Amy

"So, everyone is on the same page now?" Lia asked.

"Yes!" we all said in unison and rolled our eyes.

Right now, we are in our hotel room in Seattle and are waiting for sunset so that we can leave for our search in Lawson Mansion. Lia has been repeatedly explaining the whole plan to us almost tenth time since morning. I think even a newborn baby would understand by now.

"Great!" Lia smiled excitedly.

"We all already knew everything. You didn't have to explain it again", Daniel told her and Aaron and I groaned.

There they go again.

"Is there any harm in double checking?" Lia narrowed her eyes at him.

"Double checking is okay. What you did is not double checking. It is fifty times checking. Even the walls of this room might know every bit of our plan now", Daniel argued.

"You-"

"Guys", Aaron cut Lia off with a warning look.

Lia narrowed her eyes at Daniel and turned back to look at the television.

I sighed with relief and turned my head to see that Aaron was already looking at me. Our eyes locked with each other. We hadn't got a chance to be alone since morning. Obviously, we had things to discuss. We both knew that if Daniel would have called in the morning we would have done the deed. Somewhere, I was even happy that we didn't end up doing it in the morning. I want us to confess to each other before we get there.

I don't know what will happen tonight. But, I know one thing for sure. I want Aaron to know that I love him. I know that the feelings are mutual. It is just I am waiting for him and he is probably nervous to say it. I felt like just yelling it out to him. But, now wasn't the time to do it. Maybe after tomorrow. I feel that we will get to that point once things fall into place tonight.

"Aaron, you wanna go down and check if the car is here yet?" Daniel asked Aaron making us break our eye contact.

"Now who is fifty times checking?" Lia taunted.

"Am I talking to you?" Daniel gritted at her.

"Okay, let's go", Aaron cut them off pulling Daniel with him out of the room.

I sighed with relief as we narrowly dodged another argument from starting. How they live in the same apartment is beyond me.

"Look at him. He is so arrogant. If it wasn't a necessitation for my work, I would have never lived in his house", Lia said to me with disgust.

"He is not that bad, Lia", I told her.

She just scoffed, "I feel he is lucky that in these two weeks that I have stayed in his house, I have hardly crossed paths with him else I don't know what I would have done."

I sighed and just shook my head diverting my attention back to the television .

"I thought about what you said the other day", I told her after a few moments.

"What did I say?" she asked with confusion.

"About how I should go tell Aaron that I..still..you know", I trailed off.

"That you still love him?" Lia asked, almost yelled.

"Lia! They might be coming back up", I scolded her.

"That drama queen will never come up so fast and obviously Aaron won't come back alone. So, forget it. What about that?" she asked me.

"I think you are right. I should say it first", I told her biting my lip.

"What?" Lia asked excitedly with a smile.

"Yes, I mean looking at how things are right now, I think he is not going to gather the courage to do it. He has tried a couple of times but, none have been successful. I guess it wouldn't hurt for me to give it a try", I shrugged.

Lia squealed with delight, "Oh my god! When are you going to do it?"

"I am thinking if everything goes well tonight then, maybe two days later on Monday", I bit my lip.

"I am so happy for you", Lia smiled and hugged me tight.

"Thank you", I hugged her back.

"But then, I will be the third wheel everywhere I go with you or Luke", Lia pouted.

I laughed, "You can never third wheel. You are always welcomed when Luke and I are concerned."

Just then Aaron opened the door of the room and walked in. Daniel was tailing right behind.

"It is sundown", Daniel told us.

"The car is here too. We leave in ten minutes", Aaron said looking at Lia.

"Can you pass me some water?" Daniel asked Lia.

"Sure", Lia smiled and passed the water bottle to him.

Lia smiled at Daniel?

My jaw dropped and eyes widen in shock. I looked at Aaron who was mirroring my expression and we looked back at them.

"What?" they asked with confusion.

"You tell us", I looked at them bewildered.

"You are smiling at each other?" Aaron asked them.

"Oh that", Lia waved her hand and rolled her eyes.

"We've called it a truce until tomorrow morning", Daniel explained and Lia nodded.

"You both were fighting like fifteen minutes ago", I argued.

