fuck, do you think she's okay?" Said Danny, worried."I'm sure she's fine" replied Ani, trying to hide her smile because she knew why Danny was so concerned."Where are they?" Said Danny, trying to think."Hopefully somewhere safe" replied Ani, trying to remain calm.•This entire time Milo had been gradually moving his wrists around and even with the bag on his head Milo could tell the zip-tie was beginning to become looser. Where it had been constantly twisting and then untwisting meant it was getting weaker and thinner. Therefore when Milo quickly pulled his wrists apart the zip-tie actually broke. It did make a little bit of noise so just as quickly as he'd done it Milo also slid his hands between his legs in case either of the two people in the front turned to inspect them. Milo calmed his breathing and then when he thought it might be safe, slowly lifted the bag a little bit until he was above his eyes and he was able to looked around. He rubbed his now red and slightly scratched wrists where they had been getting irritated and then tried to find something he was could use. He didn't know if he was going to be using whatever it was he found as a weapon or as something to help him get out the car but he just know he couldn't have empty hands. It was two men in the front who Milo had to admit didn't look very comfortable in the clothes they were wearing. He surmised that was because they were only wearing those certain clothes so they blended in with the public when watching Milo and his friends. They weren't old but they weren't young either, probably looking slightly aged because of all the things they witnessed in this line of work. Whatever this line of work may be. Milo wondered if he'd look like that sooner than later since it appeared his life was anything but normal nowadays.As he was thinking, his eyes caught sight of something a little shiny in the little pocket at the back of the passenger's seat. Luckily that's who Milo was sat behind otherwise he probably wouldn't have been able to grab it. He slowly reached forward and gently starting sliding the object out of the pocket, doing it gradually in case the passenger felt something moving behind him. What Milo pulled out was a pen. Not one that had any useful writing on the side to tell Milo who these people were, just some random pen they'd probably taken from somewhere by mistake. Milo thought about how he could use the pen. He could clicked it down and then jab it in maybe the driver's eyes so he swerved off the road. Or maybe he could also find a piece of paper and then hold it up to the window for someone to read and then call the police. That one wouldn't work though because when Milo looked out the window whilst thinking, he noticed they were driving through the woods and there was probably no one around for miles. Milo had the brief idea of jabbing the pen in his own eye and killing himself so that these people couldn't torture and murder him themselves but that would mean leaving Cassie to their mercy. That's when Milo knew what to use the pen for. He could use it to help Cassie. He looked over at Cassie's restraints and realised the pen could break them faster than Cassie doing what Milo had done. Milo took one last glance at the men in the front then slowly slid his body closer to Cassie."Cassie, don't freak out" whispered Milo, swallowing hard."Milo... Milo, what's happening?" Whispered Cassie as well, starting to freak out."Cassie calm down" said Milo, looking at the men in front out the corner of his eye. "Try and act normal.""How am I supposed to do that?" Replied Cassie, breathing heavy. "Nothing about this is normal.""I know that but we have to keep a clear head" said Milo."How do you sound so relaxed right now?" Asked Cassie."Maybe because I've got my wrists free and my head is no longer in a bag" answered Milo, smiling. "Would you like me to help you now?""Yes please" said Cassie, nodding slowly."Alright, try not to move too much" replied Milo, clicking down the pen slowly and then beginning to slowly force it through the sides of the zip-tie. Milo repeated this process until enough of the zip-tie had holes in it and Cassie was able to pull her wrists apart, breaking it. "Okay, slowly pull the bag up so it's just above your eyes.""Got it" said Cassie, still breathing heavy but doing as she was told, lifting the bag and then smiling when she saw Milo's comforting smile. "What now?""I'm not too sure" replied Milo, biting his lip and shrugging.He watched as Cassie looked around the car for something to do. Obviously she didn't know he'd already done this and probably wouldn't find anything of use, him also keeping an eye on the men whilst Cassie searched. However, much to Milo's surprise and relief, Cassie did in fact find something. It wasn't something they could use as a weapon but it was a plan that could possibly help them escape. Milo watched Cassie as she gestured towards the back of the driver's seat in front of her. Somehow Cassie managed to get the message across of pushing the driver's seat forward so it destablised his driving. It was risky and it might not even work, just alerting the two men to their presents again. However it was the best they had and the long they both sat in the back of this car, the more they both wanted the get the hell out of it. Milo nodded and then slowly turned to grab ahold of his seatbelt and mouthed for Cassie to do the same. She turned and wrapped it around her body a little bit just so she wasn't flying around the car if something really dramatic happened. Then they mouthed down from three and when they reached one, Cassie lifted her legs and thrust the forwards into the back of the driver's seat. He yelled in surprise of the sudden force and got trapped between the chair and the steering wheel. The second guy turned around to look at them but by that point it was too late. The plan had been a lot more effective than they anticipated and within five seconds of starting it, the car was swerving to the side and going through the fence that was running along the side of the woodland road. Milo and Cassie held onto their seat belts for dear life as the car bounced in all directions and eventually flipped over, sending the second man flying because he hadn't been wearing his own seatbelt. The car proceeded to role further down the hill into the thick of the forests until it landed upside down and covered in dirt and moss, most of the windows smashed and dents of various sizes littering the once pristine surface.