The Fountain Girl

Chapter 22

Bryan and his entire gang of friends weren't at school the next day. In the usual dim lighting of the classroom in the early morning, everyone in my class was speculating and forming rumors. "What do you think happened? Every single one of them aren't here..." It was queer, to feel such a mysterious atmosphere circulating the room.

Class had started without the five boys. They were out hiding with Anna, I knew it. What would they do to her?

Throughout the day's lessons, I turned this question over and over in my mind, drumming my fingers on my wooden desk so quickly and loudly that Mr. Swathesburg told me to stop.

I was afraid. Afraid of all the things they would or could've done to young Anna. She was innocent. Naive. And she would be afraid too.

I formulate a plan to go find Anna. Would I go first to people that knew Bryan and his gang well? Maybe their families? Were they at home? Surely their parents must have found out if they had brought a little girl home.

Would I alert the police? I didn't think that it would be the cleverest of decisions. They would blame me, first of all, for being an irresponsible and incompetent guardian. Secondly, I knew that the police of South Hampington weren't the most efficient police force in the whole of America. There wasn't any point.

In the afternoon I decided to stick with the first plan. I persuaded Bryan's friend to hand me his address, written on a piece of paper. 'Fourth Avenue, Magpie House 2'.

I would've laughed at the 'Magpie house' if I weren't as anxious to find Anna. I set off down to Bryan's house using my phone's map and eventually reached a brown-bricked, gloomy looking multi-floored house. The lawn was strewn with weeds and the occasional cigarette box. His parents must have been smoking.

I rapped my knuckles smartly on the mahogany door. There was a faint click and the door swung open slowly. A handsome, tall man stood in front of me. "Sorry to disturb you, mister. I'm looking for Bryan."

"Are you one of his classmates? Dreadful, isn't he sometimes? Somewhat of an attitude since he's been a teenager. I don't suppose you get the same kinds of problems as he does. You seem pleasant enough. He wasn't home yesterday, oddly enough. Do you know what happened to him? Maybe he'll come round tonight." The man commented.

"Well, you're his father, are you? Could I trouble you so much as to call this number when Bryan comes home so that I can talk to him?" I asked the man. He nodded his head with a smile and I passed him a piece of paper with my phone number written on it with messy, scribbled handwriting.

I bade him a good day and set off back to my house. I wondered why Bryan had not gone home the night before. Was he hiding out somewhere with his friends with Anna in captive? I thought that I would go visit all the other four houses so that I could confirm that suspicion.

I sighed with sadness as I put my hands in my jacket pockets. Anna, I'll save you.