Allison's POV:
I couldn't close my mouth, blink my eyes, or breathe anymore. It felt like I had frozen upon hearing his voice. I couldn't believe he called me like that. His voice was deep and mysterious. I could sense the danger just from his voice, and I gulped hard, struggling to catch my breath. Though I managed to regain my breath, I still couldn't speak or blink.
"Are you out of your shock now?" he asked, and I trembled, pulling the phone away from my ear and looking down at the number. It still showed as a private number, and I couldn't believe it. I wished it was just a dream, but it was happening in reality. My hands shook as I rapidly blinked my eyes and immediately ended the call. I didn't know what I was thinking by hanging up on Jacob Hayes.
"Oh, God..." I exclaimed, jumping up in panic. "What did I do? What did I do?" I asked myself fearfully, then looked down at the phone, contemplating my actions. The fear and shock of Jacob Hayes finding my number led me to do such a foolish thing.
"So stupid of me," I frustratedly said, shaking my head and burying it in my hands when suddenly the phone began to ring again. I glanced down and saw the same private number.
"Oh my God, he is calling again..." I muttered, biting my lip anxiously while looking at my phone. I felt the urge to pee, but I had to answer the call and be sensible this time.
I picked up the call, taking a deep breath before speaking, "Um, hello..."
"Allison Wesley, right?" he asked in his deep, masculine voice, and I gulped.
"Um, yes..." I replied shakily.
"First of all, did you really hang up on me?" he inquired, and I quivered, thinking back to when I took the phone away from my ear. "Um, no, no... I - I didn't... Um, it happened due to the, uh, network connection, I guess..." I stuttered, desperately trying to explain. "It's very poor here."
"I see..." he replied. "Do you know me?" he asked.
"Um, no..." I answered, swallowing nervously, hoping he had called for some other reason and hadn't found my ID card near that building.
"Really?" he questioned, and I nodded, unable to utter any words.
"Allison Wesley?" he made me tremble, and I snapped back, realizing I hadn't spoken loudly enough for him to hear me.
"Yeah..." I said, gulping again.
"So you don't know me? Then how come, when I told you who I was, you seemed to be in shock? You didn't speak for almost a minute," he added, and I gulped, searching for an answer. Even over the call, he seemed intimidating.
"Uh, no... I was, I was busy with my work... So, I - I wasn't paying attention to the call..." I defended myself.
"I see... So you don't know me, right?" he confirmed, and I took a breath.
"Uh, no..." I replied softly.
"Okay... So your name is Allison Wesley. You work for Dallas Daily..." he said, causing my heart to race. "Your address is 112 Ike Street, Apartment 2B, Dallas, Texas..." he continued, and I closed my eyes, realizing he must have found my ID card. Frustrated, I shook my head, realizing how doomed I was now.
"You don't know me, but I know so much about you," he said, and I opened my eyes with fear and anxiety overwhelming me. "Doesn't that strike you as odd? Doesn't it raise questions in your mind about how I know this much about you?" he inquired.
"Uh, I... I can't..." I started in my shaky voice but couldn't complete my sentence.
"Let me answer that," he interrupted me. "I happened to find your office ID card near my building... Your office is located on Wilkin Street, and your ID card ended up here in Kenton... That's weird, don't you think?" he asked.
"Um, I... I don't know..." I began to say.
"Oh, okay... Anyway, don't you want it back?" he asked me, and I became confused, considering how calmly and sarcastically he was speaking. I wasn't even sure if he was being sarcastic or not, or if he saw my face when I fell from the bricks. 'He definitely saw you, and he definitely knows that you were the girl spying on him and that you dropped your ID card here!' I scolded myself internally, realizing how strange he was. I knew he was aware of my lies, which made me more scared of him, as he didn't reveal his true level of awareness.
"You don't want it back?" he repeated, and I trembled.
"Uh, I... I want it... Please send it to my address," I said, breathing heavily.
"Do you think I have a delivery service here...?" he asked, still calm in his tone.
"I... I didn't mean that..." I replied.
"Well, since you claim not to know me, you should do a little research and find out more about me. You need that," he said, and I rolled my eyes.
"So, come to the same building tomorrow at 12 pm... You'll get your ID card," he said.
"Okay..." I replied, nodding, wondering if he would hand over the card easily.
"So, you know the building?" he inquired.
"Yes, um... no..." I quickly changed my answer. "I don't know, obviously," I added, nervously chuckling.
"Okay, then note down the address," he instructed, and I stood there absentmindedly, as I already knew the address.
"Noted," I said as he completed dictating the address.
"Goodbye, Allison Wesley. See you tomorrow. I'll be waiting," he said and ended the call.
"Waiting to kill me...?" I bitterly asked, looking down at the phone. "What was that?" I cried out and rushed to the bathroom to relieve myself.
As I stood in front of the mirror, taking a deep breath, I shook my head and looked down, overwhelmed with regret. I regretted the moment when I went to investigate him. It was the most foolish thing I could have ever done.
"He is weird... This person is weird," I muttered to myself in the mirror. "He could have become angry with me or scolded me for spying on him, or he could have directly threatened me, but no, no, no..." I paused in frustration. "Instead, he chose to act strangely... He was calm and, I think, sarcastic... He acted like a psychopath," I added, speaking aloud and swallowing nervously. "We both knew everything... We both knew that we were lying to each other, and yet we kept on doing that," I said bitterly. Fear consumed me as I wondered how this meeting would unfold. I assumed he was planning to give me a sweet death.
Running my fingers through my hair, pushing them back, I contemplated what I should do about this meeting. I was scared. I could envision him killing me as soon as I arrived there.
Taking a deep breath, I decided not to go and get a new card, but I was still frightened by the fact that he knew my address and my office. I wondered if he would show up at my door someday, and as I opened it, he would shoot me straight in the forehead, ending my life. The images kept flooding my mind, so I tightly shut my eyes, trying to avoid negative thoughts, and walked out of the bathroom.
Jacob Hayes and his invitation to meet him, supposedly to return my ID card, haunted my thoughts throughout the day. I was nervous and couldn't focus on my work.
After returning home that night, I continued to think about that mafia boss while Amanda recounted the events of her conference. I couldn't concentrate on what she was saying; I simply watched her lips move. My absent-mindedness gave her a hint, and she decided to leave the room, urging me to get some sleep. I attempted to sleep, tossing and turning, but to no avail. Finally, after a few hours (I couldn't recall the exact time), I drifted off to sleep.
Later that night, in the midst of my deep slumber, I heard a knock on my door.
"Amanda, open the door, please," I called out loudly, squeezing my blanket tightly. However, the knocks persisted, and Amanda didn't open the door.
"God..." I exclaimed in frustration, getting up from the bed and rubbing my eyes as I stumbled toward the door.
"Who is it?" I asked, reaching for the doorknob, but there was no response, and the knocking continued.
"Weird," I muttered, and I opened the door to find a man standing in front of me.
"Hello, Allison Wesley... Finally, we've met," Jacob Hayes said, smirking, and my eyes widened in shock as my body froze in place...