“Dante!”
I almost instinctively drop to the ground. The last time Roman yelled my name in warning, I was shot. I quickly scan the perimeter, and finding no sign of imminent danger, head toward Roman.
“It’s Gia!” he yells as I get closer. He’s panting, his hair wild. “You haven’t seen her, have you?”
Immediately my blood runs cold. Gia’s missing. Because of me.
I pick up my pace as much as my bullet wound will let me. When I reach Roman, he’s got his hands on his knees, trying to catch his breath as well.
“She’s gone?”
“She told Carla,” he starts, stopping to inhale deeply, “that she was going for a walk…hours ago. Haven’t seen her since.”
“You tried calling her?”
“Of course.” He shoots me a look like it’s my first day on Earth. “Her phone’s on her nightstand.”
Panic rises in my throat. My hands instinctively search for my phone to call her myself—not that I have her number, but I’m not thinking clearly right now.
“We didn’t wake you because we figured you need the rest, but… “ He trails off, waving his hands vaguely. “The whole family is searching the property. So far no sign of tracks or anything to tell us where she went.”
I glance down, noticing the slushy mess at our feet. Gia’s a tough girl, but she hates getting wet. Rain, slush, all of it bothers her. She wouldn’t be traipsing around in this.
“Maybe she went for a drive?” I suggest, already heading for the garage. Roman jogs to keep up with me. We pull open the garage doors to find a chaotic cluster of cars, all parked haphazardly at odd angles to fit into the space.
“Her car is in the back corner,” Roman points out. Shit. Well, there goes that idea.
“Wait…” He’s got his eyes set on the far end of the garage. A tarp lays on the ground next to a suspiciously empty space. “The Mustang. She wouldn’t.”
We slip around all the cars, reaching the empty space. Roman pulls out his phone. Why would she take her dad’s Mustang? It’s her father’s most prized possession. Everyone knows the car belongs to Giancarlo, and no one touches that car.
I glance at Roman, his face tight with worry, phone pressed between his cheek and shoulder. “Giancarlo? She took the Mustang.”
He wanders out of the garage as I stare stupidly at the tarp on the floor. A fucking Mustang in this weather? What the hell is she thinking?
“She's a fool,” Giancarlo mutters, as I step outside to join the quickly assembling family members. “I left the keys in the usual spot. They’re gone?”
Roman nods. The family falls silent, no doubt imagining the consequences of driving a vintage Mustang through snow, slush, and ice down the serpentine roads.
“We need to form a search party,” I say, already patting my jacket pockets for my car keys.
“Elizabeth,” Giancarlo barks, grabbing his wife’s hand. “Get the kids inside and stay by the phone in case there’s news. Everyone else, get your cars out and split up.”
People chime in with potential routes Gia might have taken and slowly disperse to form the search party. I’m in my car in seconds, thanking past me for parking outside.
“I’ll head down toward town,” I shout as I start down the driveway, already driving too fast. A light layer of snow covers the slushy driveway, but I spot tire tracks turning left. I follow them, praying they’ll lead me to Gia.
The winding road to town is in pretty bad condition, and I can’t imagine Gia navigating it very well. She always hated driving almost as much as she hated having wet feet. I keep my eyes trained on the tracks, scanning the guardrails and dense forest whenever I lose them.
She must be somewhere around here. She has to be alive.
Maybe she innocently drove herself to town to get a coffee and lost track of time. But deep in my gut, I feel like something’s wrong. She’s hurt, wherever she is.
After a few minutes of aimlessly driving down the empty road, I spot the tracks again, but this time, they’re veering in every direction. I slow the car, creeping down the steep decline, following the chaotic tracks.
Then I spot it. A broken guardrail.
My heart beats wildly, threatening to leap from my chest. I pull up right beside it, shooting a quick text off to the group chat one of the aunts added me to.