Irene wasn't feeling fearful at all. In fact, she responded with a hiss before easing herself onto the bed, pulling the covers tightly around her body.
"Can't you hear? Where's Mercy?" The hot girl was getting agitated. "If you don't want me to involve the security officials, you better start talking. It's been over two weeks since you both disappeared on a Friday. Her phone isn't connecting, and she's nowhere to be found."
Irene's voice carried a touch of annoyance, "If you want to bring the school security into this and explain how I'm involved in her disappearance, go ahead. Just let me have some rest. I don't need this right now."
The girl's frustration grew, and they yanked the bed cover off, tossing it onto the floor. "Resting is not what you need right now," she shouted. "You know what happened to her. Start talking, because this is a grave situation. Nobody's seen her, not her mother, not her boyfriend. She went missing when you two left and only you came back!"
The shouting caught everyone's attention, even drawing the gaze of those who weren't Irene's roommates. People were stopping by the open door, curious about the commotion. Mercy's disappearance had already become a topic of discussion. Meredith had no idea what was going on because she had been busy with exams. Now, she watched keenly as the hot girl dragged Irene's cover again and continued to yell in her face.
They all expected Irene to react or say something in her defence but she simply ignored the girl and continued scrolling through her phones.
Irene seemed calm on the outside, but inside, she was scared because she knew she was the only one who knew about Mercy's disappearance. They went for a fun weekend outside school to a fancy city named Douglas. They were excited to have a good time with rich men. The Caribbean club they went to was really amazing, much better than anywhere they had been before.
But during that night, when they were having a wild time, Mercy went away from Irene to be with a group of really strange men. They looked loaded with cash and Mercy was acting silly when she caught their attention. These men wanted Mercy to go with them to a special area called the VIP. Irene would have gone with her, but she didn't feel like doing everything those men asked. Girls like them, who were used to the nightlife, understood what it meant when girls went to the VIP area with strange men. And anything could happen there without anyone coming to your aid.
Irene wanted to stop Mercy from going, but the music was so loud that she couldn't get a chance to stop her.
But when she was done enjoying herself and wanted to head back to their hotel, Mercy was nowhere to be found. She inquired with the bartenders, waitresses, and even the club manager, but no one had seen Mercy. Her persistence led to her being escorted out of the exclusive club by the bouncer. Just like that! She stayed for another day at the hotel, repeatedly calling Mercy's phone, but received no response. That's when the realization struck that something was seriously amiss. However, she felt helpless and returned to school, acting like she didn't know about Mercy's disappearance. All this time, she held onto the hope that Mercy would reappear at the hostel, but it had been two weeks, and there was still no sign of her.
"Did you not hear me? What happened to her? You better speak out bItch" The intense tone of the hot girl's voice snapped Irene out of her thoughts as she slapped her phone away.
"I don't know! I don't know! Leave me alone! I never told her to go with those men. I have no clue what happened to her. Please, I don't know," Irene finally broke down, the weight of not knowing Mercy's whereabouts finally taking its toll. This was the first time she let her emotions show since discovering that her party partner was missing. To make matters worse, she couldn't even recall the faces of those men. They were all dressed in black and seemed intentionally discreet. She was clueless about their identities.
.
" Bullshit Bullshit! Irene! You were the last one to see her. Do you think this is some kind of joke? Do you think you can lie your way out of this? But mark my words, you're going to get arrested soon. You better spill the truth about what you did with her right now!" The girl's voice continued to pierce the air with anger.
"Janice, just stop… you're causing a scene. You're drawing way too much attention," another girl from their clique walked in, her tiny bum shorts and long, obvious lashes indicating she was from Irene's clique.
"No, Mercy might be in danger, or worse, dead! And Irene might be involved!" Janice yelled as the new girl tried to calm her down.
"That's a serious accusation to make. Seriously, enough! Let the school security handle it," the new girl reasoned, attempting to pull Janice away.
Janice resisted the new girl's efforts, insisting on her accusations against Irene, who stood frozen in place. The realization that Mercy could be dead and she was linked to her disappearance weighed heavily on her. Tears streamed down her face, and just as Meredith was about to offer comfort, the school security barged into the room, instructing Irene to come with them.
The two women in green uniforms showed no signs of warmth as they motioned for Irene to exit through the door. Irene hesitated, then walked out without even looking at her roommates.
"What just happened? Are they really arresting her?" Meredith's other roommate exclaimed.
"I'm still in shock, and I truly feel sorry for Irene," Meredith replied.
"Sorry for her? Why? You should feel sorry for Mercy's family, whose daughter is missing. Irene better spill the beans about what happened before things get worse for her," Bolu, Meredith's glutton roommate, interjected as she sat on her bed.
The room fell into a collective sigh as they processed the events they had just witnessed.
"These wild party girls who flirt around with older men… I knew one day they'd land in big trouble. I genuinely pity them," Bolu continued.
"But do you think Mercy is dead, or is she somewhere having the time of her life?" Meredith asked no one in particular, her gaze locked on the door, remembering the accusations Janice had hurled at Irene.
"With the kind of life they lead, she might be in a really bad situation, who knows? You've heard about dangerous men these girls associate with, right? I will not be surprised if they have gotten into the wrong hands."
Meredith and the other roommate shook their heads in pity as they listened to Bolu. "This isn't the first time I've heard of girls going missing. My cousin's friend… his sister went missing for months once, and her phone wasn't working. Then one morning, she showed up at their doorstep, and just 30 minutes later, she died right in their house."
"Come on! What kind of unbelievable story is that?" another roommate chimed in, clearly skeptical of Bolu's account.
"It's actually true. I can call my cousin to confirm it."
While they debated the authenticity of Bolu's story, Meredith silently hoped that Irene would navigate her way out of the predicament she had found herself in. What had truly happened to Mercy, and why was Irene reluctant to reveal the truth? And was Bolu's story even true? Could there be a secret organization responsible for disappearance of girls? As these questions echoed in her head, she forgot to ask Bolu about her food.