Page 100 of Semblance

The call ended, and I sat in the seat, my hand gripping the gun tightly. I was terrified and paranoid and having a weapon in my possession right now was the equivalency of giving a gun to a schizophrenic. I prayed that no one decided to get friendly because most likely; I was going to shoot them at ‘hello.’

The next ten minutes were pure agony and I eyed every person walking past the car suspiciously.

Finally, when I saw Lincoln pull up next to my vehicle, I was flooded with relief. I had never been so happy to see someone in my life.

“Get in,” Lincoln said, the tone in his voice a far departure from his usual cheery self. I leapt out of Calisto’s Benz and entered into Lincoln’s Porsche.

“Are you hurt?” he asked me, pulling out of the café and turning onto the main road.

I nodded. “Calisto’s gone.”

The look of concern on Lincoln’s face was unmistakable. He cared deeply for Calisto.

“We need to find her,” I said.

“I’m going to get you back to the estate,” he said. “Your safety is first priority.”

“She left the car and went into the café to get a coffee,” I explained, despite him not asking the burning question, “And when she didn’t come out, I went inside to check on her and she was gone. The barista was dead behind the counter, her throat slit.”

I could see anger flash across Lincoln’s face like a lightning bolt, and without any warning, he smashed his fist into the side of his car door.

“Damn it,” he cursed. “Fucking Lucien.”

“Do we know it’s him?”

“Who else would it be?” Lincoln stated. “That fucker has had it in for the Tremaine’s since day one. I swear, if he’s hurt Calisto in any way, I’m going to rip his intestines out from his asshole.”

The rest of the ride back to the estate was in complete silence.

#

I waited for Shadow atthe Tremaine estate and when he arrived, he was relieved to see me, crushing my body with an embrace that was reserved for distant star-crossed lovers.

It was nice to feel loved again.

After making sure I was okay, we went to his study, along with Lincoln, where I told them in detail of every action taken from the moment Calisto picked me up at the university to the point where Lincoln had saved me from potentially shooting someone in the face due to jittery nerves.

By the time I was done, I was exhausted and both Shadow and Lincoln left me alone to rest on the leather couch, where I fell into a comatose sleep in a matter of minutes.

When I awoke again, Lincoln was staring out the large bay windows, sipping on a drink, while Shadow sat in front of his large cherry wood desk, his fists clenched.

From the expression on his face, I knew there was bad news.

“How long was I out for?” I asked.

“About two hours,” Lincoln replied, staring into his glass.

“Is there any word on Calisto?”

Shadow shook his head. “No,” he replied. “I had a few of my guys investigate the café. They found five other bodies in the kitchen, their throats all cut.”

I swallowed hard.

“We’ll find her Shadow. I promise,” I tried to console him.

“Do you remember seeing anyone or anything that was out of place Aria?” Shadow asked; a hint of desperation in his tone.

I shook my head. “I was in the car the entire time. I couldn’t see anything. I’m so sorry Shadow, I know this is my fault,” I apologized.

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