Vultures
1254 Words
Aria
Jude and Sean are just leaving when Tara walks in from the back.
“Hey, Girlie how's today going,” She chirps.
“It’s been busy! I’ve actually gotta run. You think you and Grace can handle this for an hour or two," I rush out my words, anxious. Jude helped calm me some, bringing me a moment of peace and hilarity in a morning of chaos.
I plan to come back but Mason still hasn’t tried to reach out and it's making me nervous. Wyatt and Connor said someone broke into the offices and the police were handling it but that’s all I’ve got and I’m not sorry but it's not enough information for me.
Were going to be married in just weeks yet a simple phone call after something as crazy as this morning is too much to ask for. He said he would update me, I expect him to keep good on his word.
“Yeah, no problem!”
“Aiden will be here if you all need anything.” Wyatt’s always with me, in my space my presence. He’s literally my shadow. Connor sits on the outskirts, watching our general area, taking in what he must to keep us all safe. While Aiden waits at Shirley’s while it’s opened watching the security cameras to protect my employees by my instance.
“Alright I’ll be back, call me if you need anything.” Biting my lip I look around taking in the five full tables and the line of four waiting in line while Grace currently does all the work. I hate leaving especially around the lunch rush.
“Stop fretting. Get out of here, we’ve got this.” She shoes me away, using the end of the towel to whip me out the door. A laugh falls from my lips shaking away some of the tension weighing down my shoulders.
“Okay okay!” Walking through the stained glass shadows of light I open the front door jingling the precious wind chime. “I promise I’ll hire someone soon.” I throw over my shoulder holding the door opened for Wyatt and Connor.
Wyatt doesn’t so much as send a glance in Tara’s direction. Another reason to leave rather than standing in the uncomfortable silence they together create.
“Where are we going,” Connor asks.
“You have to ask,” Wyatt jabs.
“Checking in dude.”
“Exactly we're checking in on my Fiance who left me hanging all morning," I pout, feeling stupid which aggravates me more.
“My lady loves when I keep her hanging it’s…” Conor starts.
“Shut up Connor,” Wyatt cuts in.
“You do enough of that for the both of us dude.” I have to laugh at that, he isn't wrong.
“Okay, boys settle down. Connor is just messing around Wyatt. We don’t all have our panties in a twist.”
“Meaning what?” He grunts. His big bald head glints in the sun as he looks around the street.
“You think we don’t suffer through the awkward tension between you and Tara every day?”Maybe it's my mood that loosens my tongue or maybe Connor is rubbing off on me but either way, I don't regret the statement once I say it.
His only response is a single grunt.
“I’m glad I’m not the only one that feels it. You need a jackhammer to get through that shit.”
“Shut up Connor," Wyatt warns.
“I want to know what happened,” I persist.
“She hasn’t told you?” He sounds shocked which is surprising.
“When? You’re always around!” She could text me or call but it doesn't seem to be that type of conversation.
“Hmm.”
“So will you tell us?”
“No.” Yup, someone definitely has his panties in a twist.
Connor keeps up the jokes and ribbing as we walk towards Mason's office breaking the building tension when I give up asking a question I won't get answered by this guy.
My mind wanders to all the what if's and why Mason has been so quiet in the wake of something so worrisome. His silence has me more worried and brimming with anger for being ignored or forgotten.
My heart skips a beat seeing the police tape still surrounding the building, taped and wrapped around the poles before the large glass doors. Reporters are standing around the DIXIE Corporate Headquarters sign talking, laughing, drinking some coffee.
“Damnit,” Connor swears under his breath saying out loud what we're all thinking. “A heads up would have been nice.”
“Aria off to the side,” Wyatt growls.
“I know the drill.” I’m well-practiced now after months of probing I know not to get in the middle of the mix. I know how to avoid them as best as I can when they are vultures that see their prey. Avoiding them doesn’t always mean we go in a different entrance or even that we hide from them completely, but I do keep my head down, my moth tight. Wyatt and Connor or Levi when he was better, sandwich me together, their backs and fronts to my own giving the reporters no space to intrude as they’ll try.
They care nothing about personal space, they’ll shove a mic gripped hand in my face or walk a step in front of me their cameras a step behind as they shout questions and accusations They are after a story so they will stop at nothing to get exactly what they want.
Today is no different.
“Over there!” One of them shouts pointing in our direction long before we have the chance to pivot behind the building. They all turn in unison, their conversations halting, their eyes growing wide with excitement.
“Mrs. Crawford! Do you know who broke in?”
“Is this incident related to the Russian Mafia?”
“We’re getting reports that they’ve transitioned to remote work for a week. Are you expecting another attack?”
They throw questions around one after another some over each other making it hard to make everything out but what I do nauseates me. Remote work for a week? It has to be worse than I was told, how much worse? Where is Mason, is he even here and why hasn’t he got ahold of me?
Keeping my head down, tucked close to Wyatts back we march straight past the crowd to the front doors. Wyatt pulls out a key on his chain unlocking the door after tugging on it unsuccessfully once. Anyone on duty has the important keys to all our places as a just-in-case measure, something I’m beyond happy for at the moment as they follow us to the doors.
They won’t go inside but they won't stop until we are in the lobby.
Thankfully the alarm doesn’t go off how embarrassing would that be but I have to assume Mason is here if the reports are still here and the alarm is off he has to be. I tried calling him earlier but he didn’t answer and I don’t want to try him again to only get sent to voicemail once more. Crazy or not I want answers to questions that have my stomach in knots.
He can be an Alphahole a lot but right about now he’s feeling a lot more like an asshole.
- Writer
