The Pond

I use to watch my daughter Lily, walk everyday after or before her school started down to the beautiful little pond covered by the forest surrounding our house. She never seemed to be in much danger, the pond was only small and you could wade all the way to the other side of the pond without your head going under water. 

She use to come back acting strangely, not talking. Though I never found it important, I thought it was all about this "growing up" act of hers. 

But I was wrong. 

Last Monday I let Lily go down to the pond, sitting on my usual comfy blue chair with a cup of nice hot coffee and a book. I watched her walking down in her floral dress and her lemon coloured jumper it tied in neatly with her long brown orange hair. I had read about half way into my book before noticing the time and how dark it was becoming. It had been three hours since Lily had gone. Maybe she had gone inside said the little voice in my head as I breathed anxiously getting out of my chair. 

I ran up to the house "Lily?!" I called out jogging up the stairs to her bedroom. Her room was empty and as dark as it had ever been. A door opened down stairs. It couldn't of been James as he was still at work. 

"Lily?" I called out again my heart stammering as I creeped down the stairs. I looked around the corner, the door leading out into the back yard was standing open. "Lily!" I said louder this time. The door slammed shut. It was my imagination I told myself the door was never open and the door never shut. I repeated this to myself, walking away from the door and turning towards the couch. Sitting down I curled up, waiting for James to return from work. I couldn't bear going out there alone. 

When James had returned it was 11:33pm. I had been watching the clock in case Lily came home. The door had shut I jumped up only to see James walking in to the room. He looked at me strangely "Cindy? Are you okay?" he asked. 

"No!" I screamed, crying "Lily went down to the pond and she hasn't come back, and the door shut before and I thought it was her and it wasn't! I think she's still down at the lake!" 

James looked scared but also annoyed "Why didn't you go down there!" 

"I was scared!" I stuttered but I knew that wasn't a good enough answer. 

James dropped his bags and grabbed the torch near on the table. "Are you coming?" he said. I nodded quickly getting up. We ran down the back yard into the forest which was dark and gloomy and unilluminating. We followed the path down to the pond. The torch shone even though it was one of those high power ones it only emit light a tiny bit ahead. 

We reached the pond the torch made no light against the subtle slightly glimmering pool. The water was still which was unusual as I had never seen water as still as that before. 

Something dark shone off from the torch on the other side of the pond. I started to wade into the water. I reached, outstretching my hand as I could not see much. 

The water was now reaching my waist. The pond was getting deeper and deeper even though she knew this was not possible. The water never got past your knees, this wasn't possible. 

"Is she their?" shouted James my hands kept reaching out. 

"I don't know!" I whispered even though I knew she was in the pond. My head was nearly under that water by the time I caught on to something.  

"Lily?" I asked questionably. 

The face of the thing I had caught onto was of Lily. It was dark and colourless her eyes were open, they were usually a bright green but now they were black. It was as if something had sucked the happiness and meaning out of her. 

"Cindy is Lily their?!" there was worry in his voice. Which made me feel even more guilty for where she was right now. 

"Yes!" I cried out to him my voice slightly whimpering. 

"Is she okay?!" I heard James call sounding distant. I could hear a splash in the water he was planning to come in. To find us. 

"No." I called out plainly. 

I was gripping Lily's hand when the water started to-- well it seemed to-- grab her? I didn't even know if that was possibly. Lily went down under the water. I struggled to keep onto her. What ever was pulling her seemed to be very strong and didn't want me to hang on. I failed to keep hold and watched her plunge into the darkness of this pond. 

I ducked underneath the dullness of the pond. Lily was no where in sight, she couldn't of gone anywhere this was only a pond. 

The sand from the pond was suddenly coming into sight and it seemed to be getting closer to the surface. My face was suddenly in the sand. I had scrambled to get my face out of the water as my husband came through the sands. 

"Where is she?" James asked looking at me his eyes shone with anger. 

"She... S-She was right here!" I stumbled "S-Sh-She just disappeared into the water!" 

"Thats impossible. There's hardly any water in this pond." 

I was still trembling as we went up to the house. I was on the couch when James called the police. Saying how she went missing near the pond and how she had never gone anywhere without there permission and how she had gone to the pond many times without them watching. 

The police had come at 5am in the morning half an hour since we had searched for her. We had talked for a couple of minutes and then they had asked where she went to. We showed them down the path. It had seemed as if we had been walking for hours the pond was here. We should've been passed it by now. 

"It's here." I said looking over at James. 

"Um, ma'am. There's no pond." said one of the men. 

"It's definitely near here." James said confirming what I said. 

We had kept walking for a little while, this path had definitely lead straight into the pond. This couldn't be happening this wasn't possible. We hadn't made up this pond. Nothing seemed to be right about this. 

"Ma'am we'll have a search warrant around. We'll be sure to find this pond and your daughter. Just go up to your house and rest with your husband." he smiled. Turning to talk on his two way radio speaking quietly and quickly. 

Even though it had not been 24 hours since there daughter disappeared they still searched and searched. It seemed as if it had gone on for days. But I knew where she was she was. In that pond. James had told them over and over again that she had gone near the pond. They just shook there heads and said that they couldn't find such evidence of a pond. 

Finally a geophysicist had come with a map showing the water levels in our area. It showed no signs that a pond ever existed and even if it did it would've taken so long to form as it would've needed a water source to get it's water which of that it had none. 

But I had seen it. I knew it had been there even though nobody listened.