Chapter 22 : She's Missing

*Lena*

I had been a second away from saying something I couldn’t take back. The words were on the tip of my tongue as I looked up at Xander, my chest tightening with apprehension and doubt.

But a cruel twist of fate prevented me from making what I realized now would have been a mistake.

There was a soft knock on the front door of the cottage, so faint we almost missed it. Xander looked disappointed as he slowly backed away from me, motioning for me to wait as he left the bedroom. But I heard Bethany’s voice, and I noticed the desperate tone in which she whispered frantically to Xander, and couldn’t stay put like Xander had instructed me to.

Bethany’s eyes lit up as she saw me, but I noticed her face was stained with tears. She looked from me back to Xander, then drew in her breath.