FRANTIC SEARCH (MEOMEO & OGION)

[ogion]

The nozzle of the gun was so close to her face that almost tickled Elise’s nose. The puny Asian man who held it, was dressed in an elegant black suit. He lowered his sunglasses slightly, along his nose and smirked.

—You shouldn’t have come here, bitch.

Another man, a giant gorilla-faced monster behind Elise, raised a submachine gun and pointed it at her nape.

Elise moved like a lightning strike, grabbed the gun before her, deflecting it to the side, while kicking the Asian’s knee. He cried out in pain and dropped to one knee. Elise used his bent knee as a step and pulled herself up with her right leg, shattering the nose of the mobster with her left knee. He flew backward, crashing headfirst into a wall.

The thug who was behind her opened fire, but Elise spun on the floor, until she could barricade herself behind a sofa, from which she fired three times the gun she had taken from the first goon, hitting the remaining one on his stomach, his chest and his forehead. The thug collapsed like a ragdoll.

—Cut! It’s a wrap.

The director and the crew started clapping. It was the last scene of the film and Elise had needed only one take. That kind of ability to move quickly, skillfully and with surgical precision, was what had allowed her to become the highest-paid Hollywood Stuntwoman and get to be the body double and personal stuntwoman of Sophia Crawford, one of the greatest movie stars of recent times.

An assistant approached her with a bottle of water and another handed her her cell phone that rang with one of her favorite songs.

—Elise, it has been ringing for quite a while.

Elise took the call.

—Elise, I'm Jennifer —said a nervous voice on the other side of the line—. I didn’t want to bother you, but I'm worried about Kate —Jennifer took a long pause before continuing—. Something happened to her. I haven’t heard about her since Sunday. Three days ago.

Kate was Elise's little sister. She has been getting into trouble since the divorce of their parents. Going out with the wrong crowd and being arrested for shoplifting. She’s a very independent and rebellious girl. Elise brought her to Miami on her vacations, to keep an eye on her, while filming the movie. She was staying over with Jennifer, a friend she had made on the Internet. Elise had asked her to watch over Kate and to call her if she got into trouble. Elise had called Kate in recent days and had left her messages, but Kate hadn’t called back. Elise thought she was pissed off at her because she was acting as her "Nanny", as she used to say.

 

[meomeo]

Elise twisted the cap of the vitamin water and instantly guzzled down half the bottle. Replacing the cap for now, she trapped the phone between her ear and sweaty shoulders, and at first, didn't quite catch the words on the other side of the phone, with the adrenaline still buzzing inside her head.

Elise once described every time she nails a scene as a girl boner... and she would say it again. The feeling of being the center of attention amongst a bunch of professionals, the lights and cameras zeroed in, the quest for a perfect take... and finally the perfect take itself. Those who worked with her the first time, especially the guys, wonder whether she only got her gigs due to being a virtual doppelgänger of a certain A-lister. They never say it out loud, but Elise could see the doubts in their eyes. She's just an imperfect copy who'd put her body on the line for some dough. Babes who look like Elise can't move their bodies so fast, so daringly, with such precision. Aren't they worried about getting scratches on their perfect skin, or something?

Those doubts would become awe and admiration at the wrap. Elise can guarantee that.

"Loved it Elise." shouted a member of the crew passing by. Still trying to discern what was being said over the phone, she simply gave a short nod and smiled. Her coppery fringe fell over her eyes with the tilt of her head, obscuring her dark brown irises. She raised her arm holding the bottle - tanned, perfectly toned and muscular but way short of bodybuilder-size - and drank another mouthful. Damn its a hot day. She needs to get out of this wifebeater and these skintight jeans - or are they in fact leggings? - asap.

"Come again?" she said as she entered the dressing room, shared with a number of other 'alphabetically-listed' cast. She slapped the bottle down on the counter and took the phone in her hand. Her neck was starting to strain. "No, can't be right... I saw her only last... the night before."

Elise counted in her head. There was a night shoot last evening. The one before she barbecued with some of the crew... and she saw Kate after she got home, right? 'Coz two nights ago she went to town with her girls and Kate had said she'd hang but no showed. Wait a minute, did I see her after I got back from the barbecue?

