Page 85 of The Suite Life
‘Yeah, I think so, it’s just someone at the door,’ I tell him as I throw on a white hotel robe.
Donnie frowns as the banging continues. There’s definitely something urgent about it.
I hurry downstairs and open the door to find Nathan standing there. I can see the worry on his face as he invites himself in, stepping through the door.
‘What?’ I ask Nathan, my mind still foggy from sleep. ‘What’s wrong?’
I notice Nathan’s gaze shifting beyond me. I turn to follow his line of sight to see Donnie, making his way down the stairs in nothing but his boxers.
‘It’s Lucy and Rick,’ Nathan explains, bringing his attention back to me. ‘We can’t find them anywhere.’
‘What?’ I blurt out in disbelief. ‘Have you asked my parents?’
‘I checked for them there, although I didn’t tell them they were missing – I didn’t want to worry them,’ Nathan explains. ‘I did manage to check their room – Sunshine had Lucy’s key card in her bag – but it doesn’t seem like they’ve been back there. Their passports and things are still there. It doesn’t seem like anyone has seen them since they walked off last night.’
‘Shit,’ I mutter softly, anxiety tightening in my chest.
I feel Donnie’s arms wrap around me, comforting me when I need it most.
‘Don’t worry,’ Donnie reassures me. ‘Let’s get dressed and go look for them – they will be here somewhere.’
Nathan, who seems hyper-focused on finding the happy couple, glances at Donnie’s arms before seemingly letting any thoughts he has on the matter go.
‘Yeah,’ I reply optimistically. ‘Perhaps they just lost track of time somewhere, or they’re having a pre-wedding spa, or… something.’
‘I’ll keep looking too,’ Nathan says. ‘I’ll call you if I find them.’
‘Yeah, I’ll do the same,’ I reply, trying to get my thoughts in order.
‘The wedding is in a few hours,’ he reminds me.
‘Yeah, okay, I know,’ I say, my mind racing. ‘Don’t worry, we’ll sort it.’
As Nathan heads out again, I turn around in Donnie’s arms and he hugs me tightly for a few seconds.
‘You don’t think something bad has happened to them, do you?’ I mumble into his chest.
‘No, come on, it’s all going to be okay,’ he reassures me. ‘I’ll help you find them. Let’s throw some clothes on and get searching.’
‘Thanks,’ I tell him sincerely. ‘I couldn’t imagine doing this on my own.’
I worried that something might ruin my perfect morning. I never thought it would be this.
40
Lucy and Rick are nowhere to be seen.
Donnie and I have looked everywhere, in all the public areas of the hotel – even the VIP ones, just in case they managed to blag their way into a fancy bar by telling people they were getting married the next day, but there’s no sign of them.
We’re standing in the deserted VIP area of the outdoor nightclub we were in last night, retracing our steps, like TV detectives. In the harsh light of day, it looks almost alien – the empty dance floor, the abandoned VIP booths, and with the darkness that encased it last night gone, it feels so open and vulnerable.
Credit to the hotel staff, they’re on the ball with the cleaning and tidying, because there isn’t so much as a trace of last night’s revelry. Unfortunately this means that there are no clues to be found – but realistically we were never going to find any hot leads, were we? Lucy and Rick left here before we did.
I anxiously run a hand through my hair. Whenever I’m stressed, it’s almost as though I revert to being a teenager, sweeping away my centre parting. My hair piles up on one side of my head, a habit from my younger days – something one of theGen Z trainees in the salon recently called an ‘ick’ they had about millennials.
‘It’s just hard to think where they could have gone,’ I say, my voice echoing in the deserted VIP area of the outdoor nightclub.
I steal a glance at Donnie. He’s quiet, his gaze fixed on the floor below him. I can’t help but wonder if all he wants to do is run a mile from all of this. I wouldn’t blame him if he did.