•Ani and Danny were still together, they had been trying to think of something they could do to help. Whether that be trying to calm some people down and stop them from hunting Milo or whether that be finding where Milo and apparently Cassie were and helping him hide clear his name. They had been scrolling through their phones and looking at all the posts about everything going on. It had become quite extreme. Some people were forming groups, others were minding their own business, and some were even burning things and pretending it was Milo. Most of the town had lost it's damn mind. Ani had tried calling Milo a bunch more times and Danny had tried calling Cassie an uncountable number of times as well. However, neither of them had answered. Probably for the best considering the police might be tracing their phones by this point. Ani never understood how people in film who might be in the same situation just throw away or destroy their phones so easily. She understood it was for their own protection and safety but phones are incredibly expensive. Not everyone can afford to just their's like it was nothing. Ani honestly didn't know why she was thinking that, it wasn't massively important at the minute. Luckily something kept pulling her from her thoughts. It was the sound of Danny's phone ringing everyone 5 minutes or so and him just ignoring it. Every time Ani got slightly excited because it could be Milo and Cassie but once Danny checked it and didn't take any notice she knew it wasn't. The next time it started vibrating across the table, Ani decided to enough was enough."Are you going to answer that or not?" Asked Ani, a little annoyed."It's just my friends being irritating" answered Danny, checking the screen before putting the phone down again."Why do they keep calling you?" Said Ani, raising her eyebrows."I don't know" replied Danny, glancing around."What if it's about Milo and Cassie?" Said Ani."Why would it be about Milo and Cassie?" Wondered Danny, squinting his eyes."I don't know, maybe because they might have found them and want to let you know where to meet them so you can be there when they decide to kill them" responded Ani without taking a breathe."That's a bit of a stretch but I didn't think of it like that" said Danny, pursing his lips and then both of them looking down when the phone started ringing again."Answer it" replied Ani, picking it up and passing it to Danny."But what if it is about something stupid" said Danny, sighing."Then at least we'll know Milo and Cassie are still safe" replied Ani, forcing the phone into Danny's hands."Fine" said Danny, taking it and putting it to his ear. "Hey guys, what's up?""Why haven't you been answering?" Questioned his friend."I was... eating dinner" responded Danny, thinking. "Why? What's happening?""We're going on a manhunt dude" said his friend, people yelling and laughing in the background. "We're going to hunt down Milo and then hunt down his friends as well.""Why?" Replied Danny, worried."Because Milo definitely killed Ryan and probably Charlie as well" said his friend. "And we wouldn't be surprised if Milo's friends were involved too.""What are you going to do to them if you find them?" Wondered Danny, biting his lip."I don't know, depends how sorry they are about what they've done" responded his friend. "But right now I'm leaning more towards giving them a taste of their own medicine.""Right... well I've got to go right now, my parents are getting angry" said Danny quickly."Alright dude, we'll see you later yeah" replied his friend."Erm, yeah... sure" said Danny, swallowing hard and then ending the call."What did they want?" Asked Ani. "What's happening?""They're forming a hunting party to find Milo and then you and Cassie" answered Danny."You should go" said Ani, thinking about it."Why? What about you and the others?" Replied Danny."Look, if your friends go to your house to find you and you're not there, they're going to start getting really suspicious since you just told them you're having dinner with your parents" said Ani. "Just go home whilst I try and figure something out.""And you'll make sure to call me when you do" replied Danny, not wanting to be left out again."I promise, now go" said Ani, nodding and pushing Danny towards the front door.Danny left Ani's house and started making his way home, feeling confident that Ani would let him know what's happening if she thought of a plan. Ani closed the front door and walked back over to where they had been sitting, biting her lip and scratching her head whilst getting an headache from trying to think too hard. She sighed and then sat down again, rubbing her hands over her face in frustration because she honestly had no idea what they were going to do.•Back at the crashed car, Milo opened his eyes and let his vision readjust. It took a second for his to realise he was upside down, the seatbelt he'd been holding onto stopping him from falling to the roof of the car. He looked around and saw Cassie who hadn't been so lucky, an obvious cut on her leg that looked like it might need a few stitches. Milo stretched and then started looking for where the seatbelt was tangled with his body. Eventually he found it and, without hesitating, pull it free and let himself fall so he landed beside Cassie. As soon as he collided with the ground he knew something was wrong, his shoulder being in an enormous amount of pain. He clenched his fists and jaw and tried not to make too much noise as the pain slowly started to subside."Cassie... Cassie please tell me you're alright" said Milo, breathing heavy and using the arm that wasn't in pain to gently rock Cassie's body. "Cassie please wake up.""Jesus, what the fuck" replied Cassie, rubbing her head as she tried to sit up but then realised there wasn't enough room to do that. "What happened?""I think the car went off the road" said Milo, looking around at the new surroundings around the car. "Sure... why not" replied Cassie, sighing and rolling her eyes as she brushed away some of the blood on her leg."Come on, we need to get out of here" said Milo, gesturing towards the two men that were both unconscious still."Alright. Are you okay by the way" replied Cassie, checking herself over once more before looking at Milo."I