"Have you checked everything? I dunno... had she tweeted or something. You know her. If not... wow this is crazy. I have no idea how to deal with something like this. Do we have to call the police?"

 

[ogion]

Jennifer’s voice sounded hesitant, on the other side of the line.

—I… I don’t know, I don’t know what to do neither. On Saturday we went to this nightclub on Lincoln Avenue and everything was normal, you know. We got separated and… it must have been around two AM, I cached a glimpse of her, among the crowd, she was… ehm… making out with this guy, a tough looking dude, I couldn’t see him well. After that, I didn’t see her again, I called her and sent messages and nothing. I wasn’t worried at the beginning, ‘cause you know how she is. It’s not the first time she disappears with some guy and she doesn’t like to be disturbed when she’s having fun, but three days is too much time. Besides there is something… hummm… strange, I don’t know… she didn’t twit anything since I last saw her, but I checked her Facebook, just in case, and I found this picture. I don’t know when or where it was taken and it has no description, but… just give me a minute, I’ll send it to you.

After a while, Elise received a picture in her cellphone. It was group of young men in their twenties, about ten of them, against a wall covered with graffiti’s, some using baseball caps or bandanas in their heads, some with their arms crossed on their chests, and some making some kind of sign with their fingers toward the camera. All of them making smug faces, trying to look as tough as possible. Some were naked from the waist up and most of them had diverse tattoos covering their skin. They wore loose pants or shorts and they all looked very fit, tight muscles on their arms and well defined abs, the kind of guys who didn’t skip gym day. They looked dangerous. There was white guys, Latin types, black guys and even an Asian guy.

—The guy in the middle —indicated Jennifer when they spoke again over the phone—. I’m not completely sure, but I think he’s the guy I saw with Kate. She wanted us to go to that nightclub, so… I don’t know… there’s something strange going on here.

In the middle of the formation of gangsters, there was a tall guy with short blonde hair, square jaw and a menacing look. Powerful arms, covered with tattoos, crossed against his massive naked chest and abs that seemed carved in stone.

Elise noted something: A tattoo near his right clavicle. It was a number 20 with the head of a wolf, showing its teeth menacingly, inside the cero. She saw that all the gangsters had the same tattoo, some in their chests and some in their arms.

 

[meomeo]

Elise's dark brown eyes fixated on her iPhone as the pixelated image slowly came into focus. A most unusual photo indeed. She frowned and leaned her behind against the counter, running her free hand through her mane, as she is known to do when she gets frustrated.

"I... their tattoos. I've seen them before, or maybe heard someone talk about them. But, gosh, I couldn't place 'em now..."

Elise thought she could use some fresh air. She pushed off from the counter and lifted her black leather jacket from the coat rack. She had planned on changing out of her wifebeater and jeggings but... well... first things first. She had a bad feeling about this business Kate had gotten herself into, and it needs immediate attention.

She slipped her sinewy, 5'4" 115 lbs frame - a tiny but bit-size dynamite -through the front door of the temporary dressing room. Outside, the overcast sky was cast in a hue of orange as the sun started to set in the far off horizon. The clouds threatened rain. Elise slung her jacket over her shoulder and speed-walked to her car, moving like a graceful gazelle with her long, purposeful strides. "Yeah, definitely something strange. Jennifer, you better call the police. File a missing person. We could explain it if Kate turns up alright." Gosh, she hopes Kate turns up alright. "Keep in touch." She killed the line.

She beeped her F-150 truck and climbed in, depositing her jacket in the passenger seat. Closing the door and flipping the car keys in her palm, Elise wracked her brain for that elusive memory. She turned on her iPhone screen and stared at the picture again. I've definitely seen it somewhere. The thought that Kate might be in the wrong hands right this moment ate at her... she really needs to figure this out fast. Was it a biker's club she heard about? A gang? Damn it...

 

[ogion]

-Ok, I'll talk to the police, -agreed Jennfer-, I'll get back to you if I find out anything.

While she was driving, Elise wracked her brains, trying to remember the relationship between tattoos and a vague memory that she could not grasp.

Suddenly it came to her. She had seen a tv show in which they said that street gangs identified themselves with tattoos. The police used tattoo records in order to connect each gang member with his group.