A Masterpiece Unraveled (The Masterpiece Trilogy Book 2) (36 page)

Somewhere in the distance there was a continuous pounding. "Becca!" Hunter cried again. This was a dream. It wasn't real. Becca was just fine! She was waiting for him. "I'm coming, Becca! This isn't real. It just can't be!"

"Hunter, pull yourself together! What the hell is wrong with you?" Vince glared at him. "What are you talking about?"

Hunter shoved him out of the way. "This isn't happening!"

*****

The phone ringing early pulled Becca out of a hard sleep. Sluggish, she sat up, trying to understand what was going on. What time was it? Who was calling?

Hunter! Maybe it was Hunter, calling with news. She grabbed her phone, still lying next to her on the bed from when she fell asleep with him on the phone last night. The sky outside was still dark, but the horizon was starting to light up. It was even earlier than she'd first thought.

"Hunter? Is that you?"

"Rebecca, it's Vince. "

"Vince? What do you want?" She never checked the caller ID.

He sighed. "I was just with Hunter earlier. He- I don't know what the hell happened."

Wait, how was he with Hunter?

"What are you talking about? Why would you be with Hunter? What happened to him?" Well, she was wide awake now. Becca flipped on the light.

This wasn't a dream, but it didn't add up. Vince with Hunter, then Vince calling so early?

Something was off. Way off.

"It doesn't matter why! Rebecca, something is seriously wrong with him. He had this look in his eyes and he wouldn't snap out of it. He was upset and talking about you and how this wasn't happening ... not that I'm sure what that meant. Then he took off. He wasn't even wearing shoes. He just ran."

"You didn't go after him?" Becca screeched.

"No. Why would I? I figure he'd come back soon, but it's been a half hour and there's no sign of him."

"He could be having a flashback! Or that disassociation thing. Vince, you have to find him! You're a psychiatrist. Don't you recognize PTSD symptoms when you see them?" Becca picked up a pillow from the bed and smacked the wall with it, wishing she could throw it at Vince. Forget the pillow. She wished she could throw something worthwhile at Vince! Something that would hurt. Ugh!

"I've never dealt with PTSD. How the hell was I suppose to know!" He was on the defense.

"Get off the phone with me right now and go find Hunter. If anything happens to him, I'll-" She let out a cry of frustration. Forget the ten hour drive, she was going to go down there! "I swear to you Vince if something happens to him, I'll never forgive you. Not that you care, but I'll make sure you- Just go! Please!" A mix of emotions slammed into her, one by one. "Please." Adding that last one had her in tears.

"I'll find him," Vince replied in a low voice. "I'll keep you updated."

"Yeah, you do that."

After hanging up, Becca tossed her phone on the bed, picked up the pillow she'd just thrown and tossed it at the wall again. This was what she'd feared. Hunter had surrounded himself with his past. Anything could have sent him into a flashback. Anything or anyone posed as a trigger and she wasn't there to help him. She was states away.

What was Vince doing there? Why Vince of all people? As much as she wanted to know, it wasn't the highest priority.

"Becca?" Shara knocked on the door.

She wiped her face before opening the door. "Did I wake you?"

"Yeah, you did. It doesn't matter. I heard you yelling. You're crying!"

"Hunter's taken off, and for some reason Vince was there but didn't go after him. When Vince described Hunter's state, it reminded me of when he disassociates or has a flashback. I want to go there, but ten hours could change so much." She broke out in a sweat, her heart pounding. "It's an hour or so for a flight trip, isn't it?"

Shara gripped her shoulders. "Becca, are you seriously considering-?"

"I need to do something! Have you seen him when he gets like this? He's in unfamiliar areas. I know I'm scared of planes and flying but if I can get there and find him, I have to do this!" She tried to get out of her grasp.

"Okay, okay. Listen to me. Let's give it an hour or two. Let Vince try to find him. Even if you take a flight down there, it might be for nothing. I know you want to get to Hunter. I haven't seen him in those moments, but I know you have. Come to reason. Hunter can't stay like that for long. Someone could help."

