Burnt Lies

Looking for Trouble

Cameron

It wasn't long before I was pulling up to our base, Leo was there to greet me but there was a grim look on his face that immediately put me on edge.

"What's wrong?" I asked as I neared him, he had something gripped tightly in his hand. It was some sort of letter and by the tense fingers that clutched onto it I knew it couldn't be anything good.

"Tell me you didn't leave Alara on her own," he expressed his tone as serious as death. 

"Shit," I cursed under my breath as Leo gave a look that was verging on disappointment.

"Well, it's real fucking bad," I followed Leo as we walked into the building a multitude of other members working on different tasks or training. Some held sleek black pistols in their hands as they walked through the halls, always one second away from turning and shooting. Completely ready for a fight at a moments notice. 

I walked into my office as Leo slammed the letter onto the desk, "Do you know who it's from?"

"My guess its the Bloodhounds, they have always been causing trouble and their our biggest rivals. They also have history with the Mortellos so it wouldn't be that big of a leap in judgement."

I grabbed the letter from the desk, smoothing its crumpled edges, it was short and succinct: 

We are coming for her.

I scrunched the letter in my hand feeling its sharp edges tear into my skin but that was the least of my worries. 

"There's no date or time that they have specified but that means that they could be after her right now,"

I immediately pulled out my phone and dialled her number it rang a few times but no answer.

"She said she was going out with some friends but I don't know who or where,"

Leo had a stern look on his face, "You need to find her as quickly as possible I can see if one of our guys can track her phone but I'm not sure how long that will take. And I don't know how much time we have left,"

I grabbed my keys and began to rush out the door, "Leo you check one side of town and I'll check the other,"

I raced to my car and gunned the engine pressing my foot down hard on the acceleration and speeding as fast as I could. I couldn't believe how stupid I had been I should have at least asked where she was going and now she was in danger and it was all my fault. 

I heard the skid of the wheels against the tarmac the scent of burning rubber floating through the window but all it did was drive me to be faster, to think the rubber wasn't burning fast enough if I wasn't next to her yet. 

The streets became a blur behind me each one melting into the same grey that shone through the windows. 

Half of me prayed that she hadn't yet left the house but the more rational side of me knew she would have gone by now. Still in a last ditch effort I flung the door open to be met with an empty house. 

I still scanned through the house trying to look for anything that may tell me where she had gone but there was nothing. As I raced back to the car I pulled out my phone to try hers again and what I heard made my blood run cold. 

The automated voice recited to me:

'The number you are calling is not available right now please try again later'

There was no explanation as to why her phone would be off if she was just out with her friends. There was no need for it to be off or unreachable, something at happened and it had all been avoidable if I hadn't been so fucking stupid. If I had insisted that she stay wait a few days for the attack on her to settle down before she went out. Or hell, even insisted to go with her. 

My throat felt dry as I ran a shaking hand through my hair pulling at the loose ends and begging myself to think of something. It dawned on me that I actually did care about her, that I didn't want any harm to come her way, that she brought something out of me that I thought was long dead.

With a frustrated shout, I hit the steering wheel multiple times, my hand pressing into the leather plating and coming back with angry red lines from where I had exerted too much force on the wheel. 

I called Leo, "Any sign of her on the west side," I rushed out quickly, only to hear a disheartened no.

My heart sunk, I drove quickly to the town centre thinking it was most probably where she would have been most likely to go. It was a popular spot and at the moment it was my best shot at finding her. 

I swerved into the parking lot my tyres screeching against the gravelled concrete, rushing out of the car I sprinted into the town centre which was bustling with people, but there was a sizeable crowd forming in one corner, there were hushed whispered and murmurings in the crowd who were al craning their necks to see what had happened.

I prayed with my whole soul it wasn't what I thought it was. Seeing my steely glare the crowd parted for me. 

There was a woman crying her hair wrapped in a soft blue headscarf and a boy next to her who was trying to console her. 

There were police cars crawling around the space. 

"Alara," I called out and the girl crying snapped her eyes towards me. 

"Cameron?" she asked tentatively. I slowly nodded my head unsure of what to do, she burst into a fit of tears, "Cameron she's gone they took her, oh god they took her. The last thing she said was to find you."

It was then I turned to the scene before me my heart sinking into the depth of my body as I read the graffitied wall in blood red paint it said:

WE'VE GOT HER GRAYSON