Eli’s words have me sitting up right, my interest peaked.
“So what are we doing sitting here? Ana could be in one of those locations.” I fire out whilst standing to my full height, anxiety swirling in my stomach. I know I’m not thinking straight andthis isn’t like me at all, I’m more calculated than this, more calm and collected but now that we have these locations in our hands, the desperate need to find Ana is something that’s too strong for me to ignore.
Eli sighs down the phone before speaking again. “I get that Dean, I do, but we can’t just go in guns blazing and hope that she’s in one of them. We need to think about this, you know we do.” His words are firm and I know he’s right, my brain is on overdrive, causing my thoughts to jumble around with no organisation.
I exhale heavily whilst running my hand through my overgrown hair. “You’re right, I’m sorry. I just.. I’m going fucking crazy here man. I’ve never felt so fucking useless in all my life.” My admittance falls heavily out of my mouth and it’s the first time I’ve spoken the words out loud. It’s true though, I failed my job to protect the woman I love. She needed me and I wasn’t there.
“You’re not fucking useless alright. We’re doing everything we can to bring her home, but if we go in there without a plan we could fucking die ourselves.” My best friend speaks firmly down the phone and I nod my head. “Yeah. I agree. So what do you wanna do?”
Over the duration of the phone call, Eli decides we take each location one by one. Scope out the scene beforehand and get some intel on the place. If the dealer was right about Ricky using these places for drugs and selling women, we could easily be ambushed the moment we go in there. I need to be level headed.
After showering and getting myself ready for work, I finish off Lyla’s breakfast when a heavy knock lands on the door. My hand freezes mid air over the plastic bowl before shooting to the gun that’s sitting on the counter top. I check the magazine and flick off the safety then step quietly over to the door with Lyla close at my feet.
Eli would never knock on my door, he knows to just come straight in and I never have any other visitors so this has me on the edge. Keeping the gun low but firm in my grip, I peek through the gap in the curtains, seeing the porch outside of the door empty. My brows crease in confusion and I release one hand from the gun and unlock the front door. The clicking of the lock echoes through the silent space and I slowly pull the door open and snap the gun outwards, my finger steady on the trigger.
Dried leaves swirl around on the porch, the trees swaying in the soft wind and my eyes scour the treeline to see if anything is out of place. The world seems to stop for a moment as I track everything, my gaze landing on my truck and Lyla’s water bowl, to the chairs rocking gently on the porch until they drop to my feet, a small cardboard box sitting just in front of my boots.
Flicking the safety back on the gun, I slip it into the waistband of my cargos and grab the box and bring it inside. Lyla begins to bark at the box and immediately my hackles rise at her reaction, her teeth snapping like a raptor. She follows my every move as I place it onto the kitchen island before placing my hand onto her head to calm her.
“Calm down baby girl.” I murmur, my fingers scratching behind her ears but it does nothing to deter her anxiety. Lyla shoves her nose into my hand and I bring it back to the box, both of us anxious as to what’s inside.
Turning the box in both my hands, I find no shipping label or name, just a strip of brown tape to keep it sealed. Its weight is light, almost like there’s nothing in it at all. Shoving my hand into my pocket, I grab a hold of the small switchblade that lives in there and pierce the tape before dragging the thin blade downwards, the flaps of the box prying open. A musty smell hits me first, like clothes that have been left in the washing machinefor too long. Damp and grimy.
Lyla tips her head at what I can only presume is the smell and barks once, ordering me to open the box, and I do just that. Immediately, I feel the moment my heart lands into my stomach with a heavy thud as my hard gaze lands on a lock of black hair and a strip of tattered material, speckled with dried blood. The world seems to stop spinning at the moment, and sounds cease to exist as I gingerly lift up the lock of chopped hair and torn material. Both items feel like lead weights in my hands and I fist them tightly until my knuckles ache.
This.. this can’t be right, there’s no way this is Ana’s hair. I don’t believe it. She’s still alive, she has to be! Blood begins to pool in my mouth from how hard I’m biting the flesh inside. Anger courses through my veins like a wildfire that’s threatening to burn everything in its wake, turning forests to ash.
Lyla’s wet nose on the side of my leg shoves me out of my haze and I turn to face her, bringing the items to her nose. She immediately begins to sniff the hair and the strip of material, small huffs bursting out of her nostrils as she takes in the scent. She stops her investigation and takes a step back, her ears pinned backwards.
“Is it her?” I whisper.
I know Lyla is just a dog to some people but I trust her with everything I have. This is exactly what she’s trained to do, and if she’s picked up Ana’s scent from these items, then I wholeheartedly believe it’s Ana and that thought makes me sick to my stomach.
Lyla snaps her teeth at the items in my hands before barking once, and that’s enough to confirm that this is Ana’s hair and what I can only assume is a piece of torn clothing. Tears spring into my eyes but I refuse to let them fall, I’m not the weak kidanymore that used to get beaten every night by my father. I’m a man, a man who will slaughter the world to bring his heart home.
I inhale heavily through my nose and drop the hair and material back into the box before grabbing my phone and calling Eli, he picks up on the first ring.
“I’ve got something-”
“I need to show you-”
Both of us cut each other off with our frantic words. Eli speaks first. “I’ve had an email come through my secure server.”
My eyes land on the box and I know in my gut this email has something to with this forbidden package.
“Yeah, I.. I’ve got something too.” I say whilst swallowing heavily. Eli is silent for a moment and I know he’s thinking exactly what I am, that both of ourgiftsare related to Ana.
I tuck the phone in between my ear and shoulder, grab the box and car keys in my hand. “I’ll come over now.”
The drive over to Eli’s only takes me a couple of minutes as I keep my foot down on the accelerator, the streets of Rockford flying past my window, the box laying heavily in the passenger seat. I swear I can feel it burning into the side of me, like it’s taunting me. Lyla whines softly in the back seat, I tried to keep her at home but she flat out refused and I know it’s everything to do with the package.
I pull my truck into Eli’s driveway and grab the box before letting Lyla out of the back seat, she jumps onto the path and heads up to the front door. Once I reach the door, I let her in and immediately I’m hit with a homely scent of vanilla, the same smell that fills our kitchen every time Ana bakes her cakes. The memory hits me like a battering ram and I have to give myself a moment to collect my thoughts before I hear Eli and Cecilia in the kitchen.
My feet are light across the floor as I enter the kitchen, the box tucked under my arm. My best friend senses me first and lifts his head to face me, his eyes landing on the box. A wash of trepidation splashes across his face for a split second, and then it’s gone again.
Cecilia turns away from the kitchen sink, dries her hands and steps over to me before pulling me into a firm hug. I wrap one arm around her small frame and tuck my face into the crook of her neck whilst my heart shatters into a million pieces all over again. She rubs small circles onto my back, her bangles clicking together.
“I’m sorry Dean, we’ll bring her home.” Her warm, comforting voice rings into my ears and I give her a tight squeeze before pulling back. Her honey brown eyes shine with unshed tears as she places her palm onto my cheek.
