Chapter 8 Eight

Two weeks has passed since the tragedy that befell Lillian's family. Day by day, Lillian hoped to hear from the perpetrators, anything at all about her brother, how he is, what they plan on doing with him, if he is still alive, but she heard nothing.

The death of her parents wasn't the only tragedy that befell her family, all her family's asset were also confiscated in a claim that her father was involved in corruption and that he was even in lot of corporate debts.

That seems very unlikely to Lillian. She knew that the people behind her parent's death has a hand in all that but she was powerless and there was nothing she could do but to watch her father's legacy all taken down one by one. All this only added to her reclining mental health.

The only property left was their main house, which was in her name. Even all the workers had quit working and the whole house looks like a haunted one as she is the only one now occupying it.

At least she has a place to rest her head, a shelter to call hers. For Lillian though, the house was more like a stage set for a horror movie, the source of all the nightmares she has been having every single night since her parents were killed.

She thought about selling it and getting a small place but that house is the only thing that still connects her to her family in a way. Moreover, it will be difficult for sage to find her if she sells the house.

It was almost midnight and Lillian's eyes are wide open. She couldn't sleep after she woke up from another nightmare, which in other words is her reality but a scarier and a more exaggerated version of it.

Lillian jolted from her thoughts when she heard some noise coming from downstairs, the living room. She frowned knowing no one was in the house except her. Perhaps, it's the people she has been hoping she could see again. Perhaps, they had come to take her where her brother is. Perhaps, they had come to return her brother.

But then, it would be really disheartening if this assumption of hers was wrong. Her heart rate increased when the thought that the intruders could be burglars invaded her mind.

She looked around her room, searching for anything that could serve as protection against any potential intruder out there. Her painting brushes? Not even close to a weapon. Her laptop? Too expensive to be damaged on an intruder. The bottle of water on her bedside table? Definitely not.

She stopped roaming her eyes when it landed on the night lamp, cliche but always effective. She picked up the lamp and quietly opening her door, she tiptoed till she reached the stairs.

Their was indeed an intruder. Whether there is only one or more, she doesn't know but she could see the silhouette of a person. Lillian pressed the light switch abruptly and the room lit up revealing a masked man who turned to her in shock.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?" Lillian asked.

The man refused to respond and just stared knowing he was caught red-handed. Lillian was about to ask another question when her eyes landed on the gold-colored box in the stranger's hand. In his other hand was the eye-catching vase that was placed on the center table.

The gold-colored box is none other than her mother's jewelry box. Lillian sighed in disappointment, it was just a burglar.

"Just go." She said, lowering the lamp she had held in front of her in a self defense position.

The burglar didn't wait to be told twice before dashing out and disappearing into the night. Lillian exhaled in exhaustion as she slowly lowered herself unto one of the stairs, sitting down.

Is she even in the right state of mind at the moment? Because who in their right mind would be desperately wishing for the appearance of their parent's murderer. To her though, her reason was justified. It's always said that 'no new means good news but for Lillian, the state of no news is only making her anxious.

A very stupid idea occurred to Lillian. Perhaps, she should call back the police officers and give them the sketches of the faces she remembered. The one that stood out and is very vivid in her memory is that of the main leader who came after had parents had been shot.

What if they plan to eventually kill her brother and she is just sitting in vain hoping for the impossible when she could have done something to prevent it? Perhaps, if done skillfully and secretly, her parent's murderers would not only be caught, but Sage could also be rescued.

The face that lives in her head rent-free. The face of the cruel man, whose leg she had held and begged not to take her brother away. The face of the wicked man who took everything away from her and showed no remorse.

Lillian rushed to her room, grabbed a canvass and her painting materials. She sat on her comfortable chair and got to work. Within twenty minutes, Lillian was done painting the stranger's face and she wasn't disappointed by her skill. The painting came out exactly as she had stored it in her memory.

Lillian stared at the painting for some time before finally making a decision, she is going to reveal everything to the police officer she trusted the most, Peter. She was glad she still has the paper, on which he had written his contact number.