MARRY YOUR KILLER
Chapter Seventy-Nine: The Vanishing
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The morning came gray and cold.
Care woke before the sun. Her head was healed. The bandages were gone. The scar was white on her skin. She touched it sometimes, when she was alone, when she was thinking, when she was remembering. The scar that Lyra had given her. The scar that Lyra had saved her from. The scar that would always be there.
She sat up. Cole was beside her, his face soft, his breathing slow. She watched him for a moment. The rise and fall of his chest. The way his hair fell across his forehead. The way his hand was reaching for her even in sleep. She loved him. She loved him more than she had ever loved anyone.
Her phone buzzed on the nightstand. She picked it up. A name she hadn't seen in years. A name she had been running from for years. Her father.
Your mother needs you. Come home.
She stared at the screen. Her hands were shaking. Her face was pale. Her mother. The woman who had left her. The woman who had chosen her father over her. The woman who had watched her walk away and didn't call her back. She needed her. After all these years. After everything. She needed her.
She put the phone in her pocket. She looked at Cole. At the man she loved. At the man she was going to leave. She leaned down. She kissed his forehead. Soft. Slow. A kiss that said goodbye.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
She slipped out of bed. Her feet were silent on the floor. Her hands were steady. Her face was calm. She dressed in black. The same black she had worn when she first came to this house. When she was a stranger. When she was a doctor. When she was nothing.
She wrote a note. One line. Four words. She left it on the pillow where she had been sleeping.
I have to go.
She walked out the door.
---
Cole woke at dawn.
His hand reached for her. The bed was empty. The sheets were cold. He sat up. His heart was pounding. His hands were shaking. He saw the note on the pillow. He picked it up. His hands were shaking. His face was pale.
I have to go.
He walked through the house. The kitchen was empty. The living room was empty. The study was empty. The corner was empty. Her bag was gone. Her phone was gone. Her coat was gone. She was gone.
He found Jay in the garden. She was standing by the steps, her hands in her pockets, her face turned toward the sky. Keifer was beside her. His hand was in hers.
"She's gone," Cole said.
Jay turned. Her face was pale. "What?"
Cole held up the note. His hands were shaking. "She left. She left this. She didn't say where. She didn't say why. She just left."
---
The meeting was called at dawn.
The living room was full. Percy was at the window, his face pale, his hands empty. Aries was beside him. Ella was with them. Alex was in the corner, Lyra beside him, her face blank, her hands steady. Freya was at the door. Erdix was beside her. Rakki was at the table. Ci N was beside her. Grace was with Denzel. Kit was with Mayo. Mica was at her laptop. Calix was beside her. Honey was on the screen.
Cole stood in the center. His hands were empty. His face was blank. His eyes were on the note. The note that said nothing. The note that told him nothing.
Jay walked to him. "We're going to find her. We're going to bring her home."
Cole looked at her. His face was wet. "Why did she leave? Why didn't she tell me? Why didn't she—"
His voice cracked. He couldn't finish.
Keifer put his hand on Cole's shoulder. "We'll find her."
---
Mica worked through the morning.
Her fingers moved. Her eyes scanned. Her face was focused. Calix was beside her, his hand on her shoulder, his voice low. The screens were filled with cameras, streets, cars, faces. There was nothing. Care had disappeared. She had become a ghost.
"She took a car," Mica said. "A taxi. From the corner. At 4 AM. She was alone. She had a bag. She looked—" She stopped.
"Looked what?" Jay asked.
Mica looked up. "She looked like she was running."
Cole's hands were fists. "Running from what? Running from who? Running from—"
"From something she didn't want us to know," Lyra said.
Everyone turned. Lyra was in her corner. Her face was blank. Her eyes were steady.
"She left because she didn't want us to see. She left because she didn't want us to follow. She left because she was protecting us. From something. From someone. From herself."
Cole walked to her. His face was pale. "What do you know? What did she tell you? What—"
Lyra shook her head. "She didn't tell me anything. But I know her. She's been quiet for weeks. She's been distant. She's been disappearing in front of us and we didn't see it. We didn't ask. We didn't push. We just let her be."
Cole's face was wet. "I should have asked. I should have—"
Lyra took his hand. "She didn't want you to ask. She didn't want you to worry. She didn't want you to follow. She wanted to protect you."
Cole pulled his hand away. "I don't need protection. I need her."
---
Freya searched the streets.
Erdix was beside her. They drove through Manila, through Pasay, through Makati. They checked the stations, the terminals, the ports. There was nothing. Care had vanished. She had disappeared. She had become a ghost.
Rakki searched the alleys. Ci N was beside her. They asked questions. They followed leads. There was nothing. No one had seen her. No one knew her. No one remembered.
Grace searched the hospitals. Denzel was beside her. They checked the records, the files, the names. There was nothing. Care hadn't used her name. She hadn't used her face. She had disappeared.
