Chapter 5

"You're insane!"

Someone covered their mouth, looking at me with derision.

Julian advanced towards me, his eyes red.

"We just want to find Celeste. Are you deliberately calling the police to provoke the kidnappers into killing her?!"

"You're doing this on purpose! You're in league with the kidnappers!"

My parents' dazed expressions instantly turned into dawning realization, and their gazes at me grew even more furious.

I evaded Julian, quickly called the police, ignoring their exceptionally angry stares.

"The kidnapped person's name is Celeste Hayes... Yes, she's been kidnapped for three hours, so she probably hasn't gone too far..."

The moment I hung up the phone, a pair of hands suddenly grabbed my throat, squeezing with merciless force.

"Just tell us where Celeste is!"

"Aren't you afraid of being taken away by the police if you call them?!"

"Aria Hayes, you're still acting crazy! You're beyond saving!"

"I'm giving you one last chance! Tell me now! Where is Celeste?!"

Julian was frantic, applying desperate force with his hands.

I gasped for air, my frantic breathing drawing the attention of the others present. Pointing at me, someone screamed.

"Quick! Officer, arrest her!"

"She..."

The next second, the scream seemed to be choked off. Everyone stared blankly at the door.

A familiar figure appeared at the entrance.

"Celeste!!!"

My parents' faces lit up with surprise. They took a step forward, then, seeing her clearly, their expressions instantly fractured.

Celeste's face held no trace of joy.

She was supposed to be the rescued kidnap victim, but she was being held by police officers on either side. When she moved, her handcuffed wrists were revealed.

"This is..."

Someone pointed at Celeste, their mouth open wide enough to fit an egg.

"Officer, you've arrested the wrong person!"

I coughed, pulled a USB drive from my pocket, and plugged it directly into the computer at the front of the classroom.

"They didn't make a mistake."

They arrested exactly who they should have.

I had waited a month for this day.

The video on the USB drive began to play. Celeste's gentle voice filled the room.

"If I 'get kidnapped,' everyone will blame Aria, won't they?"

"Seventy-thirty split on the ransom. The Hayes family won't pursue it. I'll make sure of it."

"Take the money. And disappear."

My parents' faces instantly turned ashen, utter disbelief etched on their faces.

After a few seconds of silence, Celeste's voice continued.

"Pin it on Aria's birth parents."

"They actually wanted to send me to a mental hospital."

"Me? Sick? Impossible."

The air in the room turned to ice. Everyone took a collective step back, as if an invisible, toxic barrier had just expanded around Celeste.

Julian couldn't believe it. A sudden, warm trickle under his nose. He raised a hand to find it streaked crimson.

The next second, he collapsed onto the floor.