Child of a King

Chapter seven - Lost and found

My bottom lip was rolling between my teeth as I scanned the digits on the clock on the microwave. I wasn't the best yet at reading the clock, but I knew that it was very late. Why were we still here? What kind of person works for so many hours?

Sighing, I left the backroom, loud voices and blaring music attacking my poor ears from the moment I opened the door.

Defying Marc's order about staying put, I wormed through crowds of people who were standing everywhere. It felt like a maze I had to go through to reach my goal, a dead end wherever I turned. Because of my short height people didn't see me until they stepped on my toes or barged into me. When I could finally see some of the bar, Lara wasn't there anymore. My eyes started to well up with tears from frustration. I wished I had just stayed where I was told to, but I really wanted to go back home to Nate. I felt safe with him.

At some point I got out of the bar area I had been in the entire day. It felt like I had been wandering around for hours and that's when I finally saw him.

The amount of relief I felt when I walked towards him was indescribable, so much so I wrapped my arms around his torso.

"I thought you had forgotten me". My sentence was muffled by how hard I was nuzzling my face into his wide back.

As he turned around my arms immediately dropped to my sides, my mouth agape.

"You're not Marc", I mumbled as my shoulders sank, partly in disappointment as well as embarrassment.

"I am not", the man replied, gazing down at me with a surprised expression.

"Sorry", I whispered as those stupid tears resurfaced, this time I couldn't help but let them fall.

The same man squatted down in front of me. "Don't cry. Everything is going to be just fine", he tried to comfort me.

I nodded as more tears spilled down my cheeks. "I want to go home".

"Do you want me to help you find someone?" He asked, using his handkerchief to wipe my face.

"My brother, Marc", I mumbled, happy that someone finally saw I needed help.

The man stood back up, holding my hand as he guided us through the casino. We went up some steps where there was an entirely different area with bars and seating arrangements. At the back wall there was a door with a big red cross on it. I didn't think we were allowed in there but the man helping me went in anyway. People who were talking in rushed voices immediately reached my ears.

"Can you pull up the surveillance footage for the whole day?"

At the end of the hall there was an office with TV's everywhere and right beside the desk Ray stood, his face serious as he looked at a lot of video tapes.

"Someone here seems to have gotten lost", my helper said, announcing our presence.

My brother's dark orbs snapped to me, a big sigh leaving his lips as he approached me.

"Thank God", he muttered, bending down to sweep me up in his warm embrace. I curled myself around him like a koala, overjoyed from being found. I heard the man who helped me and Ray exchanging a few words as I rested my head on my brother's shoulder, exhausted from being lost and thankfully found.

After we had said our thanks, Ray carried me down to the car. On the way home I managed to fall asleep and only half-consciously woke up when my brother brought me inside. I was ready to go back to dreamland, but a loud fight made it hard to do so.

"You left your sister at a casino!"

"Relax. I just forgot".

"Seriously? You forgot? Is that really all you have to say for yourself?"