"Impossible. I slipped it inside the mailbox," Anna said, her voice cracking.
"Even my uncle didn't see it. Anna, please give me her number right now."
"Devin, I have her phone. We're using one phone between us. She didn't want-"
"What? Anna, where is she?"
"I'm heading home right now, but I'm stuck between two decisions. Finding her or going home. Without her, I'm dead."
Devin hung up the phone. His mind raced. The beach. Right, she must be there. But a sudden thought flooded his mind. What if she went back home? What if she gave up waiting?
---
Lauren and Alex had just arrived home when they noticed the girls weren't around. But Lauren waved a dismissive hand.
"They might be on their way. In fact, it's still five in the afternoon."
But Alex couldn't hold his peace for long. "It's raining hard, Lauren. Really hard."
"Wait... I'll try to call her."
Lauren was still talking when Anna burst through the entrance, soaked and trembling.
Alex asked her right away, "Why are you alone? Where did you come from?"
Fear caved in within Anna. Her mouth opened and closed. She was about to lie, to say she was checking on Allison in her room, but the words wouldn't come.
"I'll go check on her in her room," Anna finally managed, turning toward the stairs.
But Lauren's voice cut through like a blade. "She's not here, Anna. We thought she was with you. Tell us the truth. Now."
Shit. I'm doomed.
Anna's legs felt like water. She turned back slowly, and in that moment, something in her expression-the panic, the guilt-told them everything.
"Where is Allison?" Alex's voice was quiet but terrifying.
Alex Ainsley ignited the city. With a single phone call, he had every police station under his command. He didn't just request a search; he demanded the city be dismantled until his daughter was found.
Anna knew where Allison had gone. But she mentioned nothing about Devin.
"Mr. Ainsley, we're sorry-nothing yet," the officer said grimly. "The storm is getting stronger, and it's quite dangerous. But as soon as the rain slows down, we'll resume the search."
But even though Devin noticed the police searching as he passed by, he doesnt care. He head straight cause he knew the way and the short cut to their porch where Allison posibly went. Even the storm couldnt stopped him.
***
"So, it's happening again," Alex said, his voice cold. "South Carolina. Always South Carolina."
"She could be back at that same spot, Alex," Lauren snapped, her eyes flashing. "We can't just sit here. I won't stand by and let a storm stop me from finding my daughter."
"The Hollingsworths are expecting us for the family meeting tomorrow," Alex countered, checking his watch. "We need to find her before dawn. Our image—"
"Our image?" Lauren's voice rose to a frantic pitch. "How can you worry about family business more than your daughter's life? I'm not letting her experience the same—"
"The same what, Lauren?" Alex stepped into her space, his expression darkening.
Lauren didn't flinch. "The same regret of choosing you over what my heart actually wanted."
The silence that followed was sharper than the lightning outside. Alex stood frozen as Lauren turned on her heel and headed for the car, disappearing into the rain to find the daughter she refused to lose.
---
As the world panicked over her absence, the heavy rains had driven Allison into a desperate state. The rumbling dark sky tormented her, fear striking her like each gust of wind.
It was no longer safe to wait outside.
She knocked at the beach house door, but nobody answered. Then she looked up and saw it-a tiny light flickering in a second-story window.
"Hello? Somebody help me! Hello! " she called out, her voice swallowed by the storm.
Allison climbed toward the window of the second story, her fingers gripping the slick, modern framing of the glass house Devin had built. With desperate faith that someone—anyone—was inside, she pulled herself up. The sleek, elevated wall was slippery from the rising storm, but desperation gave her strength. A grin of success shone on her wet face as she finally found leverage.
The window was unlocked.
"Oh, good heavens," she sighed in relief. She pushed the glass pane open and peered into the dark room. It appeared empty—until a splash of crimson caught her eye on the bed.
"M-my kite..."
For a moment, the modern walls faded. She saw an image of the past: being little, playing with Devin, and resting on the old wooden porch that used to stand on this exact same spot.
Lightning suddenly split the sky, illuminating the glass facade. In that same fraction of a second, a frantic voice from the ground below shattered the silence.
"Allison!"
She gasped. Her wet feet slipped from the narrow ledge. Her head struck the window frame, and gravity pulled her backward into the empty air, plummeting down the exterior of the glass house.
But before she could hit the ground, strong arms caught her.
The impact took them both down, and they collapsed together into the wet sand.
The rain lashed at them, cold and relentless. Yet, as Allison's skin brushed his, a jolt of pure electricity surged through her. Her head throbbed from the blow, but her heart was louder—a heavy, thundering beat that drowned out the roaring wind and the crashing waves.
"D-Devin..." she whispered, her voice cracking.
"I've got you," he rasped. He was trembling violently, his hands iron-tight on her shoulders as he looked down at her face, rain dripping from his hair.
They stayed there, knelt in the mud and the salt-spray outside the towering glass walls, caught in an agonizing, slow-motion stare.
The silence between them was thicker than the storm itself.
What is this feeling? they both wondered, suspended in the chaos.
Allison finally pulled back just a fraction, her breath hitching. The freezing downpour didn't matter. They were both gasping for air, their chests heaving with the heavy pounding of their hearts.
Then, Devin snapped out of his shock. His gaze softened, washing away the last of Allison's lingering shyness.
"Allison."
He didn't wait for her to say anything else. He pulled her forward and crushed her against his chest, hugging her fiercely at last, as if terrified the storm might steal her away again.
Trembling, Allison slowly wrapped her arms around his back and held on.