Drawing in a shaky breath, Becca ran her fingers through her tangles, contemplating. "An hour," she agreed. "But I'm telling you, if there's no word, I'm getting on a plane. There won't be any stopping me."
Not even myself and my fears.

She thought of Vince and his strong dislike toward Hunter. How all these years he's never even tried to understand her need to go back. He'd been adamant even that last night in her apartment, letting on slightly that he knew something. Then that message. All of a sudden he's with Hunter when there was no distinct connection?

No, there wasn't time to waste.

"Change of plans. I'm not waiting. I'm calling Todd right now to see if he or someone can take me there. If Vince is with Hunter, it can't be for good reasons."

*****

Becca wasn't sure how Todd or Beverly would react to her idea of taking a flight to Rhode Island to look for Hunter, but they were very supportive of it. Not to mentioned concerned. Todd wasn't even home, so Beverly had to call and update him. Sienna and Eva weren't there either.

While Beverly was on the phone, Becca's own rang. She swallowed the lump in her throat and answered.

"I can't find him, Rebecca. I checked the hospital and have been driving around nearby. There's no sign of Hunter."

Not the news she wanted to hear.

"You keep looking. I'm warning you, Vince. I've never made a threat like this before, but I'll make your life a living hell if you don't try your hardest. I'm coming down there." She was even afraid of her own anger-filled tone.

"Why would you do that? It's a long drive!"

"How kind of you to point out the obvious," she snapped. "I'll be on a plane."

"You hate planes!"

Well, good one again!

"I may hate planes, but I love Hunter even more than I hate them. I can't sit back and trust that you're doing all you can to find him when I know how you feel about him."

"You really think I'm not doing my best?" He sounded offended. Really? Vince offended? He was good. What an actor.

"I don't know what to think when it comes to you any more," Becca snapped before disconnecting the call. She dropped her phone on the couch and put her head in her hands. Not that she ever knew what to think before this summer any way, but she sure didn't trust Vince.

Someone touched her back. "How about I go with you? That way you're not alone," Shara said softly. "We'll find Hunter together. If you really want to fly down there, we'll make it happen."

"I just want to get to him and make sure he's safe. We've been down this road too many times." Becca's tears began to fall. "I don't know what he's doing. He doesn't remember anything other than what he dreams about. Who knows where he could be. I know I could wait until he comes out of it and calls me, but so much could happen." She was rambling and she knew it, but Becca couldn't help herself.

"Todd says he'll take you down there. He'll stay this time, too. He's making arrangements right now," Beverly said from the doorway. She moved to sit beside Becca.

"Thank you so much!" Beverly wrapped her motherly arms around her, letting Becca unleash her worry through her tears.

When she calmed down enough, she straightened. Her entire body full of tension, Becca took a deep breath. Then two. And a series of them. She was really going to do this. Get on a plane and find Hunter.

Chapter Twenty Nine

"Becca, you're going to pass out if you don't breathe." Shara held out her hand to let Becca grip it. They were up in the air and Becca couldn't keep calm. Beads of sweat poured down her face and she gasped for air once again.

"I'm- fine," she said through clenched teeth.

"You're not fine. I may not know you that well, but even I can see you aren't fine." Shara didn't wait for Becca to squeeze her hand. She clasped her fingers over hers. "Tell me some of your favorite moments of Hunter."

Becca squeezed her eyes shut and thought about it. "The first time we met up on the island. He was excited to show me some of the amazing scenes. We took a ride on the ferry around all the islands. We talked for hours about everything and nothing." He'd grown into a handsome young man, and for the first time, Becca had been shy around him. He was twenty-one to her seventeen at the time. They'd had an amazing week at the island and had made a vow to come back every year for a week.

"You know one of the first things Hunter said to me when I moved into the foster home?"

"What?"

"He asked me if I wanted to go kick some butt. He said he had a best friend that people didn't understand and he wanted someone to help make them stop. Then he told me all about you."

They hit a small amount of turbulence. Becca tensed and squeezed Shara's hand. They were fine. The skies were clear and there were no storms. She could do this.

I have to do this. I have to get to Hunter.

