She Came for the City. She Stayed for War.

I stare at my phone, confused, angry, and upset as tears pool behind my eyes. A message from someone I thought was the love of my life. My everything. Caleb was my first serious relationship. I’d had other relationships, but they were all just silly high school puppy dog love relationships. What Caleb and I had was raw and real.

I’m sorry, Briar. It’s not you, it’s me. We’re done.

Couldn’t he have said something more original? Like “Briar, it hurts me to say this… I’ll always be grateful for the love and memories we shared, and I truly wish you happiness, but I think we should end things.” Apparently, that is too much to say to the one you’ve spent almost 3 years with. The one you talk about getting married and starting a family one day.

As I sit on the couch, in what I thought was our apartment, I have a million thoughts running through my head. What am I going to tell my friends? My family? All of my friends are friends with Caleb. I don’t know how I can face them all and still be around him. I can’t sit in this apartment right now. I need to get out. I knew just the place to go and the person to invite, Adalyn.

S.O.S. Meet me at our stop ASAP. I messaged.

On my way now. She responded.

Adalyn and I have been friends since preschool. We are practically sisters at this point. We’re each other's ride or die, and we always make time for each other. Our spot in our small town is the local coffee shop, Ground Theory. We like this place because it is a coffee shop and a bookstore. Adalyn and I are both big book readers. I typically stick to romance and fantasy. Adalyn likes to read dystopian, fiction-type novels. She entered the coffee shop not long after I did. We found a spot on the sofa that sat toward the back of the shop. It was always empty and quiet. The perfect place to relax and debrief with each other.

“He broke up with me over text, Adalyn. I don’t know what I’m going to do. I don’t feel like I can stay in the apartment because he is nowhere, but everywhere at the same time.” I say with tears slowly trailing down my cheeks.

“You’re welcome to come stay with me while you decide what you want to do. I have a spare bedroom that you can stay in.” She offers while holding my hand.

“Would it be premature to break my lease? I genuinely don’t know if I can stay there.” I question her.

“You do whatever your gut tells you. You will always have a place at my apartment while you are here.” She comforts me with her warm smile.

Three months later …

It’s been some time now since I took Adalyn up on her offer to move in with her while I thought about what to do now that Caleb and I broke up. I’ve spent the last three months eating, working, crying, and sleeping. I never saw this breakup coming, and now I know something has to change. I need a fresh start, I’ve told myself. A thought that has crossed my mind while I’ve been with Adalyn is to make a big move. Where, you might ask? New York City.

Moving to New York has been a thought for some time now. Always a thought, never the plan. Maybe I’m being dramatic, moving just because of a breakup. Our small town consists of a population of less than 1,000. It may sound like a lot of people, but everyone knows everyone, and many people have caught wind of our breakup and have been sympathetic, asking how I am. I’m done with all of the sympathies and want to be somewhere where no one knows who I am, and I can start from ground zero. I want to find out who I was and what I’m capable of. Am I scared? One hundred percent. Am I excited? Absolutely.

Adalyn has been my biggest supporter in this decision. She and my family, especially my brother James, for some reason, have been asking what my reason is for moving far away. My main reason is that it will challenge me the most. Making me step out of my shell and become more confident. I’m taking the risk of throwing myself in the deep end and praying that I can make it to the surface.

…

Adalyn and I took a few days off from work to go to New York and start apartment searching. I decided that I didn’t want to find a room to rent and live with roommates, and instead, I was going to go find my own place. The first day there, we decided to just have a day to tour the city and see all of the big attractions. Adalyn’s favorite was seeing the Statue of Liberty. Mine was The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

As we made our way around the museum, I wasn’t sure whether it was just the air conditioning or something else, but I kept getting goosebumps. I just kept having this odd feeling in my gut that maybe someone was watching us, but every time I looked around, I didn’t see anyone looking our way. Adalyn always says to trust my gut when I get these types of feelings, but maybe it was just nerves of being in a new place.

On our second day in the city, we looked at a few apartments in different parts of the city. We toured 3 different apartments. All were tiny… like shoebox tiny. I set realistic expectations when I started planning the move. I knew it was going to be a loud, busy city with a small apartment. Everything about the city gave me a rush, and it is exactly what I think I need in my life right now.

Just when I thought we weren’t going to find an apartment for me, the last one was the perfect place. It had character and plenty of natural light, making the space feel bigger. Adalyn was so excited when I signed the lease and made the first deposit for the apartment because that meant the next day would be shopping for decor and furniture. When I decided to move out of my old apartment back home, I decided to sell all of the furniture, as I didn’t want anything that Caleb and I shared.

Feeling the need to celebrate, Adalyn and I decided to go out to the most recommended nightclub in the city. We rushed back to the hotel after buying some furniture that would be delivered to the apartment next week. We both rushed to get ready for our night on the town. Running into our room, we put our phones on the chargers, put on our makeup and did our hair, and finally got dressed in the tight dresses that we never got a chance to wear.

The club wasn’t far from the hotel, so we decided to walk and take the subway for a few stops instead of getting an Uber. As we made our way there, I noticed a group of guys standing outside the club looking at us as we walked by. They looked like the type of guys that everyone tells you to stay away from. Dressed biker-like, they also all had the same tattoos. Maybe they were a biker group? I decided to shake the dangerous feeling I got from them and joined the queue to get into the club.

