Missed Connections Las Vegas Novels & Stories

It seemed too much of a coincidence that they’d all be there, at the same motel, at the same time. “Ruby’s an old friend from high school,” Parker explained. “I thought she might enjoy seeing the balloons. She’s never been to the festival before.” “Uh-huh,” Andy said. “That’s what they all say.” A blush crept up Parker’s neck. “Anyway, I thought you guys weren’t getting in until later tonight.” So, Parker did know they were going to be here. Ruby wondered how many other surprises she would have before the weekend was through. “We were,” Rafael said, “but it turns out the casino we were going to stop at went out of business. Apparently too many people were winning.”

If nothing else, it will test and prove our devotion to one another and our love. My phone vibrates in my pocket. “Sorry darlin’, I have to check. It’s probably coach or Atlas.” I take it out of my pants pocket and look at the screen. I have several missed calls; how did I miss those? I’ve had the damn thing on vibrate since I got off the jet. Where the fuck are you, Brannigan? We had a press conference for the winners, and you are nowhere to be found. You better not be nursing a fucking hangover under the duvet. That was from my coach.

I turned and left, my eyes showing no signs of attachment. Dante should have known that a broken ring, no matter how well repaired, would never be without cracks. It was just like my relationship with him. No matter how much we tried to fix it, we could never go back to how things were. … The next day, one day before the bonding ceremony, I went alone to City Hall to file an application to leave the Lightning pack. The clerk told me the application would take effect in 24 hours. At that time, all my personal information would be deleted from the pack records.

> **24 Missed Calls: Sarah (Agency Relations)** > **11 Unread Text Messages** > Liam’s throat went dry as sandpaper. He swiped the screen open, his fingers trembling slightly as he read the top message sent exactly seven minutes ago: > *SARAH: Look at the news. Now. Marcus Vance just dropped the second video. The network is calling an emergency review meeting at the TD Garden rink in thirty minutes. If Jaxson isn't there in full gear, the Warriors are scratching him for tonight's game.*

Things spread too quickly; Jessica didn't even have time to intercept the messages from Wendy. In the afternoon, around three o'clock, even Morgan in the South town called Jessica to inquire about Terry's situation. Of course, over on Brice's side, Terry had already called to report his safety. Bennett inquired from various sources and heard that Terry was no longer doing well. Ever since Brice lost money at a Las Vegas casino earlier this year, he has cancelled all his cards and arranged a bunch of training classes for himself. He has to attend so many classes every day just to have a meal.

(Maya) The cheap sedan smells like stale cigarette smoke and old coffee. The heater rattles. The radio is dead. It doesn’t matter. It moves and that’s all I need. I pull over just on the outskirts of Las Vegas. I switched my regular phone off before I left the driveway. No pings, no accidental calls, no trace. I use the burner now… a scrubbed number, no contacts, no history. I type a message to Rhett. Me: Is Lucy okay?

Then— nothing. The technician frowned, checking the system. “Core connection just dropped.” Evelyn’s chest tightened. “What does that mean.” The man hesitated. It means he’s not in the network anymore.” Silence fell hard. Evelyn’s eyes flicked toward the sealed system access door on the far feed. Still locked. Still closed. No response. No movement. Damian’s voice came lower now. “Or he can’t connect.” Evelyn didn’t like either option.

I asked in a hurry, he looked at me then looked at the scene in front of me, "I'm listening." "I just wanted to tell you I wanted soda water instead of a drink," Vegas' eyes were fixed on the people in front of me. "Soda water, okay I got it, Marissa must be waiting for you," I smiled, I wanted him to leave. "Have we met before?" Vegas asked Ryan. Fuck they did meet that day at the mall. "No, we haven't," Ryan answered with a straight face. What is this? Did Ryan just deny meeting Vegas the other day or was I tripping?

Thеrе are fоur mіѕѕеd саllѕ frоm оnе number, аnd twо from аnоthеr. They саmе at vаrуіng times during thе night, bеfоrе аnd durіng thе time we were сlubbіng аrоund Times Square. Someone was trуіng tо get hоld оf her urgеntlу, and I knоw ѕhе wоuld have answered іf it wаѕ ѕоmеоnе she knеw.