Bri
Bri’s heart hammered so hard that she could almost feel it in her mouth. The sensation was terrifying and disgusting as she swallowed the lump in her throat and took a steeling breath to calm herself. She shoved her phone into her pocket, feeling awful about lying to Sloane. Her hands tightened around the plastic container holding six from the dozens of muffins she’d made that morning. It wasn’t like her to lie to her friends. The feeling was overwhelming and it made her stomach clench. She couldn’t betray her mom though. Abbey had always told her to keep anything she heard about the Therons a secret from the town. Everyone loved to gossip in Willows Lake, especially about the ex-mayor who went crazy. Not many people knew he was sick.
Sitting at home didn’t do her much good. She needed answers. She knew Kael wouldn’t hurt her, especially after what he’d done for her the other day at the pool. Even if he was friends with Chloe. Bringing him muffins was the perfect excuse. She’d make up the rest when she got to his house.
The word “house” didn’t encompass the sprawling mansion in front of her. It reminded her of something she’d seen in movies. A place where unsuspecting people went inside and never came out. The building was made from stone in varying shades of gray. Vines and moss had made their way up the facade, claiming a majority of it. Bri noted the lack of maintenance.
She checked behind her and could swear she heard the sound of Kael’s motorcycle in the distance. She held her breath and listened harder, closing her eyes to perk up her senses.
Nothing.
She quickened her pace and finally made it up to the front door, then she knocked and waited.
She tried a few more times but no one answered. She tried to peer through the stained glass in the door but saw no movement inside. She didn’t want her trip to be wasted.
A twig snapped nearby and she almost jumped out of her skin. She turned toward the sound and two chipmunks dashed out of the bushes. She watched them shrink into the distance before getting back to the task at hand. Whatever that was. Regret surged through her.
What are you doing here? She knew the fake reason she’d come. All of her stress baking had given her a reason to drop by. Going inside the house was another thing entirely. She knew she’d have no excuse for snooping. Which is why she needed to make her visit quick and efficient.
She took the key from her pocket and pushed it into the lock then turned. The knob moved easily but the heavy door pushed back enough for her to hesitate. She still had a choice.
When her mom’s face flashed across her vision, it fueled her resolve. She needed to get her phone back to figure out why Abbey still wasn’t home.
The door swung open without a sound except for the whoosh of air that filtered into the house around her. She quickly closed the door, pressing her hand against the cool wood.
At that moment, she allowed herself a second to admire the room in front of her. She felt as if she’d stepped away from her life and entered a different time. Dark mahogany wood stretched above her to an impossibly high ceiling. The wood was carved with intricate detail that she wished she had more time to admire. She stepped further into the foyer and placed the plastic container onto a large circular table in the middle of the room. The glossy surface was shaped into a map of the world, with rich colors outlining the different countries. Her container was a foreign object in the opulently decorated space.
She headed for the wide staircase in front of her. She hugged the railing on her way up, straining to hear if anyone was moving around in the house. At the top of the stairs was a long hallway that must have been the length of the mansion. It was as wide as the staircase lined with a half-dozen rooms on each side. How was she ever going to find Kael’s room?
She decided to take one door at a time and hoped that his wouldn’t be the last one. The further she got from the stairs, the more her heart raced.
The first two doors she tried were locked. She tried her luck on the other side of the hallway and was surprised to find the one open. She mentally crossed her fingers and pushed inside.
A steady humming stopped her at the entrance to the bedroom. She leaned over the threshold, peering in. A king-sized four-poster bed sat in the middle. She nearly jumped when she saw a lump under the covers, but stopped herself from fleeing the room when she realized it was Kael’s father. She stepped further into the room, her curiosity controlling her feet. He was asleep. The machines next to him whirred and beeped. From all the wires leading to the body she presumed most of them were keeping him alive. His breathing was shallow, barely perceptible until she got close. From the few times her mom spoke about him, she knew he was in and out of consciousness. She reached the edge of the bed and watched the steady rhythm of his breathing in time with the humming of the machine at his side. He was a husk of the man she’d seen in old photos. In his prime, he had been a handsome man. She couldn’t help the smile on her lips at Kael’s resemblance to his father, more so now than ever. They had the same distinct cheekbones, nose and mouth. The thought of Kael brought her back to her mission.
She headed to the door.
“Bri.” Her name floated in the space between them, making her pause.
Her mouth went dry and she glanced over her shoulder. Mr. Theron’s body was still and his eyes were closed. The machines continued working and Bri guessed one of them had made the noise that sounded like her name. She picked up her pace and ducked out of the room, closing the door silently behind her.
With a new resolve to get the heck out of there she went to the next door. She found several guest bedrooms and two bathrooms before she was close to the end of the hallway.
She crossed her fingers that Kael didn’t have a creepy basement or attic bedroom. Maybe she should have done her research. Though how insane would it have been for her to ask where his bedroom was? It’s not like they had any relationship other than the one her mom had bridged between their two families.
She opened the next door. Her heart practically leaped into her throat when she realized it was the place she was looking for.
A bed was pushed against the closest wall by the door. The shirt that she’d seen Kael in the other day was hanging off a chair in front of a desk. She immediately went to the desk and opened all the drawers. A deep line creased her forehead as she realized the drawers were empty. There wasn’t even a pen or pencil in any of them. She crossed the room to the closet. Sparse clothing hung from hangers, a few items she recalled him wearing in the past. No cell phone. She knelt down and sifted through the random pairs of shoes on the floor. She sat back, confused. Did he have the phone on him?
She stood up and spun around in a slow circle, inspecting the room. The conversation with Chloe had replayed in her mind again. Even the feeling of defeat hadn’t stopped her from knowing that Kael was involved in her mom’s disappearance somehow.
A door slammed in the hallway and she knew this time she wasn’t imagining the sound. Her eyes darted around the room for a hiding spot. The closet wouldn’t offer any coverage so she slipped under the bed.