Don't Look Up, Don't Look Closely, Don't Look Away

3

Within minutes, I was dressed in full winter gear again and out the door.

Erin had explained that he had heard something in the middle of the night, but had assumed it was me - which meant he did know what I was doing after all. But when he heard me return fifteen minutes ago, he got suspicious. That meant that the noise he heard wasn't me after all.

He had sat in bed for a while thinking about what it could be before something clicked. He silently got out of bed and crept over to his mother's room to check, and sure enough, she was missing.

Erin didn't panic though. He was usually a very calm and collected person. He always prioritized thinking problems through over reacting emotionally, no matter the circumstances. Those who didn't know him would say he was cold-hearted, but in reality he often cared more than anybody else.

While I was getting dressed, we contemplated where she might have gone. At first I though there was a large possibility that she went into the city to try to make some money through... less than savory means. But Erin reminded me that her loyalty to her husband was incredibly strong. Even when she originally suggested it, she probably wasn't planning on following through.

The problem was that my mom was a very emotional person. Under our current circumstances, she was clearly depressed and desperate. I could only imagine what was going through her head.

Just as I was about to leave to go searching, Erin called out to me.

"Kleo. Check the bridge."

I had stopped in my tracks and turned to look at him. His face was completely serious and collected, but I could tell he was barely holding it together.

"I'll find her. I'll bring her home. I pro-"

"No. Don't promise. Just try."

All I could do was nod. And then I was gone.

~-~

The forest surrounding our home was dense and cold. There was still some left over snow from a few nights ago, so my first plan of attack was to search the immediate area for footprints. If I could at least find out which direction she went in...

There. Behind the house a ways, I found a single footstep about the size of my mother's. It was headed away from the city, which allowed me a measure of relief.

But it was short lived, because in that direction were two things.

A large blackberry patch we often went to before winter to stock up.

And a large bridge we had to use to cross a massive canyon separating us from the field.

I hoped with all my might that Erin's concern had no basis.

I ran as fast as I could in an effort to catch up. If my mom had left at midnight, that would mean she was gone for six hours. The bridge was about a two hour walk from our house.

Hopefully there was still time.

As I ran, dodging branches and sliding down snow banks, I thought of all the possible reasons my mother could have for going to the bridge. I couldn't really see her jumping. As Erin mentioned earlier, she had too much loyalty to her family. She wouldn't want to leave us with no support.

I tried to wipe the thought from my mind. She wouldn't do that.

Right?

I picked up the pace. I was getting tired, having run for half an hour straight, but the adrenaline and chilled breeze kept me going. The occasional branch whacked my face, but I was too numb to care.