SHADOWS

Disappearance

"How is it possible?"

This was the question everyone was asking in the neighbourhood.

How a girl could go missing suddenly? There was something really fishy going on in the neighbourhood.

I was totally shaken. Judith was not only a neighbor but also my close friend. Whatever danger befell her was something which might hound me someday. I had to know what was lurking in the shadows to be able to fight it.

There was a treasure hunting event as a part of the New Year celebrations in our colony. There were clues at each step leading to the prize.

Judith entered this year too and had gone three days ago. But she didn't return home even after midnight. The police were informed. They were simply clueless of the whereabouts of her. The police had combed the whole area, but to no avail. It was as if she had disappeared into the thin air.

There were a lot of gossips floating around as to how she could have disappeared. I felt anger searing through me. I just couldn't sit inactive. It was the question of a girl's life and the authorities seemed least bothered.

I tried to rack my brains for an answer but nothing came out.
Finally I tried calling her cellphone for the umpteenth time. The phone beeped on and I threw it on my bed in frustration.

This year the organizers for the competition were the Dales. They were peculiar people though, always keeping to themselves. They volunteered to fund the challenge, on the condition that the last clue will lead to someplace in their manor. The chase for the treasure would end beyond the large iron gates, which people rarely crossed.

What if they were related to the disappearance? Maybe Judith had found the clue and disappeared just in the last lap of the hunt?

I decided to do a bit of snooping around that night.

To be continued....

A/N Thanks you for reading. And I am the winner for the #thetreasurehunted, A Trilingual Collab Contest by mystery adventure AmbassadorsITA

Dedicated to MaryFahey who introduced me to this genre, Mystery.

Please comment how you feel. This entry will be short. Only 1500 words for #thetreasurehunted tag. The Trilingual Collab Contest by Wattpad Mystery. Hope you will enjoy this and wait for the update.