Chapter 5 : Found Azura

"Be fearless in the pursuit of what sets your soul on fire." - luxandconcord.com

Adrian's POV

I had never learned to give up. It was something that didn't feature in my dictionary. So I called up Theo and Xander, my only two best friends, and met them at a cafe and discussed the issue.

"I suggest we hire a PI," said Xander as he sipped his coffee.

"We could contact my PI, David Simpson. He's an ex-navy seal and very efficient," suggested Theo.

"That's it, call him, now," I said impatiently. 

Theo called him and handed the phone over to me. We had a detailed discussion, he took my contact information and details about Azura. I told him all I knew which wasn't enough, but that was what I knew about her. Nevertheless, he promised to try his best.

"Now, what?" I asked as I disconnected the call. 

"Wait for him to call you back," said Xander.

"You can keep an overnight luggage packed with enough to last 2-3 days," suggested Theo as I nodded. 

We had a light breakfast and went home. I was disturbed the whole day and waited impatiently for any information the PI could gather about Azura. Liam didn't have any information. She had not applied for any leave or handed in her resignation. Her employee file contained the old Brooklyn address which I had gone to, with no phone number or other details. I was totally at my wit's end and my only hope was Theo's PI.

Theo arrived after lunch, to give me company. Xander had to leave for Seattle for work, so it was just the two of us waiting impatiently. 

Finally, the wait was over and the PI called us in the afternoon.

"We have traced Ms. Hayes to Fairbanks Creek, Texas. It's a small town in Randall County, Texas. Apparently, she's staying with her family there," he informed us.

"Can you give us the exact address?" asked Theo, looking relieved.

"Yeah, I'll send you an SMS," said his PI.

"Thanks, David, you will be rewarded handsomely for this," said Theo as he disconnected the call.

David's SMS alert had us peering into Theo's phone for the address. 

"That's it, I'm going to Texas now," I said getting up.

"Whoa, wait for me dude. I'll come with you," said Theo who called his housekeeper immediately to pack some clothes and essentials for him in a small suitcase.

"Okay, let me make a call," I said. I called dad asking for our private jet. Dad agreed after asking me a million questions as parents usually did but eventually asked us to reach the airport in 3 hours. So taking my already packed luggage, we stopped at Theo's house and collected his luggage, and left for the airport.

It was 6 am in the morning when we reached Buffalo Airport in Randall County, Texas. It took us 20 minutes in a dusty old cab to reach Fairbanks Creek, in Amarillo, Randall County but we weren't complaining. At least we didn't have to walk down so early in the morning. Another ten minutes passed searching for the address David had given us, as we didn't even know the property owner's name. 

We came to know that this place was pretty famous with tourists. It was a major tourist attraction due to the Palo Duro Canyon, the second-largest canyon in the United States, located here in Randall County.

The sleepy quiet village was a stark contrast to the hustle and bustle of New York, a city that never sleeps. There were farms and ranches around, with people busy working and tending to their animals or crops. Fenced fields growing crops like Alfalfa, wheat, and corn were predominantly visible.

Leaving a trail of dust, the cab came to a halt in front of an old two-storied shabby ranch that had seen better days. There was a rundown farm around the house, with cows, buffaloes, and chickens. A small patch in the corner of the farm had some wheat being cultivated. 

A young girl, around twenty years of age, with emerald green eyes, shining blonde long hair,  wearing a pair of denim shorts, a black printed top, and a blue apron tied loosely around her, came forward towards the rickety gate. Had we come to the wrong address? This wasn't Azura. Where was Azura? 

Theo's jaw dropped at the sight of the girl while her eyes widened seeing us with our luggage. Before I could ask her about Azura.

"Azzee, come soon," she yelled at the top of her lungs and Azura wearing a pair of denim shorts and a red tank top came rushing out with her waist-long hair, damp and loose, flying about her. I stood like a statue, staring at her, unable to move, unable to speak.

It was then that she saw me. Her mouth opened and closed, her eyes widened with shock, and she stood staring back at me as if she'd seen a ghost or something.

The girl cleared her throat as Azura came to her senses. "Sir, what are you doing here?" she asked in a dazed tone, pinching herself to see whether she was daydreaming or not. I curbed a small smile of relief struggling to break free on my lips. 'Found you, Azura!' my heart sang with glee. 

"I came to see you," I replied as I nudged Theo out of his dreamland.

"Ow, bro," he said with a grin.

"Sorry ladies, I got a bit carried away. I'm Theodore Sinclair, your boyfriend's best friend," he said to Azura as she blushed crimson, looking away at the cows instead of at me while the other girl grinned, wiggling her eyebrows at Azura. "And you are?" he asked the other girl.

My cheeks reddened a little too with embarrassment but I glared at the cheeky fellow! I stamped his foot as he limped about melodramatically. "Are you blind? You had to injure me. Now the pain is killing me," He glared at me as he winced in pain melodramatically, glancing at the girl all the while. "So, what's your name angel?" he asked the girl again as she giggled at the nickname while I rolled my eyes at his cliche dialogue.

"I'm Emerald Hayes, Azura's cousin," she said as Theo grinned. "Emerald, will you help me inside? I need to sit somewhere and tend to my injured foot," he said and I rolled my eyes. He just knew how to impress a girl!

"Wait, Azzee, you didn't introduce me to your boyfriend?" she asked Azura who looked at me with annoyance but I shrugged to show her that I had no hand in this.

I would kill to be her boyfriend, so I really didn't correct her. "Emmy, he isn't my .. " Azura started saying but Emerald interrupted her in the middle, "Oh yeah, he's not your boyfriend, I get it." While I noted her implications, Azura completely didn't.

"He's Adrian Henderson, my boss, the owner of the hotel where I work," she said innocently trying to convince her cousin.