MARRY YOUR KILLER
Chapter Seventy-Three: The Chase
---
The weeks after Lyra's call were relentless.
Mica worked through the nights, her laptop never closing, her eyes never resting. Calix was beside her, tracking every signal, every camera, every shadow. Honey was on the line, her voice steady, her eyes sharp. They were looking for a ghost. They were looking for Lyra.
Jay stood at the map. The pins and strings were everywhere. Manila. Pasay. Makati. Quezon City. She moved like water. She moved like smoke. She left no trace.
"She was in Pasay last night," Mica said. "An abandoned building near the coast. She was gone by morning."
Percy's hands were fists. "We keep missing her. Every time we get close, she's gone."
Aries was beside him. "She doesn't want to be found."
Percy turned. His face was hard. "Then we make her want to be found."
---
Alex was in the corner every night.
His leg was healed. His steps were steady. His hands were empty. He stood where she used to stand. He watched the street where she used to watch. He waited.
The street was empty. The lamps were flickering. The fog was low. He closed his eyes. He saw her face. Her blank face. Her empty eyes. Her small smile. Her hand in his. Her voice in his ear.
"I love you," Lyra had said. "I love you."
He opened his eyes. The corner was empty. The street was dark. The fog was thick.
"I know you're out there," he said. "I know you're watching. I know you're protecting us. But I need you to come home. I need you to come back. I need you—"
His voice cracked. He stopped.
The street was silent. The fog was still. The corner was empty.
He waited. She didn't come.
---
The call came at dawn.
Mica's voice was sharp. "I found her. Pasay. The old warehouse district. She was there ten minutes ago."
Jay was already moving. Keifer was beside her. Percy was behind them. Alex was at the door, his coat on, his face hard.
"Let's go," Alex said.
---
The warehouse district was a maze.
Old buildings. Empty streets. Shadows everywhere. Jay drove fast, Keifer beside her, Alex in the back. Percy and Aries were in the car behind them. Care and Cole were waiting at the edge of the district. Grace and Denzel were covering the east exit. Freya and Erdix were covering the west. Rakki and Ci N were at the north. Kit and Mayo were at the south.
Mica's voice was in Jay's ear. "She was in Building 7. The third floor. She's not there now. She's moving. Fast."
Jay parked the car. They ran. The streets were empty. The buildings were dark. The fog was thick.
"She knows we're here," Keifer said.
Jay didn't stop. "I know."
---
Alex ran ahead.
His leg was healed. His steps were fast. His eyes were searching. He knew this place. He had been here before. With her. Before the war. Before the bullet. Before she died. They had walked these streets together. They had stood on these corners together. They had been happy together.
He saw her. At the end of the street. A figure in black. Her hair was short. Her face was turned away. Her steps were fast.
"Lyra!" Alex screamed.
She stopped. She didn't turn. Her back was to him. Her hands were at her sides.
"Lyra, please," Alex said. His voice was breaking. "Please. I need to see you. I need to talk to you. I need—"
She ran.
She ran into the fog. She ran into the shadows. She ran away from him.
Alex ran after her. His legs were burning. His heart was pounding. His eyes were on her. She was fast. She was always fast. She was a shadow. She was a ghost. She was everything he had lost.
"Lyra!" he screamed. "Please! Stop! Please!"
She didn't stop. She ran faster. She turned a corner. She disappeared.
Alex reached the corner. He stopped. The street was empty. The fog was thick. The shadows were still. She was gone.
He fell to his knees. His hands were empty. His face was wet. His heart was broken.
"Lyra," he whispered. "Please. Please come back."
---
Jay found him on the street.
He was on his knees. His hands were empty. His face was wet. His eyes were on the fog.
"She was here," Alex said. "She was right here. I saw her. I called her name. She stopped. And then she ran."
Jay knelt beside him. "She's scared. She's been alone for so long. She doesn't know how to come back."
Alex looked at her. His face was wet. "I love her. I love her and she ran away from me."
Jay took his hand. "She ran away because she loves you. She ran away because she's trying to protect you. She ran away because she thinks she's protecting you."
Alex's face was hard. "I don't need protection. I need her."
Jay pulled him close. "I know. I know."
---
Percy stood at the end of the street. His hands were in his pockets. His face was pale.
"She was here," Percy said. "She was right here and she ran."
Aries was beside him. "She's not ready."
Percy looked at them. "When will she be ready? When will she come home? When will she—"
Aries took his hand. "When she knows it's safe. When she knows we're safe. When she knows she won't put us in danger."
Percy's face was wet. "She's not putting us in danger. She's the one in danger. She's alone. She's been alone for months. She's—"
His voice cracked. He couldn't finish.
Aries pulled him close. "I know. I know."
---
Care was waiting at the edge of the district. Cole was beside her. Her hands were steady. Her face was calm.
"She ran," Care said.
Cole looked at her. "She's not ready."
Care shook her head. "She's scared. She's been alone for so long. She doesn't remember how to be with people. She doesn't remember how to be with him."
Cole put his hand on her shoulder. "She'll remember. When she's ready. When it's safe. She'll remember."
Care looked at the fog. At the shadows. At the place where Lyra had disappeared. "I hope so."
---
The sun was rising when they left the district.
Jay sat in the car. Keifer was beside her. Alex was in the back. His hands were empty. His face was blank. His eyes were on the window.
"She was right there," Alex said. "I called her name. She stopped. She looked at me. And then she ran."
Jay turned to look at him. "She looked at you?"
Alex nodded. "She looked at me. I saw her face. She was scared. She was—" His voice cracked. He stopped.
Jay reached back. She took his hand. "She looked at you. That means something. She stopped. That means something. She's not running because she doesn't love you. She's running because she loves you too much to let you get hurt."
Alex held her hand. "I don't care if I get hurt. I just want her to come home."
Jay squeezed his hand. "She will. When she's ready. When it's safe. She will."
---
The night came.
Alex was in the corner. Her corner. His hands were in his pockets. His face was blank. His eyes were on the window where she used to watch.
"She was right there," he said. "I saw her face. I called her name. She stopped. And then she ran."
He closed his eyes. He saw her face. Her scared face. Her empty eyes. Her hands reaching for him. Her voice in his ear.
"I love you," Lyra had said. "I love you."
He opened his eyes. The corner was empty. The street was dark. The fog was thick.
"I love you," he said. "I love you and I'm not going to stop looking for you. I'm not going to stop waiting for you. I'm not going to stop loving you. Not ever."
The street was silent. The fog was still. The corner was empty.
He waited. She didn't come.
But somewhere in the shadows, somewhere in the fog, somewhere in the city, Lyra was watching. Her face was wet. Her hands were shaking. Her heart was breaking.
"I love you too," she whispered. "I love you too."
She turned. She walked into the fog. She disappeared.
---
END OF CHAPTER SEVENTY-THREE