Sean came bounding down the wide, paved steps in front of the police station. The sky above was gray and cloudy. Malloy strode confidently behind him, still fast for his age, but nowhere near as fast as the panic-stricken Sean.
Oh my God, not Ava. Please not Ava.
How could this happen? How could he have let this happen to her?
What if something terrible had happened to her?
She wasn't answering her phone.
Please, no, God, don't let something happen to Ava—
Sean slipped.
He could have easily broken his leg—but Malloy was suddenly there, holding him up by an arm.
"Slow down," Malloy said quietly. "Getting yourself hurt will only hinder us. Get a grip."
"But it's Ava, Pete, he was in Ava's car, we have to—"
"I know, son. But keep it in control. Don't panic... ever. We'll find her."
The chilly parking lot around them suddenly lit up, bathing them in flashing and spinning red and blue, neon-like reflections dancing from police cruiser lights and sirens starting up all around them. The cars began to trickle out, then pour, then flood past them, their suspensions sparking and bouncing as they sped out of the police station parking lot.
"Move," Malloy said, elbowing Sean out of the way. "I'm driving."
They hopped in. Malloy was about to start the cruiser when he stopped... suddenly reaching down underneath him.
And pulling a pink and white blanket out from under his ass.
The words "Rory's First Kiss" were embroidered across it. "Sorry, that's Ava's," Sean said.
"Mather, get this fucking thing out of my face. Keep trying to call her. What did she say this morning? Any mention of where she was going?"
Sean tapped "AVA" on his contact list again; the new call timer reset to 0.0. Malloy was right: don't panic. Keep it together.
"No. I mean—Maybe, I'm not sure," Sean said, then forced himself to slow down. "Let me think... she said... she said something about school."
His call went to voicemail again.
He hung up and tapped "AVA" again.
"School?" Malloy said, starting the car.
"She said they were going to be late," Sean said, buckling his seatbelt. "But I know for a fact she's on winter break. Why would she—"
Malloy suddenly slammed the car into reverse and floored it.
The rear-tires spun fruitlessly for a few seconds, filling the air with an acrid, gray smoky cloud—then they suddenly found traction, and the cruiser blasted out backwards from the parking spot. Malloy violently spun the wheel, and the car made a smooth, balletic 180, seamlessly transitioning from reverse to forward.
A few seconds later they exploded out of the parking lot onto the street, all four tires screeching and sliding, the car fishtailing across all four empty lanes.
"Yeah, gonna miss that," Malloy said, head nodding.
"She's still not answering her phone." Sean said. "Or text. That's definitely not like her." The sunken feeling in Sean's stomach sunk even deeper... that girl was always on her phone. But why had that boy been in her car?
And why would she lie?
Being held hostage didn't make sense—she had plenty of time to get away. Why didn't you tell me, Ava, I was right there. I could have protected you.
That only left one conclusion—
That it was voluntarily.
Just be okay, Ava... that's all I care about.
A call came in over the radio: the school was clear. No sign of her—or her car.
"We got every cop across the city keeping an eye out, don't worry," Malloy said. He turned out wide for a corner, then suddenly mashed the accelerator, making the cruiser fishtail around in a perfect arc, the tires gliding along the street like ice-skates. The rear bumper ever-so-lightly brushed along the leaves of a bush that were stuck out between a wrought-iron fence that separated the street and the sidewalk.
The cruiser's tail snapped back straight in the lane. They continued roaring down the road.
A light sprinkling of snow began to fall.
"She said they were late." Sean was re-dialing Ava's number at the same time he was recounting in his head. Please, please answer. "Um, she had her blanket. There were birds. Birds inside from the broken window... a window that she said—"
Sean stopped mid-sentence, frozen.
Of course.
Of course she would go there.
"I know," Sean said, turning to look at Malloy. "I know where she's at."