“Are you gonna tell them who I am?”
“Not…yet.” I can practically hear his neurons firing. “But I will if I think it’ll help.”
“Okay.” What else can I say? I look back at Maverick’s car. “I feel weird about leaving his personal effects in the car. Someone could come along and break the window…”
I let my words trail off as I cycle through every scenario.
“Good point. Gimme a sec.”
Moments later, the locks disengage and I grab his things.
“Got ‘em.”
The locks re-engage automatically.
“Check in every half hour or so?” I ask, making my way back to Anders’ car.
“Perfect.”
Anders ends the call, and I stare at Maverick’s things in my hands. I can only imagine how hurt he was already feeling, knowing he was being kept out of… whatever it is he’s being kept out of. Keeping him out of my relationship with Hopper no doubt compounded that hurt.
I rub my thumb over his phone screen, not sure I could’ve handled any of it differently. Mav still has every reason to be hurt. And to doubt my intentions. He no doubt thinks I used him to get to Hopper, and I never would’ve done that. Not in a million years.
I hafta find him and make him understand.
I spend the rest of the day and into the night trying to find him, checking in with his uncle, going to all the places I can think of, rechecking the places the Wildings throw into the mix, just in case.
We can’t find him anywhere.
Anders finally calls off the search a little after two a.m.
“There’s no evidence he’s been harmed,” he says, sounding grim. “We’d know by now if someone had made a move. We hafta trust that Maverick can handle himself. He’ll come to us when he’s ready.”
It sounds like he’s trying to convince himself more than the rest of us.
I do know he hasn’t told Mav’s dads yet, and I wonder how that’s going to go down.
We make plans to meet for breakfast in the morning so we can switch out cars. Hopper, in the meantime, wants to tell the Wildlings they have another cousin, and Anders is considering it.
Defeated, I head toward my apartment. When I pass the UT campus, I turn in. There’s no way I’m getting any sleep tonight. I wish I had my cigarettes, but maybe visiting the fountain and Hopper’s statues will help.
I’ve already circled the campus twice this evening, with no luck, but still, I scan the empty sidewalks for any sign of life. Nothing.
I park in the same spot Maverick parked in last month, and regret that I waited so long to kiss him again. I check the middle console to see if Anders has any bad habits I can borrow for the night, but all I find is a gorgeous gun and a knife that looks like it could cut through a small sapling.
Note to self: don’t fuck with Anders Bash.
No cigarettes or booze though.
I exit the car and wonder if I’ll ever be able to look at Eleanor the same way. I check both ways and cross the street, standing in front of the fountain, wishing that any part of tonight had gone differently.
Maybe that’s why I don’t see him right away.
He’s near the back, by the angel. Sitting on the concrete lip of the fountain with his feet in the water.
I let out the breath I’ve been holding in all night.
Not wanting to startle him, I’m careful to project my voice.
