FIND HER (short story) ✧˚ ༘ ⋆｡

Chapter Eight / Kels

"You can't be serious", I say, my body sinking deeper into his mattress.

"I am serious", Grayson says, pacing back and forth around his room, way dirtier than the rest of the house. Not freak. "It could work."

"No."

"But-"

I cut him off. "No!"

"Lennon-"

"What about Lennon?"

"Let's at least talk to him and the team before you shut this idea down, okay?", he pulls out his barista apron and throws it in his bag.

"You want to use some of the $100,000 and hire international investigators and upgrade a shit ton of equipment? That will take way too long."

"I honestly thought it was pretty smart", Grayson laughed, a smile grew upon his face as he waited for my response.

It is. It's really fucking smart. But we don't have all the time in the world. My idea is better.

"We will discuss this later, I'm meeting the girls", I say, getting up out of his bed, putting my hand on his arm and walking out.

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"I want an acai bowl", Zara declared, rising from her beach towel, the marks from her suntanning session created imprints on her back. She shades her eyes from the sun, which is at its peak. She pointed towards the left, indicating the direction of the outside showers where a makeshift shack perched on wheels was stationed. I nodded in agreement and the three of us walked over there. The acai bowl shack stood out against the backdrop of the beach placing most of its weight against a palm tree, with its vibrant pink exterior, the color maybe mimicking a acai berry. Strings of seashells and coconut wind chimes tinkle with the breeze as we get closer and closer to the shack. I notice how the paint on the side of the shop, above the side door is slightly peeling, but gives character.

My eyes scan the menu written on an old lavender surfboard. I look at the toppings. Coconut, fresh mangoes, chia seeds, peanut butter, papaya.

"What can I get for you guys today?", A blonde girl with shoulder length hair and a homemade straw hat asked. She eyed all three of us.

"Can I have the Cove Bowl?", Brynn ordered, licking her lips.

"Can I have Fusion Fairy? Add chia seeds and mango please.", Zara added.

"I'll have the same," I said, smiling, reaching for my wallet. As the girl reached for my hand to accept the money, a sense of unease washed over me as I watched her arm reach out to mine. My eyes fixated on her forearm, where a tattoo caught my attention—The distinctive S with sound waves. A shiver ran down my spine as the recognition kicked in, and I instinctivly withdrew my hand, taking a couple steps back.

"I'm going to need the money if you want the bowls", she said, straightening her straw hat. Her name tag read Kels. I looked down at her arm again, and she gave me a look...like she knew that I knew something. Something that no one else in this small town knew. I have so many questions that need answering. Why is she here? Why is she not in Germany? Is this tattoo just common?

"Kaylee, what are you doing?" Kylie grabs the money out of my hand and pays. I couldn't move, nor speak. There it was, right in front of me. Brynn looks at me, and follows my gaze down to Kels arm. The girls didn't know much about the case, but they knew enough. Brynn took my phone out of my hand and hit the emergency button that informs Lennon my location. I looked back at Brynn and mouthed cops. She understood.

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Lennon and the Pacific Cove police showed up five minutes later, parking right behind the shop. Brynn and Zara downed their acai bowls, but I didn't dare to touch mine. I wasn't hungry, and the thoughts of Kels making my bowl irked me. I eyed Lennon and two cops creep from the back to the side of the shack, guns in hand. A surge of adrenaline coursed through me as I locked eyes with Lennon, his signal was unmistakable: retreat, and do it quickly. I began to slowly walk backwards, Brynn and Zara by my side, as we get ready to see this situation unfold before us.

The atmosphere shifted abruptly as one of the police officers kicked in the side door, his voice deep and loud, "You're under arrest!" From Kels reaction, I knew my observation was right. I could see it in her eyes. Guilty. Caught. She looked around the shack for an escape route, cramming herself in a corner. She didn't put her hands up, instead her hand moved reflexively to her left side. She was searching for something discreetly in her back pocket of her jeans. She pulls out a gun, her gaze unwavering as she aims it at the officer. Before she could contemplate pulling the trigger, she found herself pinned to the ground, gun out of her reach, and a bullet through the right side of her chest.

Blood gushed from her chest, and dripped on the ground, leaving a trail from the shack to the ambulance that just pulled onto the beach. I studied her has she was being thrown and stapled to a stretcher. She appeared to be unconscious, maybe even lifeless. Her eyes were had taken on a lifeless glaze, no movement, her straight blonde hair was now covered in her own blood, staining it crimson red, and black and blue marks covered her body, evidence of her collision with the corner of the shack. In those few seconds, she was now unrecognizable.

Lennon walked over to me, and lays his hand on my shoulder. No words were said, he just gives me a nod of approval and heads back over to the police, who have just secured Kels gun and placed it in a plastic bag for investigation. I looked at Brynn and Zara, who kept a decent distance, and we walked through the onlookers from the beach who started to crowd the shack.