Reflections of Dawn

Silence

"Nick, are you okay? Nick, are you there? Nick, Nick, Nick! Talk to us!"

It had been twenty minutes since Nick had gone silent.
Last they'd heard, he'd been entering the house through the door at the back of the lab.

Then, just nothing.

No sound of an attack or anything. No explanation. He just... stopped talking.

Travis rubbed his face nervously. "Don't tell me the asshole forgot to charge his phone."
Evelyn nibbled her lip nervously. "That being the best case scenario, let's hope that's all it is."

Minutes ticked past. Evelyn continued calling down the phone at Nick, still receiving nothing. "Nick? Nick! Can you hear us? Are you alright? Nick!"

Travis blew a sigh. "Fucking hell. Your mansion doesn't, like, block mobile signal or something?"

"The Laboratory is underground, and we could definitely get signal in that. Oh, damn it all. Take my car and go get some bolt cutters. We're not achieving anything just standing here. You can drive, right?"

"Course I can."
"Well, don't stand there telling me, go do it then! Bolt cutters. Find a tool store. I'll stay here and... yeah. Go!" She shoved him towards the car, not too gently.

Travis raced to the car, turning on the engine and pulling out of the lot.
Mentally, he ran through where he could get bolt cutters this early in the morning.
The odds were not looking great.

Then it struck him. Dec would probably know what to do.
This was Dec's kind of thing, although also the exact reason they didn't introduce him to Rachel.
Dec had ways and means, if you catch the drift.

Turning the car down an alley, he suddenly swerved sharply, breaking frantically, as a black shape appeared in the road.

To sharply.

The car spun off the road, colliding with something hard.

Silence.

Sorry, Travis! I'm so mean to you, I know! But I love you really!

Anyway, what do you think?

A figure in the road. Hmm...