Guillaume, Her French Husband

Chapter 7

Lara

Shooting the love scenes seemed to be taking longer than she had anticipated and even though Lara was there waiting to see what would have become of everything with the body double, at the back of her mind she was also glad that Guillaume had stood up for her the way he did. And by the time they were done with everything, all she could think about was getting to the next two scenes.

She was in her room going over the script for the millionth time as she waited for Myka to come in. She always came over to run lines with her but on this particular night, she was late. Later than usual. She had tried calling her almost ten times now but she was not answering. Not her calls and not her texts. She put the script down on the couch she was seated on and sighed loudly. She looked at her phone and shook her head. It was almost five in the evening and as per the agreement she had with her sister, they always ran lines together from three. Which meant that she was two hours late…and with no explanation too. She put on her jacket and made her way downstairs. Her heart was racing as she climbed into one of Guillaume’s cars. She tried calling Myka again before she pulled out of the parking lot.

“Maybe she is down at the set,” she thought as she began driving down the street. Her sister always got carried away with all the excitement production had to offer. Maybe that was where she was all this time. Without even realizing it, she was driving faster than ever. Thankfully, she was in the vineyard and not on the open road. But she could not think about all that. Not at that moment. All she cared for, was getting to the studio. Seeing Myka and making sure she was alright. But as soon as she pulled up in the studio parking lot, her heart rate spiked when she didn’t see the vintage Volkswagen beetle Myka usually got around in.

“Where the fu*k are you, Myka?” she wondered as she looked around. She got out of the car and began walking aimlessly unsure of which studio to go to. She suddenly stopped in her tracks and reached for her phone. Her hands were shaking as she dialed Guillaume. It only took a few rings before he picked up.

“Cherie, I was just thinking about you,” he said.

“I’m outside. I need you,” she said and she knew that he could hear the panic in her voice.

“Is everything alright?” he asked.

“Just come outside,” she said before she hung up.

She began pacing up and down as she waited for him to get out and walk up to where she was. Her mind was spiraling. She was thinking of every possible ridiculously dangerous situation that her sister might have gotten herself into and in a foreign country no less. She was not sure whether to be angry or simply worried. But what she knew for sure was that she was uneasy.

It seemed like forever before a worried Guillaume finally walked out of the studio.

“Everything alright, Cherie?” he asked and she shook her head.

“Myka…she is missing. I don’t know where she is. I have been calling her and texting her but she is not answering…she has never done this Guillaume. I don’t know where she is…and I am freaking out,” she said as her tears began rolling down her cheeks. He pulled her into his arms and held her tightly.

“It’s okay,” he said as he planted a kiss on her head. “It’s okay, Cherie. We’ll find her. She can’t have gone far.”

“But she took the car, Guillaume. She must have gone far away to need a car,” she said and he pulled away from her.

“Nothing is going to happen to her, Cherie. I’ll make sure of it,” he said in a soft voice. “Do you trust me?” he asked as he held her face in his hands.

Tears were rolling down Lara’s cheeks and she could not be bothered to wipe them off. She wanted to answer him. Tell him that she did which was the truth but it was like her vocal chords had failed her.

“Cherie, I need to know if you trust me,” Guillaume said again and she nodded. “Good. I need you to wait here. And I’ll be right back.”

“Where are you going?” she asked.

“I’m shutting down for the day.”

She shrugged.

“It’s still early,” she said and he nodded.

“I know but we need all hands on deck if we are going to find Myka,” he said before he began walking towards the studios.

As she stood there waiting, she was not sure what she was supposed to do. What Guillaume had planned. Granted, he knew more about the area than she ever could. At the back of her mind, she found herself wondering what could have happened to her sister. Because this was not the Myka she knew.

Unlike girls her age, Myka was responsible. She always put school first and she had always been the kind to call if she was going to be five minutes late. So for her to be more than three hours late and not even say anything was not something she could figure out. Even though she was trying as hard as she possibly could, she just couldn’t figure out why for the life of her Myka was MIA. By the time Guillaume walked back out, he had the entire production team behind him. Literally.

“What is this?” she asked as she looked at everyone going in different directions.

“I called my friend from the police department and found out that there are a number of raves happening in town tonight so the production team is going to check that out and you and I are going downtown,” he said as he led her towards his car. “Her phone is still on and it is pinging from one of the cell towers downtown. It’s near one of the raves.”