The Dangerous Doors of Shannon Anderson

Chapter Thirteen

It was just as dark in my room as when I had left it, and that seemed like a good sign. Maybe only a few minutes had passed - even a few hours wouldn't be disastrous. I refused to acknowledge the fact that the same amount of time I spent in books had thus far always equaled the real amount of time passing back home, never mind how many months might elapse in the book world while I was trudging through reality. But maybe this time was different.

When I heard my mom's voice coming up from the kitchen, I knew that I was wrong, and that I was in trouble. I just stood there for a moment, frozen in the middle of my room, steadying myself. How much time had to have passed for Dad to have gotten so worried that he'd called Mom, who had then flown all the way back to Iowa from California? Certainly more than a couple hours. I headed for the stairs, though it felt more like I was walking towards the gallows.

My knee and ankle ached as I descended gingerly, trying to step as softly and quietly as a cat. But despite the dull pain, the angry swelling and nasty bruises had vanished completely. I wasn't even muddy, and something about that - that there was no sign of everything I had been through - really upset me. I chewed my lip hard in a feeble attempt to keep myself from completely losing it.

I paused just before I reached the bottom of the stairs. From my hiding place in the shadows I saw my mom leaning against the kitchen counter, tapping away at the tiny keyboard on her phone, and Dad sitting at the table with his hands around a coffee mug, purplish bags under his eyes. It was then I realized that I couldn't just pop into the kitchen as if I was coming downstairs for breakfast. If I really had been in New Switzerland for three days, surely they'd searched the house for me - surely they'd scoured my room. I would have to find a way to make it seem like I was just coming back into the house from someplace else if I wanted to avoid awkward questions about how I'd managed to stay hidden in my bedroom for so long. Doing my best to channel Jessa's graceful (and, more importantly, silent) ballerina steps, I slipped down the staircase into the dark living room and tiptoed through the house towards the back door.

I wrapped my hand around the cold knob and took a deep breath. (Since when had doors become such adrenaline rush-inducing objects in my life?) I pulled the door open as quietly as I could, waited a few seconds, closed it gently, and took the first small step towards my fate.

"Did you hear that?" I heard Mom say. "Is there someone -"

"Shannon?"

I hadn't even made it all the way to the kitchen before Dad met me in the hall and had me squashed in his arms all in about three seconds flat.

Dad loosened his death grip on me, put his hands on my shoulders and held me at arm's length. "Are you okay?"

I nodded, even though I was already crying a little.

"Where have you been?" Mom said as Dad ushered me into the kitchen and sat me down at the table. "Brian, we need to call Lieutenant Fuller, get the police back over here."

Dad sat down beside me. He looked old. He also looked like he was a lot less angry at me than Mom. "You're sure you're alright?" he asked.

"What day is it?" I said.

"Friday," Mom said, her phone already at her ear, waiting for the police.

The floodgates opened then. Friday. It was over. I had missed everything. Every test. All of it. I collapsed back against Dad's shoulder, dissolving into a full-blown fit complete with wracking sobs.

"Yes, Caitlin Flannery-Anderson for Lieutenant Fuller, please," Mom said from behind us.

"It's okay, Shan," Dad said, running his hand down my hair as I hiccupped and sniffled. "We just want to know where you were."

I shook my head against his shoulder, tears soaking his shirt. What was I going to say? Sorry, folks, just got stranded in New Switzerland with the Swiss Family Robinson during a big hurricane. Lost track of time. Don't worry about it...?

"Yes, she just showed up," Mom said, all-business as usual. "We appreciate it, Lieutenant. We'll see you soon."

"Seriously, Cait?" Dad said, turning to Mom with me still wrapped in his arms. "Tonight? Look at her, can't it wait?"

"I really don't think it can. Our daughter has been missing for three days -"

"It can wait," Dad said.

"What if she was kidnapped?" Mom went on. "Christ, what if she was raped? We might need to go to the hospital. This cannot wait until morning."

"It was nothing like that," I said to Mom, wiping my nose on the back of my hand.

"Well, that's a relief, I suppose. But I still think it would be prudent to speak with Lieut-"

Dad cut her off. "Are you hungry?"

"Famished."

"I'll make you that omelet I promised. Cait, call the police back. Tell them they can come by first thing in the morning."

Mom's nostrils flared and she rolled her eyes like a teenager, but she dialed anyway.

A/N: Uh oh. Now what? What do you think will happen to Shannon after missing all her exams? Will she be allowed to retake them? How will she explain her disappearance? Let me know your theories with a comment! Thanks for reading. :)