Encrypted Souls

Chapter Twenty-Three.

Chapter Twenty-Three.

EVALINE.

            “She’s not here.”

            “She has to be!”

            “She would have answered by now.”

            I know that he is right, but I just can’t seem to wrap my head around the fact that she has gone MIA. It is not like her at all to just take off without so much of a text message or phone call. She has always let me know if she was going out for more than just a few hours, in some way, shape or form.

            “I have to find her.” I hunch my shoulders in defeat - because although my voice is laced with determination - my mind is blank.

            “And we will find her. Maybe she met someone...” He tries to come up with a reasonable explanation, but he can’t fool me.

            “She would have made a point in telling me about him.” I shake my head. “No, there is something going on here and I’m going to figure it out.” I start to walk away from her house, Ethan in suit.

            “Where are we going?” He asks.

            “To Ross’ house.” I say.

            “Ross’? Why would we go there?” He’s confused, and I can’t blame the poor guy.

            I continue to walk, my head held up strong and my eyes focused on the road ahead of me.

            “Because he knows people. He can help us.” I say, but really I am not completely sure if that is the reason that I need to go and see Ross.

            He hadn’t answered when I called him earlier either, which makes me suspicious as well. Not being able to contact my best friend, and the man that I had just recently been with seems a little too close together for my likings. This is all very fishy.

            “Right, well if you must have your way…” He grabs my arm and swings me around to face him. “Then we are going to my place to get my car.”

            “We don’t have time for that!” I exclaim, pulling my arms out of his grasp.

            “Yes, we do. You are wasting more time by arguing with me, and if we were to walk there instead of drive there we would be tripling the time wasted. I have been to Ross’ house before for a work BBQ last summer, I know that it would take at least an hour to walk there.”

            I roll my eyes and childishly stomp my feet on the hard pavement.

            “Fine! Let’s go get your stupid car and drive to his house!” I turn to walk in the direction of Ethan’s house and hear his laughter behind me as he follows.

            Okay, I know that I am acting like a child having a tantrum, but it still infuriates me that he gets his way and is now laughing at my childish behavior! I am seriously going to lose it if Ross isn’t home.

***

            After about five minutes of enraged knocking – which caused one of my knuckles to bleed – a short grey haired woman answers the door.

            “Ola, can I be of help to you?” She says, her voice thickly laced with a Spanish accent.

            “Yes, you can. Is Ross home?” I ask, feeling more impatient by the second.