The Chamber [Sequel to Silence]

28

 It was a lonely walk back to the house, Antonia staying behind to help clean up the body, but I knew my Grandmother was waiting for me. Though we hadn’t been in contact since I left for the Capitol, I knew she’d sense that I’d had a close relationship with Riley. I knew she’d have sympathy. But when I arrived, things were not as I expected. The house was quiet. I couldn’t hear the sounds of my Grandmother’s knitting needles clicking together, or her footsteps as she paced the floors impatiently, awaiting my arrival.

 “Grandmother?” I shouted. The silence that followed was unnerving. She knew I was going to be home, and every other year, she’d waited in the house for me, so why wasn’t she there? Something was wrong.

 I headed to the kitchen. A half-drunk cup of coffee sat on the worktop, next to an uneaten loaf of bread. I dipped my finger in the coffee. It was stone cold, and the bread was beginning to grow mouldy. Grandmother never left food out to rot, or dishes unwashed. I suspected she’d been gone a few days. And she’d left in a hurry.

 I ran up the stairs to check the bedrooms. Grandmother’s room had no clues to where she was, but in my bedroom, a note rested upon my pillow. It had been sealed at some point, but someone had opened it already. Someone had been in the house. Someone knew Grandmother was missing, and they were trying to figure out where she was. I picked up the letter, scanning it quickly. It was Grandmother’s handwriting, but the letter didn’t seem to be written by her.

 Dear Arrian,

 I dint tell you before you left, but the day you return going to markets. I need to maindain my life’s rhythm while your away. I hope you don’t mynd me being away when you get home. I am sure our District has sucseeded and I will congratulat you when I see you. I should be home at around one o’clock in the afternoon.

 Love from Grandmother.

 I read it over several times. The spelling mistakes were evident, but it seemed uncharacteristic of Grandmother to make them. To someone who didn’t know her, they would put the mistakes down to poor education. Most women Grandmother’s age hadn’t learned to read or write as children, since schools were a privilege then, not an obligation, and therefore only the richer families could afford it. But though my Grandmother hadn’t attended school, she’d taught herself to read and write, and took pride in her grammar and spelling. Perhaps she’d been in a hurry, but it seemed as though she might be hiding something. Something she hoped the intruders would miss, but that I would not.

 I began to look closer at the mistakes. Leaving the d out of didn’t was just plain lazy. I made a note of it at the bottom of the letter. She’d missed out the I in her sentence and market wasn’t meant to be plural. I swapped the d for a t in maintain. Took note of the misspelt version of you’re. Scribbled an i where Grandmother had wrote a y in mind. Corrected the word succeeded with a c instead of an s. Frowned at the misspelling of congratulate. And finally, I scanned over the time she’d promised to arrive home. It was much past one o’clock when I found the note, but something struck me.

 “Military time,” I muttered, noting down the afternoon version of one o’clock. I’d cracked her code.

 District 13.  

 I was on my feet in an instant. I took out the bag I kept in my cupboard, already filled with clothes, medicine and food for a quick getaway. I didn’t have much time, knowing that the next cargo train was due within the next few hours. But there was somewhere I had to go first. Something I had to do.

 I knocked for Antonia, and without a word, she followed me. I hadn’t told her where we were going, but she trusted me, and we set off at a brisk walk. We made our way to the poorer side of town. Everyone was in their houses, lying low as Peacekeepers patrolled the area. It was clear that after the incident with Otto, they had upped their guard, and I was certain they were looking for Jordan. After all, though a lot of people were involved in the attack, he was the one who had initiated it. I just hoped I was able to find him first. Peacekeepers watched us suspiciously, but we acted casual, holding hands and pretending to gossip and laugh as we walked.