“She’s my cousin and now she’s missing. She supposedly took off with some guy last night and hasn’t made it home yet.”
Brian shrugged. “Maybe she’s still with the dude and just forgot about checking in.”
Susan grinned wickedly. “Exactly. Maybe she’s just too busy gettin’ busy to think about anyone else right now.”
He chuckled. “Exactly. Once they come up for air, you’ll hear from her, I’ll bet.”
“I hope so,” I replied, still not too sure myself. No phone calls from Melody, well that was one thing, but the texting thing disturbed me. She was addicted to her keypad and should have texted somebody by now.
Just then, my own cell phone began to vibrate. I pulled it out of my purse. “It’s my mom,” I said to Susan, staring down at the text. “They still haven’t heard from Melody.”
“Crap,” said Susan. “I was hoping that was good news.”
“Me too. She says that she’s staying with my aunt overnight,” I mumbled and began typing a message back, telling her that I was still out with Susan and would be home later.
“Is your dad staying, too?” she asked. “Or is he going to start badgering the police to start looking for her?”
I shoved my phone back into my purse and zipped it up. “I’m sure they’re going to file a Missing Person Report. It’s been almost twenty-four hours since Melody’s friends saw her.”
She bit her lower lip. “I know what Brian said and all,” she said as we stepped away from the bar. “But what if something seriously bad has happened to her?”
“That’s why we’re here,” I said. “To see if anyone remembers seeing her, or the guy she left with. Melody kind of stands out in the crowd, you know? I would think that someone would remember her.”
“She definitely thrives on attention. So, um… are you going to ask the band if they know anything?”
“Well, I’m going to try,” I replied as we took the stairs. “I mean I didn’t exactly come here to ‘ooh’ and ‘ah” over these guys. I’m here for answers.”
“Ditto. Hey, maybe we should have asked Ethan? I didn’t even think about that.”
“I did, but not until after he left. Unfortunately, it’s too late now.”
“Shit,” she said, looking back towards the entrance. “We should have asked the coat-check girl. I didn’t even think about that!”
“If it’s even the same one from last night.”
“Doesn’t hurt to ask.”
“We’ll do it on the way out.”
“Good idea. Hey, maybe Slade will remember something about her. I’m sure Melody made her way to the front of the stage to get his attention.”
“It wouldn’t surprise me,” I replied, picturing her making goo-goo eyes at him. After seeing and listening to him tonight, however, I couldn’t exactly blame her.
When we reached the top, there were three rooms marked “V.I.P.”. We stepped towards the one with two security guards.
“Yeah, um… I think that we’re supposed to give you this,” I said, holding up the card from Ethan.
The taller of the two, Bill, a guy with a blond ponytail and goatee, took the card. “You say Ethan gave you this?”
I nodded.
“Yeah,” said Susan, her eyes big. “Don’t worry, we’re not going to stay long. Just want to meet the band and maybe get an autograph or two.”
The other security guard, Mason, a dark-skinned man with soft brown eyes and a friendlier face, leaned over and looked at the card. He read it and then smiled at us. “Huh… well, I guess it’s your lucky night.”
“It appears that way,” I replied, as Bill handed me back the card.
“Or maybe not,” said Bill under his breath with a smirk.
“What was that?” I asked, looking up at him. With his thick lips and beady-eyes, he was far from attractive.
Mason laughed. “Don’t listen to him. He’s just jealous.”
“Screw that,” said Bill. “I’m not jealous of those guys. I get all the chicks I want. I don’t need to be in a rock band for that.”
“Whatever. I’ll escort you two inside,” said Mason, turning back to us. “There might be some crazy shit going on in the V.I.P.” He smiled wickedly. “And you lovely ladies might just need some protection from the animals in there.”
I looked at Susan nervously, wondering what we’d gotten ourselves into. With all of the rumors about the club, I thought about backing out and going home.