" I DEMAND TO SEE MY DAUGHTER IMMEDIATELY!" Elizabeth's father slammed his fist on the interrogation table.
The officer stared at him with blank eyes until the detective came in the room accompanied with Rohan.
Elizabeth's father wanted to stand up but he was handcuffed to the table.
"You..!"
Rohan felt his brother stabbing him with the eyes of a madman. "Brother..."
Elizabeth's father pointed his index finger from his free hand at him, "You..!! You don't dare call me brother."
The detective pulled a chair for Rohan and ushered him to sit. "Let's put aside this warm family reunion and get down to business."
He eyed the young girls father seriously, "Do you understand why you're being detained today?"
"No! What kind of crazy American law is this to lock up an innocent man?"
The detective took out a key and uncuffed him from the table. "I'll explain if you remain calm, do we have a deal?"
He merely looked at the detective with more hatred in his eyes.
The detective continued anyway, "Your daughter, is Elizabeth Satti is that correct?"
"Yes! That is what I am here for! That 'man' next to you stole her from me and I want her back!"
The detective looked over at Rohan with questionable eyes.
" I did not steal her from you brother, she came here because she was afraid of you... afraid to be sold off..."
Elizabeth's father shook his head angrily and waved his hands in the air.
"NO NO NO!!! She is my daughter!! I say who she has to marry! Me ok? Only me!"
The detective put the pieces together and understood the reason behind the anger.
"Well we're here to talk to you about your daughter." The detective spoke quietly hoping to calm the father.
"... your daughter is currently missing. You were detained because we had reason to believe you would have been traveling with her out of the country."
The mans eyebrows furrowed, " what you say? Missing? What?"
The detective pulled out Elizabeth's file, showing him the folder of photos, statements and a flyer with the reward money. " She has been missing since September, about 3 months now."
He took the file and went through it flipping through the pages in disbelief before his eyes grew angrier and angrier. The detective absorbed his reaction, making his assessment if he was a legitimate suspect or not. Finally he looked over at his brother.
"You... this is all because of you!!!" He stood up from the table and approached his brother.
But the detective stood in his way, "If you become violent we will have to restrain you again, sit down and let us continue."
"You took her from me and now she's gone!!! This is your fault!!! You demon! You had no right!!! Now what am I supposed to do with the suitor?!?! She's worthless to me missing!!" Despite the fact that the detective felt sick from hearing that the girls father did not care for her well being but more so for the money he would have made selling off his child, he still had questions he needed answering.
" That's all you care about? The fucking guy you wanted to sell her to? What is wrong with you? She's missing and you just care about money?!?" Rohan yelled, he never yells. His cool collected mannerism vanished and he wanted to slap the insanity out of his brothers mind but the detective stood between both.
"Please, this is not going to help the investigation. Rohan I ask you, please take a seat again."
Rohan hesitated but eventually sat down, his heart hurt from so many emotions it was overwhelming but he followed the detectives instruction.
"As I understand it you're here to recover your daughter?" The detective continued.
"Did you not just hear-"
"Are you saying," the detective cut off Elizabeth's father, "that you have no idea about her current whereabouts?"
Her father grilled him, " that man over there probably is hiding her from you and from me !"
"What?!? You're saying nonsense !" Rohan cried out.
"Sir, I need a statement from you that you have no information about your daughters whereabouts." The detective continued to pry.
"No I do not ! I want her back you hear? I came here for her and I want my money." He pointed to Rohan, "if she is not returned to me before I leave Rohan you will pay her dowry!"
Rohan stood up angrily the chair fell behind. " I will only pay you a ticket straight to the devil!"
"Mr. Satti... you'll have to sign a statement for me and of course our team will continue the investigation and investigate you during the time of your stay. If what you say is true then you have no reason to worry. Do you understand?"
Mr Satti nodded, " Just get me out of here so I can strangle him!"
But Rohan had already left the interrogation room leaving behind an angry father and a tired detective.
Meanwhile across town, Zach and Anne entered the familiar chapel.
They had exhausted their witnesses, from friends, family and acquaintances, not to mention made many people irritated with their constant bombardment of questions and flyers to several business in the area.
Anne looked over at Zach as he lit a prayer candle and began to pray to Saint Francis.
She herself was at her limit, even though she loved Elizabeth, her faith that they would find her went from a shining ray of sunlight to a small sparkle of a stars twinkle.
Anne would never say it but in her nightmares, she saw a lifeless body floating in water.
Nonetheless she bowed her head and prayed.
They had tried to speak to the same priest again but each time they came, at least once a month the priest in question was not around.
Father Thomas was barely there anymore he was too old and too frequently sick. Two new priest had taken his place, one older and one much younger fresh out of seminary.
"Good evening," bowed the young priests head.
"Father," Anne acknowledged as Zach continued to pray undisturbed.
The young priest looked at Zach, remembering him from prior times. "How is he holding up?"
Anne dropped her shoulders and sighed, "Not too good Father. There's nothing more that we can do...they're still missing."
The priest took a seat and patted the bench for her to follow.
"You have not left his side though,"
Anne couldn't help but blush to which the priest noticed it and smiled before returning his eyes to Zach's back.
"He's holding up because of you, because you're there for him you know."
Anne's cheeks felt as though they were on fire and her eyes felt glued to the back of Zach, but her heart felt torn and she knew exactly why.
