Mrs Inbetween

Chapter 9 - Vortex

My stomach lurched like a runaway roller coaster as Jake thrust his phone towards me. "Sunshine, take a look at this," he muttered, his voice tight with a mixture of confusion and… something else I couldn't quite place.

I squinted at the faded photo on the screen. A young woman, maybe a couple of years older than me, smiled back. Her hair, a cascade of sun-kissed blonde, framed a face that could have been Sia's twin. Same wide, blue eyes, the same sprinkling of freckles across the bridge of her nose. The resemblance was uncanny, like looking into a slightly older version of Jake’s former wife.

"Who is she?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

"Her name is Sarah," Jake said, his voice low and tight. "She… disappeared a few years back. Moved from Cape Rey to Emerald Bay, then vanished without a trace. Sarah was already a young lady, twenty three, maybe twenty four at most. Artistic soul, always sketching in that little park by the pier. Apparently, she had a fight with her boyfriend, something about trifling things. Packed herself, left a note: “Thank you”, and that was it. Security footage showed her boarding a bus headed north, which eventually landed her in Emerald Bay."

A shiver ran down my spine. Disappearances weren't exactly commonplace in our sleepy coastal town. This Sarah, with her ethereal beauty and unsettling resemblance to Sia, felt like a phantom from an unwanted past.

"Why are you showing me this now?" I questioned, a knot of unease tightening in my chest. “And why thank you?”

Jake hesitated, his jaw clenched. "Because I just got a message from my agent. He says he needs to talk to me about Sarah. And why thank you? I have no idea. Probably out of spite."

My heart hammered against my ribs. Mentioning a woman who looked exactly like her, who had vanished from the very town Sia had just moved from? The pieces weren't fitting, and a cold dread gnawed at the edges of my anxiety about Sia's return. This whole situation felt… off.

"What else did he say?" I pressed, needing more information to quell the rising tide of unease.

"Just that. 'Need to talk about Sarah.' That's it," Jake said, frustration lacing his voice.

We sat in stunned silence for a moment, the weight of the photo hanging heavy in the air. This Sarah, this ghost from Jake's past, had somehow become a part of Sia's present. The connection was undeniable, and a thousand questions swirled in my mind. Who was Sarah? Does her disappearance have to do anything with Sia? And most importantly, could she be related to Sia in any way?

“And Sarah’s boyfriend? Is he beyond suspicion?”

“No idea, yet. We’ll have to check this trail.”

He paused, his jaw clenched, his gaze fixed on the photo. "Nobody ever heard from her again. The police investigation went cold after a while. My agent dug up these files while looking into their background. It's all so… creepy, Sunshine. He trailed off, frustration and a hint of fear flickering in his eyes.

“I just hope it will pay off. The whole Emerald Bay must live for this show. I want it to be a turning point in my career.’

A cold dread seeped into my bones, chilling me despite the afternoon sun streaming through the window. Jake's words echoed in my mind, each detail about Sarah painting a disturbing picture. The age, the escape from Cape Rey, the artistic spirit – it all mirrored Sia far too closely.

Sunshine, the name my parents gave me for my relentlessly optimistic disposition, felt like a cruel joke at this moment. This whole situation felt like a nightmare I couldn't wake up from. Sia. The name that had poisoned the last blissful year of my life, the woman who'd wormed her way into my heart and then ripped it out, was back. Or was she?

This Sarah, this ethereal doppelganger, cast a long shadow over everything. And for the first time, a terrifying thought wormed its way into my mind: what if Sia wasn't who she claimed to be? What if she was somehow connected to Sarah's disappearance, a ghost from Jake's past come back to haunt us?

The whole bottle of wine empty on the table, a forgotten casualty of the emotional earthquake that had just rocked our world. Glancing at Jake, I saw a reflection of my own fear in his eyes. But beneath that fear, a spark of something else flickered – a spark of something I couldn't quite decipher.

Maybe it was naive, reckless even, but a fierce protectiveness for Jake, a possessiveness I hadn't even acknowledged before, surged through me. I wouldn't let Sarah, whoever she was, cast her shadow over us again. I thought I'd gotten rid of her once, buried the

Perfect Lady deep within myself. But apparently, some shadows never truly fade.

