Chapter 51: Chapter Fifty-One - Ava

I washed the paint from my arms and hands as my phone buzzed in my back pocket. My heart thudded as I hurried to dry my fingers to answer the phone. “Hello?”

Fletcher sighed on the other end. “You’re safe?”

It was more of a question than a statement. “I’m safe. What’s the matter? Why wouldn't I be safe?"

I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror and cringed. I looked terrible. The day had been long and exhausting. Though I attempted to distract myself with painting, I couldn't stop thinking about Char.

“I met with Mr. Capello. We’re going to get Charlotte.”

I listened to the tone of his voice and it sounded hesitant. “You don’t sound so sure of yourself. What happened? Did it not go well?"

Fletcher sighed heavily. “It seemed too easy. He gave me an address and a list of things to do before I could pick her up. I'm not sure what to think or who to believe right now."

“What did he ask for?” I whispered, turning my back against the bathroom counter.

“What we took,” Fletcher said. “It’s…Levi is handling the deal with the supplier and the nightclubs. I don’t want to get your hopes up, Ava. I’m not sure this is going to work the way I need it to work. I'm not sure if he's lying or not."

“What does that even mean?” I asked, shoving from the counter and walking into the bedroom. “You don’t think he gave you the right address? Do you think she’s already dead? I don’t understand.”

“Let me see. Stay inside. I’ll call you as soon as I know anything. I promise. I love you.”

He ended the call before I could say anything.

My heart dropped into my stomach and I covered my mouth with my palm. The need to leave this house and find Charlotte consumed me. The guards had strict orders not to allow me to leave.

I felt like a prisoner in my own home. I understood it but it felt binding.

Listening to the frantic beat of my heart, I walked into the kitchen and found Lucinda had dinner made for us already.

“Are the boys going to make it back?” she asked over her shoulder.

I cleared the fear out of my voice. “Soon, most likely. I’m going to go ahead and eat. I skipped lunch.”

She smiled. “I know. I put it in the fridge for you. If you want to save it for tomorrow you can.”

“Thank you, Lucinda. I'll eat it tomorrow. Sorry, I missed it."

The meatloaf on the table looked amazing, and it made my stomach growl. Despite my worries, I knew I needed to eat.

I sat down, watching Lucinda busy herself around the kitchen. “Would you like to eat with me?”

She looked shocked when she turned to face me. I knew it wasn’t something that happened often, but I needed the company right now.

Lucinda nodded. “Sure. I’d like that.”

She slid into the seat Fletcher normally took and made her a plate. To busy my winding brain, I took a bite and asked her, “Where is someplace you’ve always wanted to go.”

Her dark eyes brightened at the question. “My family is from Spain. I’ve always wanted to go visit my roots. I went there when I was in high school, but haven’t had the money to go since.”

“Sounds amazing. I’ve never been but I’ve heard amazing things about it.”

She nodded. “It’s a beautiful place.”

She took a bite of her food, scrunched her nose, and stood up. “Needs more salt.”

I thought it tasted good but we’re our own worst critics.

Lucinda put a pinch of salt over her food and then mine. “Thank you, Lucinda.”

We continued to eat. I tried to push my thoughts to the back of my head when I noticed something move outside of the window.

I looked over at the empty glass with a hammering heartbeat.

Lucinda followed my gaze. “Are you okay, Mrs. Ava? Did you see something? Sometimes the guards walk around the back of the house.”

I wanted to believe that but my paranoia was deep for obvious reasons. “I’ll be right back,” I said, standing up.

She stood up with me and followed me to the back door.

I stepped outside and looked left to right. Why would a guard be moving so quickly? As if, they didn’t want to be seen.

“Maybe it was a bird?” Lucinda said.

Wishful thinking.

“That would have been a big bird,” I said, stepping off the back steps. “I’m just gonna take a look around.”

Lucinda kept close to my heels which worried me. If I ran into someone I didn’t want her to deal with it.

The backyard was free of anyone out in the open. A few guards were standing between the side of the house and the fence. I wasn’t sure how anyone could have slipped by them.

One of the guards looked over and turned to face me. “Is everything okay, Mrs. Ava?”

I rubbed the back of my neck and swallowed. “Yes, I think. I thought I saw someone walking across the backyard near the kitchen window. I could be wrong but…”

The guard lifted his wrist and spoke into his watch. “Walk around. Ava thought she saw something.”

He let his wrist fall to his sides and smiled at me. “We’ll take care of it. Go back inside just in case.”

I reluctantly walked back into the house, locked the door, and watched as the guards began to search every square inch of the place.

Lucinda tapped my shoulder. “You should eat, Mrs. Ava. You missed lunch.”

“You’re right,” I said, tucking my hair behind my ears. I sat down at the table and began to finish the rest of my food.

My phone had no new notifications when I tapped the screen. The urge to call Fletcher surged me but I thought better of it. I didn’t want to bug him. I needed to wait for him to reach out.

Lucinda cleaned her plate quickly and watched as I finished mine. “I’m going to clean the kitchen. I think you need to rest, Mrs. Ava.”

She was right. I did but I wasn’t sure I could. My insides were a twirling mess of emotions.

A few guards stopped outside of the kitchen door and one opened it up to step inside. “Ma’am, we did a thorough walkthrough and didn’t see anyone out of place.”

I sighed heavily. Maybe I was going crazy. “Thank you for checking,” I said.

“Of course,” he said, nodding his head.

I watched him join the others before they went back to their positions. “Am I going crazy, Lucinda?” I asked.

She laughed. “No, you’re stressed. Do you want some tea?”

“No, thank you. Do you need any help…”

She shot me a dirty look and I put my hands up in surrender. “Okay. I’ll go read or something. A bath sounds nice.”

Lucinda smiled and urged me to go. I pushed open the kitchen door and walked down the hallway. My phone felt like ten thousand pounds in my pocket. Why hadn’t he called yet? It’d been more than an hour.

Had they found Charlotte yet? Did he give them the wrong address? Something felt off as I slipped out of my clothes and turned on the water in the clawfoot bathtub.

Were they going to attack the house while Fletcher was gone? Did they plan to kill her?

I slid into the hot water and let myself relax. Seconds turned into minutes and I found myself feeling light. I couldn’t explain the feeling. It was warmth and… relief.

Closing my eyes, I let myself fall into the familiar feeling. I had it when Fletcher looked at me. Then my phone buzzed against the bathroom floor.

I looked over at Fletcher’s name on the screen and reached over to pick it up. Despite the water running down my arms, I answered. “Hello?”

“We found her, Ava.”

Tears bubbled up to my eyes and raced down my cheeks. “Oh, my God. Is she alive? Is she okay?”

“She’s fine,” Fletcher said.

I could hear the hesitation in his voice. This wasn’t over despite my sister being safe. I didn’t believe it. And by hearing the sound in Fletcher’s voice, he didn’t either.

“We’re bringing her to our house. We’ll be there shortly.”

He hung up before I could ask any more questions.

Though I was sure Fletcher had the same questions as I did.

This couldn't possibly be the end of what the Capellos had in store for us.