Camera

Chapter 37 - Camera

Kelly and Tina arrived at Blazing Towers with four suitcases containing only the bare essentials. Torin was waiting at the front gate with Leena beside him, and he watched as the two women approached. Kelly gave him a forced, polite smile, while Tina didn't even bother looking in his direction.

The moment she saw him, Tina tightened her grip on her suitcase and walked straight past, heading toward the apartment building without slowing down.

Kelly watched her go before turning back to Torin. "I'm sorry about her attitude. She's still angry about moving here."

Torin gave a small nod. "She'll get over it."

He didn't press the matter and instead started showing Kelly around the building.

He took her through the main areas first, pointing out the lawn, the small garden, and the indoor gym. Kelly listened and nodded whenever he explained something, but her eyes kept moving over the facilities. The place was functional, but modest, and her expression became slightly more strained each time she looked around.

Torin noticed but said nothing.

They continued inside, where he introduced her to the elderly couple living in the building. Kelly exchanged a few polite words with them before they moved on. As they were walking toward the apartments, Misty, happened to come down the corridor on her way somewhere else. She slowed when she saw the unfamiliar woman and looked at Kelly with open curiosity.

Kelly smiled at her. "Hi."

Misty gave her a cautious look before continuing on her way.

Kelly watched her disappear around the corner, then followed Torin toward her apartment.

When they reached the door, Torin handed her the spare key.

"This is your apartment. If you need anything, let me know."

Kelly closed her fingers around the key and gave him another small smile. "Thank you."

For a moment, neither of them moved. There was still an awkward tension between them, with too many things left unsaid, but neither seemed interested in starting that conversation now.

Torin gave her a brief nod before turning away.

"Get some rest."

Kelly nodded and entered the apartment.

Torin walked toward his old apartment, which he had converted into an office, with Leena following close behind him.

Once inside, he sat at the desk and opened his laptop. He brought up the property listing sites and began scrolling through the available apartments in the area. He checked the prices, locations, and basic details one after another, occasionally opening a listing before returning to the search.

Leena remained beside his chair.

She had been quiet since they entered.

Torin continued looking through the listings until he noticed that she still hadn't said anything. He glanced at her.

She was standing with her hands together, shifting her weight slightly from one foot to the other. Despite the air conditioning running in the room, there was a faint layer of sweat across her forehead.

"What is it?"

Leena opened her mouth, but the words didn't come.

After several seconds, she finally managed to speak. "T-Torin."

He looked back at the laptop. "What happened?"

Leena took a breath.

"It's about the part-time job I used to work."

Torin stopped scrolling. "The restaurant?"

She nodded. "Yeah, the one about a hundred meters from here."

He closed the listing he was looking at and turned toward her.

"What about it?"

"The owner came to my place yesterday."

Torin's expression changed immediately. "And you didn't tell me?"

Leena shook her head.

He pushed himself away from the desk and stood.

"Did that bastard harass you again?"

"No."

She answered quickly, then wiped at the corner of her eye.

"He showed me a video."

Torin stared at her.

"What video?"

Leena's lips trembled.

"I don't know how he got it."

"Tell me what he showed you."

She looked down at her hands instead of answering. Her breathing became uneven, and tears began forming in her eyes.

Torin stepped closer. "Leena."

She finally looked at him. "He had a video of me."

Torin's jaw tightened. "An MMS?"

Leena broke down, covering her face as the first sob escaped her. Torin pulled her closer, holding her while she struggled to speak.

"I'll deal with him," he said, his voice low. "But first, tell me how he got the video."

Leena slowly lowered her hands. Instead of answering, she opened her fist. A tiny black camera sat in her palm.

Torin looked at it. He took the device and turned it over between his fingers.

"Where did you get this?"

Leena swallowed. "It was hidden in our bathroom."

Torin's eyes hardened. "How did it get there?"

"He was Brask's friend," she said through her tears. "He used to come over for dinner all the time. We knew him. I never thought he'd do something like this."

Torin looked down at the camera again.

The realization came quickly.

If there had been a camera in the bathroom, there was no reason to assume that it had been the only one. Someone who had access to their home could have placed another device somewhere else, and the possibility was even worse considering how freely Misty moved around.

Torin's grip tightened around the camera. He turned and hurled it against the wall. The plastic casing shattered on impact, scattering across the floor.

He stood still for a moment before kicking the small table beside him. It scraped across the floor and slammed into the wall. His eyes fell on the old wooden baseball bat leaning in the corner, its surface still carrying dark stains from an earlier incident.

He reached for it.

His fingers closed around the handle.

For a second, he looked at the weapon in his hand before forcing himself to put it back.

He took a slow breath. Then his attention shifted to the heavier steel bat resting beside it.

He picked it up.

Leena watched him carefully.

Torin turned toward her and stepped closer, the anger still visible in his face but now held firmly under control.

"There is one thing you need to do for me before I leave to deal with that bastard."

Leena looked at him through tear-filled eyes.

"Tell me everything you remember about that camera."

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