About 30 minutes earlier.
"What... the... actual... fuck!" Lucia shouted.
She leaned on the door of the toilet, her body sliding downwards and freely to the floor.
"I need to call Beth."
Lucia desperately searched her purse for her phone, her hands trembling.
She would have long found her phone if her hands did not quaver so much.
What was she possibly afraid of?
What had she seen in Matt's wallet that put her in such a frenzy and a state of disordered thoughts?
She saw her phone and dropped her purse while trying to take it out.
A trifling amount of sweat was gathering on her face.
Ordinarily, that would not be a cause to worry, but the restroom was frigid from the chilling air that was ousted by the hidden air-conditioners around the ceiling.
Her fingers ran a riot on her touchscreen keypad, misdialling her best friend's digits a couple of times before finally getting it correct.
Lucia had to be quick so her date does not begin to wonder where she had zoomed off to and come searching for her.
The restroom was bound to be his first place to search.
Her fingers hit the green call icon and she hurriedly put the phone in her ear.
She chewed her fingernails and muttered with a quavering voice, "Pick up. Please pick up, Lucia. Come on!"
The call tone beeped in her ears but her face did not show any satisfaction with what it said.
[Hey, it's Beth. Please leave a message, I'm kinda busy at the moment]
Voicemail?
Her urgent call was sent to voicemail!
All her efforts were for nought.
She let out a sough and clicked her tongue with her eyes moving from side to side very quickly.
"Yes! Damon!" she said.
"Let me call Damon."
She quickly dialled Damon's number.
Lucia was running out of the little time she managed to buy and had to be terse in speech with this call.
It was ringing, so the first obstacle was broken.
She held the speaker end of her phone with her other hand.
"Pick up," she prayed with her eyes shut.
"Please, pick up."
[Hey, Lucia]
Damon's voice came in from the other end of the call.
It had gone through and Lucia punched the air in jubilation.
"Hey, Damon. Please listen to me and listen carefully. It's very urgent."
She raced through her speech for want of time, hoping that Damon was attentive enough to hear and pick everything she was about to unload on him.
[What's up? What's going on?]
[Are you alright? What about Beth?]
[Where's Beth?]
"I think Beth is in trouble," she revealed, whispering into the speaker side of her phone.
[What! Where are you guys now!]
"I'm not with her right now. Just calm down and listen! I might not get this opportunity again. I think you guys are in trouble too.
"Don't ask me how I know… I really don't know how to explain it. Please get away from your place right now. Go to your neighbour's or something, or if you can, leave the neighbourhood for now."
Damon could sense the fear and anxiety in her voice but he could not justify it since he did not know what was happening.
[Come on. Talk to me. What's going on?]
"I met some guy and he had your pictures neatly carved out and put in his wallet. I think they are trying to get to you guys. Please hurry and get out of that place with your brother."
[I don't understand, Lucia. Expl-]
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Lucia brusquely ended the call.
She heard a knock on the main restroom door and leaned her ears to the door of the toilet to listen and heard nothing again.
Wasting no further time, she rose from the floor, adjusted her clothes and cleaned her face with the wipes from her bag.
After running the water in the toilet, Lucia arranged everything in her bag as it were and opened the door of the toilet to leave.
The knock came again and this time around, a voice followed.
It was Matt.
"Hey, just checking. Still in there?"
She tried her best to put on a fake smile but ended up with a weird grin.
She took a brisk walk to the main restroom door.
Opening the door, she saw Matt standing right in front of her.
She grinned and laughed nervously, trying to cover up the tension and pressure she was feeling.
"Hello," Matt said.
In his hand, which hung on the side of the door, was a photograph.
He turned it to show her and in an instant, the grin and laughter cleared from her face.
Her heart sank into her belly at the very sight of the photo.
She looked at Matt with dilated eyes and a pallid countenance, then she looked at the photo and back at Matt again.
She had seen the other three pictures in Matt's wallet but did not see this one.
Lucia had not noticed the fourth picture.
If she had, then she would have run away immediately, instead of trying her best to contact the Vances in the first place.
In that photograph was her own face.
Glaring at Matt, who was smiling at her, Lucia anxiously swallowed.