"Yes, that was our last fight for tonight. We had decided we call it a truce at sunset", Lia said as if it was the most normal thing in the world.

I just shook my head as I realised that understanding this is beyond me. People fight because they have real issues. These two fight as if it is their favorite way to pass time.

"Both of you are ready? Like do you wanna get fresh, change or anything?" Daniel asked us.

"No, we are good", I shrugged.

"Let's go then", Aaron said taking a deep breath.

Suddenly, the environment in the room became dead serious and we all took a deep breath as we realised that this is it.

I gulped as we got out of the room and walked to the car. We all got in and Aaron drove to Lawson Mansion. None of us dared to speak a word. I was praying silently as we were nearing Lawson Mansion. It was completely dark now how we had wanted it to be so that no one could see us break-in.

Soon we reached the location and Aaron parked the car right opposite to the main gate of the mansion. The mansion was huge and spoke money. It had a front lawn with a white fountain that we could see from outside and the backyard was spread until a long distance. It was spreaded wide and had a brick wall surrounding it. The main gate was a huge iron gate that was currently locked. The mansion was really dark though. There were no lights on, obviously because no one lived there.

As soon as Aaron and I were done taking in the mansion, we turned to look behind us at Lia and Daniel who were sitting in the backseat. Daniel tore his gaze from the window and let out a deep breath. We all faced Lia who was staring at the mansion with a cold face.

"This is your last chance, girls. You can still back out if you want", Daniel told me and Lia.

"Not a chance", Lia said still staring at the mansion.

"We are in this together, Daniel", I shook my head in a no.

"Fine then. We will go ahead as we planned", Daniel said and got out of the car with Lia, who had worn her backpack.

They looked for any cars that were coming and then crossed the street. We watched them as they jumped over the wall that was guarding the house and got down on the other side. Now all we had to do was wait for Daniel's call.

"Nervous?" Aaron asked me as I was rubbing my hands together.

"A little", I nodded.

"You can still back out, Mel. You don't have to do this", he told me.

"Why? Because Julia is not related to me by birth?" I asked him.

"I didn't mean that, Mel. I can tell that you are really very nervous. I am just saying that if you want you can still back out. You will be safer that way. This is not your fight anyways", he explained.

"This is my fight too, Aaron. I told you we come together, we go together", I told him and he sighed.

"Don't leave my side, okay?" he told me.

I nodded and said, "Don't go anywhere alone. Take one of us with you."

"If it comes to that and I tell you run, you run. Don't worry about me. If you have to leave me behind to die, do it", Aaron told me holding my hand.

"You are not putting yourself in danger to protect me. That will not happen. I am not getting out of there without you", I told him.

Aaron dipped his head and kissed me lightly. It was exactly like the one after our wedding. It was as if he was kissing me for the last time. The thought scared me to my gut and I deepened the kiss pulling him closer.

Soon we broke apart and stayed silent as we caught our breaths.

"Mel, I don't know what will happen once we go inside. This is a very wrong time to say this. But, I just want you to know that I-" Aaron stopped in the middle.

"That you?" I prompted him hopefully.

"That I am glad to have you in my life", Aaron smiled.

Idiot.

I smiled at him and said, "I am glad to have you in my life too."

Aaron smiled and pulled me in a hug. We both stayed like that for a few minutes and then pulled apart. Aaron caressed my cheek lightly and smiled at me without breaking the eye contact. I leaned into his warm touch still staring at his eyes.

There was something in his eyes that was unsettling. I couldn't put my finger on it but, I had never seen it before. It felt like he wants to say a lot of things, he wants to yell and argue but, he doesn't know if he should. He is contemplating.

I just mentally shook my head and took a deep breath. He is probably thinking about tonight.

"It is getting late. They should have called by now", I told Aaron looking out of the window with worry.

"They will in a few minutes", Aaron told me.

"This part of the plan is insane. I was never in favor of this. I don't know how Lia got you both to agree", I shook my head with worry.

"Relax, Mel. Take a deep breath. Things are only going to get worse from here", Aaron reminded me.

"Are you trying to console me or make me cry?" I asked and then suddenly I smiled as I realized that this is exactly what I had told him when I first met him.

