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"May I help you with those?" I ask politely yet cautiously.
"Why, thank you, young man," she responds with a kind smile. Her hair is soft and silver, framing warm eyes that exude wisdom and life experience.
Balancing her bags carefully, we walk together towards her vehicle as I discreetly inquire about the self-defense class. "Do you attend often?"
She nods eagerly, her smile growing wider. "Every week! It's such a powerful experience. And the group is always so diverse – it's truly inspiring."
My mind races as I subtly gather information without raising suspicion. "Have you noticed anyone new in the class recently? Someone who stands out?"
After taking a moment to think, she replies, "There are always some new faces, but none that particularly catch my eye. Why do you ask?"
"Just curious," I respond nonchalantly.
As we finish loading her groceries into her car, I steer the conversation back to the self-defense class. She's friendly and talkative. I can use that to my advantage.
I take note of the sparse attendance as we make our way towards her car. The usually bustling parking lot is only half full, a rare sight at this time of day. "It seems like there are a lot less people here than usual," I add casually.
She nods in agreement, shifting her grip on one of the heavy bags. "Yes, many of our regulars are probably at the fair tonight. The festival and midway are happening right now."
My mind starts racing with possibilities. The festival complicates things, but it also presents a new lead. That’s better than no lead at all.
"That's understandable," I reply. "The fair sounds like a fun event. Do you often attend it?" As we get closer to her car, the faint sound of laughter and music from the festival drifts over to us, enticing and tempting in its promise of excitement and adventure.
She lets out a soft chuckle. "Not as much as I used to. But my grandkids love it – all the games, food, and rides make it quite popular here in Taos."
As we reach her car, I place the bags in her trunk. "Enjoy the rest of your evening," I say, giving her a genuine smile.
"Thanks so much for your help," she answers.
"It's my pleasure," I reply before walking back to my car, my mind buzzing with thoughts and plans for how to use this new information to my advantage.
As she drives away, I head back to my SUV and update my men, my mind already formulating a plan to visit the festival. The lively atmosphere might make it harder to spot Natalia, but it also means I can move around without drawing too much attention to myself. It's a slim chance, but I've learned to chase down even the faintest leads in this line of work.
As I drive towards the event, I prepare for the task ahead. The noise, the lights, the crowds – it'll all be a sensory overload, but I can't let it distract me. We arrive there and the place is already buzzing with energy, with the parking lot crammed with vehicles.
The air is thick with the mingling scents of various foods – fried dough, grilled meats, and sweet confections. My men and I split up at the entrance, each of us taking a different section of the festival to canvas. The plan is to observe, regroup, exchange any information we gather, and then disperse again.
The crowd is a mix of families, groups of teenagers, and couples. Children run past with faces lit up in excitement, clutching stuffed toys won from game booths. Couples walk hand-in-hand, some stealing kisses in the flickering lights of the midway. I weave through the crowd, my senses heightened. The familiar smell of cotton candy takes me back to my own childhood when things were simpler, less complicated. But nostalgia is a luxury I can't afford tonight. Every laugh, every shout, every burst of music from the rides, I sift through it all, looking for her.
My eyes scan the sea of faces in the crowd, searching for any sign of her. I look for her distinctive walk, the way she tucks her hair behind her ear, any detail that might give her away. But in a sea of faces, it's like trying to find a specific wave in the ocean.
I glance at everyone as I pass, wondering if they might know anything, but it’s too busy to do that.
As a group of laughing teenagers pass by me, I’m reminded about an evening I had to watch over Natalia at a midway and she begged me to go with her on a rollercoaster ride. She held onto me so tightly, screaming her lungs out while I tried to act all cool and collected. Little did she know, my heart was racing faster than any rollercoaster could go.
As I get closer to a dessert waffle booth, the sweet aroma mingling with the crisp night air, I pause. This is the kind of place she might visit – Natalia always had a sweet tooth. But as I survey the area, there's no sign of her. Just families and groups of friends, enjoying their treats and each other's company.
After a couple of hours, we regroup. None of my men have seen anything out of the ordinary. We're all feeling the strain, the frustration of another lead that seems to be going nowhere. But we can't give up. I give them a nod, and we split up again, disappearing back into the crowd.
As the night wears on, and the crowd starts to thin, it becomes clear that we're not going to find her here. It's another dead end, another disappointment. But I'm not ready to throw in the towel. Natalia is out there somewhere, and I'm going to find her, no matter how many festivals, how many crowds I have to search through. I leave the festival with that resolve burning in my chest, the lights and sounds fading behind me, replaced by the quiet determination to keep looking.
But then, I notice someone out of place. From my view of the left side of his face, I know I've seen him before. It just isn't ringing a bell where I know him from.
He changes direction as he walks through the crowd and I make out his face. It suddenly hits me, this is one of the guys from Natalia's fiancé’s entourage. It was one of those big parties where I spent more time making rounds around the building, but I remember him so clearly. He was a real asshole to Vinny and my men, talking down to them as though they were inferior to him.
I don't even think, I walk in his direction, ready to rough him up a bit and find out why he's here. If this guy is involved with Natalia's disappearance, he's not leaving here until I find out what he knows. I continue to follow him until he reaches a quieter area of the festival – a small alleyway of the back of tents, lined with dumpsters. As he turns into it, I quickly duck behind a nearby tent, making sure to stay out of sight.
But when he meets up with a woman and a small boy who wraps his little arms around the man's legs, I realize it’s probably a coincidence that he’s here. I watch the man talk and laugh with the woman and child, my curiosity dissipating. This is just a man with his family enjoying the festival like everyone else. I'm right about who he is, but there's no way he's here to track down Natalia.
