He stepped into the lobby and headed for the main desk.Still no word from Claire.He questioned each employee he encountered, but got the same response with each inquiry.No one had seen her.He took the elevator up to their suite, bumping into Twigg as he stepped out into the hall.
"Good evening, Mr.Avery,” Twigg said.
"I still haven't heard from Ms.Jordan.Is she here?"
"No sir, I don't believe so.Unless perhaps she slipped in unnoticed.Is there anything I can do?"
Jay fished in his wallet for the key."No, I don't think so but thank you."
Twigg nodded before continuing down the hall.Jay swiped his card at the door and entered the suite.The rooms were quiet and dark.He checked for signs of her recent presence but found none.The bed had been neatly turned down, without so much as a wrinkle.Her clothes hung beside his in the closet, and her toiletries lay scattered on the large marble vanity in the bathroom.Back in the living area, he spied her camera bag and a collection of photos she'd been studying on one of the sofas.
Seeing her things around the suite should have given him comfort.Instead, they had the opposite effect.Maybe I should call Harry.Maybe he's talked to her tonight.He stalked about the room, tunneling his fingers through his hair.She's out there, somewhere.Why won't she call?Images of police officers arriving in the middle of the night crawled over his brain like a million tiny ants, stinging and silencing all rational thought.
Please, God, don't let anything bad happen to her.
His cell buzzed inside his pocket, and he prayed to find her name on the display.When he didn't, he took the call with a sigh of defeat.
"Hey," Jay answered quietly.
"Well?"Rob asked.
"She never showed up."
"Maybe she's back at the hotel."
"I'mback at the hotel.She's not here."He exhaled."And from the look of it, it doesn't look like she's been here all day."
"What do you think is going on?"Rob asked."I mean, I don't know her, but from what you've told me, this doesn't sound like her."
Jay fell back on the sofa."It's not like her at all.”
“She did leave you high and dry at the bar in Negril though.”
“Yeah, but we’ve laughed about that repeatedly.”
"You didn't have words or a disagreement of any kind?"Rob asked.
"None.The last time we spoke was right before lunch.I called for a status report.We were laughing and joking like we always do."
"Maybe she ran into an old friend and lost track of time."
"Enough to miss the whole concert?No way,” Jay said.“She would have let me know."
"Do you think she's still at work?"Rob asked.
"I called the number she gave me.Multiple times.It’s just a recording."
"Couldn't you call someone else?There's gotta be another number."
"The only other person I can think to call is her father.I hate to call him this late."
"Yeah, you don’t want to scare the old man,” Rob said.
"I’m the one who's scared, Rob.Not just that she's missing but that I may be to blame."
"How could you possibly blame yourself?She may be stuck in some elevator for all we know.It's New York City.Shit happens."
"If that were the case then she'd have called.There are phones everywhere.Surely she could've found one to call me."
