Leira [Completed]

Chapter Thirty

JUSTICE'S POV

Anxious was an understatement. It coiled within me, hissing as a barbaric viper would. It spiralled around my heart and weighed it down with every slither.

An hour ago, she should have visited Luna and me. We were in a prominent spot, and it was impossible not to have noticed us.

"Calm down," Luna told me, showing only a minimal amount of concern in her voice. Deep down, I knew she was just as fearful as I was. "We'll find her soon."

The idea of the late-night meal we planned earlier held no significance in the slightest now. All I wanted was to see Ariel again, safe. We were in the east, not anywhere else. If she were to have gone missing here, it would not be uncommon for tragic things to transpire.

Swiftly, after waiting minutes after minutes, we agreed to visit her home.

Shamrock green flashed past my eyes rapidly as I whisked through the memorized route of the forest. It was not long before Luna and I confronted an odd sight.

The wilderness almost looked just as it did since I last saw it. A mixture of emotions swiveled in my chest as I recalled the first time I laid my eyes on Ariel, the secrets uncovered, and the passionate moments we shared. However, the place was not empty. It was occupied with robust guys with gruff and threatening features.

"What's happening?" I muttered with pulsing fear. Under no regular occurrences would dozens of people scatter around, still as a statue.

Luna approached one to raise a question, "Is Leira home?"

The man studied her for a moment before lowering his head in respect. I could tell that he recognized Luna, which was somewhat mystifying.

"Have your father not informed you, Miss Blake?"

"No. What is there to inform?"

"I am prohibited from speaking of the topic under any circumstances. I apologize greatly. Miss Leira is not home, nor do I think she needs company at the moment."

"She is safe, right?"

"That, she is. Be rest assured, she's a strong woman."

Relief washed over me after that statement, shoving concern aside. But confusion stayed. Indeed, Ariel is a strong woman, but what could have devastated her so much so that the subject was forbidden from telling? If she was not home, where else could she be? How did the man seem familiar at all with Luna in the first place?

"I'm sure she's safe, Justice." Her voice was filled with reassurance. Yet, I knew that we both lost appetite for the food we were to have.

My mind was still spinning with ideas. Then, it struck me.

"Can we come here again one day?" Her voice rang in my ears.

"Go home, Luna. I need to go somewhere." I flashed her a smile and urged her to return.

Then, I grabbed a ride and traveled to the west. It was prettiest in the night, with laminating, glowing light in every angle. They held no importance, however. Ariel's smiles could not be compared to such. They shone even brighter.

I hastened my pace, striding through the bushes that looked rather dull, coloured in sacramento green. Sprinting past Ariel's favourite flowers and the bench we settled on, I caught a glimpse of the bridge. It was drab under the blanket of darkness, but the girl situated on it was still visible to sight.

Hush enveloped my surroundings. No crickets were present. All that was audible are the cries and whimpers of the girl. Her tears shed like water from a dam, loyal to gravity as it fell into the pond.