ROOM 7
Chapter Sixty: The Vanishing
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The morning after Yuri agreed to sign the annulment, Jay woke up in Keifer's arms.
The apartment was quiet. The city was still sleeping. The shark was on the pillow beside them, Bruce tucked under its fin. She lay there, listening to Keifer breathe, feeling his chest rise and fall against her back. His arm was around her waist. His face was buried in her hair. She didn't move. She wanted to remember this. The weight of his arm. The warmth of his body. The way he held on like he was afraid she'd disappear.
She turned in his arms. Faced him. His eyes were still closed. His face was soft. She touched his cheek. His jaw. His lips.
He opened his eyes. Looked at her.
"Morning," he said. His voice was rough. Sleepy.
"Morning."
He pulled her closer. "What time is it?"
"Early."
He kissed her forehead. "Too early."
She smiled. "We have a lot to do today."
He opened his eyes. "The annulment?"
She nodded. "The lawyers are meeting at 10. Yuri's signing the papers."
Keifer was quiet for a moment. "You trust him?"
She looked at his face. At his eyes. At the worry behind them.
"I trust that he's tired," she said. "I trust that he's done."
Keifer pulled her closer. His face was in her hair. His voice was low.
"I don't trust him."
She held him. "I know."
They lay there. The sun rose higher. The city woke up. The day began.
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Part One: The Vanishing
She left the apartment at 9 AM.
The lawyers' office was across the city. She was supposed to meet Yuri there. He was supposed to sign the papers. She was supposed to be free.
Keifer wanted to come. She told him no. She needed to do this alone. She needed to look Yuri in the eye and watch him let her go.
She walked to the corner. Her car was waiting. The driver held the door open. She got in. The door closed.
The car pulled away.
She didn't see the van following behind.
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The drive should have taken thirty minutes.
At 9:45, Keifer called. She didn't answer. He called again. She didn't answer. He called a third time. The phone rang. Then went to voicemail.
He called the driver. No answer.
He called the lawyers' office. "Is Jay there?"
"No," the receptionist said. "We haven't seen her."
He hung up. His hands were shaking. His heart was pounding.
He called Lyra. "Is Jay with you?"
"No. Why?"
He called Alex. "Have you seen Jay?"
"No. What's going on?"
He called Yuri. The phone rang. Once. Twice. Three times.
"Keifer."
"Where is she?"
Yuri was quiet for a moment. "What do you mean?"
"The lawyers' office. She left at 9. She never arrived. Her phone is off. The driver isn't answering."
Yuri was quiet again. Then: "I don't know where she is."
Keifer hung up. His hands were shaking. His chest was tight.
He called the police.
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Part Two: The Warehouse
Jay woke up in the dark.
Her head was pounding. Her wrists were tied. Her ankles were bound. She was lying on a concrete floor. The air was cold. The room smelled like rust and mold and something else. Something familiar.
She tried to move. The ropes bit into her skin.
She tried to scream. The cloth in her mouth muffled the sound.
She closed her eyes. Breathed. Tried to remember.
The car. The driver. The van pulling up behind them. Men in masks. The door opening. Hands grabbing her. A cloth over her mouth. The world going dark.
She opened her eyes. The room was empty. Concrete walls. A single door. A single window, high above, covered in bars.
She was alone.
She didn't know where she was. She didn't know who had taken her. She didn't know if anyone was coming.
She closed her eyes. Thought of Keifer. His face. His voice. The way he held her. The way he said her name.
She held onto that. Held onto him.
She didn't let go.
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Part Three: The Arrival
The door opened hours later.
Light flooded the room. Jay squinted. A figure stood in the doorway. Tall. Broad. Familiar.
Yuri.
He walked in. The door closed behind him. The room went dark again.
He knelt in front of her. Took the cloth out of her mouth.
She gasped. Breathed. Coughed.
"Yuri."
He looked at her. His face was calm. His eyes were dark. His hands were steady.
"Jay."
She stared at him. "What are you doing?"
He didn't answer.
She pulled against the ropes. "What are you doing, Yuri?"
He touched her face. His fingers were cold. "I'm sorry."
She jerked away. "Don't touch me."
He pulled his hand back. "I'm sorry," he said again.
She looked at his face. At his eyes. At the man she had once called a friend.
"Let me go."
He shook his head. "I can't."
"Why?"
He was quiet for a moment. Then: "Because if I let you go, you'll go back to him."
She stared at him. "Yes."
"And I'll lose you forever."
She pulled against the ropes. "You've already lost me."
He looked at her. At the fury in her eyes. At the fear behind it.
"I know," he said.
He stood up. Walked to the door.
"Yuri."
He stopped.
"Please."
He didn't turn. "I'm sorry."
He walked out. The door closed. The room went dark.
She sat in the dark. Her wrists were bleeding. Her ankles were raw. Her throat was dry.
She closed her eyes. Thought of Keifer.
She didn't let go.
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Part Four: The Search
Keifer was at the police station.
The room was bright. The walls were white. The chairs were hard. He'd been there for hours. He'd answered the same questions a dozen times.
"When did you last see her?"
"9 AM."
"Where was she going?"
"The lawyers' office."
"Who was she meeting?"
"Yuri Hanamitchi."
The detective wrote it down. "And you think he took her?"
Keifer's jaw tightened. "I know he did."
The detective set his pen down. "We have no evidence."
Keifer stood up. "Then find some."
The detective looked at him. "Mr. Watson, we're doing everything we can."
Keifer walked to the door. Stopped. Turned.
"If anything happens to her—"
The detective nodded. "We'll find her."
Keifer walked out. The door closed behind him.
Lyra was in the hallway. Alex beside her. Her face was pale. Her eyes were red.
"Any news?"
Keifer shook his head.
She grabbed his arm. "He's going to hurt her."
He covered her hand with his. "I know."
Alex put his hand on Keifer's shoulder. "We'll find her."
Keifer looked at them. At his friends. At the people who had become his family.
"We have to," he said.
They walked out of the station. The city was bright. The sun was high. The world was moving.
Jay was somewhere. Alone. Scared. Waiting.
They had to find her.
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Part Five: The First Night
The sun set. The room went dark.
Jay sat on the concrete floor. Her wrists were raw. Her ankles were numb. Her throat was dry. She hadn't eaten. She hadn't drunk. She hadn't slept.
The door opened. Yuri walked in. He was carrying a tray. Water. Bread. A blanket.
He set it on the floor. Knelt in front of her.
"Drink."
She looked at the water. At the bread. At his face.
"Why are you doing this?"
He didn't answer.
She pulled against the ropes. "Yuri. Why?"
He looked at her. At the woman he had once loved. The woman he had tried to force. The woman he had lost.
"Because I don't know how to let you go."
She stared at him. "This isn't love."
He shook his head. "I know."
He stood up. Walked to the door.
"Yuri."
He stopped.
"If you walk out that door, I'll never forgive you."
He turned. Looked at her. His face was calm. His eyes were empty.
"I know," he said.
He walked out. The door closed.
She sat in the dark. The water was beside her. The bread was beside her. The blanket was beside her.
She didn't touch any of it.
She closed her eyes. Thought of Keifer.
She didn't let go.
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End of Chapter Sixty