The first thing Phoenix planned to do the day after Apollo didn't show up to work was to pay a visit to Apollo's apartment. He had planned to go investigate alone before Trucy woke up but much to his dismay she had gotten up an hour before him and insisted on tagging along. Phoenix couldn't find it in his heart to deny Trucy's request partly because Apollo was her half brother (even if she still didn't know) and partly because it was really difficult to say no to his daughter period.
Lucky for the Wrights the walk from the office to Apollo's place wasn't too far. It was a good thing too since the rain from the day before hadn't let up.
"Watch where you step Trucy, there are some icy bits on the side walk." Phoenix informed his daughter after nearly slipping on a patch of black ice.
"Okay Daddy, but really you should be the one watching where you walk. I'm a magician gracefulness runs in my blood, you on the other hand are as coordinated as a classroom full of preschoolers."
"Ah ha ha, you know me too well" Phoenix laughed a little as they reached the apartment building.
"Say, Daddy how are we going to get into Polly's apartment if he's not home?"
"Hopefully we won't have to. Hopefully he'll be home." Nick said with a smile towards the petit magician beside him. He had to stay optimistic for her sake.
"Daddy, Polly hasn't answered any of our calls. I don't think he'll be home now." She said bluntly and half frowning which surprised Mr. Wright. Trucy was usually the most positive person he knew, it was unusual for her to be this realistic about a situation. "Oh I know! Polly keeps an extra key tapped to the bottom of his door mat in case he loses his key. We can use that." Trucy stated returning to her normal cheerful attitude and running ahead down the hallway.
"Uh huh" Phoenix nodded as he fallowed behind her still a little in shock from Trucy's brief moment of pessimism. When he caught up to Trucy she had already fished out the key from beneath Apollo's door mat and was unlocking the door. Nothing in the apartment seemed strange at all. There were a few books scattered across the main table as well as a plate with the remains of some peanut butter toast. Nothing had been packed up and Apollo's passport was still on the top of his dresser. Everything was in place for an apartment that was being used by a young male adult except for the occupant himself. It was like Apollo had just vanished from the face of the earth.
When they returned to the apartment Phoenix phoned the police department to report the disappearance. Needless to say Ema who answered the phone was shaken. After that Phoenix spent the rest of the day phoning people asking if they had seen Apollo and Trucy made a whole stack of missing poster. It was in the evening when Phoenix left the apartment to go get some food so Trucy and he wouldn't starve. When Phoenix came home from getting dinner from Eldoon's noodle stand he found his daughters sitting very solemn by the window.
"Daddy am I bad luck?" she asked him as Phoenix neared her with two bowls of noodles and a pair of chop sticks for each of them.
"What? Of course not! How did you get that silly idea in your head?"
"Well… It's just that it seems like the people I get close to disappear."
"Huh?" Phoenix stared blankly into the young magician's eyes.
"First Mommy, then Daddy went missing too a-and n-now P-Polly" she managed to blurt out before covering her face with a corner of her cape to dry the newly formed tears rolling down her cheek.
"Trucy."
"I-I didn't m-mean for any them to go."
"Trucy."
"M-maybe I s-should just live inside m-my room for t-the rest of my life."
"TRUCY! Listen to me. You're not bad luck; actually you're the farthest thing away from it. You're a ray of sunshine and anyone who has met you will agree that they feel happy when they see you smile." Phoenix said sternly as he placed the bowls on the coffee table before pulling Trucy into a hug.
"Really!"
"Without a doubt, plus I haven't disappeared, have I?" Phoenix laughed a bit.
"Nope" Trucy wiped away the remains of the tears and smiled again at her adopted father.
"Plus Apollo's not going to be missing for long, we'll find him. Nobody skips work on Trucy Wright's watch and gets away with it?" He joked as he handed Trucy her bowl of noodles.
"Nope! Nobody!" She giggled.
The brief moment of contentment in the circumstances lasted until the next day when no clues on Apollo's whereabouts turned up. With each passing day the hope of finding the young defense attorney twiddled away. Without realizing it both of the Wrights had grown accustomed to having the rookie defense attorney around. There was a void left from not hearing his pointless question in the background of their everyday life. He had only come into their lives for a year but if wasn't easy to come to terms with his disappearance. Part of both of them wouldn't be able to come to terms it at all.