The Captain's Dirty Little Secret

Chapter 405: Chapter 405 - Gone

Roxie had been staring at the same page of the course booklet for almost ten minutes when her phone started vibrating beside her.

The dining table had been covered with college papers since breakfast. Her laptop was open to the student portal, a registration checklist sat beneath one hand.

She glanced at the screen expecting Zac. He had been at conditioning since early that morning and had already sent her a picture of his shoes fraying at the edges.

Instead, Karen’s mother was calling.

Roxie picked up immediately. ”Hello?”

”Roxie?”

Something in Mrs. Bianchi’s voice made her sit straighter.

”Have you talked to Karen this morning?”

Roxie glanced automatically at the last message Karen sent the night before. ”No. Why?”

There was movement on the other end and somebody speaking too quietly for Roxie to understand before Mrs. Bianchi answered.

”She’s gone.”

Roxie stopped touching the papers in front of her. ”What do you mean gone?”

”She left the center. They called me about forty minutes ago. There was an argument after family therapy, and Karen walked outside. They thought she was calming down, but when somebody went to check on her she wasn’t there anymore. Her bag is gone too. She had her phone with her, but now it’s off.”

Roxie pushed the booklet away and stood, already feeling panic moving through her before she even knew what she planned to do. ”What happened during therapy?”

”I don’t know everything yet. Her father was there. I was there. It got bad.”

That explained enough.

Karen had complained about those sessions from the beginning. She hated her mother crying, hated her father trying to explain years of absence and hated sitting in a room while strangers asked her how everything made her feel. Roxie had expected her to curse somebody out, walk out of a session or refuse to speak for the rest of the day.

She had never expected her to disappear.

”Did she drink?”

”We don’t know.”

The answer brought River Road back so quickly that Roxie gripped the edge of the table.

Karen barely responding inside the car. Her skin too pale. Roxie shaking her shoulder because she could barely tell whether she was waking up. The hospital afterward, everyone standing around while doctors talked about her heart and nobody knew if she was going to survive.

Roxie closed her eyes for a moment and forced herself to stay with what she actually knew.

Karen had left treatment.

That was all.

Nobody had found alcohol. Nobody had found pills. Nobody had found her unconscious somewhere.

”Where would she go?”

”I was hoping you knew.”

”I don’t.”

Roxie hated saying it, but Karen had always been good at disappearing when she wanted to. She had hidden her drinking from all of them for years while still going to school, practicing and acting completely normal. Being her best friend had never meant Roxie knew every place Karen went when she wanted everybody to leave her alone.

Mrs. Bianchi sounded close to crying now. ”Her father is calling people. I’m going back to the house in case she shows up there. The center already contacted the police because of what happened before.”

Roxie looked down at the course booklet she had been worrying over minutes ago. ”I’m coming back.”

”Roxie, you’re in Tennessee. I can’t let you come just because of this.”

Because of this. Roxie bit her lip. The this was a possibility that Karen have relapse. ”I know but I can’t just stay here.”

”You don’t have to come all the way here.”

”Yes, I do.”

She ended the call before Mrs. Bianchi could keep arguing and called Karen immediately. It went straight to voicemail, then did the same thing the second time.

Roxie opened their messages.

Karen call me.

She sent another before she could stop herself.

I’m serious. I only need to know you’re okay.

She stared at the screen for several seconds even though she knew Karen’s phone was off.

The apartment felt different now that Roxie stood there alone. Outside the tall windows people moved along the sidewalk toward campus, cars passed below and somewhere down the hall somebody laughed loudly enough for Roxie to hear it through the door. Everything around her kept going like this was a normal summer afternoon while her mind was already trying to figure out how quickly she could get back to Briarwick.

She called Angela.

Angela answered almost immediately. ”Her mom called me.”

”I know.”

”What the fuck happened?”

”Family therapy. She walked out and disappeared.”

”Did she drink?”

Roxie pressed her fingers against her forehead. ”Nobody knows.”

Angela went quiet, and Roxie knew exactly what she was thinking because they had both seen Karen in that hospital bed.

”I hate being here right now,” Angela said. Traffic and voices moved loudly behind her. ”I can’t do anything from New York.”

”I’m going back.”

”From Tennessee?”

”Yeah.”

”Roxie, that’s hours.”

”I know how far it is.”

”What are you going to do when you get there?”

”Look for her.”

”With who?”

”Her parents. The police. Whoever is there.”