Shara laughed. "I should have known then not to fall for him. Kids moved in and out of that house a lot. Some of them were shy and scared. Hunter took everyone under his wing. He'd show them the ropes of what chores needed to be done. He also gave everyone individual attention. On weekends and summers when we weren't in school, Hunter created a lot of activities for us. We played all types of sports, except basketball. He only played that one himself on a rare occasion."

Becca thought back to his conversation about basketball under the makeshift fort. "It's because basketball was on his mind the summer of the crash. He was upset about not getting to go to a camp. I think he still feels guilty over it, so he won't play like he used to."

"Wow, I never knew that. No wonder." Shara's voice was just above a whisper.

"I didn't know until recently. We were talking about good memories we had. That was one of his." Her right hand was sore from the death grip she had on the seat's handle. Still, she couldn't gather the nerve to let it go. She puffed out a long breath, then inhaled, trying to do it over again. Slow, deep breaths. Her stomach did a dive when the plane seemed to be lowering. "Oh! What's happening?"

"It's okay, Becca. Nothing is going to happen to us." Shara tried to be soothing. "I've got to give you credit, woman. I know if it were me, I couldn't have done this. I think about my own fears and I'm blown away at how you're facing yours head on like this."

She forced a smile, even opened her eyes a little. Her surroundings were a little blurry. "In any other circumstance, I wouldn't. I hate planes and flying. I just-" Gasp. "I couldn't sit back with Hunter out there like that. If I happen to see Vince, hold me back."

"Can't promise that, because I want to pop that fool upside his stupid head a few times, too."

They both laughed.

The plane lurched again. Becca shrieked. "Oh!"

"It's okay, Becca. We're just descending. We're almost there. Don't think about past plane rides. Think about Hunter. Think about the way he makes you feel. Think about that gorgeous painting you did of him sleeping, which I love by the way. Has he seen it yet?"

"No. I just finished it." Becca blew out a series of deep breaths, keeping herself from totally hyperventilating. "You saw it?"

"This morning," Shara admitted. "I thought you were in that room when I heard you yelling at Vince. I happened to see it. I'd love it if you'd paint my portrait someday. I love the way his came out. Your landscapes and scenes are amazing, but I'm really drawn to your portraits of people."

"His was the first that I've ever done like that. I know you've seen the ones I did of Hunter and I, but that was more my own image I created in my mind, not one based off what someone was doing."

"Hunter's going to love it, no doubt."

The plane's engine got louder. Becca covered her ears, bracing herself for impact.

Shara pulled one hand from her ear. "We're almost on the ground. You've got this."

"Do you think Sylvia got to him?" she blurted.

"Geez- Becca don't think like that! No. I don't think she got him. Unless she has a way to follow your every single move, I don't think she has any idea where Hunter is. You've got to stop thinking about her. I know it's hard because you thought she was dead and she may not be, but don't go there in your mind right now."

She nodded, knowing Shara was right. Hunter would have said the same thing to her.

"Shara?"

"What's up?"

"Thank you. I'm not sure I would have been able to do this on my own today." She jumped when the plane touched down. It was a little bumpy, but they were finally on the ground.

She'd done it! She flew on a plane. No incidents, no crashes, no storms. No crazy woman trying to jump.

Just a simple plane ride.

"I did it," she whispered, not realizing she'd spoken out loud at first.

"You did. Open your eyes, unbuckle your seatbelt, and let's go find Hunter."

A half hour later, Todd, Shara, and Becca made it to the hotel Hunter was registered at. As they checked in and got a room for the night, Becca asked the clerk if she'd seen Hunter. She pulled out a picture.

The woman stared at it. "I can't give any information about other guests." She narrowed her eyes suspiciously at Becca.

"I understand that. I know he's staying here, but that's not what I'm asking. He's dealing with PTSD and might have had an episode this morning. He could be in danger. I just need to know if or when you last saw him."

Well that got the woman's attention. "Is he carrying a weapon? Is he gonna hurt someone?"

Becca suppressed an agitated sigh. "No, but he might not remember things. It's like if you're day dreaming, but a longer period of time. Please, have you seen him?"

"I did see a man of his description run off this morning. I wasn't paying much attention. Just pegged him as someone going for a jog." The woman handed them keys. "Enjoy your stay."