think so. My shoulder might be dislocated but other than that I'm all good" said Milo as he pointing to cases door since his one was blocked by a tree. Cassie slowly pushed the door intending for it to just slide open but instead it completely broke off the hinges and fell over. They looked at each other in shock once more before climbing out the definitely totaled car. "Cassie, I'm going to need you to pop my arm back into place.""What? I can't do that" replied Cassie, worried and watching as Milo leant against a tree."Don't worry, it'll be better if you do it now instead of just leaving it like this longer" said Milo, crouching down and grabbing a small branch he could bite down on."Alright then, sorry about this" replied Cassie, hesitant but walking over anyway. She placed both her hands on Milo's arm, took a deep breathe, and then counted down from three before applying as much force as possible to shove the shoulder back into it's socket. Cassie grimaced as Milo groaned in pain, almost biting through the branch. "Are you alright?""Yep... I'm great. Thank you" said Milo, spitting out the branch and catching his breathe. "Come on, let's get back to town.""Okay" replied Cassie, smiling as she helped Milo off the tree and they started walking back towards the hill they had just fallen down. However, Cassie quickly noticed that Milo was searching himself for something. "What's wrong?""The gun is gone" said Milo, checking all his pockets and then looking back at the car."Oh Milo please don't. Just forget about it" replied Cassie. "You wanted to get rid of it and now it's gone, problem solved.""True but it could be even more of a bigger problem if whoever these people are have it" said Milo, biting his lip. "Stay here, I'll be right back.""Fuck... fine" replied Cassie, sighing as Milo started back over to the slightly smoking car.Milo swallowed hard and took a deep breathe as he neared the pretty much destroyed vehicle. Once he reached it he crouched down at the door they had just crawled out of and started looking for the gun. The first thing Milo saw was his and Cassie's phones, both smashed and definitely not working anymore. He kept looking as he gradually moved further into the car, making sure not to disturb anything too much in case either of the men woke up. All while this was happening Cassie was still waiting at the bottom of the hill and trying to stop her heart from beating so fast. Eventually Milo spotted the gun, having fallen out from wherever Milo was concealing it and sliding into the front of the car when they crashed. It was saw neatly between the driver's hands where they were hanging down from him still being fastened into his seat. Milo licked his lips and then leant forward, slowly reaching over and taking ahold of the gun before speedily pulling back out of reach. Milo let out a sigh of relief and then climbed back out of the car. However, just as he was about to stand back up again, the man in the passenger's seat reached through the smashed window and grabbed one of Milo's wrists. Both him and Cassie yelled because obviously they weren't expecting it and Milo started to struggle as the man kept a tight grip on him. Milo didn't know what to do, he was caught. Then, as he was about to be pulled to the ground by the man, Milo put his other hand down for some stability. That's when he felt the smooth cylindrical shape of the pen he had used to free Cassie earlier. Before thinking of all the things he could possibly do with it, Milo wrapped his fingers around the pen and lifted it into the air before stabbing it through the man's hand. He instantly let go of Milo and yelled in pain, blood starting to spill out of the hole going through his hand and pour down his arm. Milo was disgusted but knew this was his chance. He quickly stood up and ran over to Cassie who was covering her mouth."You just stabbed that man" said Cassie as she was pulled up the hill by Milo."We can think about how fucked up that is later. Right now let's just get the hell out of here" replied Milo as they ran through the trees towards the road and tried not to worry about what on god's green earth they'd gotten themselves into.————————————————————————Credit song for this chapter: Born To Die - Lana Del Rey - https://youtu.be/IO_VGSfSkBs
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Milo and Cassie had been running and jogging and walking for about half an hour and they were finally arriving back in town. Lover's lookout was quite close to the each of town and it had felt like they had been driving rather fast. Apparently they hadn't though since they weren't that far into the woods. I guess being a car whilst having a bag over your head makes you feel like you're traveling at supersonic speeds. They ran past the high streets, by the college, through the alleys, down the side streets, and finally they were entering the more residential area of the town. Well, they were entering the poorer residential area of the town. The place where all of them except Danny lived. On their journey, they had come into contact with large groups of people yelling things and mentioning things about some sort of hunt. Neither of them had any idea what was going on and they couldn't check either because their phones had been broken in the crash. It didn't matter right now though because their main goal was to get somewhere safe and right now that was Milo's house because it was the closest, both of them hoping the police had gotten everything they needed and were no longer there."I still can't believe you stabbed that guy" said Cassie as the rounded the street corner onto Milo's road. "Like you actually stuck a pen, an actual god damn pen, through his hand.""Yep, I remember" replied Milo, recalling what it had felt like."I know that they kidnapped us and all that but do you think they're going to be alright?" Wondered Cassie, biting her lip."Not our main concern but yeah, I'm sure they'll be fine" responded Milo."Really? Because the driver was still unconscious when we left and surely that can't be good for his brain" said Cassie, thinking. "And the second guy wasn't too bad but now he has a hole in his hand which appeared to be bleeding quite a bit.""What the fuck?" Questioned Milo when his house came into view. They both stopped walking when they saw the mob of people out the front of his house, the police also still