Rhythm of Heartbreak (COMPLETED)

Chapter 21

Jess clasped her cold hands as she stood there pacing back and forth in front of Rick's hotel door. She was still battling if she was going to knock or not, but she needed to talk about what happened last night. It was the biggest embarrassment she could probably subject herself to.

She takes a deep breath as her confidence slowly builds.

"What's the worst-case scenario that can happen?" She asked herself as her mind attempted to play all the possibilities.

"Probably get kicked out of the agency, or go to jail for the unfulfilled contact, yeah all good then" she sarcastically retorted.

She breathed again and with one final tap on her back, she started pounding his door.

She waited for him to answer, but no Rick Reed came to her aid. She wondered. She knocked for another minute but to no avail.

Jess walked towards the elevator as she patiently waited for it to go all the way down, when it opened, she went straight to the front desk to ask for confirmation.

"Hello, I am wondering if you know what happened to the guest in room 1302?" She asked the woman in uniform.

She took her time to check her monitor and once she finished, she smiled warmly at Jess. "The guest in 1302 just checked out this morning around 6 AM" she confirmed.

Jess suddenly felt a force knock her over and suddenly all her energy drained. She nodded and thanked the desk clerk; she turned her frame around looking like a withered plant when the woman from earlier suddenly called for her.

"Are you Jess Lynn?" She asked.

Jess nodded.

"Mr. Rick left this note for you this morning" she uttered then handed her the folded note.

Jess carefully took the paper and flipped it open. She read the words.

"There's an emergency back in the city I need to attend to. I'm sorry if I have to leave first, let's talk soon, there are things we need to clarify with each other." -RR 

Jess read the writing in there one more time and once she was satisfied. She folded it again and secured it in her pocket. She walked back to the elevator and trailed her steps back to her room.

"He didn't even say goodbye..." she murmured.

Once she opened her door, she almost gasped to see Shaun there casually sitting on her couch.

"You are still here" she commented out loud.

He nodded and was unaffected by her words. "Did everything get sorted out?" He curiously asked.

Jess shook her head and sat right next to Shaun instead. "Rick left." She stated.

Shaun's guesses were confirmed upon the mention of that name. So, it has something to do with Rick Reed then. Did something happen last night to Jess and Rick? Both were gone and did not come back to the campfire last night. He walked several distances checking where they went but he did not see any of them. He was worried as the images of them together flashed through his mind.

He knew Jess was wasted last night and he had no ounce of trust for Rick Reed so apparently something indeed happened.

He breathed in.

He can't push for information anymore without sounding like he's prying.

"How's your head?" He suddenly asked diverting the topic off.

Jess turned her eyes towards Shaun and nodded "There's a bit of pain but it's now manageable, thank you for the soup and I'm sorry that I wasted it" she apologized.