Chapter 27 Max

Chapter 27

Max

She doesn't call me at midnight.

I pace my bedroom, the cell phone sweaty in my hand as I stare at it.

12:04.

12:05.

I call her for the third time and no answer.

She's probably having fun with Brynn, watching the fireworks, laughing, and enjoying herself. It's okay. She didn't forget about me; she's just enjoying her night.

Blowing out a breath, I run a hand through my hair and drop my arm, tapping the phone against my thigh as I glance out my bedroom window. I see her mother in the living room across the street, the lights yellow and warm. She's on the phone, pacing around in aimless circles, just like me. The difference is she's smiling. She looks happy.

I tell myself it's Ella on the phone. She wanted to call her mother first.

Waiting a few more minutes, I traipse down the hallway and pace some more. The living room, the kitchen.

12:11.

I call her again.

No answer.

I decide to dial Brynn instead, knowing they're likely together. It rings three times before she picks up.

"Max, hey!" she chirps, her voice high-pitched and full of its usual enthusiasm. Noise and static filter through the speaker. "Haaaappy New Year!"

I start pacing again. "Is Ella with you?"

Giggles fuse with raucous cheers. Fireworks boom in the distance.

"Brynn?"

"Sorry, sorry! Fireworks are still going off. Super loud. One sec." A few seconds pass until the voices and external noises quiet and a patio door sounds like it slides shut. "Hey! What's up?"

"I'm looking for Ella. She didn't call me."

"Oh…um, she's…" Another long pause. "I don't see her anywhere."

"What do you mean? I thought you were ringing in the new year together."

"We were. I–I didn't even realize she wasn't here. God, I'm sorry. I've been drinking, and Kai and I were catching up, and…" The line goes quiet, save for various rustling noises. "Shoot. I can't find her. She must be in the bathroom."

I pinch the bridge of my nose, my chest prickling with anxiety. It seems silly to stress. Knowing Ella, she probably ditched the party to watch the fireworks by herself near the lake. "When's the last time you saw her?"

"Um, I'm not sure. Maybe an hour ago? No…probably less. It hasn't been that long."

"Okay. Well, can you have her call me?"

"Of course! I'm sorry. I should have been paying more attention. I feel like an awful friend."

I swallow. "It's fine. I should have been there, too. Just…have her call me right away. I want to say good night."

"I will. Promise."

I hang up, scrubbing a hand across my mouth and jaw as I glance out the main window at the empty driveway. If I had the truck, I'd already be on my way.

I call McKay next, hoping he'll have an ounce of sympathy for me and bring the truck home.

I tap his number.

Straight to voicemail.

I try one more time with the same result.

"Dammit," I mutter under my breath, a sheen of sweat dotting my hairline. He was intoxicated when he stormed out, and the thought only heightens my nerves.

He's fine.

Ella is fine.

It's ridiculous to be worrying this much. It's only a quarter past midnight and it's a sprawling lake house. Ella could have fallen asleep in a spare room for all I know, and McKay is probably at a friend's house.

But…

But.

That's the issue. There's a nagging "but" hovering over me like a storm cloud, howling in my chest and pinwheeling in my stomach. I can't explain it. I could never begin to explain the strange, instinctual feeling zipping through me, telling me that something is wrong.

My Sunny Girl needs me.

I wait fifteen more minutes before checking on Dad and tugging on my shoes. He's sound asleep, his face buried in the pillow, arms at his sides. Snores echo through the bedroom, giving me a shred of relief. Ten seconds later, I'm marching through the front lawn, across the street, and landing on the Sunburys' doorstep. I knock three times and wait for the footsteps to approach.

Candice cracks open the front door and peers out at me. When recognition fills her eyes, she widens the door, a cell phone pressed to one ear and her hair in curlers.

"Max," she says, a frown of confusion competing with a hesitant smile. Holding up her index finger, she tells the person on the other line that she'll have to call them back. Then she clicks off the call, lowers the phone, and gives me her full attention. "I thought you were with Ella?"

I'm fidgety, restless, my feet shuffling back and forth as I shove my hands in both pockets. I don't want to worry her, because my fears are unfounded, so I force myself to remain neutral. Still and calm. "Something came up, so I couldn't go to the party," I explain, glancing over her shoulder. A slew of open folders and papers is strewn across her work desk in the corner of the living room. The laptop is on, surrounded by multicolored coffee mugs. "I, uh, wanted to ask you a favor. My brother took the truck and I'm trying to meet up with Ella. Her phone must have died."

Concern flickers in her eyes. She fiddles with a pink curler that matches the sweatsuit she's wearing. "Is everything okay?"

"Sure." I clear my throat. "Of course. It's not an emergency or anything, so I feel weird asking…but can I borrow your car?"