being there and not doing anything to stop the yelling. They both ducked behind a nearby car quickly. "What the fuck is going on?""Is all this for you?" Responded Cassie, looking around to make sure no one saw them."I guess so" said Milo, trying to hear what people were shouting."Oh my god, the gangs of people in town as well" replied Cassie, realising. "Could they have been for you as well?""Everyone in town thinks I killed Ryan" said Milo, instantly noticing what he said. "And yes, I know technically I did actually kill him but there's no way for them to know that for certain.""Well your house is a no go then" replied Cassie, swallowing hard. "Where can we go?""I think I know somewhere" said Milo, sighing and then pointing to an alleyway directly opposite them across the street. "Quickly. That way."They both checked to make sure it was safe to move before they quickly ran across to the safety of the alleyway one at a time. Even as they moved further into the darkness and away from Milo's house, the shouting from the crowd that had formed outside was still extremely audible. It was clear the longer this went on for, the more people that were going to start looking for him. And who knows what they were going to do with him if they caught him. This was no longer a capture, arrest, send to trial, and then prison case. This was starting to seem more like a good old fashioned witch hunt. - THE JOB - Intro song: Fidelio - Tom Hillock - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pdW0TYok5NI After leaving Ani's house earlier, Danny went straight back home just in case any of his friends turned up and started wondering where he was. His parents still weren't home which was either a good thing or a bad thing. It could be good because they weren't stopping him from doing anything but it could be bad because they might be out there trying to hunt down Milo as well. To be honest though, Danny didn't really know what he could be doing that his parents might try and stop. He couldn't really leave his house again because then he'd been seen as suspicious, he couldn't join the hunt for Milo because then none of the others would trusts him anymore, but he also couldn't just sit around his house alone and doing nothing because otherwise he'd go insane from over thinking everything. So, in the end Danny decided to go for a shower because they usually helped him clear his head if not help him think more clearly. It was always one or the other and they'd both be quite useful right now.Danny was in his en suite, stood under the shower head and letting himself dissolve into the feeling of the warm water running down his body. Danny was actually quite similar to Cassie in the way he thought about his body. He liked his body and he appreciated that he liked it. As he ran his fingers through his hair and then moved his hands down his body, the water ran across his sturdy torso and between all the crevices of his muscles. Like I said, Danny liked his body. However, sometimes he also didn't like it because so many other people liked it as well. Some guys were jealous of Danny's physique and that made him feel guilty about having it and then the girls that Danny had had sex with or had just done sexual things with usually preferred to touch and admire his body more than they touched and admired his face. Not to say Danny didn't have an attractive face but it just wasn't the thing most people noticed about him when they first met him. It was always either his body or the thing he had between his legs. Which, for all intense and purposes, also made a lot of people envious.Danny switched off the water and stepped out the shower, grabbing a towel off the heated rack and drying his body. Part way through Danny wiped away part of the steamed covered mirror, staring at his reflection and realising that for a split second he hadn't been thinking about everything that had been going on. He continued to dry his body until it was only his hair that was a little wet still. He then dropped the towel to the floor and, just like he usually did, walked back out into his bedroom completely naked so he could look for some clothes. However, unlike what usually happened, Danny wasn't alone in his bedroom. He only realised something was different when he glanced to the side and saw his bedroom door was open a little bit and that wasn't how he'd left it. He then heard the sound of someone clearing their throat and he quickly turned towards the noise and covered his crotch. However by that point it was too late and whoever it was that was sat in the corner of his room had already seen everything."Dude, why did you walk out your bathroom completely naked?" Asked Milo, laughing and turning on the light next to him."Because usually there aren't just people sat in my room" answered Danny, feeling slightly embarrassed because Cassie was there too. "What the fuck are you doing sitting in the dark and being all creepy like that?"I was doing it for that exact reason" said Milo, still laughing. "I wanted to see if you'd actually jump and amazingly, you did.""He wasn't the only thing that jumped either" replied Cassie, gesturing towards the way Danny's penis had moved around when he turned his body."Alright, screw you guys" said Danny, rolling his eyes and searching for some boxers. "How did you even get in here?""You have a spare key inside the hanging plant on the right side of you front door" replied Milo. "And no, I didn't already know it was there. I just hoped, went searching, and then found it.""Why are you here though?" Wondered Danny, turning away from them whilst he pulled the boxers on so they could only see his ass. "Like, I thought you were supposed to be on the run or in hiding or something.""We are and this is probably one of the safest places to be right now" responded Cassie, trying not to make it obvious she was looking at Danny's bum and sort of wishing she'd had a better look at the other side before he covered it up. "Who's going to think to look for us at your house? No one knows we know each other.""I suppose that sort of makes sense" said Danny, thinking about it."It makes perfect sense" corrected Cassie, smiling."Anyway, moving onto what needs to happen now" said Milo, standing up. "We're going to need to borrow your phone.""Why?" Replied Danny, raising an eyebrow."So we can call Ani and tell her to come here as well" said