The priest sighed through his nostrils and cupped his hands together, "this community has prayed so deeply for both Elizabeth and Juliet, I know the Lord has heard them. We will get answers soon Anne, and we must be prepared for whatever those answers are." He said earnestly.
"Even if those answers... are not the ones we've hoped for." The priest finished saying before standing up and pocketing his hands in his black slacks.
"When that moment comes child, make sure you are still by his side. He will need someone strong to hold him up on his feet."
Anne's lips trembled into a soft smile, "Thank you Father."
He nodded at her and turned to leave but she stopped him for a second.
"Father, I have a question....regarding the previous priest that left?"
The priest scrunched his brows and dropped his gaze to the floor, "He was put on leave ... but no ones heard from him since. No one knows if he'll come back or be reassigned elsewhere... that is if he wants to remain a priest.."
Anne felt a sting in her heart, her hand naturally pressed against her chest in a comforting manner. "Where you close to him?"
But the young priest smiled and shook his head, "no not at all... he taught at the seminary for a while and I barely knew him. He was a very quiet man. Quiet but devoted. Reserved but reverent."
He eyed Anne suspiciously, "you're not the only one who misses Father Beckford. Many women have come asking for him, he must have been very likeable,"
If he only knew how uneasy Father Beckford had actually made her in the past, "Ah no... I didn't know him that well. But he came to my school a few times ... and knew Elizabeth and Juliet..." the last part she spoke softly but the priest heard her.
"Yes... Juliet I heard was extremely fond of him. It must have been devastating for James. They were friends for many years."
Zach came back and put his hand on Anne's shoulder. "Ready to go?" He looked over at the new priest, "Evening Father."
To which he responded with a bow and excused himself.
Zach and Anne left in his car. He drove to her house and parked on the curb but Anne didn't want to leave him yet. Although her heart pounded around Zach her mind was a twister of thoughts from good to bad and only Zach's gentle hands put them to ease.
"Are... you driving back to school tomorrow?" She asked him, her voice cracked a little.
"Yeah, I figured I'd go back tomorrow and study all day before my Monday quizzes." Zach chuckled. It was rare that he smiled let alone laughed now a days. "I've been slacking so much." His hands found his eyes and rubbed them before sliding down his face.
Anne looked over at him, watching the muscle in his arms flex, his neck extended as his head rested on the headrest, his brown thick locks which hung past his ears, the long black curved lashed as he closed his eyes for a few seconds... then her eyes traveled to his once pink lips, now they were paler but still retained their shape.
Zach opened his eyes and found her staring at him oddly, "Anne?"
Oh god ... Anne found the door handle and let herself out without so much as a goodbye.
But Zach followed her, "Anne you ok?"
"I'm fine !" She said as she walked up the long driveway, her back turned to him and her head hanging.
"Hey!" Zach pulled her arm, forcing her to face him. That's when he noticed the glossiness in her eyes. "What is it tell me..." both his warm hands held onto her shoulders keeping her in place.
It was getting colder out and the wind was picking up, he could feel her knees shake from the chilly November breeze.
"Come on, don't shut me out like this..." Zach pleaded with her when she avoided meeting his eyes.
Finally she looked at him, with a heart that felt like exploding.
It hurt from guilt and from desire of wanting someone she was not meant to have. But all this time she spent with him drew her heart closer and closer to a forbidden love she harbored.
She scolded herself from thinking such thoughts, but at last she could no longer refuse what she felt. For it came back a hundredfold more intense.
She was in love with Zach, and for what it was worth she loved him when she first saw him as a freshman. But back then it was a small crush which over time grew and grew into something deeper.
When Elizabeth came along, her heart was shattered but she loved both Elizabeth and Zach and told herself as long as he's happy, that's enough for me.
Now these moments alone with him, during a time he's still grieving were almost too much to bare.
To make matters worse, he was too nice to her, too caring and too gentle. It made her feel even guiltier for loving him so much. Each time she was with him it was as though the floor opened up and she was tumbling down a rabbit hole.
"Anne?" Zach's voice was reduced to a whisper.
She couldn't speak, her eyelids fluttered releasing her tumbling tears.
Zach's face turned seriously worried, he had no idea why his friend was so upset. She wouldn't speak to him so there wasn't anything he could say to make it feel better.
Instead he hugged her tightly, bringing in her teary face into his chest.
I can't keep doing this....being with you alone like this...it hurts too much....Anne thought. But she held on to him tightly for what seemed like forever.
"I.... I have to go now." Anne finally said.
Although Zach was relieved that she spoke to him, he still didn't understand what was happening or why she was distraught.
She pushed herself away by Zach still held onto her, "Anne... I don't wanna leave you like this if you're not feeling well you shouldn't be alone."
"Stop, don't be so nice to me..." she muttered, confusing him even more.
"Huh? Anne ... I'm not leaving till I know you're ok. Can't you tell me? Is there something I can do?" Zach asked sincerely.
Anne looked at him, those beautifully blue eyes of his. His worried expression was too much for her fragile heart.
Her lips parted, suddenly her heart commanded her body and did something she never had the courage to do in all the previous years.
She pushed off her feet and kissed him.
She closed her eyes, lost in the sweet gentle moment unable to see Zach's eyes wide open in shock.