Mica searched the phones. Calix was beside her. They tracked the calls, the messages, the numbers. There was one call. One message. One name. Her father. The call came at 3 AM. The message was short. The name was blocked. There was nothing else.
Honey searched the databases. Her voice was low. Her eyes were sharp. "Her father. There's nothing on him. No records. No address. No phone. No nothing. He's a ghost. He's been a ghost for years."
Jay stood at the map. The pins and strings were back. Care's face was at the center. The woman who had left. The woman who had disappeared. The woman who was hiding.
"Her father called her," Jay said. "He called her and she left. She left without telling anyone. She left without saying goodbye. She left to protect us."
Cole walked to the map. His hands were empty. His face was pale. "Protect us from what? What is she hiding? What is she running from? What—"
Jay took his hand. "We're going to find out. We're going to find her. We're going to bring her home."
---
The days passed.
Cole didn't sleep. He didn't eat. He stood in the corner. Her corner. He watched the window where she used to watch. He waited. He was always waiting.
Lyra stood beside him sometimes. Her face was blank. Her hands were steady. "She'll come back."
Cole didn't look at her. "How do you know?"
Lyra was quiet for a moment. "Because she loves you. Because she loves us. Because she's Care. And she always comes back."
Cole's face was wet. "She left. She left and she didn't say goodbye. She left and she didn't tell me why. She left and—"
His voice cracked. He couldn't finish.
Lyra took his hand. "She'll come back."
---
Percy was in the garden.
He was standing where Care used to stand. The flowers were blooming. The grass was green. The steps were new. He looked at the house. At the window where her room was. At the place where she used to be.
"She was quiet," Percy said. "She was quiet for weeks. She was distant. And I didn't see it. I didn't see anything."
Aries was beside him. "None of us saw it."
Percy looked at them. "I should have seen it. I should have asked. I should have—"
Aries took his hand. "She didn't want us to see. She didn't want us to ask. She wanted to protect us."
Percy's face was wet. "I miss her."
Aries pulled him close. "I know."
---
Jay was in the study.
Keifer was beside her. His hand was in hers. The map was on the wall. Care's face was at the center. The pins and strings were everywhere. There was nothing. No leads. No traces. No Care.
"She's gone," Jay said. "She's gone and we can't find her."
Keifer pulled her close. "We'll find her. We'll find her and we'll bring her home."
Jay leaned against him. "What if she doesn't want to be found? What if she wants to stay hidden? What if she—"
He kissed her hair. "She'll come back. When she's ready. When it's safe. She'll come back."
---
Alex was in the corner with Lyra.
His hand was in hers. Her face was blank. Her eyes were on the window.
"She's gone," Alex said.
Lyra didn't look at him. "She'll come back."
Alex looked at her. "How do you know?"
Lyra was quiet for a moment. "Because I left. Because I ran. Because I hid. And I came back."
Alex pulled her close. "You came back."
She leaned against him. "I came back."
---
Ella was in the garden with Aries.
Her hands were folded. Her face was calm. The flowers were blooming. The grass was green. The steps were new.
"She was quiet," Ella said. "She was quiet and I didn't see it. I didn't see anything."
Aries took her hand. "None of us saw it."
Ella looked at them. "I should have seen it. I should have asked. I should have—"
Aries pulled her close. "She didn't want us to see. She didn't want us to ask. She wanted to protect us."
Ella held them. "I miss her."
Aries held her. "I know."
---
The days turned into weeks.
Cole stood in the corner. Her corner. He watched the window where she used to watch. He waited. He was always waiting.
The door opened. Jay walked in. Her face was pale. Her hands were empty.
"We found something," Jay said.
Cole turned. His face was pale. "Where is she?"
Jay walked to the map. The pins and strings were everywhere. Care's face was at the center. "Her father. He's been hiding. He's been running. He's been protecting her. From something. From someone. From—"
"From what?" Cole's voice was low.
Mica's voice came through the speakers. "Her father was in trouble. Bad trouble. He owed money to people who don't forgive debts. He was hiding. He was running. And he called her. He called her to come home. To help him. To save him."
Cole's hands were fists. "Where is she?"
Mica was quiet for a moment. "She's with him. They're hiding. They're running. They're—"
"Where?" Cole's voice was rising.
Mica's fingers moved. "I don't know. They're gone. They disappeared. There's no trace. No nothing. She's gone."
---
Cole walked to the door. His hands were fists. His face was hard.
"I'm going to find her," Cole said.
Jay was behind him. "We're going to find her. Together."
Cole turned. His face was wet. "She left. She left without saying goodbye. She left without telling me why. She left to protect me. And I'm going to find her. I'm going to bring her home. And I'm never letting her go again."
Jay took his hand. "Then let's go."
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END OF CHAPTER SEVENTY-NINE