I turned to look at him and saw that he was smiling too.

"I am just saying the truth, like always", Aaron winked at me.

Just then his phone vibrated and it was Daniel.

Aaron picked up putting it on speaker for me.

"In. Now", Daniel said and hanged up.

I took a deep breath to gather my courage and calm down my racing heart. I wore my backpack quickly and got out of the car with Aaron.

Aaron held my hand in his and we carefully crossed the road. We walked a bit until we reached the place from where Daniel and Lia had jumped across.

Aaron lifted me up and I sat on the wall. I turned around and jumped inside. Soon, Aaron followed.

Once we both made sure we were okay, Aaron held my hand and we sneaked to the main gate which Daniel had already opened from inside. We quickly went in and Daniel locked it behind us.

"Lia?" I asked him.

"She ran upstairs. She said she'll meet us there", Daniel told me and I nodded.

We got our phones out and switched on the flash lights to look around for the staircase to go upstairs. But, the staircase was so huge that one couldn't miss it even in the dark. Just like Lia had told us, it was a two way grand staircase in the very back of the living room. There was a small space below the stairs and the wall had a few pictures on it.

"It smells weird", I told them.

"Yes, it is something unusual", Aaron nodded.

"They clean this mansion every two weeks. I don't understand why would Marcus get it cleaned if he is not even living here", Daniel said.

"He is a weird man", I told him as we went up the stairs.

Lia had also told us the location of the room where she had found Julia's diary. We traced the way to that room.

"The door is locked", Daniel told Aaron as we reached the room.

"We will have to break it", Aaron told him.

"No, you don't. That is why you have me", Lia said from behind me making us flinch in shock.

"Lia, not a very good time for sneaking up on people", I told her.

"Sorry but, here, I got the keys from the study", Lia gave them to Aaron and he tried different keys to open the door.

"How did you both get in?" I asked them.

"Just like we had planned. I broke the glass of the kitchen window, opened it from inside and then squeezed in through the window. Once I was in, I opened the main door for him and he called you guys while I grabbed the keys", Lia told me.

"How did you know they were there?" Daniel asked her.

"Well, did you forget? I have lived in this house for fourteen years. Being left alone for most of the time, I used to wander around a lot. I know where everything is more than anyone. Hence, I knew that they had an extra set of keys in the first drawer of the closet of Arthur Lawson's study", Lia said proudly and Daniel and I nodded in approval.

"Jackpot", Aaron whispered as the lock clicked.

He opened the door and we walked in.

"Why are you not switching on the lights instead of using the flash lights?" Lia asked.

"Well, someone might notice the lights being on and become suspicious", Daniel reminded her.

"No one lives in the vicinity of at least three miles. You can switch them on", Lia told him and extended her arm to the switchboard.

"No wait!" We tried to stop her but, she already turned on the lights.

Light shone bright into the room and we turned to look around. It was a huge room. The floor was covered in carpet and it had a four post king size bed right in the middle. But except that, it was completely empty. There was nothing. Not a spot.

"Looks like I was right. They have wiped it clean", Daniel said with disappointment.

"There has to be something in the house", I reassured him.

"Let's go check the other rooms", Lia told everyone. We nodded and turned around.

But, Aaron hadn't moved an inch from his place. He was staring at the room coldly.

"Aaron?" I placed a hand on his shoulder.

"This is the room where he did those cruel things to her. This is where she...", Aaron whispered sadly as a tear rolled down his cheek.

"This room doesn't feel like our Julia, brother. She never lived here. Her soul was with us", Daniel comforted him wiping his own tears.

"She missed all of you every single day, Aaron. We talked about all of it right there, on this bed", Lia said pointing to the bed.

"Let's go, Aaron", I smiled at him sadly holding his hand.

We left the room giving it one last look. We locked the door and started discussing where to go next.

"I don't think we will be able to find anything in the study either", I told them.

"No harm in looking", Aaron shrugged.

"Why don't we spread out?" Daniel asked.

"That's a good idea. Why don't we do this? Lia and I can go check all the rooms on this floor while you and Daniel can check all the rooms upstairs", I suggested.

"But, the keys are just one set", Aaron told us.

