2: The Case of the Missing Girl**

### **Chapter 2: The Case of the Missing Girl**

Aiden's apartment was a reflection of his life: cluttered, dimly lit, and always on the edge of chaos. Files were scattered across his desk, half-opened takeout containers stacked precariously near the window, and an old fan hummed softly, barely cutting through the thick summer air. He tossed his jacket over a chair and headed straight for the fridge.

"Out of beer. Figures," he muttered, grabbing a half-full water bottle instead.

Before he could sit down, his phone buzzed again. It wasn't Mac this time. The name on the screen made him hesitate: **Naomi King**.

Aiden picked up. "Hey, Detective. What's up?"

Naomi's voice came through, low and urgent. "Aiden, I need a favor. Can you come down to the station?"

Aiden's brows furrowed. Naomi only called when something serious was going down. "What happened?"

"There's a missing person case, and... something about it doesn't add up. I could use your... unique insight."

Aiden's heartbeat quickened. He had long stopped pretending that his ability to see strange things was just a weird quirk. Whenever Naomi needed his "insight," it usually meant the supernatural was involved. And that wasn't good news.

"On my way," he said, already grabbing his keys.

---

The police station was buzzing with the usual chaos—officers on the phone, suspects being processed, and a few tired detectives buried under paperwork. Naomi was waiting for him at her desk, her usual no-nonsense expression in place, though there was a tightness to her jaw that Aiden hadn't seen before.

She nodded toward him as he approached. "Thanks for coming."

Aiden leaned against her desk. "Missing person? What's the story?"

Naomi glanced around, making sure no one was listening, before she handed him a thin file. "18-year-old girl, name's Emily Parker. Went missing two days ago. Last seen near the south district, the old part of town."

Aiden flipped through the file. Emily's smiling face stared back at him from a photo, her bright eyes full of life. Her parents had filed the report, but there were no signs of a struggle, no ransom demands, nothing that suggested she'd been taken.

"Why do you think this is... different?" Aiden asked.

Naomi hesitated, tapping her fingers against her desk. "Her friends reported seeing something strange the night she disappeared. They said she walked into an alley and... didn't come out. One of them swears they saw her shadow moving, like... it wasn't hers."

Aiden's stomach tightened. Shadows. Again.

He closed the file and looked at Naomi. "You're not buying it, are you?"

She crossed her arms. "You know me. I don't believe in this supernatural crap. But you..." She trailed off, her eyes meeting his. "You see things I can't. And this... feels wrong."

Aiden stared at the file, Emily's face haunting him. He'd been trying to keep a low profile, avoid getting too deep into the supernatural mess that surrounded Lumira. But if shadows were involved, he couldn't ignore it.

"All right," he said, standing up. "I'll check it out."

---

The south district was the oldest part of Lumira, a place where the city's history seeped into every crumbling building and cracked street. It was also one of the eeriest parts of town after dark. As Aiden made his way toward the alley where Emily had last been seen, he couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. The shadows here were longer, darker—like they were waiting for something.

He found the alley easily enough, just as described in the report. It was narrow, with walls that seemed to close in on him the farther he went. Trash littered the ground, and the air smelled damp, like rain had come through recently. But that wasn't what set Aiden on edge.

It was the silence.

Lumira was never silent, not even at night. But here, in this alley, it felt like the city had gone still, like it was holding its breath.

Aiden scanned the area, his instincts kicking in. Something had definitely been here. The shadows clung to the walls, darker than they should've been, shifting slightly when he moved. His eyes narrowed, focusing on the far end of the alley.

"Emily," he whispered under his breath, hoping for some sign, some clue.

As if on cue, the temperature dropped. Aiden felt the chill crawl up his spine, and the shadows began to stir, curling like smoke.

Then he heard it.

A faint whisper, barely audible, but enough to make his pulse race. It wasn't a voice he recognized, but it was definitely human—if barely.

"Aiden..."

His head snapped around, eyes darting to the shadows shifting along the brick wall. His grip tightened on the knife he always carried, even though it felt useless against something he couldn't touch. The whisper grew louder, more insistent.

"Aiden..."

Suddenly, the shadows surged forward, wrapping around his legs before he could react. They were cold—freezing, like they had been pulled from the depths of something ancient and malevolent.

Aiden tried to move, but the more he struggled, the tighter they gripped. His breath came out in short gasps, his heart hammering in his chest.

"Not again," he hissed, his eyes scanning the alley for an escape.

Just as the shadows began to pull him down, something bright flashed at the mouth of the alley. The shadows recoiled instantly, retreating like smoke in the wind. Aiden stumbled backward, gasping for air, his legs shaky.

He looked up to see a figure standing at the entrance to the alley—a woman, her silhouette backlit by the streetlight. She stepped forward, her face coming into view.

It was Elara.

"Seems like you've found yourself in quite the predicament, Aiden," she said with a playful smirk, though there was something serious in her eyes. "Didn't think you'd be getting into this kind of trouble so soon."

Aiden glared at her, catching his breath. "Elara. What the hell are you doing here?"

She shrugged, her eyes flicking to the shadows that still lingered near the walls. "I could ask you the same thing. Looks like you've attracted some... unwanted attention."

"Yeah, well, it wasn't on purpose," Aiden muttered, running a hand through his hair.

Elara took a few steps closer, her eyes sharp as she examined the alley. "Those shadows—they're not normal. Not even for Lumira."

Aiden nodded, his mind racing. "I'm starting to get that feeling."

She smiled faintly. "Looks like you and I have some work to do."

---

Aiden and Elara's uneasy alliance had begun. The shadows were more dangerous than Aiden had realized, and Emily's disappearance was just the start. Something darker was at play, something that neither of them fully understood. But one thing was clear: the deeper Aiden delved into the supernatural world, the more entangled he would become.

And in Lumira, the shadows were always watching.

---