Angela exhaled hard. ”If you find her, make sure she’s alive before you kill her.”

Roxie almost laughed, but her chest was too tight. ”That was already the plan.”

”Call me the second you know anything.”

”I will.”

”And keep your phone on.”

”I will.”

Roxie hung up and immediately called Zac.

He didn’t answer.

She expected that. Conditioning meant his phone was probably buried in his bag somewhere, so she sent him a message instead.

Karen left treatment. Nobody knows where she is. I’m going back to Briarwick. Call me when you see this.

Roxie closed the student portal, pushed the course booklet aside and went straight to the bedroom.

She pulled a bag from the closet and started packing without much thought about how long she would actually stay. A few shirts, jeans, underwear, something to sleep in. She went into the bathroom for toiletries, came back for her charger, then stood beside the bed trying to remember what she was forgetting.

Her phone rang.

Zac.

”What happened?”

”She left treatment.”

”What do you mean she left?”

”She walked out after family therapy and disappeared. Her phone’s off. Her mom called me. Police are looking.”

”Are you home?”

”Yeah. I’m packing.”

”I’m coming.”

Roxie stopped stuffing clothes into the bag. ”You have training.”

”I heard you.”

”Then stay there.”

”I’m coming home, Roxie.”

”Zac, you have conditioning tomorrow morning.”

”We’ll talk when I get there.”

The call ended.

Roxie stared at her phone. ”Great.”

She kept packing.

By the time Zac got home she had already booked the flights. She had called Karen another three times. Mrs. Bianchi sent one message saying there was still nothing, while Karen’s father had started checking places she used to go before treatment.

The apartment door opened hard enough that Roxie heard it from the bedroom.

Zac came in still wearing his training clothes, his bag hanging from one shoulder.

Dylan was behind him.

Roxie looked at them as she came out of the bedroom. ”Why is he here?”

Dylan raised his eyebrows. ”Nice to see you too.”

”I told him what happened,” Zac said. ”We were together when I saw your message.”

Roxie went back toward the bedroom. ”Fine.”

Zac followed immediately. ”When are we leaving?”

”We aren’t.”

He stopped near the doorway. ”Roxie.”

”You have conditioning tomorrow.”

”I can miss one day.”

”No, you can’t.”

”Yes, I can.”

Roxie turned around. ”You’ve been here barely a week and every day you come home telling me how everybody is fighting for reps and how Coach is watching everything. You’re staying.”

”And Karen is missing.”

”She’s my best friend.”

”That’s why I need to come.”

”I know that, but you being there doesn’t suddenly make us find her faster.”

”It means you aren’t going back alone while you’re freaking out.”

”I’m not freaking out.”

Zac stared at her.

Roxie looked away because they both knew that was bullshit.

Zac’s expression softened, but his answer didn’t change. ”Then I’m coming.”

”No.”

Dylan had stayed quiet near the bedroom doorway until then.

”She’s right.”

Both of them looked at him.

Dylan adjusted the strap of his bag. ”You can’t leave.”

Zac’s face immediately changed. ”I didn’t ask.”

”You’re supposed to be at conditioning tomorrow.”

”I know my schedule.”

”Then act like it.”

Roxie pointed toward Dylan. ”Thank you. Finally.”

Zac stared at her. ”You’re taking his side?”

”On this, yes.”

Dylan stepped farther into the room. ”Coach has already been riding everyone about conditioning. You miss tomorrow and somebody else gets those reps. Nobody cares why you weren’t there.”

Zac’s jaw tightened. ”Karen almost died a few weeks ago.”

”I know.”

”So shut up.”

”I’m trying to keep you from doing something stupid.”

Roxie shoved another shirt into her bag. ”Both of you need to stop. I’m going. Zac is staying. There’s nothing else to argue about.”

”There is for me,” Zac said.

Dylan made a frustrated sound. ”This is exactly the problem.”

Roxie looked at him. ”What problem?”

Dylan glanced at Zac before answering, and that bothered her immediately.

”He just got here.”

”So?”

”He just got here and he’s already ready to miss conditioning.”

”I told him to stay.”

”I heard you.”

”Then why are you looking at me like I packed his bag too?”

”I’m not.”

”You are.”

Zac stepped between them slightly. ”Drop it, Dylan.”

Dylan looked at him. ”I’m talking to both of you.”

”No, you’re not,” Roxie said. ”You keep looking at me while complaining about his decisions.”

Dylan rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. ”I’m saying football matters too.”