Milo, extending an arm. "Hopefully by this point she's figured out a way to get out of this mess.""Alright" replied Danny, walking over to his bedside table to retrieve his phone before passing it to Milo. As he was walking back over, he suddenly noticed how they both seemed a little beaten up. "What happened to you guys?""Oh, nothing really. We just briefly got kidnapped but then managed to escape" said Milo, scrolling and clicking Ani's name. "We got a little banged up is all.""Right" replied Danny, choosing to ignore that for now and glancing back at Cassie and spotting the dried blood on her hands. "What about you? Did you hurt yourself?""Oh, erm... I just cut my leg a bit" said Cassie, shrugging."Show me" replied Danny, biting his lip and looking concerned."Don't worry about it, I'm fine" said Cassie."I know you are but show me your leg anyway" replied Danny, waiting patiently until Cassie finally gave up, pulling up the skirt she had on and rolling her eyes. She watched as Danny walked into the bathroom and then came out with a first aid kit, walking over to her and crouching down. "Lift your leg and put your foot on the chair please.""What?" Questioned Cassie, furrowing her eyebrows."Leg up and foot on the chair please" responded Danny, smiling. Cassie slowly did as she was told and then almost let the air get caught in her throat when Danny suddenly pushed her legs wider apart, lifted her skirt slightly, and then placed both his hands on her thigh to inspect the wound. "Thank you. Now hold still."Milo called Ani and very quickly told her the bare minimum and where she should meet them. She listened closely and then confirmed she would leave straightaway before ending the call and gathering her things. They spent the time waiting for Ani to arrive doing many things. Milo spent a lot of it thinking of a plan in case Ani had struggled to think of anything. Cassie tried to slow her heart rate as Danny cleaned and bandaged her wound whilst being incredibly close to core. Not being naive to the fact that he was still only in some boxers and if watched closely, you'd notice the front of them had grown a little bigger as well. At some point Danny finished getting dressed and then went downstairs to get some food and drink for Milo and Cassie, They were extremely tired from all the escaping and running they'd done recently. It was taking Ani a little longer to get to Danny's than it might normally and that was probably because a lot of the streets were packed with people looking for Milo. Eventually though she arrived, knocking on the door and then saying it was her when she heard someone move on the other side. Danny let her in and then led her to his bedroom where Milo and Cassie walked over and hugged her instantly, glad they were all together again."Jesus, what happened to you guys?" Asked Ani, worried. "You look like you've been through hell and back.""We sort of have" answered Cassie, smiling. "Whoever was watching us in those black cars deiced they wanted to get to know us a little more and so when we were about to get rid of the gun they grabbed us and started taking us somewhere.""We dealt with it though" said Milo. "Still no clue who they were but I guess now we know they're dangerous.""Please tell me you still have the gun" replied Ani, biting her lip."We do" said Milo, nodding and removing it from his waistband before placing it on the end of Danny's bed. "I went back and grabbed it before we left.""Oh thank god" replied Ani, letting out a sight of relief."Why are so happy?" Said Danny. "Wouldn't it have been better if we didn't have it anymore?""Yes but we don't know who they are and what they might use it for if they had it instead" replied Cassie. "That's why Milo went back for it and I'm assuming that's also why Ani is happy we still have it.""You seem more than happy though. Why is that?" Wondered Milo, looking at Ani and squinting is eyes."Because we need the gun for my plan to work" responded Ani, smiling. "Well, we need part of the gun.""So you have a plan?" Said Milo, everyone smiling as well."I do but it might be super messed up if we do it" replied Ani. "It's the only thing I could think of though. I racked my brain over every possible solution and every possible outcome and most of them either end with one or more of us either dying or being taken to prison where we'll most likely die anyway.""Sounds promising" said Danny, already looking hesitant."If it's all we've got, we might as well give it a go" replied Cassie. "Hopefully we'll get an outcome where we succeed.""Cassie's right, we've got to at least try" said Milo, taking a deep breathe. "Alright Ani, what's the plan?""Don't judge me too hard after you hear this but my idea was we could plant the gun's clip at Charlie's house and then frame him for the murder of Ryan" replied Ani, grimacing and waiting for everyone to call her insane."Are you fucking insane?" Questioned Danny, raising his voice slightly. "You want to send one of my other friends, who we've already kidnapped, to prison for the murder of my best friend. I can't be the only that thinks that's fucking mental.""Danny" responded Cassie, giving Danny a look thats said 'shut up'."What? You can't tell me you guys are actually considering this" said Danny, smiling because he was so shocked. "I thought you guys couldn't get anymore unstable and yet, here we are.""Think about it" replied Milo, concentrating. "If one of us goes to prison we'll most likely stay there for the rest of our lives. However, if Charlie goes to prison, him and his family have the resources to help him get a better deal and most likely a sentence that isn't going to destroy his entire wellbeing.""But he hasn't done anything to deserve this" said Danny."And we didn't do anything to deserve the lives we were given either" replied Milo."Danny, Charlie's family has enough money and power to get him the sort of legal team that'll make sure he doesn't even get prison time anyway" said Ani, sympathetically. "I know this is extremely difficult for you because these people are your friends but as far as options go, it's the only one we have right now.""Well then we'll just wait until it's not our only option" said Danny, swallowing hard."We don't have any more time to wait" replied Cassie, trying her best to be comforting for once. "We ran out of time hours ago.""This is asking you for a