Curious Girls Ch. 35

"What do you mean, she ran away?" Krista eyed Tamara with a mixture of shock and disbelief. "I've never known Sara to run away from anything," she exclaimed as they jogged through the park.

Krista had not particularly felt like running, but Tamara said it helped clear her head. Krista wasn't going to begrudge Tamara her methods, but Krista wasn't going to feel better until she found her sister.

"I don't know what to tell you. We had a huge fight. I left her alone in the bedroom to cool off, and when I came back she was gone."

Bedroom? Is Tamara embarrassed to admit that her and my sister were alone in a hotel room last night?

Krista's mind raced. She thought back over the events of the previous night, trying to piece everything together in a way that made sense. She could believe Sara had left Tamara. That much was confirmed by Sara's voicemail. Sara had definitely wanted to leave Tamara. What was it she had said?

Tamara was a mistake.

Krista had been elated to hear from her sister. She and Sara had barely spoken for months, and she was beginning to think she may never hear from her sister again. In fact, the close relationship between Sara and Tamara had been one of the worst things that could have happened to her.

Krista had lost her sister and best friend at the same time. She wasn't entirely sure why Tamara had dropped off the map. Was it guilt over dating the sister of her best friend? Or was Tamara staying away in order to appease Sara. Krista had been hesitant to broach the topic.

When Sara had called her out of the blue, Krista hadn't even taken the time to tie her shoes. It was a decision she had come to quickly regret. While hurrying into the garage, she had attempted to open the door while simultaneously stepping backward out of its arc.

She'd ended up slamming the door directly into her shin. Yet, she had barely slowed. Now, she glanced down absent-mindedly, trying to ignore the pain she felt with each stride. When she'd received the voicemail, she hadn't even taken the time to fully process it. The only thing she'd needed to know at the time was her sister needed her.

She would have to make it up to Madison, of course. Last night would have been their first official date. But given the circumstances, she was sure Madison would understand. They had been hanging out a lot, so Madison would hopefully give Krista the benefit of the doubt.

Despite rushing immediately to the hotel, she had found no evidence of her sister. The hotel staff prided themselves on guest privacy. Normally, Krista would have considered this a laudable policy. However, in this particular case, it had made them utterly useless. They wouldn't even confirm that Sara and Tamara had been guests at the hotel, much less help Krista discover anything useful regarding her sister's disappearance. Krista had gone to great pains to explain the severity of the situation, but they were firm in their insistence on a court order before giving Krista more than the time of day.

Krista had only just begun scouring the parking lot for the second time when she had received the second mysterious phone call of the evening. Sara had called again, but this time from the house phone. However, she had gotten disconnected before offering more than a simple greeting.

"Did Sara have a car?" Krista asked, trying to make sense of the timeline. The hotel was too far to walk--at least in the time between the phone calls. It had taken Krista a solid 20 minutes on the interstate to reach the hotel. A trek like that would take the better part of a day on foot, yet she had called Krista the second time no more than an hour after the first call.

"No," Tamara replied, pulling Krista's attention back to the conversation. At least, I don't think so," she huffed, out of breath. "She didn't take our car, anyway," Tamara amended quickly, noting the look of confusion on Krista's face.

"Would she have called anyone?"

"Erm-no, I don't think so. She didn't really have any friends. She didn't even have a cell phone."

"No cell phone?" Krista was incredulous. She couldn't recall Sara ever being without a cell phone.

"It broke," Tamara quickly volunteered. "Fell into the toilet."

Krista couldn't help but laugh.

Now that sounded exactly like Sara.

"Couldn't she have used your phone?" Krista asked, her grin slowly fading as she became all business again.

"I--I mean, I suppose she could have," Tamara replied slowly.

"Great! So can we check your call history?" Tamara's mouth hung open for a brief moment, speechless.

"Well, uh-yeah, I suppose," Tamara hedged. "But I left it at home. We can take a look once we finish our run."

"Great, lead the way," Krista exclaimed.

"Actually, you know what," Tamara paused in mid-step. "I just remembered it died last night--it still needs to be charged."

"Can't you just plug it in," Krista suggested anxiously.

"My charger stopped working," Tamara replied quickly.

