Shadows of the Unseen

"Answer my question!" Lisa's voice reduce through the silence of the small, dimly lit room. Her eyes, huge and full of frustration, locked onto her older brother, Jake, who sat slouched at the sofa across from her. The flickering lightbulb overhead seemed to reflect her volatile feelings.

Jake sighed, rubbing his temples. "Lisa, I already informed you, there is nothing to give an explanation for. Drop it."

But she wouldn’t drop it. Couldn’t drop it. Not when her intestine told her some thing changed into extraordinarily wrong. She had seen the shift in Jake over the past few weeks, his surprising disappearances, the late-night time smartphone calls, the developing darkness in his generally bright eyes. It wasn’t like him to hold secrets and techniques, and it wasn’t like her to allow them to pass unchallenged.

"Don’t treat me like I’m a kid," she shot again, her voice trembling with a mix of anger and fear. "I realize something's occurring. You're hiding something from me. Just tell me the truth. Please."

Jake leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees, and stared at the tired carpet underneath his toes. For a moment, he didn’t say some thing, as though he become seeking to determine out what to mention next. When he sooner or later spoke, his voice was quiet, almost defeated. "Lisa, there are things you don’t need to know. Things I’m handling that... Aren’t secure which will get worried in."

Her heart skipped a beat at the word "safe." It was worse than she concept.

"Jake, you're scaring me," she said, her voice softening, her anger replaced via subject. "I'm your sister. Whatever it's miles, we are able to face it collectively. I’m not leaving this room till you inform me the fact."

Jake’s head snapped up, and he checked out her with an depth she’d never visible earlier than. His face become light, his eyes bloodshot, and she observed for the first time the faint tremor in his fingers. He opened his mouth to talk, however then hesitated, as though weighing the results of what he changed into about to mention.

"Fine," he stated ultimately, his voice barely a whisper. "But as soon as you recognize, there’s no going back."

Lisa sat down beside him, her heart racing. Whatever was coming, she needed to listen it.

Jake took a deep breath and started. "A few months in the past, I... I got concerned with some people. People who promised me things cash, energy, connections. At first, it changed into all harmless. They stated they have been a commercial enterprise organization, just seeking out new skills to spend money on." He paused, his arms clenching into fists. "But then matters modified. They asked me to do illegal matters. At first, it changed into small stuff. Deliveries. Packages I wasn’t speculated to open. I didn’t ask questions due to the fact they paid me properly."

Lisa's blood ran bloodless. "What did you deliver?"

He swallowed difficult, his eyes assembly hers. "Drugs. Weapons. I didn’t recognise in the beginning, I swear. But as soon as I figured it out, I became already in too deep. They knew in which I lived, they knew approximately you. They threatened me, Lisa. They stated if I ever talked, if I ever attempted to go away, they’d hurt you."

Lisa gasped, overlaying her mouth together with her hand. "Oh my God, Jake."

"I notion I could shield you by means of staying quiet, via doing what they asked. But now, Now it’s worse. They want me to do something huge, some thing I can’t walk far from. I don’t recognise a way to get out of this, Lisa. I’ve tried to cut ties, but they’re looking me. They’re usually looking."

Fear gripped her heart. The room felt all of sudden colder, the shadows final in around them. "We should go to the police," Lisa said urgently. "You can’t do this alone. They’ll assist us. We can get safety."

Jake shook his head. "It’s not that easy. They've eyes everywhere. Even inside the police pressure."

Tears welled up in Lisa’s eyes. "Jake, we’ll discern it out. We’ll find a way. But you can’t hold doing this. You can’t allow them to control you like this."

Jake checked out her, a mixture of fear and remorse clouding his face. "I don’t realize how to get out, Lisa. I don’t recognize if I can."

She grabbed his hand, squeezing it tightly. "We’ll discover a way. Together."

For the primary time in weeks, Jake allowed himself to accept as true with that is probably authentic.