Missing

. . .

Jude frowned. "You'll be marrying Jose Porla. I don't care if you disagree. The paperwork is already being drawn up." Without any further words, the man turned on his heel and exited the room, the door slamming behind him.

Spetto turned to look at Lucy, her big brown eyes wide. "Spetto. I have to get out of here."

. . .

"I need to get somewhere he won't be able to find me," Lucy said as she threw the covers off of her and started to gather some belongings. "Better yet," she said as she grabbed a bag and laid it on the bed, "I need to go somewhere where people might be willing to help protect me."

The older woman watched as Lucy moved between the main room and her closet, putting necessities, many of which the woman didn't even know the girl had, into the bag.

"I'm not sure a place like that exists," the older woman said, her spirits a bit broken by the entire situation.

"Maybe not," Lucy said as she zipped up the bag, "but I think I know of somewhere that might come close."

Spetto furrowed her brow. "And where might that be?"

Lucy turned towards her friend. "I wish I could tell you, but I'm afraid it might risk your safety and mine if father found out," Lucy said. The woman's eyes looked sad but she nodded in understanding. "I'll write to you once I get settled there safely."

"I suppose that will have to do," the woman responded, pulling Lucy in for a hug. "You've been like a daughter to me. Please be safe and take care of yourself."

Lucy embraced the woman who had taken the place of both her mother and father figure growing up. "Don't worry," she said into her shoulder. "We'll see each other again. I promise."

The two pulled apart and Spetto wiped a tear off her cheek. "I'm going to hold you to that," she said, trying to smile. Shaking the emotions off of her she continued. "Right, your father has taken to wanting his nightcap just before ten. That should get you past Claude unnoticed but you'll still have to deal with the rover."

Ever the one to be paranoid, and likely because of his shady business relationships, Jude had seen to having a low level mage roam the property as protection. "Not to worry," Lucy said, heading over to her nearby desk and opening the drawer. The maid watched as the girl pulled open a false bottom and grabbed a sheet of paper from underneath. She waived it and said, "I've already got their rotation schedule all figured out."

Spetto smiled. "You've been planning this, haven't you?"

Lucy sighed. "More like, I was facing reality and knew this day would eventually come."

"Smart girl."

"By the fourth failed marriage proposal I didn't need to be smart to figure out things were going to come to a head at some point."

"Give yourself some credit," the old woman said, pulling Lucy in for one last hug. "I'll see you soon," she said before slipping out of the room quietly.

By quarter of ten, Lucy had everything packed that she needed in a suitcase small enough that she could strap it to her back. She'd grabbed a good deal of jewel that she had been saving up over the years whenever she could. Despite her family being extremely wealthy, that didn't mean that there was petty cash lying around. Actually quite the opposite; more normal people would have been surprised how much debt the wealthy actually took on. Very few things were outright paid for.

She hid at the threshold to one of the servant entrances to the kitchen, knowing Claude would use the main entrance to deliver her father's drink up to his bedroom before retiring for the evening himself. She watched him prepare the tray before finally leaving for his destination.

Lucy used the opportunity to slip through the kitchen and use the side door that led to the outdoor trash. Opening and closing the door as carefully as she could, she managed to make it out of the house without being noticed. Outside it was already dark and she looked at her wristwatch for the time. She waited patiently, hidden behind the trashcans for the nighttime rover to do his walk by. Within five minutes she was able to climb over the wooden fencing without drawing attention; she didn't want to risk opening the gate because it always squeaked.

Fifteen minutes of brisk walking brought her to the edge of the Estate. She turned to give it one last look. While her relationship with her father had grown more troubled since her mother's passing, it had still been her home and she would cherish some of the memories she had of it. Turning back around, she looked at the dense forest that stretched out in front of her and smiled. For the first time in her entire life, she was about to be completely free to make her own choices, so long as she could keep away from her father's grasp.

Lucy had made the decision that she would travel through the evening and rest when she reached the nearest town. It would take several hours of walking and she'd have to be careful to stay away from the road and under cover just incase she was discovered missing sooner than morning. But at the end of it, she'd be able to board the train in Hargeon and head towards Magnolia.

. . .

Gajeel looked down at the magazine and growled at the faces that smiled back at him. He was annoyed that he had found himself in the present situation. Of all the women with whom he was magically compatible, it had to be the one woman whom Jose decided he wanted to marry. Of course Jose changed wives every year or so, but still. The present circumstances were not ideal.

The iron slayer knew he couldn't risk not getting Lucy to safety as soon as possible. He had no idea how long marriage contract papers took to draft up but if Jose decided that they were going back for Lucy tomorrow, Gajeel needed to make sure that she wasn't there.

He looked at the clock over the stove and sighed. It was already nearing eight o'clock in the evening and the drive out to that stupid estate took over an hour. There was no way he was going to be able to travel on foot and make it back in time to be at the Guild the next day. He'd have to grab one of the cars unnoticed, which meant he'd need to wait until the middle of the night.

He let the hours pass, allowing himself to drift asleep for some time to restore his energy. By midnight, he had changed into black clothing and was grabbing the pair of keys off his kitchen counter that he'd failed to return when him and Jose had gotten back to the Guild a few hours earlier. It was a lucky thing that he'd been too upset to go into the hall. If he had, he likely would have left the keys where they belonged and then he'd have had an extra step to all this.