"Oh," Krista said simply, thinking. "What if I bring over mine?"

"No," Tamara said tersely. "The connection is different." After an awkward silence, she continued. "I can go to the store in a couple of hours. Everything is probably closed now."

Krista sighed, feeling slightly deflated before perking up again.

"What about her room? Can we look through her things to see if we can find anything?"

Krista saw a flash of an emotion she couldn't quite identify pass over Tamara's face.

"Look, the state our bedroom is in right now--well, you would learn a lot more than you would lot about your sister and me. Trust me when I say it would be more comfortable for everyone if you let me look through her things. I'll let you know if I find anything.

"Alright, that makes sense, I guess." Krista looked dejected yet again as they finished their run in Tamara's driveway.

"You said she was at your home last," Tamara pointed out as they walked to the front door. "Why don't you look there and let me look here?"

Krista had barely acknowledged the plan before the door slammed in her face.

Tamara watched Krista drive away, pulling her phone from her pocket and glancing at the time.

She had just enough time for a quick shower before she had to leave for her hair appointment.

*****

"I'm sure Sara just needs a little time, and then she'll reach out to you." Madison said softly, trying to comfort Krista. "Break-ups can be rough."

"Do you really think so?"

"I know so. No one in their right mind would leave you behind." Madison's hand brushed hers. The light touch of her soft skin made Krista's own skin tingle.

"I'm glad I called you." Krista's pinky gently caressed Madison's pinky.

"I've got two hamburgers: one vegan and one with bacon and pepperjack," a voice announced, startling them. Krista's hand shot to her side, a guilty look on her face.

"The vegan is mine," Madison volunteered. She didn't looked bothered by Krista's abrupt withdrawal. If anything, she looked amused by Krista's embarrassment.

Krista chastised herself. She had nothing to be ashamed of, after all. So why had she pulled away from Madison?

As the waiter put the burger in front of her, she closed her eyes and took in the smells. She didn't normally order pepperjack. It had been a favorite of Sara's, and eating it now reminded her of missing sister. It was a stupid piece of cheese, but it was strangely comforting.

The next thing she knew, she was crying.

"Are you OK?" Madison looked at her with concern.

"I'm--I'm just worried about Sara. She wasn't acting like herself, even before she--ran away."

The words felt wrong in her mouth. Why couldn't she just admit it? Her sister had ran away. And the sooner she could accept it, the sooner she could--what? Move on?

Fuck that.

"After we get back to your place, why don't we sit down and talk it through. Maybe I can help, even if it's just as a sounding board."

Madison's hand returned to Krista's, and she smiled warmly. This time, Krista didn't pull away.

*****

"So where does that leave us?" Madison asked, standing at a wall in Krista's room.

"I don't know anymore," Krista sighed, collapsing backward onto the bed. "We've been over this dozens of times, yet we're no closer to an answer."

It had been a month since Sara disappeared, and Krista was beginning to fear the worst. Either something had happened to her sister or Sara had left and hadn't looked back. Krista wasn't sure which made her feel worse, but she refused to give up until she heard it from her Sara's own lips.

"OK, so--your sister was dating Tamara, your best friend. Something happened between them and now she's gone," Madison recited, trying to look for some small detail they had missed. "Maybe we need to take a step back? Look at this a different way."

"There's nothing!" Krista exclaimed with frustration.

"Credit cards? Phone? Friends? Ex-friends?"

"All dead ends!" Krista fumed. "There's been no activity on her credit cards, her phone was destroyed, and none of her other friends have heard from her."

"Any other accounts you both shared?"

"Nothing! The only account we've ever shared is the bank account our parents left us when they died!" Krista trailed off. "The account our parents left us--"

Krista pulled out her phone. "I never check this account," she exclaimed. "Sara and I agreed to save it for an emergency." Her eyes went wide as she stared at the screen. "Fuck! It's empty!"

Madison was shocked. She'd never heard Krista swear like that before. "Empty?"

"There's like, 23 cents in here." Krista continued punching at the phone screen. "It was withdrawn--almost a week after Sara left."

"So, what does that mean?" Madison furrowed her eyebrows.

"It means--it means--"

What did it mean?