lot, obviously it is" said Milo. "And I know we've, mainly me, haven't done much to make you trust us. But right now Danny, we need you to trust us when we say everything we'll be fine. Charlie will be alright and everything will go back to normal.""Everything?" Asked Danny, unsure still."Yes, everything" answered Milo, smiling. "And if it makes you feel any better, once all of this is over with, we'll stop doing what we've been doing. We'll stop stealing from people as well.""But what about all of your plans to get out of here and have bigger and better lives" said Danny, looking around at everyone."We'll just have to figure out another way of getting those" replied Cassie, shrugging."You're one of us Danny" said Ani, smiling. "You're our partner and we're going to try our best not to dismiss you anymore.""Plus, we can hold Charlie in your beach house for just a little longer so that when we finally give him over to the police he'll have the whole 'I'm just a kid and I was scared of what might happen to me' angle" added Milo. "People in court tend to love those.""Okay, if you guys really mean everything you've just told me, we can do Ani's plan" said Danny, flashing a quick smile."Great... Ani, over to you" replied Milo, everyone looking at Ani.They all stood and listened to Ani's plan. All the details in included, all the intricacies that would hopefully stop them from getting caught by anyone. It wasn't massively complicated but maybe that was for the best since everything thus far had been overly so. In hindsight, it was simple really. Not so simple that anyone could have thought about it but simple enough that it was doable and also believable to anyone that had to be tricked by the outcome. Everyone had their separate roles and their parts to play. The only thing left to do now was to get it over and one with and hope everything worked out.•How the plan started was this. Danny was going to go to the house opposite Charlie's house and ask if he could use their phone. Danny made the journey from his house to where Charlie's house was and tried his best to avoid as many people as possible. It was sort of difficult because despite it being around half 8 now, the streets seemed to be getting busier and busier. It was as if the entire town had joined some sort of cult and Milo was going to be their sacrifice. The worst thing that could happen was Danny running into any of his friends because he definitely wouldn't get anything done. He took one last deep breathe and walked up the path leading to the front door of the chosen house. Obviously Danny didn't know these people so he was going to have to act as friendly and non-threatening as possible. Danny knocked on the door and waited, letting out a sigh of relief and smiling when he saw that it was just some old married couple. They looked nice enough and now all Danny had to do was pretend to be the always nice calm and friendly boy that reminded them of their grandchildren that may or may not exists. They looked old enough that if they did exist Danny might actually know them already."Hello dear" said the old woman, slightly confused and looking around to see if Danny was alone."Hey, sorry to disturb you" replied Danny, smiling."It's alright" said the old woman, now smiling too. "Did you need something?""Yes actually, I was wondering if I'd be able to use your phone" replied Danny, noticing a cross on the wall behind the woman. "I think I lost mine on the way home from volunteering at the church and I just wanted to let my parents know I'm alright.""You volunteer? So many young people nowadays don't even bother" said the old woman."I know and it's a real shame" replied Danny, nodding and feeling a little guilty. "I tried to convince some of my friends but they wouldn't listen.""Well at least the church has you" said the woman, smiling again and rubbing one of Danny's arms."So, would I be able to use that phone then?" Asked Danny."Yes, sure thing" answered the woman, moving to the side so Danny could enter the house. "Come on in.""Thank you so much" said Danny, swallowing hard."It's just this way" replied the woman, closing the front door and leading Danny into the sitting room at the front of the house. "There you go. Would you like some tea or anything?""I would love some thank you" said Danny, relieved that he wasn't going to have to find a way of making the woman leave her own sitting room.Danny kept smiling as the old woman left the room and walked down the long corridor that Danny could only assume led to the kitchen. The entire reason Danny was using this phone specifically was because if he used his phone or one at his house the police could find out where the call came from and that would mess up what Danny had to do next. Danny picked up the phone and called the police, waiting patiently whilst it rang for probably longer than it should have but also wishing it would hurry up because he didn't want the old lady coming back too soon. Eventually someone answered and now all Danny had to do was say what Ani told him to say. Danny put on his best old person voice and then informed the person listening that there was a light on in Charlie's house. Maybe specifically Charlie's bedroom but he couldn't say for certain. This news would be surprising because ever since Charlie's disappearance, that technically was still only earlier today, his house had been a crime scene and no one had been in or out. Not even his parents. The person told Danny they'd send someone out there as soon as possible and then ended the call. Danny then texted the others in the groupchat quickly letting them know his part was done. Now all he had to do was drink this cup of tea extremely quickly and try and not be too specific about which church he was a part of.Meanwhile, whilst Danny tries his best to act comfortable when the old woman places a hand on one of his thighs, Milo and Cassie should be breaking into Charlie's house across the street. Well, they didn't really need to break in since the front door was still unlocked from when the police were there earlier. Milo and Cassie walked inside, closing the front door behind them just in case anyone walked past and decided to investigate. All the mess they had caused when they were making it seem like a robbery was still there. Smashed mirrors, broken vases, and most things thrown about the room. They made their way