Chapter Text
Adrian wouldn’t say he was happy, per se.
Like, he wasn’t depressed or anything like that. Maybe lonely would be a better word for it. He didn’t have any friends or really anybody he was super close with. The last time he spoke to his parents was last May on his father’s birthday, and that was barely a two-minute phone call, steeped in awkward silence. Adrian was a photographer, mostly weddings and reunions, and most of his days were spent alone, either in the corners of family functions or in the dark editing in his crumbling apartment. Sometimes he yelped out loud randomly just to remind himself what his voice sounded like.
Taking a seat at his computer desk, Adrian started his daily routine of checking his email for any new bookings before beginning to edit photos for hours on end. He scrolled through: a wedding in two months, a baby shower in a week, a bride he photographed a week ago asking to edit her baby bump in most pictures. The standard. But there was one email that caught his eye. Adrian narrowed his eyes at the bright screen.
The sender wasn’t from his website, nor was it an existing client. The subject line read, in all caps, ‘PLZ READ! IMPORTANT!!’ Keeping it apart from the sea of other emails in his inbox. Adrian didn’t get junk mail on his work email often. So, hesitantly, he opened it.
PLZ READ! IMPORTANT!!
Hi Adrian,
I know you haven’t heard from me, or really anyone, since you moved, but I really need your help. Billy really needs your help.
Almost a month ago, Billy went missing, again. The police have no leads, and I’m starting to lose hope. As a last-ditch attempt, I thought of you. I mean, you were able to find him the last time, so maybe, now that we’re older, we can find him again?
I understand if you’re busy or if you don’t wanna get involved. I checked out your website, and from the looks of that, you are booked and busy lol!! I COMPLETELY understand, I just figured I asked.
God, sorry, I’m rambling! I just really miss my brother.
Attached are plane tickets, two and from town.
Still, no pressure!
- Your friend, Lily Anderson (though, probably Kuznetsov to you lol)
[PDF.DOCUMENT]
[PDF.DOCUMENT]
Adrian reread the email again and again. Each time his eyes caught the lines ‘Billy went missing,’ he was brought back to that dreadful school. When he felt like he had the weight of the world on his small shoulders. He was only about five when Billy went missing the first time, and it wasn’t a tough case to figure out. The principal was the last person to see Billy, and he had planted exploding listening devices on the students; obviously, he had something to do with it.
Taking a deep breath and slouching in his chair, Adrian thought through his options. On one hand, he really didn’t have any clients for the rest of the month, and he could edit anywhere. But on the other hand, how helpful could he realistically be on this investigation? It was by mere chance that he was able to help Lily the first time.
‘Billy really needs your help'
Lily’s words in the email echoed throughout the corners of his mind like a pounding headache. He imagined her saying it in her voice. ‘What would her voice sound like now?’ He hadn’t seen or heard from her since he moved states in the first grade. His parents found no reason to stay after the child-kidnapping scandal came to light.
A shiver went down his spine at the thought of his old hometown. The hidden darkness in that town was unlike any he had ever seen or heard about. Looking back at the email, Adrian leaned his head onto his fist and thought aloud, “Why would anybody want to stay in that place?”