Virgin At 25-Chapter 97: WRONG TURNS…

THIRD PERSON POV

Maxie’s feet felt like they were made of cement by the time she reached the entrance of her apartment compound.

Her fingers were numb from calling Zion over and over again.

Her throat was tight from holding back tears.

Her mind refused to accept anything Diana said.

Dead?

How?

Why?

Where the hell was Aec?

She was shaking by the time she reached the third step.

Then a shadow moved.

A girl, no older than nineteen stepped directly into her path.

Pretty. Innocent-looking.

But her eyes... they were wrong.

Cold.

Empty.

Detached.

Maxie stopped instantly, her breath hitching.

"Can I help you?" she asked, voice sharp.

The girl didn’t answer.

She held out a small brown parcel wrapped in thin twine

"For you," she said quietly.

Maxie frowned. "From who?"

The girl blinked, slow. Almost rehearsed.

"Sharon is dead."

The world dropped from under Maxie’s feet.

"What... what did you just say?" she whispered.

The girl simply pushed the parcel into her hands.

Like it was nothing.

Maxie swallowed hard, heart beating against her ribs painfully.

"Who sent you?" she demanded.

But the girl only stepped back.

Then turned around and walked away like a ghost fading into night.

Maxie stared after her, breath shaking violently.

Then she looked down at the parcel.

Her fingers suddenly felt weak.

"No... no no no..."

She tore it open with shaking hands, as she head inside her apartment.

Inside was a folded photograph.

A fresh one.

Maxie unfolded it slowly... too slowly and when the picture opened fully her scream never made it past her lips.

Her entire body locked up.

There, captured under the harsh glare of a flashlight...

Was a woman’s body by a riverbed.

Bloodied.

Twisted.

Barely recognizable.

But the clothes...

The hair...

The small detail of her torn sleeve...

It was Sharon.

Or someone made to look like Sharon.

Maxie staggered back a step, hand flying to her mouth.

"No... no no... Sharon... Sharon can’t, she’s not"

The picture slipped from her fingers and fluttered to the ground.

Her knees buckled.

Her breathing turned into hard gasps, each one sharper than a knife.

She looked around wildly as if someone, anyone would appear and tell her it was a lie.

A mistake but there was no one, only silence.

Only the photo lying face-up on the pavement like a tombstone.

Maxie grabbed it again with shaking hands, clutching it to her chest as if it could bring Sharon back.

"No... please... Sharon... please be alive..." she whispered brokenly.

Her phone vibrated in her pocket.

She snatched it instantly.

It was Zion Calling...

Maxie froze. Her blood turned cold.

She stared at the screen, terrified... she grabbed the phone with trembling fingers and answered instantly.

"H–HELLO? Zion?!" Her voice cracked, breaking completely. "Zion... Zion, oh my God,Sharon is... Sharon is..."

"Maxie. wait—"

"No!" she sobbed, her voice spilling out too fast, too broken to control. "She’s dead! They, they sent me a picture. Zion I SAW HER... I am scared"

"MAXIE."

Zion’s voice thundered through the speaker so sharply she flinched.

But the sobs kept coming, choking her.

"I saw her, by the river—her body... This picture " Maxie gasped, clutching her chest like she could hold her heart in place. "Someone gave me a parcel, Zion she’s ..."

"MAXIE, LISTEN TO ME!"

His breath was shaking too... fear, fury, something she had never heard from him before.

"She’s NOT dead."

Maxie froze.

Her breath caught, stopping completely.

She blinked hard, tears spilling down her cheeks.

"W-What...?"

Zion’s voice lowered to a sharp, trembling whisper.

Maxie clutched the phone tighter, her sobs barely calming when Zion spoke again...

"Maxie..." Zion exhaled shakily. "I just, just heard from my parents too."

Her breath froze.

He continued, voice raw.

"They said Sharon is dead too.

Maxie shook her head violently, tears spilling fresh.

"Zion don’t... what can I do?"

"I don’t believe it," he cut in, firm, breathless. "I refuse to believe it. Not until I see proof with my own eyes."

She pressed her back to the nearest wall, sliding down halfway.

"Zion..." she whispered weakly.

"Maxie, listen to me carefully." His voice dropped, urgent. "I need you to do something for me. I’ll be back as soon as I can. But before then..."

A loud crackle exploded through the speaker.

Static.

Then a sound like someone grabbed the phone from him.

"Zion?? Zion?! What is that?!" Maxie yelled, panic clawing at her throat.

The line jolted again.

