Into Darkness

Chapter 6

The dark sky that had been looming all night was finally giving way to the early light blue hue as it tried to creep its way in.  It was intruding into the night, pushing it away, but the dark night seemed to not was to give way.  The darkness that covered everything wanted to fight for its right to stay, but the sun was coming and with it, the dawn wanted to awaken.  It’s alarm was set, and though it felt like it was too early just as every day was too early, it knew it was its own time.  If it didn’t come now, then who knew if it would come the next day or the next.  Then if it didn’t come day after the day, the world would be lost in darkness.

Rob could barely focus on much of anything as he looked out the kitchen window.  He could smell the coffee and heard the percolating of the fresh pot that was being brewed.  That did help keep his eyes open, a little, but it didn’t help much towards the exhaustion that was invading his senses.  

Outside, he saw the earliest hints of the red morning glow and knew that dawn was coming.  He had been up all night, where had it gone?  He could barely recall driving up and down the streets of the town, walking down some of the alley’s along the way the boy would have taken home, having to use his flashlight to scan the darker areas.  

He still hadn’t heard anything about the chief and he hadn’t yet gone to find the squad car.  He was surprised no one had called it in, and when he had called back into the county, they had said the GPS had gone dead and they were no longer sure where the car was.  He would have to worry about that later, though it weighed heavily on his mind that there may be two missing persons.  

Two missing persons within two days of each other, could they be related?  Both had possibly been around the coal dump when they came up missing.  Why was the chief there?  And the boy was supposed to never go near there especially at night, so could he really be up there?

“Here you go.” 

He looked down to see the slender hands of Wendy Taylor handing him the cup of coffee.  Her hands were shaking.  When he had first come there, she had been worse, but giving her something to do, talking to her, it had seemed to bring her back a little.  She was now coherent.

“Thank you,” he said, nodding at her as he turned back around and sat back down at the table.  His eyes felt like they were sagging.  His whole face, what he felt of it, was numb and his head felt like it was growing to heavy for his neck.  He wasn’t sure how much longer he could stay awake.  

Looking at the clock he realized it was near five.  He had been up now for twenty four hours.  He could go for a little longer.  He had done it before and now he really had to.  There was just too much to do, and they had to find the boy.

“You don’t think he went to the coal dump?  Your sure of that?” he asked, enjoying the bitter taste of the coffee as he sipped.  It was hot enough to shock him awake a little.  He hoped the cobwebs stayed back a little longer this time so he could think through this.

“He would no not to go through there.  We told him not too.  He knows about the hobo’s that live up there and the mine shafts he could fall in too.  He’s a smart kid, he wouldn’t have gone up there.  Not at night.”  The larger woman who looked so much like her daughter, just a twenty year old version of her.  He hair was permed and white, but her eyes were sharp and felt like daggers as they stared down at him.

“Okay, but we haven’t found him anywhere else.” Rob said with a grimace.  “Could he be there.”

Wendy looked at him, her lip quivering, then the dam broke and she started nodding her head.  The tears kept coming and her mother stepped, putting a hand on her shoulder.  Wendy reached for it and held it there.