upstairs, remembering the way to Charlie's bedroom quite well. They made sure to step over the blood puddle that was still at the bottom of the stairs from where Charlie had hit his head. Inside his bedroom, they began looking for somewhere it'd be obvious for the police to check whilst also that place being somewhere they hadn't checked before because then it'd make sense why they hadn't discovered it earlier. This time they made sure to wear gloves so neither of their fingerprints would be on the gun's clip."What are you doing?" Asked Milo, noticing Cassie was just staring at something."This is where Danny was bleeding" answered Cassie, pointing to the small blood stain on the carpet."Well you did hit him over the head with something" said Milo, continueing to look. "It's what we wanted to happen.""Crap" replied Cassie quickly."What? What happened?" Said Milo, worried."I feel a little bad" replied Cassie, looking disgusted."Cassie what the hell?" Said Milo, rolling his eyes. "I thought we'd been caught.""Sorry but what I said is much worse than being caught" replied Cassie, looking sick."Is it though" said Milo, raising an eyebrow and smiling. "Alright, I think that'll do it."Cassie turned and looked to where Milo had placed the clip, smiling as it was sat neatly at the edge of Charlie's duvet. It was sticking out just the smallest amount that it'd make sense for the police not to have noticed it yet. They smiled and nodded at one another before leaving Charlie's bedroom, Milo clicking on the light as they left to corroborate Danny's story to the police. They both ran down the stairs and out of Charlie's house just as the sound of police sirens could be heard getting closer. As they started running again they heard Danny's voice, turning to see him thanking the old woman and then trying to hide their laughter when he was forced to give her a kiss on the cheek. He ran over to them them and told them both to shut up as they all started heading back in the direction of Danny's house. Whilst all that had been going on, Ani had been arriving at Milo's house where there was still an extremely large crowd of people and most of the police force. She was there to find the things Milo had stolen over the course of their little escapades and take them from evidence so they couldn't be used against Milo in case her plan didn't work. Luckily all the evidence was still currently being kept at Milo's house for some unknown reason. Ani was hoping her dad wouldn't be there still bust sadly her hopes would very quickly be squashed."Ani, what are you going here?" Asked chief Amari, walking out of Milo's house and spotting his daughter almost immediately. "Oh, hey dad. I was looking for you actually" answered Ani, surprised she managed to come up with that lie so quickly."Really? Why?" Said chief Amari, raising an eyebrow."I'm just sorry about what I said to you on the phone" replied Ani, hating what she was saying."Yeah that isn't going to cut it" said chief Amari. "You said some unforgivable things.""I know and I will try and make it up to you" replied Ani."Alright, whatever" said chief Amari, obviously not caring that much. "You need to go home.""Actually before I go, I've been thinking about what you said to me" replied Ani. "Not just on our most recent phone call but before that as well.""And what would that include?" said chief Amari, squinting his eyes."Just all that stuff you said about Milo being a bad person" replied Ani, smiling. "I understand what you mean now. The more I thought about it, the clearer it became. Milo has never done anything nice for anyone, he only cares about himself.""Exactly, and look at where it's gotten him" said chief Amari, smiling as well and falling straight into Ani's trap."I'm sorry I didn't listen to you before, I think I was just afraid" replied Ani, hugging her dad."You don't have to be afraid anymore" said chief Amari, happily welcoming the hug. "We've got enough here to put Milo away for a long time.""Really?" Questioned Ani, faking excitement."Yep, turns out that claim Ryan made about Milo stealing wasn't a lie" responded chief Amari, looking behind him and through a window at a box sat on a table. "We have an entire box filled with stolen items and some money that's probably from selling other things.""Good, I'm glad you've got everything all in one place" said Ani, looking where her dad was looking."Now all we need is the gun he used to kill Ryan" replied chief Amari, shaking his head. "Any idea where he got the gun?" Asked Ani, seeing if her dad would lie."No clue, we think he might have stolen that as well" answered chief Amari, Ani assuming her dad probably already destroyed all the records saying he ever owned the gun. "Anyway, like I said, you need to get home.""Alright, I'll head back now" said Ani, smiling and then giving her dad one more hug before starting to walk away.She glanced back a couple times to see if her dad was watching and the second time he had also turned around and started heading back towards Milo's house. As soon as he was through the front door, Ani turned back around and walked straight for the entrance too. She waltzed through the front door, down the hall, and into the room where the box of evidence was. Her dad acted all smart and above it all and honestly it made Ani a little embarrassed that he in fact wasn't either of those things, she had tricked him so easily. Ani grabbed the box and then just as quickly as she walked in, she was leaving again before anyone saw her or could ask her any questions. Not even the people in the crowd outside said anything because they just assumed she was supposed to be there, at least that's how she was acting anyway. So, just like the others, Ani started making her way back to Danny's house. As far as they were all concerned, the plan had gone off without a hitch. Now all that needed to happen was the police find the gun's clip in Charlie's bedroom and make him a suspect in Ryan's murder. In fact, that very thing was happening as we speak. The police were entering Charlie's bedroom and sure enough, finding exactly what they needed to find.