The Mathews Family

CHARLIE

For the next few days, paranoia sprouted within me. Emily and I had just moved to a quite cozy apartment on Riverside Drive, and even though the area seemed bright and safe, my senses were on constant alert. I kept waking up in the middle of the night and walking to the window just to check if there weren't any suspicious cars parked by our apartment building.

I managed to fool Emily, telling her that I regained my energy and confidence, but that wasn't entirely true. I was scared. Someone might have been after me, and the only weapon I had was the folded combat knife I found in Singapore, which surely didn't give me the advantage I needed against a taller and stronger opponent.

Trying to calm down my nerves, I sat in our new kitchen and slowly sipped lemon balm tea. It didn't work. It took a child's scream coming from the outside of our building for my heart to hammer. I was a mess. I needed an assignment—something to keep me focused—but instead, I sat and waited for Kevin to