Chasing the Bartender

Something is Wrong

LEVI POV

It's been a few days since Davina went on her business trip. Hadley said she'd be back soon, but whenever Dane and I went over to see her and Xavier, I noticed my sisters unease.

I watch as my sister's blue car pulls up and parks outside of my house. She gets out quickly and moves to the back, where she helps Xavier get out. She appears to be in a rush, which is strange since she doesn't have work and has planned to spend the day with us. I move to the door and open before she can even knock. She barrels past me and begins to look around.

"Where's Dane?" Her voice holds a sense of urgency that is not a normal occurrence. I point to the bathroom door right as it opens, and he walks out. "We need to talk." He looks at me puzzled as I shrug, and he then follows her outside.

I watch them from the window as they talk, my friend and sister now sharing the same apparent worry. I kneel down beside the little boy, I know he's my son, but does he know I'm his dad?

"Hey bud, do you know why Hadley is nervous today?

"No, she just said she needed to talk to Uncle Dane." He says as he continues to drive his cars around on the carpet. I joined him until the two returned inside, followed by my parents.

"You." Dane points to me. "We gotta go. Your parents are staying with Xave." The little boy jumps up and begins talking to my parents and showing them his cars. I follow my sister as she rushes to her car.

"What's going on?" I ask, unease taking over.

"Something is wrong with Vi." Hadley says, and she begins driving down the road, Dane beside her in the front on the phone, and me in the back.

"What do you mean?" I lean forward like that will somehow give me more clarity as my brows furrow with confusion.

"I haven't heard from her in a few days. She wouldn't not call or check in on Xavier. I texted her, asking her how Lina was doing, and she responded, saying that she's good, just tired." I must be missing something because I don't see how that means that something is wrong. She sighs as she looks at me through the mirror. "Lina died years ago. We decided shortly after that she would be a code between us."

We pull into the parking lot of a local hotel, for a moment I'm confused, until I realize that Vi never left town. She must've been staying here, and she was trying to avoid me. The three of us get out and head inside to the front desk. Hadley asks the man for Davina. The man couldn't be more than fifty, with slightly greying hair and his older but fit physique.

After what feels like an eternity, he informs us that she didn't answer and offers to escort us to her room. We follow him to the elevator, each floor passing as slowly as possible. Once we reached the correct floor, we were led to a room at the end of the hall, with a do not disturb sign.

Dane pushes past the man and begins knocking on the door, calling for her to open the door. After no response, he takes a key card from the man as he protests about disturbing a guest and enters the room. The curtains are open, her suitcase is here, there's a piece of paper on the nightstand with names and numbers listed, but there's no sign of her. Even the bed appears to be untouched.

We all leave the room, and as we head down to the lobby, Dane calls the police. Once in the lobby, Hadley takes a seat and places her head in her hands. Dane paces, looking between the floor, his phone, and the doors constantly. I just stand there, leaning against the wall by my sister, unsure of what to do.

Once two police cars pull up and four officers enter the building, we all stand straighter. Dane and Hadley begin telling them everything they know. They ask for the hotel manager and then for access to the security footage. Luckily, the manager agreed, so we wouldn't have to wait for a warrant.

We watch as she enters and checks in. A man approaches her, and after a while, she moves to the elevator. We follow the footage from different cameras as she arrives at her room, and then suddenly the same man appears and hides behind a corner. Once she left her room and was at the elevator, he snuck to her door and placed a do not disturb notice on the handle.

They meet again in the lobby and head to the restaurant. We watch, and everything seems normal besides the sign being put on her door until the waiter drops the plates. As she eats and drinks, she appears to begin having issues, and we watch as the man helps her up, through the lobby, and out the door.