Page 45 of Seduce & Destroy

Chapter 17

LANEY

Kenna was gone again.

After training finished, she was placed on guarding duty, working twilight shifts. I stayed up for her most nights; I hadn’t been sleeping well recently anyway. Her presence soothed me as if she could protect me from the things in my mind. It was my preferred sleep aid.

But last night was a rarity. I took my medication and as much as I fought my eyes to stay open, they fell shut before midnight. That was why it took me until this morning to raise the alarm. I ran to my office and found Forrester along the way.

“Was she picked up on any security feed?”

“No,” he replied. “Last night she went into her room and the door hadn’t opened since. Are you sure she isn’t still asleep?”

I shook my head, adamant that if the duvet on her side of my bed laid undisturbed, it meant that she never came. I know her routine well enough now to know that this disappearance was not scheduled. Doubt seeped into my veins, a feeling that her charisma had turned me blind to her true routine.

Forrester sat behind my desk. “Laney, she’s strong. You don’t need to worry–”

“I’m not.” I snapped and then sighed, but I do, I wanted to say. “It’s just…she didn’t come home last night.” It didn’t occur to me until I saw the slight edge on his face that I’d implied that home was me. Could this get any more humiliating? It was already embarrassing enough to beg him to help me find her.

“Have you checked her room?”

“Yes.” I looked over his shoulder to peruse the motion detection log that recorded no movement the entire night, making me question whether she had a twilight shift at all.

His doubt hurt but I pushed through it. “And the barracks?” He asked.

I dropped my shoulders. “I’ll go look again.”

“If you don’t find her, don’t worry.” He tried to soothe. “People often find their own way home. Have faith.”

Have faith. Mindlessly, I looked for her brown eyes in every face in the mess hall, training rooms and offices underground. These were the parts of the estate that were the coldest, and the chill seeped into my bones. When it became one o’clock a thumping in the back of my head punctuated every breath I took. With each beat I suppressed a flinch.

It was why I hadn’t seen a man approach until I felt my body become glued to the brick behind my back. My head weighed down my movements. I could only decipher fragments of what this man was saying to me.

“I know,” he threatened. “...days are numbered, girl.”

“What?” I said with elongated vowels.

“You.” He punched a finger in my chest. “Took something from me. You’ll lose…”

It was like I was swimming in muddied water. I could identify the words, but they weren’t clear. His tone indicated a threat, but I didn’t even recognise the man.

“Name?” I managed to breathe out, before wrestling the accompanying words that would make it make sense. “What is your name?”

“...ren.”

Huh? “Ren?” I repeated but he hadn’t stopped to listen. The pounding in my head caused unease in my stomach.

“You’ll remember that name, Laney. It’ll haunt you.”

“So, Ren, can you give me a minute I need to—” I almost hurled. He took a violent step back.

“Crazy bitch.” He slurred. Or I heard it slurred? I didn’t know anymore. I bent forward, placing my hands on my knees, suppressing the nausea as best as I could. He obviously wanted to be heard, and I wanted to understand his words, but with my migraine and Kenna missing the blood filled my head to the brim.

When I looked at him again, he didn’t seem as disgusted. Just proud. “Better take some drugs for that.” He laughed at me.

I cocked my head to the side but didn’t say anything more. It was like I had missed part of the conversation. I didn’t have to wait long before he spelled it out for me. The water suddenly cleared. “Watch. Your. Back.”

Then, he walked away. Defeated, I walked back to my room too. The sun was too bright shining in through the blinds when I entered it. But wait– I had curtains in my room. Not blinds.

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