Page 22 of King of Omen

I went over every inch of my home a dozen times, upturning furniture and getting on my knees to check under the bed. It was maddening, as I had no idea when I’d lost it.

Closing my eyes, I walked back my memories and caught a flash from the day before of it glinting on my neck in Bianca’s bathroom after my moment with Lorenzo.

Jumping into my small van, I descended the mountain and headed to her house.

Worry clawed at my chest as I sped down the winding ridge road towards the secluded home.

I screeched to a halt in front of the elegant estate, my hands trembling as I leapt out of the car.

The gravel crunched beneath my feet as I raced up the steps. I unlocked the house and threw open the heavy entrance door, my heart pounding in my ears.

Divested of mourners, the place now stood eerie and quiet.

The scent of lavender and her perfume filled the air. I took the staircase to the upstairs bathroom, where I remembered seeing the necklace last, my heart pounding.

My gaze swept over the counter-top, hunting with increasing desperation for a glint of gold.

There was nothing.

I went downstairs into her study, searching the desk I’d sat at.

Still no sign of it.

Suddenly, the disappearance of the necklace was too overwhelming.

I sank into an armchair and wrapped my hands around my knees. Bleak on the inside, dry eyes pointed to the stunning canyon outside.

At the back of my mind, I grasped my misery wasn’t just about the jewellery; it was about the aching grief of losing my mother, then Bianca and the unmooring from my sense of meaning and purpose now that I was deprived of both pillars in my life.

That’s when I spotted Bianca’s unexplained gift to me - the fist-shaped small amulet in white, gold, and diamond.

I’d abandoned it the day before on her desk.

I picked it up on a whim and let it fall into my palm. Stroking it, I sent a prayer, wishing for my pendant to be returned to me somehow.

An unlikely peace fell as I set my head on the back of the seat and let the shrouded mountains and the purple haze rolling over their peaks calm me.

Much later, I rose, tucked the amulet into my pants pocket and left the house, locking it after me.

I slid into my van and headed back home once more, feeling like shit.

Only after a few twists and turns did I tag a car in my rearview mirror—a shadowy, looming SUV, keeping up with my every move and acceleration.

I clutched the steering wheel, my heart racing as I took sharp spins and quick accelerations, trying to lose the truck.

My unease intensified. Still, the mysterious vehicle stuck to my tail, its headlights washing the thoroughfare behind me, lighting up the shadowed trees and dark corners.

The realisation that someone was following me sent a chill down my spine.

This country roadway that took me home was a winding back lane with farmhouses far apart.

No shopping centres, fuel stations, or illuminated stops existed in these high ranges that I might escape whoever the fuck was following me.

No street lights lined the road either, and I panicked, hoping to make it back to the small village I lived in, safe and sound.

My hands gripped the wheel tighter, knuckles turning white, as I navigated the loops with growing desperation. Freakin’ well aware that if the person meant me harm, it’d be easy to run me off the path and spirit my body into the wild peaks of the mountains.

Never to be seen again.

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