A Franc or Two - Les Misérables [IN EDITING]

Missing - Chapter 26

There was no sign of anything.

Anywhere.

You checked your bedside table for the perfume, fan, and wallet, the dresser for Grantaire's drawing, and your wardrobe for your dresses and everything else you might wear.

It was completely empty.

"What the hell?" you blinked, closing and reopening drawers as if they would appear back again. That was to no avail. "Everything's gone..."

"You're certain?" Enjolras asked, standing up the slightest bit straighter.

"Oh, I don't know— it's not like literally everything I own disappeared out of thin air," you said. "Look around this room and tell me if you can find everything that belongs to me."

Enjolras's eyes hardly skimmed around the room before he gave up.

"Fair point," he said. Even though he was clearly trying to maintain a nonchalant attitude, the way his jaw clenched told you otherwise. "Will you excuse me for a moment?"

Sure enough, he was storming outside just moments later. You could hear him shouting while you were still inside your room.

"Timeo!" he called out. He seemed more upset about this than you did— considering the fact that he was trudging through the snow (that began to pile up quite generously), that is.

You felt a sinking feeling in your stomach.

"Holy hell," you muttered. Even the other whores seemed to be trying to get a listen— the moaning had subsided quite a bit... it hadn't disappeared completely, of course (they still wanted their pay), although it was clear they were trying to listen to what Enjolras was about to say...

But despite his efforts, the both of you ended up returning to Le Café empty-handed.

You were back by dinnertime.

Madame Houcheloup was pacing behind the counter, clearly worried about all of your missing items, and she was ringing her hands as she tried to think through a way to get it all back.

You, Courfeyrac (who had come in to see if you were alright), and Enjolras sat around a table, eating away (well... you were eating away) at a meal that Madame Houcheloup had made up for you. Enjolras and Courfeyrac had been given drinks, which had also been the courtesy of Madame Houcheloup. Neither one of them seemed pleased by the situation.

"Wait... so let me get this straight," Courfeyrac— who had just recently been updated on the story— said, setting his bottle down down as he tried to think things out. "Enjolras— you know about her side job, and so does Madame H... And then, when you and [Y/N]—" he turned to you— "When you were getting ready to pack up and get out of there, the pimp still had your things?"

You nodded, using your fork to poke the roast around your plate. Madame Houcheloup had resorted to giving you your meals for free, but at the moment, you couldn't eat whatsoever.

"What did he take?" Courfeyrac asked, his eyebrows furrowing. "I can pay for whatever you need replaced."

He knew he would have been testing his wealth.

"I won't let you do that," you said with furrowed eyebrows. Enjolras, who had just now been informed that Courfeyrac had known about the situation, looked quite distraught.

"And besides," you said, looking to Courfeyrac with furrowed eyebrows. "Most of these things can't be replaced... Grantaire's drawing, a library book, your coat—"

"We'll get it all back, I promise," Enjolras said, glancing over at you with an unreadable expression. "But for now, you still need a place to stay... Do you want me to pay for a hotel?"