“I've had enough of this shit! It's gone on long enough!” Lisa screamed down the phone.
Ellie squeezed her eyes shut, holding her phone away from her. Then when Lisa stopped she held it to her ear and said, “Calm down, Lisa. There's no need to panic.”
“I'm NOT PANICKING! I'm pissed off!”
Ellie sighed. “What do you want me to do? She called us and told us she'd be missing in action for a while, so what's the problem?”
“The PROBLEM is that we haven't heard anything from her but one dodgy phone call and apparently neither has her own fucking parents!”
Ellie frowned. “What do you mean?”
Lisa huffed, her boyfriend was massaging her feet on the sofa. She gazed at him, he smiled, his hazel eyes twinkling and it gave her the sense of calm she needed. “I called them yesterday. They're lying about her calling them. And about when she's coming back. They can't even give me a straight answer.”
Ellie stroked her fat cat Ginger's tummy. He was sprawled on her bed, purring lazily. She frowned at him, in thought. “How do you know they're lying?” she muttered into the phone.
“Because I know liars. When have I ever been wrong? They're not being honest about the whole thing. Her dad was all hazy on the details. He said her therapist -whatever they call 'em- there isn't sure when he wants her to be discharged. And that she might stay longer. He won't say anything more about it. For god's sake she's been there since May! How long does rehab take?!”
“It's not rehab it-”
“WHATEVER!”
Danny jumped a little in his seat. Lisa rubbed his hand apologetically. He mouthed, 'Calm,' and she took deep slow breaths. He was the only one who could control her anger problem. Not that she'd admit aloud she had one.
She exhaled and said, “Look, I need to do something before I go insane. What do we even know about that place? Nothing. We don't know where it is exactly. We don't know who owns it, runs it, what it's like. What are the treatments? And what exactly she even went there for? How do we know she's not been kidnapped and brainwashed and sucked into some evil cult?”
“You watch too many horror movies,” Ellie sniggered but even she, who was the most trusting person in the world, could see the problem. ”But you may have a point.”
Lisa smiled lightly. Danny's hands were working his way to the balls of her feet and she knocked her head back, sighing happily.
“Danny massaging your feet again?”
Lisa snapped her head up, frowning. “How the hell did you know that?”
Ellie replied, “Only thing that seems to calm you down. Plus the sighing down the phone was a dead giveaway.”
Lisa grinned. Danny was watching curiously as he worked between her toes. “I'm thinking of hiring a private investigator,” she added casually.
Ellie sat up straighter gripping the phone tight, “And did the police skip your mind before you came to this weird decision?”
Lisa rolled her eyes. “Of course I thought about the police. I called them. They said there's nothing you can do but if you suspect foul-play and have enough evidence to issue a search warrant then come back to them. Blah blah blah.”
“You called the police without talking to me first?” Ellie asked.
“What are you, my mother?”
“No, thank god. But don't you think you're overreacting a little bit with this private investigator lark?”
“No. All I need is to get him to find out where this place is. I can't find a number. Not one that actually works anyway. So I don't know what else to do. I'm not waiting around for a random call from her in a million years time.”
“I don't think she'd want us snooping around when she's going through a delicate period right now.”
“I don't care what she wants. I care about what she needs, and she needs us, just as much as we need her. I'm going to call someone.”
“Just give it three weeks,” Ellie persuaded.
Lisa groaned.
“Please, Lis. Don't make things worse and cause drama in case you are overreacting and nothing's wrong. Just wait. Please, if not for me, do it for Jaz.”
Lisa paused, sucking on her tongue.
It was difficult to say no to Ellie. Even harder when Ellie played the 'Do it for Jaz' card. Jaz had been there for her so many times. She could wait a few weeks, couldn't she? Maybe she'd find out she'd worried for nothing. Even so she'd still look up private detectives, so she'd have one ready at hand before going ahead with it. “Okay. Two weeks.”
“End of this month.”
“Grrr! Fine! End of this month, exactly. After that, this investigation is on. And don't hold me back.”
“Just keep me in the loop, Lis, that's all I ask.”
“Fine.”
~Chapter 32 - Hurt~
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2:07 p.m.
Gym office
“Are you gonna ask me to sit down?” Garik announced moments after Jaz left the gym office.
Nik snarled in a 'Don't fuck with me' tone and Garik looked uneasy for the first time since he'd walked in.
Nik glanced sideways at Kerk who bobbed his head. “Park it,” Nik commanded in a low growl.