Page 3 of Raise 'Em Up

“You tell us!” Lennox seethes. “Where the fuck did she go? What the fuck is going on?!”

“I don’t fucking know!” Alex shouts.

A buzzing in my ear rings so loud as a numbness settles over me. Slowly, I walk over to the desk as the others shout at each other.

Sitting there is a piece of paper.

With shaky hands, I pick it up and let my eyes scan over the words.

This was a mistake. I should have just left after the Halloween scare. Don’t come looking for me, it won’t matter. We’re done. I’m done. It’s over.

I should have known never to trust a Black Widow, they always have a venomous bite.

— Rylee.

My heart thuds painfully in my chest, nausea swelling violently in my stomach. “She’s gone,” I whisper, so low that I don’t think the others will hear me. But they do.

“What?” Donny asks, snatching the paper out of my hand. “No. No, no, no!” he shouts after reading it over. I stare at the wall, shock filling my veins.

The others go back to shouting and arguing as my mind works overtime.

No. There has to be more going on. The Rylee we know and love, she wouldn’t just leave. Not like this. She’s so fucking strong. If she had an issue, she would stand up to us, tell us. There's no way she would turn and run without a word.

Something else is going on. And we need to find out what.

You better be okay, baby. We just got you back, and we’re not losing you again.

No matter what. I will fight until my damn dying breath for this woman. This note means nothing unless I hear these words straight from her lips.

CHAPTER TWO

The plane ride was awful. I felt sick the whole time. I sat next to a guy who wouldn’t stop coughing and didn’t cover his mouth, and another person who kept asking me to get up every five minutes so they could use the bathroom. That made it impossible to sleep.

Not that I could get any sleep, seeing as how my thoughts are plagued with the nightmares of all the shit that just happened.

Now, I’m finally off the plane. I’m tired, pissed, and just want to go home. Not to mention, I’m starving.

Unfortunately, none of that can happen until my damn bags show up on the baggage carousel.

I can hardly stand on my feet, my eyes growing heavy as I sway. After what feels like a lifetime, my bags slide down.

Tossing them onto a cart, I head out to the arrivals area and hail a cab.

Thankfully, the hotel isn’t far from the airport, so I’m pulling up to the front doors in no time. “Thanks,” I tell the cab driver as I pay.

Grabbing my bags from the trunk, I’m about to head inside when Gerald, the doorman, steps outside to greet me. “Miss Rylee. It’s nice to have you back. We’ve missed you.”

“Hey, Gerald.” I give him a friendly smile. “Merry Christmas.”

“You too, Miss Rylee.”

I head into the lobby and give Sharron, the head receptionist, a smile and small wave. She returns it before I head down the hall toward the staff living quarters.

It’s weird to be back, but I’m hit with a wave of nostalgia. I just want my mom. I want her to hold me, tell me everything's going to be okay, even if it feels like my world is falling apart.

I’m all cried out, or maybe I’m just too tired to produce any more tears.

When I get to the door of the room my mom and I stay in, I grab my wallet and pull out my key card.

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