Alpha One - Chris Burton [101]
She seemed distant when she called yesterday and the affection had gone from her voice. There was none of the usual sarcasm and humor. If Jake were paranoid, he’d think Carla avoided him. He missed her and needed to talk to her. Steve had been talking about reconciliation since the New Year. He asserted he cleaned up his act, and that Carla would inevitably want him back. This annoyed Jake, because he could not be one hundred percent certain Steve was wrong. Maybe Carla would go back to Steve. Was he being paranoid? Jake decided that if he hadn’t heard from her by close of play today, he would call her. He was not chasing her. He was expressing concern about her non-arrival, especially as today was the first day of the new term.
Jake entered the tutor’s class on his own. All the other students were already there, with Steve and Carla being the notable absentees. Jake heard the whispers. He distinctly heard one of the girls at the front of the tutor class assert that Steve and Carla were back together again. Jake sighed. Perhaps he should accept the inevitable Carla and Steve were together for three years. He and Carla for only a matter of weeks. Small wonder she might return to her former lover.
His thoughts were interrupted by the tutor, who entered the room carrying a bundle of hard copy files. Steve Costello followed into the room.
Steve sat down next to Jake and smiled. “Sorry I’m a bit late today. The alarm was not set again.”
Jake smiled and turned his attention to the tutor, who was speaking.
Where the hell is she? Still no contact and he kept his comm link open all day. Carla would normally have called by now. Jake brought the subject up with Steve as they walked home later that evening.
Steve laughed. “Perhaps she’s gone to find her sister again.”
Jake added that he thought it unlikely, but he would contact her later this evening when he returned to his apartment. He was alone and had time to reflect on Steve’s comments. Could she really have gone looking for her sister?
Jake decided enough was enough. He opened a comm link to Carla. There was no reply. Determined, he then spoke to Carla’s parents in the vain hope she left them with an idea about where she was going. Jake tried to remember the words Carla had used, when she explained her feelings about her sister and Winterburn, but her final comments were a little vague. She could have followed them, but where? Were they heading for the Tri-Star system?
Carla’s parents were alarmed to hear she may have gone missing. Jake tried not to alarm them, but it was clear they had no idea where their daughter might be. She left on Sunday morning and called two hours later to say that she was at her apartment.
This was bizarre. Jake checked his comm link again and, for good measure, checked his portal messages. He rebooted his comm link and servers to ensure that was no malfunction. There were no messages.
Jake awoke in the morning with still no messages. He contacted his tutor directly at home, apologizing for his early intrusion and explained that he had tried to establish Carla’s whereabouts. His tutor was not immediately forthcoming, but Jake pushed, explaining that it was critical that his tutor divulge anything he knew. Eventually, the tutor revealed he received a portal message on Sunday evening. It came from Carla’s home server, which suggested she had been to her apartment. The message was a little unclear. She took leave of absence to deal with a family matter. She apologized and advised she would be in contact within a few days.
Jake thanked the tutor and told him he would not be in for lessons today, as he needed to concentrate on finding Carla. His tutor was a little taken aback, but accepted the excuse because Jake’s attendance record to date hadn’t been an issue. Jake hung up and then opened a comm link to Steve.
“Steve, we have a