"Wait. How did you open the study in the first place then? Was it unlocked?" I asked Lia as I just realised.

"Uh..actually..", Lia pursed her lips.

We continued looking at her waiting for her to explain.

"I know how to that pick lock", Lia said sheepishly.

"What?!" three of us exclaimed.

"Not very proud of it but, like I said, I used to wander a lot. Most of the times, some of these rooms would be locked. So, just for passing time, I tried and learned how to pick some of these locks", Lia shrugged.

"Your way of passing time was learning how to pick locks? You're sure you are really a doctor? Your traits are more like those of a thief", Daniel told her with caution.

"Hey! We are on a truce, remember?" Lia warned him.

"I remember but, just saying. No worries, we can discuss this later", Daniel waved it off.

"Which locks can you pick?" Aaron asked her.

"Not many. Just all the ten rooms on the second floor and two rooms on the first floor", Lia shrugged.

"And how many total rooms are there in this house?" Daniel asked her with suspicion.

"Well ten rooms on both the second and third floor and two rooms on the first floor", Lia answered.

"So, you can break into more than half the rooms in this house and that is not many for you", Daniel looked at her with open mouth.

Aaron chuckled and patted Daniel on his back, who just looked at him with an expression that said he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"I guess I'll just say that we don't need another set of keys now. Daniel and I will go upstairs while you both look here. Don't turn on any lights, okay? Call if you find anything else just meet us here", Aaron nodded at me and left with Daniel.

"Let's get to work", I told Lia and we started with the nearest room.

Lia pulled a pin from her hair and inserted it in the door knob. After a few tries, I heard the lock click. I looked at her shocked at how fast that happened and she just winked at me.

About two hours later, we had searched the whole second floor. We couldn't find a single thing. All rooms were either completely empty or didn't have anything related to Julia.

Marcus had cleaned up really well after himself.

We went back to the place where we seperated from the guys and they got down the stairs too.

"Found anything?" I asked Aaron.

"No, you?" Aaron shook his head.

"Nothing. Not a hair", Lia sighed.

"Looks like plan A failed", Daniel sighed.

"Wait, we haven't checked downstairs yet", I reminded them.

"What's the point? All rooms will be empty downstairs as well", Aaron shrugged.

"Except the study", Lia whispered.

"What?" Aaron asked her.

"Lia, we already checked the study here. There is nothing-"

"No, not the one on this floor. There is an area in the living room right below the staircase", Lia said and climbed down the stairs in full speed. We quickly followed her.

She went to the middle of the staircase and stood in the middle of the two sided staircase facing the wall with pictures.

"What is it Lia?" I asked her.

"Step back", she told me and walked to the start of the right side of the staircase. She bend down and put her hand behind the pillar.

She was there for a few minutes moving her hand around.

"Lia, what are you-"

Suddenly, there was a screeching noise and the whole wall started turning around.

"What the...", Daniel trailed off looking at the wall turn.

"This is...", I looked at the wall in awe.

"Whoever designed this is a genius", Aaron complimented.

"My mother did", Lia breathed.

"Your mother?" Daniel asked with surprise.

"Yes, it was her idea. At least, that's what my uncle told me. I had never seen it before. Didn't even know it existed. But, when I was living with my uncle before leaving to Canada, he had told me that there was this secret study below the stairs that my mom had designed in this mansion. He told me that the button was near the pillar and when you press it, the whole wall turned around and you could access the cupboard behind it. I guess when we couldn't find anything, I recalled this and decided to give it a try", Lia shrugged.

"This is amazing. Thanks, Lia", Aaron smiled at her.

"You are a genius, Lia", I smiled at her too.

Lia smiled back and then looked at Daniel raising her eyebrow.

"What? The credit goes to your mother. She was a genius", Daniel shrugged and Lia rolled her eyes.

Aaron smacked Daniel on his head.

"Ouch! What the hell?" Daniel narrowed his eyes at Aaron rubbing his head.

"Since, mom isn't here, I'll take her job", Aaron glared at him and nodded in Lia's direction.

"Fine!" Daniel groaned. "That was smart. Thanks."

"Your welcome", Lia scoffed.

We shook our heads and started looking around.

"I am gonna go