Clara’s father sat slumped in the leather sofa, his eyes staring blankly into space.
His son, Ethan, had to call his name several times to pull him back to reality.
“What are you thinking about?” Ethan’s voice was heavy with exhaustion.
His father startled. “Any luck getting through to Clara?”
Ethan shook his head. “Still off. It’s been four days.”
“This isn’t like her.”
His father’s fingers drummed restlessly on the arm of the sofa.
The day Clara signed the transfer papers and arranged Olivia’s room, she had just vanished.
No goodbye, no explanation.
She had simply vanished.
The old Clara would never have done this. She might get angry, give them the silent treatment, but she would never disappear completely.
Unless… something had happened to her.
Her father sat up straight. “How long has Clara been gone, exactly?”
Ethan rubbed his temples. “Four days. Four whole days.”
A knot of dread tightened in his father’s chest.
The next morning, the father drove straight to the seaside villa.
“Has Clara been back?” he demanded the moment he burst through the door.
Hailey poked her head out of the kitchen, clearly startled: “No! She probably went on vacation, right?”
Her father’s brow furrowed. Clara would never disappear for four days without a word.
He was about to leave when Hailey called out to him.
“Dad, I wanted to talk about the studio…” her voice was tentative. “I’ll need some startup capital to take over the literary
business, about a million dollars. Do you think…”
“We’ll discuss it when Clara gets back,” he snapped, before practically fleeing the villa.
Behind him, Hailey bit her lip, a flash of panic in her eyes.
Things were spiraling out of control.
Her gut feeling had been right. Her father’s attitude towards her had changed.