The streets were mostly deserted on his walk back to the Guild and for that he was thankful. By the time he'd reached where the car was parked, it was nearing one in the morning and even for Phantom Lord, the place was closed up. Being careful to ensure the lights stayed off when he started the car, he put it in gear before driving it away. Just incase he was being watched, he didn't immediately head towards the Estate, instead stopping at a convenience store before finally going in the right direction.

He kept the windows sealed tight on the ride there as a precaution against leaving any personal scent trails. Gajeel seriously doubted that anyone else had as discerning of a nose as his, but he was trying to minimize risk in an already precarious situation.

After what felt like an eternity of driving through the dark forest, he finally crested the hill to where he could see the estate below. He pulled the car over to the side of the road and parked it, obscured from normal view. Gajeel wasn't going to chance driving into the Estate. A man like Jude seemed paranoid at best; he was sure there was some form of security at least during the night.

The iron slayer slipped through the night, his quiet footsteps blending with the soundtrack of the forest behind him. As he moved closer to the estate, his nose picked up the scent of a mage and he knew it had to be the security guard. His keen senses allowed him to slip unnoticed and he chuckled to himself at how ineffective Jude's security was.

Gajeel wasn't heading directly for the main house. Instead, he followed the scent of the old woman; he felt confident she'd be able to help. Plus going into the house might prove too risky without first knowing whether Jude had any sort of active alarms or other security measures. Gajeel kept his nose trained on the scent of the old woman despite the overwhelming strong scent of Lucy surrounding him. He was surprised by how easily he was picking up Lucy's scent and how heavy it seemed to saturate the air around him, but he figured that it must have something to do with the Mating.

Finally, his nose brought him to a small house set back a distance from the main mansion. He went around back, knocking on the window. "Old woman," he said through the glass. It took a few attempts but finally he heard movement from inside before a small light was switched on. Gajeel allowed himself to be seen in the window and Spetto hurried over to him once she recognized who it was.

"Quick get in here," she said in a whisper as she opened the glass for him. Gajeel easily hopped inside before shutting the window quietly behind him. "What are you doing here?" the woman asked.

"I've come for Lucy," Gajeel said simply. "Jose is dangerous. I can't allow her to marry him."

The woman's lips curved into a small smile. "I see. Well, hate to break it to you but your damsel in distress already left several hours ago."

"What?" Gajeel said, trying his best to keep his voice down but unable to control his raging emotions.

"She thought the same thing and she ran away just this evening."

"You've got to be fucking kidding me," Gajeel said, bring his hand to his face. "Do you know where she went?"

The woman shook her head. "No. What's the big problem? She can handle herself. Trust me, I raised her."

The iron slayer growled in frustration. He knew it wasn't the woman's fault that she didn't understand the gravity of the situation but still, have some common sense. "This isn't a run away from home and I'm safe situation, lady," Gajeel said curtly. "Jose always gets what he wants. He'll have people sent out after her. Most likely I'll be one of them. She may be strong but she won't know how to hide her scent and how to stay unnoticed. She needed to disappear—not run away. I was her best chance of keeping her safe."

The woman stayed quiet, her mood sobering before she finally spoke. "I wish I could tell you where she went, but she wouldn't even tell me."

"How much did she bring with her? Her belongings?" Gajeel asked.

"Barely anything. Maybe a change of clothes and a bit of food. And obviously all of the jewel she had collected over the years," the woman replied. "Why?"

"Because it means she was planning to go somewhere she could get food and shelter then," Gajeel said, thinking about what villages surrounded the Estate. "Did she say anything else? Anything that might be a clue to where she was headed?"

"She said she was heading to some place where people might help protect her."

Gajeel's lips thinned. That could be a number of places. She might be heading for the police—which he hoped not because Jose had paid officers there. Perhaps she was clever enough to head for a Guild, but the question was which one.

"What time is it?" Gajeel asked.

Spetto turned to look at the clock in the kitchen and squinted. "Looks to be just about four."

"Fuck!" Gajeel cursed under his breath. He hadn't factored in needing to go and hunt down Lucy. He simply didn't have the time to go look for her if he wanted to get the vehicle back to the Guild unnoticed. He turned to the woman. "If she contacts you, give her this," Gajeel said, handing the woman a slip of paper with his number scribbled on it. "Do not share that with anyone. But tell her she needs to call me immediately."

"Okay," Spetto said, tucking the slip of paper in the pocket of her nightgown. "I will."

Gajeel headed towards the window and turned around before opening. "And thanks."

"For what?" Spetto asked.

"For giving her and I that time together." Before the old woman had the time to respond, Gajeel had lifted the glass and was heading back out into the dark. He growled lowly as he went, the scent of his Lucy clinging to the air, encouraging him to go and sniff her out. But logic reminded him that if Jose had discovered that he'd taken the car, there would be serious questions, and that could prove even more dangerous for both of them. He'd have to find Lucy later. For right now, he'd done all he could for the evening.

END CHAPTER 7