"It means she's OK--probably," Krista reasoned it out. "But why wouldn't she call me?" Krista whined, her mood switching from elatation to depression in a matter of seconds.

"Can you see where the withdrawal was made?" Madison asked, cocking her head.

Krista just stared at her. "You're a genius. A beautiful, sexy, genius."

"I know," Madison giggled, her face turning slightly red.

Krista punched at the screen for a few more seconds.

"Here."

"Here?"

"I mean, a local branch. It was withdrawn not very far away from here."

"So, she didn't leave town right away?" Madison asked.

"Maybe," Krista replied, noncommittally.

"The bank is closed now," Madison said softly, rubbing Krista's shoulders. "Why don't you take a break for tonight, and we'll go first thing in the morning and see if they can tell us anything."

"I can't. I--"

"Shhhh," Madison placed her fingers on Krista's lips.

Krista looked confused, "What are you--?" Madison's lips pressed softly against Krista's, cutting her off.

Madison caressed her cheek gently. "Surely, you aren't surprised to know I like you?"

"Well, no," Krista said, turning toward Madison. "I just--I didn't expect."

"I'll be patient as long as I need to," Madison whispered. "But, I'm hoping you'll let me take your mind off your sister--for just a little while?"

"I--I don't think I can let myself relax. Not right now."

"Let me try?" Madison's hands worked her way down Krista's back, and Krista felt Madison's lips on the back of her neck. This time, Krista didn't resist. Turning her neck, her lips met Madison's again. The kiss was tender and gentle, but Krista could feel Madison's attraction. "You're a really good kisser."

Krista turned away abruptly, her thoughts back to her absent sister--the reason she had any experience kissing at all. "I can't. I'm sorry."

"It's OK," Madison's hands continued to rub her back. "Just relax. I'll wait for you as long as I have to." Her soft lips continued to kiss Krista's neck.

Krista breathed deeply, trying to let Madison's slender fingers force the stress and worry from her body, but it was no use. Thoughts of Sara persisted in her mind every hour of the day. And her dreams that night were no exception.

*****

"Well, that was a waste of time," Krista fumed. She had begged, pleaded, and done everything short of scream at the poor banker. While he'd been sympathetic to her plight, he wasn't able to tell her anything useful about where the money had gone after it had left their combined account.

"They couldn't tell you anything at all?" Madison asked, squeezing Krista's hand sympathetically.

Krista shook her head sullenly, trying to stave off tears. "They just told me that it was an 'authorized user,' of the account who withdrew the money.

The man had been very apologetic, explaining that he simply didn't have access to any additional information. However, he had submitted a 'ticket' on her behalf to another department, suggesting they may have access to further information.

Why would Sara pretend to leave town, but not tell Krista? Was she scared? Perhaps she was still upset at Krista? The more answers Krista got, the more she felt she was further than ever from the truth.

*****

"Come to bed, Krista," Madison spoke softly, standing in the doorway.

"The answer is here," Krista insisted. "I know it is."

"You're not going to figure it out if you're too exhausted to think clearly." Madison walked behind Krista, putting her arms around her neck supportively.

She was right, of course. But the search was all she had. If Krista stopped, she would quickly turn sullen and introspective. And if that happened, she would lose what little control she had over her stoic facade.

"Let me just try calling once more," Krista said, picking up her phone and pressing re-dial.

Madison knew as well as Krista what the result would be. But Madison also knew that Krista needed to do something, so she did whatever she could to support her girlfriend, regardless how futile.

Girlfriend.

That hadn't formally discussed labels, but they had spent nearly every day together since Sara disappeared. Madison would have never said it aloud, she could barely even think it, but Sara going missing was one of the best things that could have happened to their relationship.

Krista hung up the phone, looking dejected.

"Voicemail," she grumbled. The response was the same as always. It was a generic and mechanical voice--not even her sister's voice.

She still had no idea whose number it was. No one ever answered, and there was no custom recording. She'd dialed it only once, listening to her cell phone as the number was read to her. She had used her landline for convenience so she could dial and listen at the same time.

Her cell phone had no reception at the time, so there was no record in her cell phone call log but the voicemail had been saved with her carrier, so she had been able to dial in to listen to the message.