A new resolve formed in my mind, a decision I made without voicing it. I wouldn't involve Jake in this initial investigation. He deserved a buffer from the net Sia inevitably cast even not realizing it. No, this was something I needed to do on my own. I would delve into Sarah's disappearance, uncover the secrets buried in Cape Rey. And hopefully, in the process, I would finally understand the truth about Sia. This town held answers, and I was determined to find them.

A cold dread seeped into my bones, chilling me despite the afternoon sun streaming through the window. Jake's words echoed in my mind, each detail about Sarah painting a disturbing picture. The age, the escape from Cape Rey, the artistic spirit – it all mirrored Sia far too closely. Sunshine, the name my parents gave me for my relentlessly optimistic disposition, felt like a cruel joke at this moment. This whole situation felt like a nightmare I couldn't wake up from.

Sia. The name that had poisoned the last blissful year of my life, the woman who'd wormed her way into my heart and then ripped it out, was back. Or was she?

This Sarah, this ethereal doppelganger, cast a long shadow over everything. And for the first time, a terrifying thought wormed its way into my mind: what if Sia wasn't who she claimed to be? What if she was somehow connected to Sarah's disappearance, a ghost from Jake's past come back to haunt us?

The latte art remained untouched on the table, a forgotten casualty of the emotional earthquake that had just rocked our world. Glancing at Jake, I saw a reflection of my own fear in his eyes. But beneath that fear, a spark of something else flickered – a spark of something I couldn't quite decipher.

Maybe it was naive, reckless even, but a fierce protectiveness for Jake, a possessiveness I hadn't even acknowledged before, surged through me. I wouldn't let Sia, whoever she was, cast her shadow over us again. I thought I'd gotten rid of her once, buried the hurt and the betrayal deep within myself. But apparently, some shadows never truly fade.

A new resolve formed in my mind, a decision I made without voicing it. I wouldn't involve Jake in this initial investigation. He deserved a buffer from the pain Sia's return inevitably brought. No, this was something I needed to do on my own. I would delve into Sarah's disappearance, uncover the secrets buried in Cape Rey. And hopefully, in the process, I would finally understand the truth about Sia. This town held answers, and I was determined to find them.

With a newfound purpose, I excused myself, claiming a sudden headache and the need for some fresh air. As I stepped out onto the balcony, the salty breeze whipped at my hair, carrying a faint, metallic tang. An unsettling feeling washed over me, a prickling sensation at the base of my neck. Turning towards the sound, I spotted a small, crumpled object caught on the railing – a single silver earring, its design an intricate crescent moon. My breath hitched in my throat. It was identical to the birthmark Jake described, the one Sia supposedly had.

A cold sweat slicked my skin. Was this a warning? A message? Or a horrifying confirmation of my deepest fears that Sia can be back and take Jake away from me? Her baby is the biggest threat to us, that’s something that joins them the most. It must be gotten rid of.

Exhausted, I finally returned to the apartment, a small, silver ring clutched tightly in my pocket – the very same design Jake described as Sia's birthmark.

Pushing open the door, I expected to find Jake, eager to hear about my findings. But the apartment was eerily silent. The air hung heavy, the only sound the rhythmic tick of the grandfather clock. Anxiety clawed at my throat. Where was he?

On the coffee table, a single sheet of paper lay crumpled – a hastily scribbled note in Jake's hand. My heart hammered in my chest as I unfolded it, the words blurring before my eyes:

"Urgent meeting with my agent. Sorry, kisses. Be back soon. Don't wait up. – Jake."

But beneath the forced cheer of the note, a single, chilling sentence had been scrawled in a different, frantic handwriting: "Sarah's been seen. Come to the docks. Now."

The blood drained from my face. Sarah reappeared? And Jake, seemingly oblivious, was gone. With a surge of fear and a newfound determination, I grabbed my keys and raced out the door. The answer to all the questions, the truth about Sia, and perhaps even Jake's safety, lay somewhere in those dark, deserted docks.