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“She’s fast,” Graham agreed. He glanced down and analyzed Jude’s appearance. “Jesus, you’re a mess.”
“And you aren’t? Why, exactly?”
“Pick yourself up, man,” Graham said, extending a hand.
Jude took it and stood up, lifting himself from his feet. He could still feel the unpleasant vibrations coursing through her body, nearly knocking him backward. “We’re going to find her, and we’re gonna bring her home.”
Jude nodded. His senses eventually returned to him, and they motivated him to move aimlessly, pacing about the pavement while Graham spoke to himself.
“Where do we know she might be?” Graham asked rhetorically. “We should probably try her apartment first and then maybe the cafe?”
“Good thoughts,” Jude said. His purpose was probably to be more of a wall to bounce ideas off of than anything, but it didn’t hurt to interject. “Maybe the park?”
“If she were really trying to get away from us, would she actually go to a place we frequent so often?”
“Could be she doesn’t really want to get away from us. Maybe she just needs space,” Jude said. It sounded ludicrous to him, given what he had experienced just minutes ago, but it was what his gut told him.
“The way she slammed that door and ran away? The way you’re looking?”
By now, Graham knew him well enough to know he was a sponge for negative emotions. It made him great with empathy but not so great in tough situations.
Jude just shrugged before adding, “We could save ourselves a trip to the cafe if we just texted Miranda.”
Graham nodded, getting out his phone as he started walking.
“Where are you going?” Jude asked. “I thought we were headed to her apartment?”
On the way, Jude jabbed at Graham for living so far away from the pack sector. He even proposed that they should maybe just take the car. But it was rush hour. If they left now, there was no way they were going to catch up to her.
As they walked, Jude noticed so many things that didn’t seem right. The newsstand had been left completely unattended. Around the nearby benches, where pigeons normally gathered to eat their helping of breadcrumbs, there were neither birds nor elderly couples.
They arrived at her apartment, grateful to have been given a set of keys, to find nothing. She hadn’t hung her jacket or uniform up—there were no signs that she’d been here at all. Graham received a concerned text from Miranda, saying that she hadn’t seen or heard from Delilah since she left work, but that she would let them know if she heard anything.
“Well, I’m about out of ideas,” Graham said, pausing to put his hand on his lower lip.
“Seriously?”
“I mean, I guess we could double back and check all the shops,” Graham added, not noting Jude’s incredulity. “We could start with the grocery store, but I almost think she’d avoid places she’d run into—”
“Or she’s not trying to avoid us at all,” Jude said. “She’s not thinking rationally, and she knows that. Right now, she’s running on pure adrenaline.”
“Okay,” Graham added, still unsure what Jude meant.
“So I keep telling you, where’s the one place Delilah’s likely to run when she’s feeling totally lost and just wants to hide?”
“I thought we eliminated the park,” Graham said.
“You did. I still think it’s the only possible place she’d be.”
Graham analyzed Jude again. Graham was great at understanding diplomacy, but when it came to the finer sentiments, he was lost in their nuances. He was too good at removing himself from the stakes and emotions and cutting straight to the point.
“Okay,” Graham said. “We’ll try it your way. But compromise? We’ll take my car.”
“That’s going to take way too long, you know?” Jude said. “We’re already here.”
“I get that,” Graham replied. “But suppose we get to the park and she’s not there? Suppose we need to scour the streets?”
Jude hesitantly agreed. He was mentally exhausted at this point, and it was starting to physically tire him out. So they followed the long path back, returning to Graham’s house to collect his vehicle.
