A/N: Jade just can't catch a break, huh?
I'm also a fan of The Owl House so points to whoever catches the reference in this chapter.
So sorry this update took a while. I just had the worst week! I promise it won't get longer than that.
Now things are going to ramp up.
;-)
Jade ducked behind her table, avoiding his wandering gaze.
That creepy bastard she happened upon on the bus was here of all places. Maybe he really was following her and it wasn't just her paranoia.
(Well, he's not gonna find me!)
She waited for what felt like forever for the man with the goatee to turn completely away from her vantage. Now Jade saw her chance and slipped away, disregarding her luggage on the floor. She would have to worry about that later; the important thing was to have nothing to slow her down. Jade had her phone and that was all she really needed.
With Tori and Jordan only minutes away, the former goth just needed to hang low and bide her time until "The Fuzz" showed up. Maybe they would have to call for some backup; there's no telling what might be in that black bag of his. Jade just needed some familiar faces and soon. She felt so alone in this sea of complete and total strangers.
A group of college students were walking by, all pretty tall, which provided a much-needed shield for Jade to get up from her crouched position and run to the ladies room.
Once inside the bathroom adorned with pearly white and blood red tiles, she exhaled loudly like the act of holding her breath made her invisible.
"Come on, Tori" she said, breathing heavy. "Please get here soon."
A middle-aged looking man with a ponytail dressed in black sat on the barstool next to Jade's would-be stalker.
"About time you showed up," grumbled the newcomer with a Dutch accent.
The creep with the goatee just sneered at the man.
"Sorry, but getting here by bus is a pain in the ass."
The older man's phone rings and he pulls it out.
"Franco," he answered in a stiff tone. "Yeah, Burke's here."
His comrade barely glanced at him in response to hearing his name. He was more focused on the tiny rum and coke in front of him.
"Got it, bye."
He looked at Burke and snapped his fingers like he was summoning a dog.
"Take your drink to go," ordered Franco.
Burke stood and slung his black bag over his shoulder securely. The look on his face showed that it was far from light. They started moving toward the lobby.
"You normally drink on the job, kid?"
Burke rolled his eyes and took a mighty swig.
"Please, I can have a dozen of these and drive a school bus."
Tori pulled up and in the commotion of guests going to and fro, she couldn't figure out where to pull over, let alone park.
"Goddamnit," grumbled Tori. "It's a zoo here!"
"Just stop here," said Jordan. "Get out."
"Huh?"
"Just do it, woman!"
The half Latina threw the car into park and got out, Jordan quickly hopping into the vacant drivers seat.
"I'll figure out the parking sitch, you go rescue the fair maiden."
Tori gave a warm smile of gratitude. It was like having a sister again; someone always having your back.
"Thanks."
With that she ran off as Jordan navigates her way through the swath of people.
Jade tried to send a text message to figure out what's keeping them.
Her stomach dropped when she just saw the endlessly swirling circle of doom.
"Come on, you fucker! Send. Send!" her voice echoed.
This lousy bathroom made up for acoustics for what it severely lacked in reception.
"I need you, Vega!"
She began to tear up.
Tori waded through the crowded lobby.
Two men dressed in black bumped into her. Hard.
She whipped her head around and caught the face of one of them on the lookback. He had a goatee. Tori briefly eyed the rather large bags they were carrying.
She began to make her way toward the lounge, hoping this is the one Jordan had mentioned from the earlier text.
The whole time, she kept the suspicious-looking pair in her sights. Something about them just didn't feel right. If she wasn't already on a mission, Tori would likely catch and release these transients to make sure they weren't up to no good.
It drover her crazy but figured a place this big and fancy must have surveillance cameras and some security force. She entertained the idea of sending a fast message to Jordan to get an ID on these two if they exited the hotel.
Tori attempted to call Jade but the signal quickly dropped.
"What the shit?"
Something was screwing with her digital signal. Maybe it was a quirk in the building's construction or perhaps they deliberately had a blocker engaged so that nobody could do anything without jumping onto the WIFI connection. That way they can potentially "monitor" their guests' activity so they don't do some dark web shit.
After all, even a nice hotel isn't immune to the lowest of the low seeking temporary refuge from the public that would nail them to the wall if they were outed as the degenerates they were.
(Hang on, Jade. Hang in there baby.)
"Okay, we're good to go."
Esperanza didn't respond to his ginger associate. All he did was quickly load and cock his desert eagle (one of several strapped to his person).
"So...anyway Burke finally showed and we got the ground floor covered."
"Kristoff? Heinrich?"
The tan mercenary spoke for the first time since they got in the elevator.
"Confirmed. Emergency exits are covered."
"Good," he sighed. "Let's do this thing and go."
The elevator dings and doors open. Luckily no cleaning lady or guests were standing there waiting when they got off on the nineteenth floor. The less witnesses the better.
Esperanza didn't care for a team of this size. He didn't have a liking for any teams. Period. He preferred to work alone. But a place of this size with a dozen possible exits and hundreds of people; it was non-negotiable.
Renato made it very clear:
"There is no room for error!"
Jordan finally found the parking structure located across the street.
"Slow down, ma'am!" waved the guy in the booth. "That'll be 8 dollars."
The redhead made a face.
"Do you take plastic?"
The attendant nodded.
"Fine. Still cheaper than valet."
She handed the debit card over and the man swiped it and handed it back to her with receipt.
"Oh by the way, first six levels are full. You're gonna have to park on the roof."
"Fuck me," groaned Jordan as the border raised, allowing her to enter.
Tori entered the hall, showing her badge on the way in so nobody would mess with her.
She scanned the room and noticed an odd sight: a table with two chairs and a lone tall glass of chocolate milk. Half full. Tori looked down and noticed a familiar thing.
"Those are Jade's bags!"
The woman looked around, expecting her love to pop up anytime now. But she was nowhere.
"Something must've spooked her," Tori reasoned. "Jade wouldn't just leave her shit behind like that."
It seemed like the closer she gets to finding Jade the more she worries. This is not a good scene.
Tori's attention went over to the bar. She walks over and pulls out her phone and finds a recent enough picture of Jade.
"Excuse me?"
The bartender looked up and saw the woman holding the phone in one hand and LAPD badge in the other.
"Hi, I'm looking for this woman. It's urgent; have you seen her?"
The bearded man squinted at the phone screen and nodded.
"Yeah, yeah, I remember. The one who didn't drink," he chuckled.
"Did you see where she went?" Tori pressed.
He shrugged.
"So many people just this last thirty or so minutes. One time I look she's there, the next poof. Have you checked the ladies room?"
Tori turned and sure enough, there was a sign on the wall pointing to the facilities.
She marched over and the first door was to the women's restroom.
Tori knocked.
"Jade?"
No answer.
"Jade?"
Still nothing.
She was getting fed up with this and charged through the door and was taken aback to how big this bathroom was. Feeling relatively safe, Tori made sure the safety was still on her gun. It was concealed under her shirt and she wore it so often that she would forget about it and have to awkwardly explain why the metal detector would go off. She tried to be discreet. Despite being a cop, people get weirded out by those than openly carry and police officers haven't had the best PR in the last few years.
Tori and her partner always strived to be a good example and help sniff out the bad apples. A bad cop brings down the whole department and creates more distrust in the general public.
She really wanted the cops to be the good guys again. Like her father. He wasn't perfect but who was?
"Jade?"
Her voice bounced off and on in the cavernous lavatory.
She went on to check a few stalls and they were vacant.
Tori's heart sank.
"She gone."