skinny. I’ve got blond hair, a bit longer than yours. Wait . . . OK, I just measured. If I stand straight, with my arms by my sides, my hair comes to about halfway between my shoulders and my elbows.
I’ll be at the arches at ten a.m. I’ll be wearing black jeans and a tan wool coat on top of lots of layers. It’s really cold today!
Fingers crossed for the weather. It’s calm today, so let’s hope it stays like this.
See you in just over twenty hours!
Your friend,
Mia
Friday morning, I glanced at my watch for the fiftieth time. It was nearly ten o’clock. Gran hadn’t even gotten out of bed, so Mom and I had been doing the breakfasts.
Everyone had eaten but there was still all the cleaning up to do. I didn’t want to leave Mom to do it all on her own, and I had no idea when Gran was going to get up. Mom said we shouldn’t disturb her. She hadn’t been sleeping well since Grandad disappeared, so if she was actually managing to get some sleep now, the least we could do was let her rest.
I’d already walked Flake so I’d be free to meet up with Dee, but I was still running late.
“I just don’t know what we’re going to do about all this,” Mom said. “I mean, we haven’t heard anything useful from the police, and he’s been gone a week now. I’m so worried.”
“I know, Mom. I am too,” I said. What else could I say? The police didn’t know anything. Gran was hardly speaking to anyone. She walked around the place like a ghost. Mom was pretty much running the pub and she and I were cleaning the rooms.
For the first time in my life, I felt myself starting to get angry with Grandad. How could he do this? Didn’t he care about any of us?
I refused — absolutely point-blank
refused
— to consider that anything terrible might have happened to him. That simply wasn’t an option. So the only option left was to get angry with him.
I had to get out of there.
“Mom, could I . . . um, could I go out for a bit?” I asked hesitantly, once I’d finished stacking the dishwasher.
Mom turned to look at me. “Out?” she asked with such shock in her voice that for a second I actually wondered if I’d accidentally asked if I could fly to the moon on the back of a unicorn.
“Yes, it’s just . . . I’m meeting a friend.”
“Oh, yes. Of course.” Mom smiled at me. Her eyes looked so tired.
“Mom, he’ll come back,” I said. I didn’t know if I believed it, but I wanted to offer her some hope and I didn’t have anything else.
“I’m sure he will, hon. You go out.”
I kissed her on the cheek. “I won’t be gone long. Thank you.”
Then I grabbed my coat and ran as fast as I could down to the harbor.
Dee wasn’t there.
In fact, no one was there at all. The beach was empty. Most of the fishing boats were out, so the harbor was practically empty, too. And the fair that was supposed to be going on all day — well, I could see a few people putting up a booth at the far side of the harbor, but it certainly didn’t look like something that could qualify as the high point of the season.
I stood at the arches, waiting. She was probably just late.
But it was quarter past ten.
I
was the one who was late. Maybe she’d been here, but she’d gone off to look for me. Or maybe she’d just given up on me, decided I wasn’t coming.
But then she’d have to be here
somewhere,
wouldn’t she?
Maybe she and her dad hadn’t come across to Porthaven at all.
I looked through the arches, but couldn’t see to the other side. It was quite choppy, and mid-tide, and the water in the arches came halfway up my shins.
Good thing I’d followed Dee’s lead and decided to wear my rain boots.
I rolled my jeans up and waded through the archway.
The boat was there! So Dee
was
here! But where?
Maybe she’d left me a note.
I approached the boat. It was bouncing around on the lapping waves. I gripped the side rails and hurled myself sideways into the boat.
I landed with a thump on the deck and
I’ll be at the arches at ten a.m. I’ll be wearing black jeans and a tan wool coat on top of lots of layers. It’s really cold today!
Fingers crossed for the weather. It’s calm today, so let’s hope it stays like this.
See you in just over twenty hours!
Your friend,
Mia
Friday morning, I glanced at my watch for the fiftieth time. It was nearly ten o’clock. Gran hadn’t even gotten out of bed, so Mom and I had been doing the breakfasts.
Everyone had eaten but there was still all the cleaning up to do. I didn’t want to leave Mom to do it all on her own, and I had no idea when Gran was going to get up. Mom said we shouldn’t disturb her. She hadn’t been sleeping well since Grandad disappeared, so if she was actually managing to get some sleep now, the least we could do was let her rest.
I’d already walked Flake so I’d be free to meet up with Dee, but I was still running late.
“I just don’t know what we’re going to do about all this,” Mom said. “I mean, we haven’t heard anything useful from the police, and he’s been gone a week now. I’m so worried.”
“I know, Mom. I am too,” I said. What else could I say? The police didn’t know anything. Gran was hardly speaking to anyone. She walked around the place like a ghost. Mom was pretty much running the pub and she and I were cleaning the rooms.
For the first time in my life, I felt myself starting to get angry with Grandad. How could he do this? Didn’t he care about any of us?
I refused — absolutely point-blank
refused
— to consider that anything terrible might have happened to him. That simply wasn’t an option. So the only option left was to get angry with him.
I had to get out of there.
“Mom, could I . . . um, could I go out for a bit?” I asked hesitantly, once I’d finished stacking the dishwasher.
Mom turned to look at me. “Out?” she asked with such shock in her voice that for a second I actually wondered if I’d accidentally asked if I could fly to the moon on the back of a unicorn.
“Yes, it’s just . . . I’m meeting a friend.”
“Oh, yes. Of course.” Mom smiled at me. Her eyes looked so tired.
“Mom, he’ll come back,” I said. I didn’t know if I believed it, but I wanted to offer her some hope and I didn’t have anything else.
“I’m sure he will, hon. You go out.”
I kissed her on the cheek. “I won’t be gone long. Thank you.”
Then I grabbed my coat and ran as fast as I could down to the harbor.
Dee wasn’t there.
In fact, no one was there at all. The beach was empty. Most of the fishing boats were out, so the harbor was practically empty, too. And the fair that was supposed to be going on all day — well, I could see a few people putting up a booth at the far side of the harbor, but it certainly didn’t look like something that could qualify as the high point of the season.
I stood at the arches, waiting. She was probably just late.
But it was quarter past ten.
I
was the one who was late. Maybe she’d been here, but she’d gone off to look for me. Or maybe she’d just given up on me, decided I wasn’t coming.
But then she’d have to be here
somewhere,
wouldn’t she?
Maybe she and her dad hadn’t come across to Porthaven at all.
I looked through the arches, but couldn’t see to the other side. It was quite choppy, and mid-tide, and the water in the arches came halfway up my shins.
Good thing I’d followed Dee’s lead and decided to wear my rain boots.
I rolled my jeans up and waded through the archway.
The boat was there! So Dee
was
here! But where?
Maybe she’d left me a note.
I approached the boat. It was bouncing around on the lapping waves. I gripped the side rails and hurled myself sideways into the boat.
I landed with a thump on the deck and
Similar Books
