I hadn’t seen anyone enter through the huge red doors. Were we supposed to take the main entrance? Or was there a private back entrance more suited for a lair of blasphemy and sin?
I couldn’t go in there. I couldn’t do it. This was where my investigation would end.
The sound of laughter pulled my attention to the other side of the street. A girl stopped in the middle of the sidewalk to show her friend a video. They burst into giggles one more time before continuing. It was still bright out, only three in the afternoon, and the beautiful chorus of summertime traffic enlivened the air with car honks and shouts from e-bikers.
Before I could turn my attention back to the church or to my navigation app—to head to the diner early and confess to my roommates my pitiful lack of follow-through—my attention snagged on another figure across the street.
There, leaning against a brick wall, was a tall, edgy-looking man. His arms were folded across his chest, and he was staring at me. He was disarmingly gorgeous, even from a distance. His dark hair was shaved into a buzz cut, his face adorned with well-groomed stubble. A casual black t-shirt revealed intricate tattoos up and down his arms, crawling up his neck and down onto his knuckles. Peeking out under his dark jeans were heavy black combat boots.
He wasn’t smoking or on his phone.
He was just staring at me. And my noticing hadn’t deterred him. His mouth parted, and I realized he was laughing.
Because he’d been watching me pace back and forth and mutter to myself for fifteen minutes.
I let out an audible squeak and finally moved toward the church, my face heating up.
The humiliation had me through the heavy doors and into the abyss within thirty seconds.
“Hello, welcome,” a professional-looking woman with shoulder-length auburn hair said from behind a reception desk. She glanced up and down at my hot, frazzled appearance. She smirked. “Are you here for the orientation?”
“Um, yes.”
The entry hall had preserved its gothic style, with warm light coming from ornate lamps and the breathtaking stained glass behind me.
A man entered the hall from a door to our right, carrying a glass of water. “Is there anything else I can get for you, ma’am?”
Ma’am?I was a twenty-five-year-old in a strawberry dress, not a middle-aged head of state.
I took the glass of water and shook my head. “No, thank you.”
“Name please?” the woman asked.
“Nova.” She stared at me expectantly, and I blew out a breath. “Nova Harding.” The water was crisp, tasting faintly of lemon and mint.
When the man bowed his head and disappeared like a Victorian servant, I leaned over the desk. The woman slowly lifted her gaze from the laptop in front of her to me, arching a finely manicured auburn brow.
“I also wanted to know if you’d seen a woman my age, blonde hair, Old Hollywood aesthetic, lots of, um, zest for life. Her name is Lorelei.” The words tumbled out awkwardly, not remotely how I’d planned them in my head.
She blinked at me. “We take doxxing incredibly seriously here, so I’m afraid I cannot disclose potential or current members’ statuses or identities.”
I frowned. “That’s not what I’m asking. I just want to make sure she’s okay.”
“If you don’t know this individual well enough to ask her yourself, I’m afraid I cannot help you. We want everyone who enters our sanctuary to trust their personal information is kept safe.”
I bristled, fighting the urge to tell her just how well I knew Lorelei, but I couldn’t antagonize anyone and give them a reason to kick me out.
“If this is a matter that should involve the police, we would be more than willing to cooperate with the proper authorities."
This bitch.I forced a laugh and shook my head. “Oh, sorry, no—it’s not that serious. It’s no worries. I completely understand where you’re coming from. She wasn’t doing well the last we spoke is all.”
The woman’s sharp gaze refused to soften. “And how did you find us?”
“Through your PicWave ads.”
Her shoulders dropped slightly, as if this answer soothed her. “Great, thank you. Just a few more?—”
The sound of doors closing made me jump, which brought back the blush that had only recently dissipated.
