Race

Chapter 31 - Race against time

Vanessa pulled the door open wider and stepped aside.

"Come in."

Mike stepped inside, his eyes quickly moving around the room.

Emma sat on the edge of the sofa with her face buried in her hands. Her shoulders shook as she tried to stop crying, but small sobs still slipped through her fingers.

"Sniff... hic..."

Mike's expression tightened.

"Emma?"

She slowly lowered her hands. Her eyes were red and swollen, and tears streaked her cheeks.

Mike took a step toward her, but Vanessa spoke first.

"Her daughter isn't home."

Mike stopped.

"Daughter?"

Vanessa looked at him. "She's in your class, right?"

Mike stared at her, completely confused.

"Wait... her daughter is in my class?"

Vanessa nodded.

Mike looked at Emma, then back at Vanessa.

"What are you talking about?"

"Emma's been trying to reach her for hours." Vanessa folded her arms, her earlier coldness gone. "She called her again and again, but she hasn't answered once. No calls. No messages. Nothing."

Mike stared at Emma.

Emma nodded weakly.

"She was supposed to come home hours ago." She wiped her face with the back of her hand, but another tear slipped down her cheek. "I kept calling her, but she won't answer."

Mike's stomach tightened.

"How long has she been gone?"

"I... I don't know," Emma whispered. "I thought she would be home by now."

Vanessa glanced at the clock on the wall.

"And it's getting late."

Mike looked at Vanessa.

"She's really in my class?"

Vanessa nodded. "Yes."

Mike frowned. He couldn't remember anyone matching the description.

Vanessa reached over to the coffee table and picked up a phone. She unlocked it, tapped the screen a few times, then held it out to him.

A photo filled the display.

A young woman with long dark hair smiled brightly at the camera. She looked cheerful and carefree, completely unaware of the worry surrounding her now.

"Her name is Lexi," Vanessa said.

Mike studied the picture for a moment before shaking his head.

"I don't know her."

Vanessa raised an eyebrow.

"You don't?"

Mike glanced at her.

"I'm usually in the gym. When I'm not there, I'm either training or doing something else. I barely even go to class."

Vanessa stared at him as if he had just said something ridiculous.

"You're the topper of the year, and you don't even know the people in your own class?"

Mike didn't bother answering.

He had already pulled out his phone.

Instead of arguing, Mike opened his contacts and searched for Eve's number.

He found it and called.

The phone rang.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Mike waited, staring at the screen.

The call kept ringing until it finally went to voicemail.

He hung up and called again.

Still nothing.

Mike's jaw clenched.

"Come on, Eve..."

Again, no answer.

Mike lowered the phone and scrolled through his contacts. Then he remembered the group chat from a few weeks ago. Eve had added Nina to it, and Mike vaguely remembered seeing her number there.

He searched through the old messages until he found it.

Nina.

He pressed call.

The phone barely rang three times before someone answered.

"Hello?"

"Nina? It's Mike."

There was a short pause.

"Mike?"

"Yeah." He glanced at Emma and Vanessa. "Is Lexi with you?"

Silence.

"Lexi?" Nina repeated. "No. Why?"

Mike's expression darkened.

"She's missing."

Nina went quiet for a moment.

"Wait, what?"

"She hasn't answered her phone. Emma's been trying to reach her for hours."

Nina let out a tired breath.

"I saw her earlier."

"Where?"

"At the party. She left about an hour ago."

Mike frowned.

"Alone?"

"No. She was with the others." Nina paused. "There were some seniors there too. They'd been hanging around us most of the night."

He paused.

"Seniors?"

"Yeah. When I went outside to get a cab, they were still with Lexi."

Mike gripped the phone tighter.

"Which seniors?"

"I don't know them." Nina paused. "I don't really know Lexi that well either, so I assumed they were her friends. She was pretty drunk, too. I thought someone would take her home."

Mike's fingers tightened around the phone.

"You just left her there?"

"I didn't think anything was wrong," Nina said defensively. "If I'd known—"

"Where did they go?" Mike cut in. "Give me the address."

Nina went quiet for a moment.

Then she gave him the name of a street and a building number on the edge of campus. Mike quickly repeated the address aloud so Vanessa could hear.

"Got it," Vanessa said.

Mike ended the call.

He barely had time to lower his phone before Vanessa grabbed her car keys from the table.

"We're going."

Emma immediately pushed herself off the sofa. Her legs wobbled beneath her, and she caught the armrest for balance before grabbing her bag.

"Wait," Mike said, reaching toward her. "Are you sure you can—"

"I'm coming."

There was no hesitation in Emma's voice.

Mike nodded.

A minute later, the three of them were rushing down the stairs. Vanessa unlocked her car, and they climbed inside. Emma took the back seat while Mike sat beside Vanessa.

The engine roared to life.

Vanessa pulled away from the curb and accelerated into the night traffic. Streetlights flashed across the windshield as she changed lanes, her hands firm on the steering wheel.

Mike stared through the windshield. His mind kept returning to Nina's words.

She was pretty drunk.

Some seniors were still with her.

I thought they were her friends.

His uneasiness grew with every passing second. Then, without warning, a translucent blue window appeared in front of his eyes.

Mike blinked.

The road was still visible through it.

[New Quest Available]

[Locate Lexi.]

[Time Remaining: 00:47:32]

He went still. Then another line appeared.

[Failure will result in severe consequences.]

Mike's expression turned serious. Whatever was waiting for them at that address, they needed to get there fast.

Mike dismissed the blue window with a thought and leaned forward in his seat, his eyes fixed on the road ahead.

"How long?" he asked.

"Ten minutes," Vanessa said.

Mike glanced at the clock on the dashboard. "That's too long."

Vanessa didn't answer. She simply pressed harder on the accelerator.

The engine climbed in pitch as the car surged forward. Streetlights swept across the windshield in quick flashes, briefly lighting their faces before plunging them back into darkness.

Mike checked his phone again and looked at the address Nina had sent.

They were getting closer. His fingers tightened around the phone.

"Come on..."

Vanessa changed lanes, slipping through a gap in the traffic.

"We'll get there," she said, her eyes locked on the road. "Just keep calm."

Mike said nothing.

He couldn't shake the feeling that every second mattered.

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