Her chestnut eyebrows arch with surprise. "Do you need a ride?"

I quickly shake my head. "No, no, it's not that serious. You look busy," I note, my eyes panning to her workstation. "The party is only a few miles from here. I can walk if you're not comfortable."

"You're sure everything is okay? Is Ella in trouble?"

"She's fine. I just talked to Brynn." I'm hopeful the vagueness of my statement gives her a semblance of solace. "I wanted to meet up with her. I'll drive her back home in a bit."

She chews on her thumbnail, weighing my words and taking note of my movements, my expressions. I must fake it well because she nods slowly, moves away from the door, and fetches a ring of keys from her purse. When she returns, she holds them out to me. "You haven't been drinking?"

"Not at all. I've never touched alcohol in my life." It's the truth, thanks to my firsthand experience with watching both my father and my brother succumb to the destructive allure of the bottle.

Candice nods again and folds in her lips. Then she plops the keys in my hand. "All right. Please have Ella call me as soon as you get there. I'll wait up."

"I will. Thank you." I force a smile, fist the key ring, then spin around on the front stoop. My gait is laced with panic as I fumble for the right key, launch myself into the front seat, and jam it in the ignition. The red Nissan Sentra revs to life and I waste no time in careening out of the driveway, uncaring that Ella's mother is watching from the front porch with a hand fisting the collar of her pale-pink sweatsuit.

She's fine, she's fine, she's fine.

I drive on autopilot down familiar back roads with the window down to keep me from suffocating on my own fear. When I swerve into Morrison's packed driveway, I park sideways, blocking in multiple vehicles, and kill the engine. I don't care. All I care about is finding Ella. Instinct has my eyes assessing the dimly lit street for our truck, wondering if McKay made it to the party. I don't see it, so I keep moving.

The door is unlocked. I barge through in my baseball cap, ratty jeans, and white tee, shoving my way through dancing and sweaty bodies, and ignoring the cherry punch that splashes on my shoes when I collide with an aggravated brunette.

Someone calls out for me. I ignore them.

My gaze scans the crowded living room and adjoining kitchen, taking quick note of every face that doesn't belong to my girl. Two blonds are perched on the white quartz island top, their arms swaying to "Something in the Orange" by Zach Bryan. The melody haunts me as I barrel down hallways, burst through closed doors, and disregard the blow job taking place in one of the bedrooms.

"Don't you knock?" someone blares.

I slam the door and keep moving. Five minutes pass and I can't find Ella. My heart is beating like a snare drum as I march out onto the patio, glancing at the hot tub to my left, then panning right to survey the veranda strung with bulb lights and tiki torches. Nothing. Only a bunch of teenagers partying and laughing without a care in the world.

As I glance out toward the lake, I spot a silhouette just before a familiar voice reaches my ears.

"Ella!" the voice calls out, another body trailing beside her as the two figures stare out at the slow-rippling water.

Brynn and Kai.

I race forward, cupping my hands around my mouth. "Brynn!"

Her high ponytail whips her in the face when she spins around. "Max…I'm still looking for Ella. I–I can't find her anywhere."

It's after 1:00 a.m. now. Fear grinds into me like a dull knife. My gait slows when I reach them, sweeping shaky fingers through my hair. "Do you think she left with somebody?"

Brynn's face is pink and panicked. Her eyes bulge to saucers and glimmer against the moon as she shakes her head, arms crossed over her chest. "She wouldn't leave without telling me, right? That's not like her. I looked in all the bedrooms, the bathrooms, the garage…"

"Me too," I whisper. "Fuck. Do you think she went for a walk? Got lost? Fell?"

It's fucking cold outside. My mind races with images of Ella with a broken ankle, dragging herself through sticks and branches in the deep, dark woods. Both hands link behind my head as my thoughts spiral. "We need to look for her. She's not answering her phone."

"I know. I keep calling her," Brynn says.

Kai points over to the shadowy tree line a few yards away. "Over there is a hiking path. Maybe she wanted a better view of the fireworks."

I'm running before he finishes talking. "Why isn't she answering her goddamn phone?" I wonder aloud, listening to their footfalls jogging behind me.

"No service?" Kai calls out. "I never get service in the woods."

A few cracks of lagging fireworks paint the sky in splashes of violet and blue as we make our way through the opening, trudging up the inclined path. I pluck my phone from my pocket and switch on the flashlight, trailing the light over the rugged terrain in hopes of spotting something of relevance. Gnarled roots, moss, underbrush. Nothing of value.

"Ella!" Brynn calls out, Kai's voice following.

I shout her name into the midnight sky and dancing tree branches. "Sunny!"

"Ella!"

