Robbers

thirteen

// thirteen //

           Ryan’s truck was parked in the driveway of his house, but when Ella knocked a bit too loudly on the front door, it was his mother who answered.

            “Oh, Ella,” she said in a surprised tone, and Ella felt odd that Ryan’s mom had even remembered her name. Julie Hunter’s dark brown hair was swept up into a tangled ponytail, the strands appearing frizzy and broken from lack of care. There were bags under her eyes just above the cheekbones, and they didn’t go away when Julie leaned slightly out of the doorway into the murky sunlight. “How are you?”

            “Fine, thank you,” Ella replied quickly, and in her haste, she forgot to return the polite greeting which had always been ingrained in her practically since birth. “Can I talk to Ryan?”

            Julie gave Ella a small smile, with pale lips that didn’t appear to have much practice at the expression. “Ryan’s not home right now, actually.”

            “What? But his truck is still here.”

            Ryan’s mom leaned further out to peek around the white-paneled siding of the house, sighing heavily when she spotted the sight of the dark blue vehicle parked beside her own. “I suppose it is. He must have gotten picked up by a friend – he never tells me where he goes anymore.”

            Ella heard the slightly hurt note in Julie’s voice, and she suddenly felt extremely awkward at the hinted fault lines in Ryan’s family. She didn’t have time to stammer out something in response to that – a statement which probably would have made things even more uncomfortable, anyway – finding Ryan was more important. “Do you know where he would have gone?”

            “I’m not sure,” she told her tiredly. There was another sigh as Julie leaned against the doorway, the open front door swinging against her hip. “I can have him call you when he turn’s up, if you’d like.”

            “Please, Mrs. Hunter,” Ella blurted, “I really need to see him now.”

            Ella’s tone had been pleading, certainly more desperate than she would have liked, but the news report from earlier was still burning in her mind and she couldn’t ignore the growing nausea within the pit of her stomach. But Ryan’s mom gave another smile, shaking her head and saying kindly, “Just call me Julie, honey. I know Ryan sometimes goes to the pier down by that old log mill; he’s said that one of his friends lives down that road just off the highway. I don’t think he’d be anywhere near the school. That’s the only place I can think of.”

            Ella opened her mouth to thank her, but a deep voice called out from further inside the house. She hadn’t understood what whoever it was had said, but Julie gave Ella another tired smile. “I should go back in. I left spaghetti on the stove.”

            “Okay,” Ella said quickly, backing down onto the first step of the porch. “Thank you. I’m, um, I’m going to see if he’s at the pier.”

            Julie nodded, the corners of her eyes crinkling as she gave Ella another smile. The skin was smooth where laughter lines should have been, and there were faint wrinkles between Julie’s eyebrows as though they were usually drawn together in seriousness. Ella hadn’t noticed this the first time she had met Ryan’s mother, but she had a feeling that this was the most smiling she had done in quite some time.

            Ella was halfway across the cracked pavement of the driveway when Julie called after her. She turned, seeing Ryan’s mom standing out on the porch with her arms crossed tightly against the chilly late autumn air. Julie’s voice was careful as she told her, “Do me a favor, Ella. If…if Ryan doesn’t want to come back home with you, please just stop by and let me know he’s alright. Even if he doesn’t come back.”