She was glad that she'd dialed the number on her landline. Only a few days prior, when she'd tried to access the number again so she could add it to her cell phone, she discovered the voicemail had been automatically deleted. She had nearly fallen into a state of depression until she remembered the number was still saved into her beautiful landline telephone.

Although Krista had attempted to contact the telephone company to regain access to the number, but the phone was entirely under Sara's name. They refused to divulge any information until they escalated the case to another team for further review.

Krista was exhausted of getting the run-around everywhere she turned, but there was little to gain from being rude--no matter how much better it would make her feel. She politely thanked them for their efforts and told them she looked forward to hearing from them again.

And so she hadn't dialed another number since, depending on the phone re-dial to call the number daily--hoping, praying that one day Sara would answer--or anyone for that matter.

"Maybe next time," Madison said gently, kissing the top of her head.

Krista was surprised at how much she had come to rely on Madison.

Madison was the only one who hadn't tried to convince Krista that Sara was a lost cause--that Sara had simply run away. Krista couldn't be sure if Madison truly believed it, but it was enough. If Madison was right--and Sara hadn't run away--something terrible had happened to her. If Madison was wrong, Sara had abandoned little sister. The latter was impossible, which meant Krista worried constantly about the former.

"No progress?" Madison asked, looking across the room.

Krista scanned her wall. Her link board was still more questions than answers. The timeline still had large gaps, but she had put down everything that seemed relevant to figuring out what happened to her sister. Krista had done her best to re-create every conversation with Sara she could recall.

When had Sara started acting strange?

So much of the timeline was guesses and vague references. There had been odd behavior off and on, of course, like when Sara had randomly quit her job without explanation. But was that relevant? Or was it just Sara being impetuous as she sometimes was? Krista would go mad second-guessing everything--looking for meaning in every inconsequential detail.

"No," she sighed. "I keep staring at the wall, hoping I'll see something I missed."

"Have you talked to everyone she was dating at the time?

Krista started to respond, upset at the implications of the phrasing. Surely, Madison hadn't meant to imply Sara was dating multiple people at the same time, but still--Krista wasn't sure she really knew who Sara was dating. Or when.

She had thought Sara was dating Amber, but then all of a sudden she was dating Tamara? When had that happened? Krista suddenly thought back to the camping trip she'd left them on. Had something happened between them then? If so, why had Sara started dating Amber? Was she trying to avoid dating Krista's best friend? If so, what had changed?

Krista sighed with frustration. "Just Tamara. But she was also with Amber,"

"Amber? Who is she?"

Krista thought back. There was no way she could forget Amber. To Krista's knowledge, Amber was the first woman Sara had dated. However, she had no way of tracking Amber down.

"She's nobody." Krista said, not wanting to relive those memories just now. "Just somebody Sara dated once or twice."

Krista had come out to Sara. Why hadn't Sara come out to her?

Krista flipped through Sara's yearbook for the umpteenth time. She'd looked through it countless times in painstaking detail, but it had yet to yield anything useful. For some reason though, this time a name caught her eye.

"Michael Fitzpatrick," she whispered, looking at the message next to the picture. She'd almost forgotten that her sister had mentioned a Michael. Twice, actually, now that she thought about it. The first, was when her sister had cut short their kissing session. She had said she'd promised Michael she would stop by. At the time, Krista hadn't thought much of it, but now that she thought back, she also recalled Sara lying about being with Tamara by claiming she'd been on a date with Michael.

Could there be anything there?

Krista didn't know, but Michael surely would. Her eyes scanned the rest of his message, looking for only one thing--which she found right after his signature--a phone number.

"Now--Come. To. Bed." Madison insisted, grabbing her hands.

As much as Krista wanted to call the number immediately, it was nearly 2 AM. She reluctantly allowed Madison to pull her away from the yearbook.

They had been sleeping together for a while now, but it was only that--sleeping. She knew Madison wanted more, but she wasn't ready yet. Krista didn't want to lead Madison on, not knowing if she would ever feel like taking things to the next level. But she also had come to depend on Madison and couldn't imagine making it through each day without Madison next to her.

Besides, Madison really did have lovely eyes. Krista sighed softly, putting the phone number out of her mind for the night as she let Madison guide them to the room they shared most nights.