The Wedding Issue

Chapter Twenty Eight - Karma's A Bitch

'What do you mean she didn't show up for work today?', I asked the receptionist, confused.

The moment Genevieve left, I got dressed and faced the afternoon traffic to meet Claire. I tried calling her a couple of times but the calls went straight to voicemail. I figured she was busy with a case or something, so her phone must not be on her. And now I show up to her work and find out that she didn't even make it to work today. Something seemed very fishy and I was starting to worry that something bad might've happened to her.

'She called in this morning saying that she had some important errands to run', the receptionist explained.

'Did she say where she was going?'

'No, I'm sorry.'

'Alright, thank you for your help', I told her and showed myself outside the building.

Something didn't add up. Why would Claire tell me that she was going to work and then not go? I feared that she was planning some big surprise after tonight's exhibition which will only make it harder for me to end things. I can't believe I was actually going to end things with Claire. It took one visit from Genevieve to make me change my mind with a snap of a finger.

I still couldn't shake the feeling that something was terribly wrong, and I couldn't explain the tight feeling gripping my stomach. I tried her cell again but there was still no answer. I wasn't sure what to do at this point. Should I go home and wait for her to show up? The wait would definitely drive me crazy. There was nothing for me to do to kill time either. There must be some way for me to track her down, but how? I looked around aimlessly, not sure where to start. I saw a cop car and wondered if I should alert the police, but I figured they wouldn't do anything about it right away.

Then, inspiration hit me. Claire made us download the Find My iPhone app so that we could track each other in case of emergencies or in case one of us loses their phone – and by one of us she meant me. I launched the app, logged into my account and searched for her device. The tracker showed that she was in some beat up motel on the outskirts of the city. What could she possibly be doing there?

The sickening feeling gripping my stomach tightened as I started imagining the worst. What if she was kidnapped? What if something bad happened to her and she was seriously hurt? An interminable amount of "What If" questions invaded my mind that I felt paralyzed. It took me a couple of minutes to break free from the paralytic state that I was in and run to the street to catch the first cab I see. I pushed past a couple who wanted to enter the cab and blurted something about an emergency and a kidnapping. They made no further resistance and let me have the cab.

The roads leading outside the city weren't packed with a lot of traffic and I thanked the heavens for that. I just hoped and prayed that Claire was okay. Breaking to her the news about Genevieve could wait for now. I texted Genevieve to update her about what was going on and promised to call her once I found Claire. I bit on my nails the whole way through until I reached the skin and started bleeding. The only soothing thought I could think of was that if she was kidnapped she wouldn't have called work, but that thought really didn't do as much soothing as I would've needed.

Soon, I found myself parked in front of the Moonlight Motel that looked yellow old and begrimed. This was no place for a lady like Claire and that made me feel fatigued with anxiety. The tracker read that she was on the first floor, so I took the flight of stairs and then halted at the landing. I was debating whether or not to call the cops. I decided it was better to scoop the place first for any signs of violence and had the phone ready to dial 911.

My heart was beating faster with every step I took that my chest started to hurt and I found it hard to breathe. I was sweating like a waterfall and had to wipe the sweat off my face because it burnt my eyes. I heard muffled noises as I drew closer to the room, one was Claire's and the other was that of a man.