Gone Missing

Patsy stared out of the kitchen window. Last week’s storm had left big streaks on the panes. I should get out there and clean them. Her eyes wandered across the fading green wall paint to the calendar and the picture of snowmen on the December page. Stupid for an Australian calendar. I’ll choose a better one for 1972. Her tea had gone cold so she stood up to throw it in the sink.

            She peeped into the lounge where her daughter Sally and friend Hannah were doing a jigsaw. Patsy wondered where her son Tim had got to and realised she should look for him but the girls’ voices caught her attention. Hannah was saying, ‘Maybe your dad doesn’t love your mum any more.’

            ‘Don’t be stupid. Of course he does,’ Sally answered. ‘They were always kissing and cuddling before he left.’

            Patsy knew she should tell the kids where Gary was but it was too hard to find the words. She would wait a little longer.

            Tim rushed into the kitchen yelling, ‘I’m thirsty.’

            ‘Get a drink of water from the tap, then,’ Patsy told him.

            Tim took his water into the lounge and plonked himself down with the girls. They ignored him so he found a book and curled up on the sofa. His mouth moved with his finger across the page.

            ‘What’s the story?’ Hannah asked.‘It’s called Gone Missing. About a dog that disappears. Hey, Sal, is Dad lost like the dog? Will they find him?’ he asked.

            ‘How would I know? I’ve asked Mum but she won’t tell me anything.’

READ THE REST OF THIS STORY IN ‘AWAKENINGS’ – anthology of adult short stories available on Smashwords.