Chapter 29
“Genius.”
The bucket of paste drops to the floor, “Lovers from the Past” by Mureux ringing in my left ear-pod.
Staring up at another one of her works sends a wave of warmth through me. But it only replaces that coldness for a moment.
“She is kind of a genius, isn’t she?” A familiar voice joins me on my right. Cara Walsh. “So you’re the one doing this all over town.” Her heels click towards the Sun House wall. But that’s only half true.
I’m using my privilege to my advantage. The Hill isn’t the only place where massive paste-ups of Ember’s artwork adorn a wall. I’ve hired people from the next couple of towns to do the same. And I didn’t stop there. No state or country was off the list. It’s been a week and we’ve made good groundwork. But I won’t take credit for this. Ember’s art is hard to miss.
“Thought you left town a long time ago,” I say, dropping the roller into the bucket.
It’s best to keep moving when doing these things. It’s far from legal. Especially in a town like this. I’d hate for Charlotte to pin the blame on me. The McKinsleys don’t need more drama.
Ember’s work adds a whole new definition to the town. And if I can’t find her, maybe somewhere, wherever she is, she’ll see it.
“I was actually looking for you,” Cara says, leaning against the wall in a white wide-brimmed hat. Her orange dress trails down to the ground. While her face shares similarities with Ember”s, her body is different. She’s as mannequin-like as the other girls in this town, fitting in with an aesthetic Ember never needed to.
“Yeah?” Reaching into the back pocket of my black denim jeans, I grab my case of cigarettes. “Why the fuck is that?”
“We’re dropping you as a prospect,” Cara says. “Wanted to tell you face-to-face.”
The news doesn’t come as a surprise. Instead of working on getting my body back in shape, I’ve tended to other things. “Have you seen her?”
“Ember?” Cara lets out a laugh. “God, no.”
My jaw tightens. “Have you looked?”
“I was very clear about my relationship, or lack thereof, with Ember,” she sighs as if her daughter’s existence bores her. “Honestly, the further away from her the better it is for business.”
“Jake died, did you know that?” When I got to Ember’s trailer, it was too late. The only thing left behind was police tape and a padlock on the door.
“Well, that’s what happens when you drown yourself in alcohol.” Silence overtakes us before she continues. “Send her my condolences.”
“Fuck your condolences.” My hand hits the wall, almost shattering the bones inside. “I won’t be sending anything on your behalf.” Not like I could. “You don’t deserve that. You don’t deserve her. No one does.”
She laughs again. “And you do? That family will grind you down.”
“What family?” Picking up my supplies, I glare into those eyes wishing they were hers. There’s a resemblance but her mother doesn’t have that fire in her eyes. Not like Ember. “As far as I know, I’m all she’s got.” Moving towards my car, I make sure she hears my last words. “Don’t come back.”
Once inside my car, a heaviness takes me. My head hits the seat. “Where the fuck are you?” I mutter.
Picking up my phone from the passenger’s seat, her seat, I don’t get any answers. Still no text. Still no call. My people haven’t seen her. No one has. My hands turn to fists.
I have to find her.
My mind goes to Harry who helped crack the code on Beau’s phone. It’s time I call in more reinforcements.
She left without a trace. She left without a word. I can’t have that.
She’ll pay for that.
I’m a man of my word.
I will find her.
“She’s like a ghost,”Harry says, leaning back in his chair in the computer lab. “Besides all the art on social media, it’s like she doesn’t exist.”
My hand pounds on the desk, a pain ringing through it but nothing like the pain vibrating through me. Harry flinches and I fight the urge to pound his head in to do a better job.
It’s not his fault. It’s yours.
Reaching into my pocket, I tap out a cigarette and let it hang off my lips as I try to steady my heart rate. Harry opens his mouth but closes it as if he knows better than to remind me of the rules.
“Maybe she doesn’t want to be found,” he says.
That only makes my muscles tighter. He’s not getting off that easy and neither am I. “Don’t stop until you find something. Anything. Or you’ll regret it.”
I’ll regret it.
Leaving the room, a group of guys sit on a wooden bench in the hallway, huddled around a phone. Ryung’s head sits between, chuckles coming from the group.
“Oh shit,” Ryung laughs, telling me they’re way too deep in hockey highlights to care about much else right now. I get it, but hockey is no longer my priority.
Moving towards the door, Harry’s voice sticks to me. Maybe she doesn’t want to be found. Am I stupid for wanting to find her? Am I the one who should let this go?
“McKinsley,” Ryung calls. “You gotta see this.” I don’t answer, the pain in my chest too much. I need to make it better. “Hey,” Ryung calls again when I”m near the exit. “Red Light has a new girl, seems up your alley.” The mention of that site tells me they’re not looking at hockey, they”re looking at porn. Any urge to join them disappears as I push the door open, a gust of fresh air hitting my face as smoke billows from my mouth. “I’ll send it to you.”
I’m not even a foot away from the door before I get a notification on my phone from Ryung. A link with a preview attached. It”s the usual. A dick in a pretty girl’s mouth, mascara running down her face.
My body stills, the world around me muffling.
Wait a minute.
I know that mouth.
Looking around, I lean against the wall, puffing hard on my cigarette before I click the link.
My heart pounds when the link opens and it’s not the clickbait description that has my hand shaking. “DRUNK BITCH TAKES MASSIVE COCK”
The cigarette drops from my mouth when the video plays. It’s rough, the usual for The Red Light. You can’t see the man’s face but you can see his hand tugging on dark hair. Even the sounds she makes are familiar. They’re sounds I’ve heard before.
It’s all in your head.
It’s all in your head.
It’s all in your head.
But when she looks up, it proves that it’s not.
Those bloodstone eyes look back at me, my cigarette dropping to the ground as I pause the video. Her eyes are out of it. Vacant. But I know them anywhere.
Ember’s.