Demons From the Past novel Chapter 9

" There's no shame in being afraid. Hell, we're all afraid. What you gotta do is figure out what you're afraid of because when you put a face on it, you can beat it. Better yet, you can use it." -One Tree Hill

************

|Verena|

"Thank God the key fits." I whispered.

We were currently standing in the alleyway at the back of the apartment complex, in front of the narrow, rusted door labelled "Backup Generator Room."

"Why are you whispering? The whole place is deserted. No one's going to hear us." Nate asked me pointedly.

I just gave him an annoyed look as I finally unlocked the door and stepped inside, Nate followed suit. The room was completely dark and the strong smell of gasoline dominated. I could just make out the outline of what I assumed was a large generator.

"Okay, the guard said that it opened into the inside of the complex. There's got to be a door here somewhere which opens into the other side." I explained.

I felt around the wall for a door handle, it was too dark to actually see anything.

"Wait." Nate murmured.

I nearly jumped out of my skin when I felt his breath at the back of my neck. He grasped my hand in his lightly.

When had he gotten this close?

"Nate w-what are you doing?" I breathed out.

We were so close that I could feel the heat radiating off his body. He leaned in closer, so that his chest pressed against my back.

"Use this." His lips grazed my ear, making me shiver involuntarily.

"W-what?" My breathing was disoriented. I couldn't think straight.

He pressed something into my palm and let go of my hand. I was too baffled to figure out what it was at this point.

"Use the flashlight on my phone, it's too dark." I could practically hear the smirk in his voice.

He'd handed me his phone. I could feel my face heating up.

"Oh! Right." I cleared my throat awkwardly as I stepped away from him.

Using the flashlight in his phone I quickly located a door handle on the wall. I tried it and it opened with a loud 'creak'.

We stepped into what seemed to be a small lawn the back side of the apartment complex, there was overgrown grass everywhere. I looked around but I didn't spot a single security camera.

Someone could easily have broken inside the complex without anyone catching them if they had the key!

But how did he manage to get up all the way to the eighteenth floor into my room or Allison's?

My question was soon answered when I saw an iron ladder attached to the side of the wall, the ladder led directly to the roof, probably for quick access to the electric circuits which were located there. However someone could easily jump off the ladder onto one of the balconies of the individual apartments which were only separated by a short distance from the ladder.

We approached the ladder and I looked up nervously.

Could the killer have climbed up to my apartment from here?

"Allison lived on the eighteenth floor right?" Nate voiced out his thoughts.

I nodded in response.

Nate thought for a moment before speaking again, "Let's climb up and see if we can get to that balcony on the eighteenth floor we need to see if it is really Allison's apartment."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" I asked nervously.

He smirked at me teasingly, "Why? Don't tell me you're scared of heights?"

I scoffed, "Of course not!"

Liar.

"After you then." He said in a mocking voice.

I gave him a scowl before I positioned myself at the end of the ladder. I took in a deep breath.

I was terrified of heights.

My self-esteem forbade me to admit it in front of him. For some reason I wanted to prove to him that I could do it, that I wasn't weak.

I slowly started to climb up the ladder, my heart was beating erratically. I urged myself to keep moving.

I'd hardly reached the first floor when I made the mistake of looking down. A wave a dizziness hit me.

I felt the panic attack coming.

I was going to fall. I was losing my balance.

Suddenly I felt a warm hand on my waist, steadying me. "It's okay, I'm right behind you. Nothing is going to happen." Nate's strong, soothing voice spoke up.

Just like that I could feel my panic ebb away. I believed him.

Nate wouldn't let me get hurt.

I resumed climbing up. It took us a while to reach the eighteenth floor, I was sweating and panting profusely. It had been a long and exhausting climb.

"Let me get to the balcony first then I'll help you." Nate stated.

I held my breath as I watched him grab on to the balcony railing with one hand, the other still holding on to the handle of the ladder, he skillfully hoisted his body up and onto the balcony.

I let out a relieved breath.

"Come on." Nate held out his hand to me encouragingly.

I could feel the fear building up inside me once more. My palms were slippery with sweat. I looked down and gasped, the ground was too far away.

I was going to fall.

My breath came out in uneven pants. I could feel my grip slipping.

Nate let out an exasperated sigh, "Nothing here, let's just go."

I nodded in response as I checked under the bed for the fifth time.

Just as I was about to get up my eye caught the floor board, it was slightly elevated.

I felt my heart beat speed up.

With a little bit of effort I was able to lift the board away, there was what seemed like a small compartment underneath.

"Nate! I think I found something!" I cried out excitedly.

Nate hurriedly made his way towards me. I reached inside and my hands brushed against something. I pulled it out, it turned out to be a plastic bag.

"What is it?" I asked curiously.

Nate took the bag from me and tore it open. He dipped his fingers inside and felt the white powdery material. He bought his fingers to his mouth briefly.

"Is it-? I asked in bewilderment.

"Yes, it's cocaine." Nate confirmed.

"Does that mean Allison was on drugs?"

Nate's eyebrows furrowed in concentration. "Maybe." He said after a while. "Maybe Ethan found out and got mad. That might be the reason they were fighting like Liam mentioned."

I contemplated the situation then suddenly a thought occurred to me.

"What if this aren't Allison's? What if it's Ethan's? Maybe Allison found out about his drug addiction and hid his cocaine here? And he must have demanded it back and she might have threatened to expose him. That gives him reason to kill her." I finished quietly.

"Maybe." Nate said looking at me expectantly.

"Look, Ethan has anger management issues, he's violent. These are common side effects of drugs. Also, you told me that he and Allison got into a huge fight the night before she was murdered which means that he was mad at her for something. His relationship with Allison also meant that he visited the apartment complex frequently, he could have easily taken the key to the generator room from Belinda's desk without drawing attention."

"That's a nice theory, but how do we prove all of that?" Nate asked, watching me with clear amusement.

My expression became determined, "I just know he's the one who killed her. He has to be."

"So right now our target is to somehow prove that Ethan is guilty." He spoke up.

I gave him a firm nod, "We're going to take that murderer down."

"You really like playing detective don't you." Nate asked with a small smirk.

I just gave him a wink.

"Let's go, we've got what we were looking for."

I started to get up. "We're taking the elevator, no way I'm stepping on that ladder again."

**************