The Hacker's Con Artist

Chapter 14

- - - - - - MARCH 25, 2022- - - - - -

St. Petersburg, Florida 8:15 p.m.

BONNIE HAD ALWAYS been passionate about fashion. From the very first moment she got her hands on a magazine, she quickly grew obsessed with flipping through the pages and staring at all the beautiful women living her dream life. Perfect clothes, perfect makeup, and the perfect body to match. Of course, growing up in the impoverished suburbs made Bonnie used to not getting what she wanted. She quickly learned that not everybody got to look like the women in magazines.

There was one year where all she'd wanted for her birthday was a trip to the mall to pick out some new clothes. It's too expensive, her mother had said. You don't need any of that stuff. But now, standing in the middle of the most brilliant shopping plaza she'd ever seen, her desire for a shopping spree felt a lot less childish.

Bonnie, Lily, Cora, and Harley stood in the very center, tall pale white umbrellas extending into the sky. They were surrounded on three sides by shops and a miraculous metal sculpture that took Bonnie's breath away. On top of all that, the sunset was casting all sorts of colors into the sky. "This is the most incredible place I've ever seen." The words slipped out, unfiltered.

"What, the mall?" Lily said with a sharp laugh. Her blonde hair lifted in the breeze.

"I've been here dozens of times," chimed Cora. "It's nice, that's for sure, but not necessarily the most incredible place I've ever seen."

"Me too," Harley said. Of course she would agree with Cora. She'd never seen a pair of siblings closer than those two. "Are we sure we can't go somewhere else?" Harley said. "I've been wanting to check out the Yacht basins."

This kind of sentiment from the twins didn't surprise Bonnie all too much considering that the pair had grown up nearby and knew Florida well. What did bother her, however, was that they were ruining her big moment.

"No," Bonnie said. "This whole night was my idea, so can't we just stick to the plan?" It was like something had shifted in her once she'd arrived in the 21st century. Instead of accepting the way things were and silently wishing they were different, she'd decided that the only person controlling her life would be her.

"Sure," Lily said with a sweet smile. "But we may want to hurry up. I think the mall closes soon."

- - - - - - - - - - - -

10:35 p.m.

"WHAT? MISSING HOW?" Landon was struggling to wrap his mind around what June was saying.

"Missing as in she's disappeared. Not here. Poof. Gone." June made a blowing up motion with her hands. "She left this morning for class like normal and when I got back from the library a little while ago, I found a note on my desk saying that she'd gone out."

"Out?" Rowan asked. "Out where?"

"She didn't say," June said. The look on her face was almost sheepish. "We don't really talk...I don't think she likes me all that much."

"Have you called Ryan?" Landon asked.

"He said to find you guys and see if one of you might know where she went."

It was Landon's turn to look sheepish. He didn't know exactly where she'd gone, but he did know that her disappearance was likely his fault. Rowan saved him the embarrassment of admitting that out loud.

"Neither of us have spoken to her in a while."

"Well, unfortunately, Bonnie isn't the only problem."

Landon gripped the edge of the couch. "What do you mean?"