Maxie heard muffled voices, like a struggle then a hard thud.

The line went dead.

Maxie stared at the screen, her heart dropping so violently she thought she might throw up.

"No... no no no. Zion pick up, please pick up..."

She dialed again but it failed

She tried again. Call Failed.

Her hands shook uncontrollably as she tried a third time, tears blurring her vision.

"The number you are trying to reach is currently unavailable."

Maxie slapped a hand over her mouth, stopping a scream.

"Oh my God... Zion... what’s happening, what’s happening?!"

She looked around wildly. She hugged herself, phone in hand, backing away from her own entrance door.

Her heartbeat thundered.

"Zion..." she whispered to the empty air.

"Please be okay..."

Maxie’s fingers trembled as she hit redial. The call refused to connect.

"Zion, please... pick up..." Her voice cracked.

She tried again...

But before it could ring,

Ryan’s name flashed across her screen.

Her heart stopped.

She answered with shaking hands.

"H-Hello?"

Ryan didn’t waste a second. His voice was low, controlled, but she could hear the storm under it.

"Maxie. We just got an official notice... they’re saying Sharon is dead."

Her knees almost gave out.

A small, broken sound slipped from her throat.

Ryan continued, his breath harsh.

"I was contacted. But I don’t believe it. I need to know everything you know, right now."

Maxie pressed her palm to her chest, fighting for breath.

"I... I know nothing. I swear, Ryan. I just... I just got something, someone gave me something"

Her voice shredded into a sob.

"I don’t know what’s happening..."

Ryan cursed under his breath, sharp and deadly.

"Where are you?"

"At... at my house..."

"Come outside the gate. Stay there."

His tone dropped lower and dangerously calm.

"Don’t move. I’m coming to you now. And Maxie..."

She swallowed. "Y-Yes?"

"Whatever you were given... don’t open it again. Not until I get there."

The line went dead.

Maxie paced back and forth outside the gate, unable to stay still.

Her mind was spinning, her breath too thin, her heart pounding so hard it hurt.

Ryan said he was on his way.

God, she couldn’t even think straight.

The night air felt wrong... too heavy.

She hugged her arms around herself and stepped closer to the road, hoping the headlights approaching would be Ryan’s car.

Then a prickle ran down her spine.

Someone was staring at her.

Maxie turned slowly.

Across the street, half-hidden in the shadows of a wall, a figure stood.

Still.

Unblinking.

Like they weren’t even breathing.

Her stomach dropped.

The figure shifted then started walking toward her.

Not fast.

But in that unsettling, deliberate way that made her chest tighten as fear crawled up her throat.

Maxie staggered back, her hands trembling.

"No... no..." she whispered, not even sure why she said it.

The figure kept coming.

Maxie turned to run and slammed into a body behind her.

She screamed so loud it tore her throat, stumbling back and dropping to her knees.

Her hands flew up, covering her ears, shaking uncontrollably.

"Maxie! MAXIE! It’s me—hey, hey, calm down!"

The voice.

Familiar.

She forced her eyes open, and saw Marcus

Standing right over her, eyes wide with shock and worry.

The moment she recognized him, something inside her cracked open completely.

She launched herself at him, grabbing his shirt, her voice breaking as the truth ripped out of her chest...

"Marcus... they said..."

She choked, breath hitching.

" they said Sharon’s dead..."

Her knees gave out.

Her voice went hollow

Marcus caught her tightly, his arms wrapping around her as she cried into him, but his own face slowly turned pale because over Maxie’s shoulder.

Marcus held Maxie tightly, rocking her gently, trying to calm the sobs rattling her body. His chest pressed against hers, heart pounding, trying to steady both their breathing.

But then his eyes flicked over her shoulder.

A figure. Silent. Shadows clinging to it like a second skin.

Too late.

The glint of metal flashed in the dim streetlight.

"MAXIE!" Marcus shouted, pushing her aside but the knife came down toward her.

Instinct kicked in. He twisted, throwing himself in the path, and the blade sank into his side instead. He stumbled, a strangled grunt tearing from his throat.

Maxie screamed, scrambling backward, hands flying to clutch at him, but her knees buckled, panic freezing her.

The figure didn’t wait. It darted back into the darkness, vanishing like smoke.

Marcus hit the ground hard, blood seeping through his shirt, but his gaze never left Maxie. His hand rose shakily to her, trying to hold onto something, anyone, as the world spun around them.

Maxie’s tears blurred her vision. Her hands shook as she tried to grab him.

But the street was empty now. Silent. Too quiet.