Free Web NovelChapter 25: Answer Me
Kai stopped breathing.
For a second, his exhausted brain simply refused to process what he was seeing.
The bedroom door stood partially open at the end of the dark hallway. Beyond it, a phone screen glowed with cold blue light. Somebody was holding it.
At the exact same moment, the phone in Kai’s hand began ringing.
The caller ID displayed a single name.
Luna.
The Discord call was still active. Luna was still connected. He could hear her breathing through his headset.
And yet his phone was showing an incoming call from her.
The apartment suddenly felt unreal, like reality itself had developed a bug.
"Kai?"
Luna’s voice came through Discord. Soft. Confused.
"Kai, what’s wrong?"
His eyes never left the glowing screen in the darkness. The ringing continued while his heart slammed against his ribs. freēwebnovel.com
"Luna."
"Yeah?"
"Why are you calling me?"
Silence.
A long silence.
Then:
"I’m not."
The answer arrived instantly, without hesitation or confusion.
The ringing continued.
Kai slowly turned his phone toward his monitor, toward the stream, toward the camera. The caller ID remained visible.
Luna.
The chat exploded so violently it became unreadable.
The viewer count surged again. One hundred forty thousand. Then one hundred forty-two. Then higher.
People clipped everything. People reposted everything. Social media was probably on fire.
Kai barely noticed.
His attention remained fixed on the hallway, on the figure holding the glowing phone, on the impossible call.
The ringing stopped.
Silence rushed back into the apartment.
A few seconds passed.
Nothing happened.
Then his phone vibrated.
Missed call.
From Luna.
The figure in the hallway lowered its phone.
Kai felt every muscle in his body tighten because now there was movement.
Not much. Just enough.
The silhouette shifted slightly. Still impossible to identify. Still hidden by darkness.
But undeniably there.
Watching.
Waiting.
His Discord pinged.
A direct message from Luna appeared.
Answer me honestly.
Kai frowned.
"What?"
Another message arrived.
Did you ever tell anyone my name?
His stomach dropped.
Not because of the question.
Because he already knew the answer.
No.
Never.
Not once.
Luna wasn’t even her real username. As far as the stream knew, she was simply a mysterious donor—a voice, a rumor, a conspiracy theory with excellent timing.
Nobody should know her name.
Nobody.
His pulse hammered as he slowly typed.
No.
The typing indicator appeared immediately. Then disappeared. Then appeared again.
Finally:
Then someone is listening.
The words sat on his screen.
Heavy.
Simple.
Terrifying.
Outside the headset, the apartment remained silent.
Inside the headset, Luna remained silent too.
For once, neither seemed to know what came next.
A donation alert suddenly flashed across the screen. The familiar pink glow filled the room.
RealDerekVoss donated $250,000.
The police are on your floor. Open the door when they identify themselves.
Kai stared.
A quarter million dollars.
Like it was pocket change.
The chat completely lost its mind.
TaxFraudEnjoyer:
THIS MAN HAS INFINITE MONEY
CrustySockCEO:
HE JUST DONATED MY STUDENT LOANS
ExpiredMilkDealer:
DEREK IS SINGLEHANDEDLY FUNDING THE GDP
Despite everything, a laugh escaped Kai.
Short. Exhausted. Broken.
But real.
The sound surprised him.
The apartment had been trying to kill him for hours, yet somehow he was laughing.
Maybe that was a sign of resilience.
Maybe it was sleep deprivation.
The line between those two things felt increasingly blurry.
Then Luna laughed too.
Quiet. Warm.
The sound lasted less than a second, yet it immediately made the apartment feel different. Less hostile. Less lonely.
Kai hated how much he noticed that.
His chest tightened.
Not fear.
Something worse.
Comfort.
The realization hit him hard.
At some point during this disaster, Luna had become the person he looked for first.
Not Derek.
Not the police.
Not chat.
Luna.
Every time something happened, his first instinct was to tell her. Every time he got scared, he listened for her voice. Every time things became unbearable, she somehow made them easier.
The thought should have worried him.
Instead it felt natural.
Which worried him even more.
A sharp knock suddenly echoed through the apartment.
Kai jumped.
Three knocks.
Firm. Professional.
Not the strange rhythmic taps from earlier.
Actual knocks.
The kind normal people used.
The kind police used.
Every nerve in his body immediately went on edge.
The knock came again.
A voice followed.
"Police department."
Kai froze.
The apartment fell silent.
Even chat seemed hesitant. freewebnovёl.ƈom
The voice continued.
"Mr. Mercer? We need you to open the door."
Relief surged through him.
Actual relief.
Finally.
Finally.
Something normal.
Something real.
Then Luna spoke.
Very quietly.
Very carefully.
"Kai."
His hand stopped halfway to the desk.
"Yeah?"
A pause.
Not long.
Just long enough.
Then:
"They didn’t identify themselves."
His stomach dropped.
Outside the apartment, the voice called again.
"Mr. Mercer?"
Kai looked toward the door. Then toward Discord. Then toward the dark hallway.
The figure was still there.
Still standing near the bedroom.
Still holding a phone.
Still watching.
His pulse hammered.
Another knock echoed through the apartment, this time louder.
"Mr. Mercer, open the door."
Luna’s voice remained calm. Almost gentle.
"Real officers identify themselves."
Kai swallowed.
Outside, the voice sounded impatient now.
Inside, Luna sounded worried.
The contrast made his skin crawl.
Then something happened that made every hair on his body stand up.
The figure in the hallway finally moved.
Not toward him.
Not away from him.
The person raised their phone.
A message appeared on Kai’s screen.
Unknown number.
No image.
No caller ID.
Just six words.
those aren’t the real police
The knock came again.
Harder.
Louder.
The apartment door rattled.
And for the first time all night—
Kai had no idea which side was lying.
