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Chapter thirty-four

Missing

R ai collapsed through the doorway of his room, panting.

He’d almost pushed too far this morning—had attempted a fourteenth circuit of the lot when he was already losing his vision and had to abort halfway, consuming both his bottles of rescue water and staggering back to his haven of moisture.

It was agonizing, but he was making progress. He was. He was.

He had to believe it, or else everything was for naught.

And he might still despise mathematics, but he knew fourteen was greater than eleven, which itself was greater than two.

He did not know how much greater than fourteen he needed his endurance to be in the long run, but he would persevere.

Feel the burn . Even though he knew the burn he was feeling was not the same burn as human bodybuilders felt.

They did not—to his knowledge—risk actual death while striving to be “swole.”

He’d left his phone charging while he was training and now collected it on his way to his tub.

Ah, he had a message notification! Perhaps Poppy had forgiven him!

He snorted at his own foolish wishes. Of course not.

It was more likely Ofelia had found a new and entertaining way to insult his intelligence.

She was truly the best of friends. He tapped on the notification as he settled gratefully into his tub.

The message was not from Ofelia.

Hello Rai. It’s Jen. I am sorry to bother you in Seattle. I know you probably don’t want to hear from me but I am making a list of places Poppy frequents. Were there any places you went with her that I don’t know about? Thank you!

He frowned at the message. How odd! But it seemed an innocent enough question. And Poppy could not be angry at him for responding to her mother, as long as he did not try to send her a message at the same time.

It took a couple of drafts to reply—despite his resolve, he kept trying to insinuate a message to Poppy into his reply and had to then delete them, berating himself for the insensitivity.

And his fingers were shaking from the morning’s efforts, so typing was difficult.

But he finally managed to send a message that he was certain Poppy herself would not find objectionable.

Greetings, most kindly Jen! I am always pleased to hear from you and hope you are well.

Is it shops you wish to know about? Poppy and I most frequently went to the coffee shop with the ants on the wall, the place of legends.

We also went to high places where we could gaze upon your fair city, such as the mountain with the A.

She very much enjoyed Fourth Avenue, and we sometimes visited friends there.

I hope this assists you in making your list. With greatest respect from Seattle, Rai.

He finished with the neutral smiling face that Poppy had advised him was not as passive-aggressive as the thumbs-up sign.

He could not tell Jen about the portal to faerie, of course, but she would not be able to enter there without fae assistance, so it likely did not matter, though he was deathly curious about what the list could be for.

He hoped it was not to provide to Poppy’s new lover.

Though of course he desired her to be happy, he had so wished she would still be heart-free when he completed his training, that he might make her happier.

He shrugged, resisting the urge to mope about it, and settled back in his tub.

He was done with moping. Moping did not yield results.

A reply arrived a few minutes later. Thank you! If you think of any other places, please let me know. I added what you sent me to the list I gave the police.

Rai sat up straight, sloshing water over the edges of the tub. The police? He started to type a reply, cursing his recalcitrant fingers, then gave up and tapped the inchworm button. The phone rang twice before connecting.

He did not wait for Jen to greet him. “Why must you give a list to the police? ”

“Hello, Rai.” Jen’s voice was quivering. “I’m sorry. I can’t talk now. I need to wait for the police to call me back. I’m sorry. They just left. They’re looking. They said they’re looking. I have to—”

The call disconnected, and Rai stared at his phone in horror.

Something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Something involving the police and a list of places Poppy might go. Something that had Jen shaking and clearly in the midst of what Poppy had called a bad day.

Why was Poppy not with her? Rai had resisted his instincts to seduce Poppy away from Tucson specifically because Poppy did not wish to leave her mother in distress, and Jen was in clear distress now. And Poppy was not with her.

Where was Poppy?

Rai forced himself to pause, despite the way every muscle in his body had tensed to leap into action.

He had a plan to woo Poppy. He had a strategy.

He had considered—though he had ground his teeth at the thought—making a chart to track his progress.

Ofelia had even complimented him on the wisdom of his approach.

At least you are not flinging yourself bodily into danger.

He was, he realized, behaving entirely unlike himself.

Well, fuck that.

He flung himself from his tub, hastily absorbing water as he went, all he could draw from the floor, his jeans, the humid air.

Hands still shaking, he spun open his portal, tossed his phone and all but two of his filled water bottles inside.

They thudded into his hoard, sending gold coins into a clinking slide.

The last two bottles he loaded into his beer helmet, which he strapped on his head with practiced speed.

And then he was out the door, spreading his wings wide and diving into the air.

The initial blast of pain nearly sent him crashing into the ground, but he sucked fiercely on his plastic tubing and beat his wings harder.

The dry morning air drained him more with each beat, but he kept drinking and kept flying, stopping only when his water bottles were empty and he needed to exchange them for full ones from his hoard.

He had nearly drained his third set when he finally landed before Poppy’s mother’s house.

He rushed up the steps and peered in the window of the front door. Jen was pacing. Poppy was nowhere to be seen. He raised his fist and pounded on the door.

There was a flurry of motion inside and Jen opened the door. “Did you find—”

Her eyes went wide, and she shrieked.

Rai reached out and caught her hands, stroking them gently. “Fear not, O Jen. I am here. I am—” He looked down at his hands on hers and broke off. They were, he realized in a flash, purple. Or lilac. Not human-colored, in any case.

Jen yanked her hands away and staggered a few steps back, pointing at him. “Wings!”

Well, at least she had stopped pacing. “Yes, I have wings,” he said, making his voice as soothing as a spring rain. “But I am still Rai. Even though I am…different. May I come in?”

“You have wings!”

Rai heaved a deep, impatient breath, swirled his wings away, and assumed his human glamour. The effort made him light-headed. He took a deep draught of water from his beer helmet. “There is no time, Jen. What has happened to Poppy?”

“Rai?” Jen was still staring at him with huge eyes. “Poppy said you were in Seattle.”

“Clearly I am not. I did not go to Seattle at all.” He tamped down his frustration again. “May I come in?”

Jen’s eyes went narrow. “You’re not a vampire, are you?”

“Vampires do not exist,” Rai gritted out. He was not as good as Poppy at being soothing, not when there was a tempest in his breast. “I am being polite. But I do not need to come in. What has happened to Poppy?”

Something broke behind Jen’s eyes, and she started to pace again, back and forth before the door.

“She didn’t come home yesterday. She didn’t come home.

I tried not to worry, I tried. I promised her I would try.

But she didn’t come home. I took my meds on time, I remembered, but she didn’t come home. ”

The words congealed into nauseating meaning. “She is missing?”

“Yes, missing. Poppy’s missing. You can come in. Oh, god, Poppy’s missing …”

Jen was too agitated to give him proper information, Rai realized.

He fell into step beside her, trying to remember what Poppy had said worked best. There was no time for tea in this moment, but he could provide comfort, try to smooth the agitation down.

“Do not be afraid. I am here. You must breathe.” He stroked her hands carefully.

They were trembling like butterflies caught in a winter breeze.

Jen nodded, not pulling away this time, and after a few more paces gave a little shudder, relaxed the barest amount. “I don’t know where she went. She left a note. I showed it to the police.”

It took several more circuits of the room for Rai to extract the details of the situation from Jen, each new drop of information building pressure in his chest, but finally he understood.

Poppy had been gone when Jen awoke the day before, but she had left a note.

She had planned to return for lunch. But Poppy had not returned, and when it was time for dinner and Jen could no longer wait patiently, she had contacted the police.