The nightclub was packed as it was a Saturday night. The club had two levels where two different DJs played. The lower level blasted EDM music tracks with women dancing on the platformed walls, and the upper level had more modern pop track lists playing. It was unlike anything I’d ever seen before. Our small town had some bars, but nothing like this. Adalyn and I stayed on the upper level the most, as neither of us was big into EDM music. As we stood at the bar waiting to get drinks, I couldn’t help but notice a guy standing at the other end of the bar staring at Adalyn. He was one of the guys I saw outside the club. I admit, though, the dangerous feeling I got from them only added to their attractiveness. I nudged Adalyn and brought the guy’s attention to hers. She didn’t want to leave me alone, but I knew she wanted to branch out on her own.

I continued to stand near the bar, making sure to keep my eye on Adalyn so I wouldn’t lose track of her. We made sure to share each other’s location before leaving the hotel so that we would be able to find each other and get in contact if we decided to go on our own. All of a sudden, I feel someone come up behind me. Startled, I jump and turn around to find someone I least expected to see in New York, let alone a club.

Standing in front of me was Zane. I haven’t seen Zane since I was in high school, which was 4 years ago. He was my brother’s best friend. Zane and I grew up around each other, and as we got older, he just became more of a bully. As he stands in front of me, I notice how much he has changed and forgot how to speak, apparently.

“What are you doing here?” He asked, as he looked at me with his dark brown eyes.

“I’m here with Adalyn. I’m moving to the city. Signed my lease and everything earlier.” I said, raising my voice so he could hear me above the music.

“You shouldn’t be here, Briar.” He said sternly, grabbed my hand, and pulled me towards another part of the club.

“What are you doing, Zane? Let me go!” I shouted at him, trying to loosen his hold on my hand until he brought us out onto the patio, where it was quieter, and let go.

“You and Adalyn need to leave here. Now.” He says in a demanding tone.

“Why? We just got here like an hour ago. We don’t want to leave, and you can’t just start telling me what to do. I haven’t seen you in four years, Zane, and I don’t even get a Hello. Briar, how are you doing?”

His lips curve up into a smirk as he says, “Hello, Briar, how are you doing?” I roll my eyes at his antics. I try to walk away, but he grabs me once again and pushes me up against the building wall, caging me in with his hands on either side of me.

“There are things you do not understand. You can’t be here tonight. You and Adalyn need to leave. Something is going down tonight, and I don’t want you to get hurt. Please let me get you and Adalyn out of here.” He says, sounding serious and concerned.

Zane may not have shown how he felt when he was still around back home, but he always made sure I was safe. I never understood why he felt like I needed protection, though. As I stared back at him, I could see that he was genuinely serious and that he wanted me to be safe.

“Okay, Zane. We will go, but you have to explain to me what is going on. I’m not leaving until you give me more than just something is going down tonight.” I say, urging him to give me something more.

“There are people here tonight who are not good men, Briar. I know I haven’t been the best at keeping in touch with you guys back home, but there is a reason. Now, will you please let me get you and Adalyn an Uber to go back to the hotel?” He asks.

I shake my head because I wanted to know more, but I accepted it for now. “Ok, Zane. Will you help me go find Adalyn? She’s still inside. I saw her dancing with another guy we met at the bar.”

Zane and I make our way back inside and go into the room where we were before we went to the patio. I didn’t see her, so I reached to grab my phone. It showed that she was still here, so why couldn’t I see her? I tried calling her, but no luck. Zane and I go to the bathrooms to see if she was in there, but to no avail. I follow the direction the location app is showing her phone is, and as I approach the location, I find her phone on the ground pushed up against the wall. I turn back to Zane with fear in my eyes. Where is she? What happened?

We continued to search around the club, but Adalyn was nowhere to be seen. When we finished searching through the entire club, we both stepped back outside because I was starting to panic and needed fresh air. Zane looks at me, concerned.

“Do you remember what the guy looked like?” He asked.

“Um… He had dark hair that hung in front of his eyes a little bit. He was wearing a leather jacket and jeans, and he had a tattoo on his neck. I couldn’t quite make out what it was, but it looked like a spider, maybe.” I rush through, my heart beating so hard it felt like it was going to burst out of my chest.

Zane just stared at me after I described the man. He was starting to freak me out, not saying a word. He then snapped out of it, but stepped away and put his hands on the railing with his head hanging between his shoulders.

“Zane. What is it? Do you know something about that guy?” I ask, scared about what he might say.

“Briar, we need to get you out of here. The man who took Adalyn is exactly why I urged you to leave sooner.” He says, looking defeated.

“Zane, tell me what is going on right now!” I demanded. Raising my voice to prove a point.

“Adalyn was taken by a group called The Night Arachnids, and they don’t take random people. They only take ones that their superiors tell them to. Most of those who were taken were taken as leverage for something or someone to get them to come out or give them something that is owed to them.” He explains.

I stand there staring at him, scared for Adalyn. What is happening to her? Is she hurt? In pain? I rake my hand through my hair, not sure how to feel. What I did feel, though, was my blood starting to boil under my skin.

“Come on, let's get you out of here finally.” He says as he holds out his hand and leads me to his car, which a valet has brought up to the curb.

Once I get into the car, he closes my door and walks around and gets into the driver’s seat. As we drive back to the hotel, we don’t speak to each other. The radio plays in the background, filling the silence between us. As I stare out the window, my mind is worried and scared for my best friend. After a few minutes, I turn towards Zane with fury in my eyes.

“I’m going to find her, Zane, and you are going to help me,” I state, leaving no room for questions or trying to get me to back down and let him handle it. I will do everything in my power to find her. New York doesn’t know anything about me, but they’re about to see the monster that hides deep inside me. Only one person has seen it, and he is sitting right next to me.