Who are you?

Sonia part one.

Chapter five. 9/23/2021

Waking up this morning, my feet drag by my parent's bedroom where my mother is already crying. She grieves her firstborn and I can't blame her. We all miss Mallory. My father, the usual "man's man," also grieves. He tries to fill the void by caring for my little brother as much as possible, but it has become almost smothering.

It is a Saturday, so I don't have the burden of going to school. I used to love school, but now it is just filled with people and their fruitless apologies. The teachers went easy on me, but since it has been over a month since her disappearance, they have decided it's time to move on and they are probably right.

I started to set into my typical routine by settling in at my desk. Puzzles helped me pass the time. Why focus on real issues when I can solve fake ones? Waiting for the website to load, I take out my notebook. When the puzzle appeared, an instant wave of dread hit me. This is not the puzzle I want to solve. Moving to my next go-to, I picked up a book. Dread. I guess doing the same thing for over a month gets a little bland.

The day passes by. I get my usual text from Julie making sure I am doing okay. Eventually, I decided to get in my car and revisit the ditch where we found Mallory's phone.
I walked. Alone. Mallory, where could you have gone? We miss you. Mom misses you. I miss you. The ditch stares at me blankly, refusing to give me any hint about my sister. I want to solve this puzzle. I want to go back to the normalcy my family once knew.

Talking to the air, I sighed, "Mallory, where could you have gone? You could have left some sort of clue. A sign. A...something," I kick the rocks under my feet, a lump forming in my throat. "Nothing has felt right since you disappeared. I know I did not show it much when you were around, but I miss having someone who endured mom and dad's fights with me." I look away from the ditch, unable to look at it any longer. "People will never quite understand my life as you did. I know I didn't appreciate you when you were around and I am so sorry for that. I-"

I am forced silent by the sound of tires on gravel.

I am running.

Their shoes are quicker than mine.

I think I know what happened to Mallory.