Our voices pitch and bleed together as we tromp up the craggy hill, pelts of icy wind stinging my skin. Brynn bolts ahead of me, her ankles twisting in her glittery high heels. "Ella!" she yells, veering toward a small clearing overlooking the lake.

My chest aches from breathing so hard, more panic than exertion. The only thing I see littered along the bluff is a miniature bottle of Jim Beam.

Ella doesn't drink. She's not here.

I move to the left, while Brynn and Kai swing right. I'm slicing my way through tall brush when I hear it.

The scream. The ear-splitting, hair-raising scream.

My blood chills. My muscles lock up as the universe shrinks to a pinpoint.

And I know.

I fucking know my world is about to be rocked, shaken, and split in two.

Brynn's scream morphs into an ugly, wretched sob, and I turn, turn, turn, the moment a slow-motion swirl of horror. She collapses to her knees, her gaze pinned on whatever nightmare lies below. Kai's face twists with agony. They both stare over the edge of the bluff until I find myself beside them. I don't remember moving. I don't remember the howl that wrenches from my throat, even though I hear it echoing back at me and shredding my eardrums.

But I'll forever remember that image of Ella.

Lying in a heap, thirty feet below us.

Motionless and bloody.

My Sunny Girl.

My mind is a cloud, a lethal blur. I squeeze my hair in both fists as I stare down over the ledge of the cliff to where Ella is sprawled out in a bed of grass and weeds, having missed the lake by a few feet. Dark water laps at her hair like it's trying to draw her in.

A sob sticks in the back of my throat.

Bile crawls up my esophagus.

I move.

I swing my legs over the ledge of the bluff and climb down, my feet catching on jagged earth, my hands cutting on rock. "Ella!" I cry out, repeating her name over and over. Kai tells Brynn to stay put while he follows me down. I'm only halfway along the embankment when I launch myself forward and jump the rest of the way, landing on my hip with a bruising thunk. I drag myself over to her, ignoring the pain that shoots through me.

"Ella, Ella… fuck ," I cry, crawling on my hands and knees. Blood oozes from her mouth, already dried and crusty, as locks of dark hair fall over her eyes. When I reach her, I push her hair back and search her face. A blink, a breath, anything. I check her pulse, my own on overdrive. One arm is draped above her head, her fingertips submerged in the shallow water, while the other extends out at her side. "Sunny, baby, please," I choke out, pressing my ear to her chest and pleading for a sign of life. I don't hear anything. I'm going to puke.

Kai dashes beside me, his sneakers kicking up a cloud of dust, and drops to his knees on the other side of Ella. He's calmer than me. Coolheaded as he takes the lead. "Pulse?" he asks, snatching up her wrist.

I hardly register his words. All I hear is my own misery and Brynn's terrified wails from above us as I bury my face in Ella's neck.

"She's alive," Kai says.

I take her battered face between my hands and sprinkle tear-salted kisses along her cheeks and forehead. "Sunny, Sunny…Ella, please. Fuck… please ."

"Max!" he shouts again. "She's alive."

My head jerks up, finally processing his words. A cell phone is pressed to his ear as he gives a location.

Girl. Fell. Bluffs. Near Plankton Street. Breathing.

Breathing.

Alive.

Tipping his head skyward, Kai calls up to Brynn. "She's alive!" he repeats.

"Oh my God. Oh my God ," she sobs.

I pull Ella's hand out of the water and press the pad of my thumb to her wrist, forcing my breathing to placate so I can concentrate on her pulse.

But I can't feel anything.

Dread whispers along the back of my neck as I place my ear to her chest again, then try for a pulse, then repeat. Kai notices my unraveling and balances the phone between his ear and shoulder as he leans over Ella to help me.

"I'm still here," he says into the receiver before lowering the speaker and addressing me. "Right here, Max. Press two fingers right here. It's weak but it's there. She's alive."

I inhale a deep breath and close my eyes, holding my index and middle fingers to her pulse point.

There's a flicker.

A soft, beautiful beat. The faintest trace of life.

I lock eyes with Kai and he nods at me. "They said not to move her unless she stops breathing and then we need to administer CPR. Ambulance is on the way. I'm going to stay on the line."

Falling back on my haunches, I slam both hands to my face and let out a tortured moan. Relief and terror. Thank fuck melded with sickening disbelief. I look up at Brynn, who's halfway dangling over the ledge, a hand cupping her mouth as her body shakes with tears.

I glance at Ella.

I stare at her shipwrecked body, her porcelain skin marred with scrapes and scratches, her face bruised and bloodstained.

Leaning forward, I press my lips to her forehead and stroke her hair as I squeeze my eyes shut. "Stay, Sunny Girl," I whisper, choking back my pain. "Please stay."

My girl fell off a fucking cliff.

She fell.

And I wasn't there to catch her.