An Unlikely Hero

Chapter Twenty-One

John

I wasn't even sure how I felt. I was angry, angry at that dickhole, angry at myself, angry at the world. I was scared, Alex didn't deserve this. I was worried about Alex, how she was doing, was she okay? I shuddered and tried not even think about what was happening to her right now. I was also hopeful. We finally had our first lead.

I had reluctantly gone home to shower and change. I did it as quickly as I could. Anytime I spent on myself was time I could have spent looking for her. I looked in the mirror before heading out and I looked as shitty as I felt. I took a moment to get a hold of myself. Alex needed me. I blamed myself. I was her first friend and I couldn't even protect her. I loved her, and it hurt like hell. I wiped a tear from my cheek, shook my head and headed out to meet Carter.

Before I could leave I got a phone call, and it was the one I was dreading the most. Tim. He had been out of town for the day visiting his sons, and he didn't carry a cell phone, so I had left a message on his home phone and his call meant he had gotten it.

"Hello?" I rasped.

"John?" His voice cracked and my heavy heart broke a little more. "Please tell me you found her."

"I'm so sorry Tim. I should have protected her, I should have." He cut me off.

"I don't want to hear how sorry you are right now John. I just want to know where she is or what you are doing to find her." I could tell he was upset, and maybe even angry. I didn't blame him.

I gave him a rundown of what we believed happened and where we were headed now to trace down our one and only lead. I suggested he head to Lana's and meet up with Brandon and the rest. They needed each other right now, and that way once we finally had a plan they would be together for us to contact. He was headed over there immediately.

"John?" he didn't wait for a reply, "You do whatever it takes to find her. You hear me? You find her and bring her back to us. You hear me?" I wasn't sure if he was convincing himself or me.

"I promise, and I will call as soon as we have something."

"She's counting on you." was the last thing he said before he hung up.

I just couldn't let her down again.

"Everything alright?" Carter asked when I finally came down and got in the passenger seat.

"I got a call from Tim." I replied.

"Ah." he said knowingly and opted not to add anything else.

The drive out there was quiet. I think neither of us wanted to speak our thoughts out loud. We didn't want to admit the truth, that if this lead didn't turn out to help the chances of us finding Alex alive were slim to none.

"I've never worked a case quite like this one." Carter broke the silence. "But I feel like we are going to find her John."

I didn't say anything, but I nodded. I needed to believe him. I was trying unsuccessfully to not blame myself, I tried to convince myself that I could throw myself a big pity party later after we found her, but I couldn't. That jerk was at the party, he very well could have been in the same room as me, and I didn't notice him. What kind of police officer was I?

"It wasn't your fault, you know." Carter told me.

I shook my head and was about to disagree, when he stopped me. "It wasn't. You weren't at that party as a police officer John. You are a young person and you are allowed to go out and not have to investigate every detail around you or every person"

"You can't tell me I shouldn't have been looking for him." I argued.

"John, this guy has been invisible for six years, you don't think he knows how to be invisible."