•Soon or later, everyone arrived back at Danny's house and by some strange stroke of luck Ani ran into them just as the rest of them were reaching the front door. They all confirmed to one another that their part of the plan had gone smoothly and then Ani showed them the box of evidence that was taken from Milo's bedroom. They all hugged because now hopefully they would all get at least a little break from all the crazy that had been going on. Danny confirmed his parents still weren't home because their car wasn't back yet and so they all walked inside, Ani placing the box down on the floor just by the front door so they didn't forget it when they were leaving. As they all laughed and let out sighs of relief, they all started to notice something was off. Sure, Danny's parents weren't home but they definitely weren't alone. All of them took up a stance of caution and then followed Milo further into the house until they were entering the kitchen at the back. The back door was wide open and sat on the stools around the kitchen island were two men. One was definitely in charge because he was smiling like he had all the power in the world whereas the second one just stood there scowling and watching them."Oh crap" said Milo, noticing the second man had a bandage around one of his hands. The same hand that Milo stabbed the pen through with the guy from the car. Milo started moving backwards and moving the others with him. "Go back... that way.""I wouldn't if I was you" said the man calmly, still smiling and then subtly nodding to something behind them. They all turned around and saw a man that looked just as unhappy as the guy Milo had stabbed. He was blocking their path and forcing them back into the kitchen. "All of you sit down at the table.""Who are you?" Asked Milo as they did as they were told, extremely uncomfortable."My name is Lorenzo but you can just call me Enzo" answered Enzo. He had tanned skin and a muscualr frame not too dissimilar from Ryan's. His hair was extremely short, so much so that he almost had a shaved head, but it was clearly dark. He had a smile that seemed so friendly but it was paired with eyes like snake. His voice was thick with an accent and was very strong, coming from his chest. "You must be Milo Bellamy.""How do you know my name?" Said Milo, squinting his eyes."I know all of your names" replied Enzo, starting to point at everyone else one by one. "You're Cassandra White, Ani Amari, and Daniel Connelly. I make it my business to know people that seem to be making an impact.""An Impact?" Questioned Milo, raising an eyebrow."Well can you call what's currently happening anything else" responded Enzo, waving his arms around slightly. "You've caused quite the uproar.""What's up with him?" Asked Milo, gesturing towards the guy that had stopped them from leaving."Oh, he's just angry because you stab a pen through his friend's hand" answered Enzo, smiling again and then motioning over at the other man. "And he's angry because you stabbed a pen through his hand.""What did they expect me to do" said Milo, shrugging. "They were trying to kidnap us.""Yeah that was me that told them to do that" replied Enzo."Why?" Said Milo, intrigued."Because you killed Ryan" replied Enzo simply. "And don't do all this bullshit about being innocent and whatever, I already know it was you. I've had people watching you try to get away with it since it happened.""What did Ryan have anything to do with you?" Said Milo, trying to sound harsh but not too harsh."He was one of my dealers" replied Enzo, honestly enjoying being asked the questions for once."You're the person that supplied the drugs to Ryan" said Milo, smiling and shaking his head slightly."They said you were smart" replied Enzo, grinning again."Hang on, that still doesn't explain why you wanted to kidnap us" said Milo, confused."Well that's because I didn't want to kidnap you" replied Enzo. "I sent those two to watch you and then when given the opportunity, they were to capture you and kill you. Most likely disposing of the bodies where no one would ever find them.""Is that what you're here to do now?" Said Milo, swallowing hard and sensing everyone else was scared as well."That was the reason yes, I wanted you dead even more than before after you almost killed and then assaulted one of my men" replied Enzo, thinking about it. "But after going over it multiple times I realised something.""Really? And what would that be?" Wondered Milo, raising his eyebrows."That someone with as much determination and business savvy could be quite useful to me" responded Enzo, smiling. "That's right, as well as knowing you literally killed someone I also know that you've been stealing from people.""So what? You're going to pull us into your little scheme now because you're one dealer down" said Milo, scowling."I probably wouldn't have used those exact words but pretty much yeah" replied Enzo, pursing his lips. "And trust me when I say there isn't anything small about my scheme.""What if we say no?" Said Milo, leaning back in his chair."Well then I will just have you all killed" replied Enzo like it was nothing and then standing up. "Anyway, I have to get going. There's something waiting for all of you on the table in the dining room. I'll be seeing you all very soon."They all watched as Enzo and his two men strolled out the back door and closed behind them, disappearing into to night. Apparently just as one problem is solved another one presents itself. This is what whoever said it first must have meant when they said out of the frying pan and into the fire. Milo turned around and looked at everyone else before standing up and heading for the dining room, the others following soon after. None of them knew what they were expecting but it definitely wasn't what was there. Milo stood in front of the table and the others gathered around him as they all looked down at what was most likely going to get them killed. Sat staring right back at them was piles and piles, bag and bags, of drugs. Not all the same kind and some that none of them recognised. It was safe to say they were extremely shocked and scared."Out of any of the possible outcomes you thought of earlier" said Danny out loud but referring to what Ani had said before. "Did any of them end like this?""Definitely not" replied Ani, sighing."Milo... what do we do?" Asked Cassie, concerned."You know, for once... I genuinely have no fucking clue" answered Milo, a smile forming on his face because this situation had become so insane that it was almost funny.————————————————————————Credit song for this chapter: Trouble - Cage The Elephant - https://youtu.be/AcDYTcTXtI8