Battling Guilt Part 2: Petra's Cousin Disappears

"Got your 'ID' ready?" Petra said, eyeing Thor as he nervously fumbled in his pocket to grab his wallet. "No. I'm not in a people mood tonight but I'm only going because of you. So if we get caught I'm going to resent you."

Petra rolled her eyes. "Come on cous', live a little. Where's your sense of adventure?" Thor stared at her with a stoic expression.

"I don't have a sense of adventure. I have a desire to wake up and remember my own name in the morning."

Petra yanked Thor by the arm and immediately trudged through the crowd of people to the front of the line where a bouncer she was very familiar with was waiting for them. "Frank, you think you could let us in ahead of everyone?" A tall, broad shouldered man, about 6'4, with a shiny bald head and a shaven goatee greeted her with a brite white smile.

"Anything for you babe."

She held out her ID, and looked over at Thor's which was naturally fake, which was a favor she pulled with a friend. Of course, Thor being the concientious and goodie two-shoes that he was, was against it. But he sacrificed his moral compass to appease Petra. Another thing she'd end up regretting after Thor's death.

Frank and Petra never dated; their relationship was very platonic yet they always flirted like they were going to hook-up. It never happened, but Frank respected the hell out of Petra due to her outspoken and stubborn nature when it came to the lurking predators in the club; she wouldn't stand for it when they sought her out, and she certainly didn't stand for it when they preyed on the innocence of young women. If a creep even looked at her or someone else funny (man or woman) she would deal with them.

They would either end up on the floor via her fist, or they'd scurry out of the club like cockroaches. And while bouncers were notorious for doing nothing for victims of club harassment, Frank was different. Petra made his job ten times easier, which is why he had mad respect for her.

As they entered the club,Petra could feel the blaring hip-hop music send shockwaves of excitement and adrenaline through her body. She couldn't help but lose herself in the music with a man dancing with her on the right, as well as a woman on her left. She was almost too consumed in the music to notice Thor's glaringly obvious discomfort.

"Thor, stop being a sour puss!! Come join us! Go get a drink! Be merry! Have fun!" Thor shook his head. "Ya know what, I think I am going to head home. You go ahead without me."

Petra stopped swaying her hips to the beat and grunted before pulling Thor to the bar. "One shot of tequila please, on me. This poor sap needs to loosen up." Thor shook his waved his hands and shook his head at the bartender. "No thanks, I'm out cous." Petra motioned for the bartender to pour the tequila and shrugged her shoulders. "Suit yourself," she said, guzzling down the nail-polish flavored juice and feeling it hit her stomach like acid.

She watched as Thor shuffled his way through the crowd. But then, something started to feel off to her. She couldn't put her finger on it, but as Thor disappeared from view, her gut instinct told her to follow him. But instead, she ordered another shot of tequila and found her previous dance partners from before, and continued to drink and be merry like she had planned before. But one hour in, and she still couldn't shake that gut instinct. She decided to head to the girls bathroom and call Thor. She dialed his number five times. No answer. Probably asleep by now, she tried to reassure herself. But no. Something definitely wasn't right.

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