One Read Online Free Page B

one. This wasn’t a curiosity any longer. The Starbucks cups are made to keep the contents hot, but at the temperature I had felt, whatever happened, happened less than an a few hours ago.
    I felt a fear inside me I had not known was possible. Without conscious thought I had jumped over the counter, picking up the phone. Before my hands began to shake I had already dialed nine-one-one. My heart thumped in my chest as the phone continued to ring. I was stupid, wasting so much time trying to solve this puzzle without even knowing what the picture was.
    Several rings had my breathing heavy. A click then a moment of silence brought me both hope and despair.
    “ Thank you for calling the Chicago Police Department. All circuits are busy, please try again later.”
    I had never heard an automated response like that for the police. It didn’t ask me to hold or even that there was something wrong. Was anyone even there to answer? My mind thought back to before I left. If something happened, why didn’t anyone tell me? Mom would have heard about it on the television or radio or even the internet. Ashley would have barged into my room with a news bulletin. Unless…
    My hands steadied just enough to speed dial my house.
    “ Come on, pick up! Please!”
    Again, I was talking to no one. Perhaps I was hoping if someone, anyone heard my plea… another click and then silence.
    “ You’ve reached the voicemail of Martha, Timothy and Ashley Hayden. Sorry we missed your call, but if you leave your name, number and time of your call, we will call you back. Have a wonderful day.”
    Hearing my mother’s voice, for the first time ever, caused me anguish.
    “ Mom, are you home? Please pick up! Something happened. I don’t know what it is, but everyone evacuated. I’m coming home. Wait for me!”
    My body froze. I never saw my mother face to face that morning. Was she even there? My eyes locked onto a large digital clock above the door, one forty-five. What if they never had a chance to tell me, to warn me? I begged my body to move. I couldn’t accept what I feared had happened. Finally able to break free I rushed toward the door. A thought burrowed through my mind. Was this my dream fulfilled by a nightmare? Was I now alone
    An Awakening Nightmare
    It didn’t matter anymore; the mystery of what was unfolding before me. All that I cared about was reaching home as fast as I could. I didn’t show it, but I often worried about my mother as much as she worried about me. I remember the look on her face at dad’s wake. People we hadn’t seen in years showing up, not out of love or even respect, but obligation. Mom spent more time trying to be strong for us than grieving. Maybe that is why she was not able to “heal” as Ashley would say.
    My bike could not move fast enough. I remember how I felt. It was just like before, the cold air, the silence, the helplessness. Driving to the hospital the night of the accident there was nothing I could do, but sit there looking at mom’s face. I don’t even remember my thoughts, but I knew deep inside that something horrible had happened. My mind tried to deny it, but again, deep down I knew it was true. That feeling, that day, rushing home, it told me that everything was starting again. It told me something horrible had happened.
    I pulled back into the garage, nothing had changed. The lobby was still empty, quiet. The elevator was there as if waiting for me. I reached my door. My hands shook as I tried to open it. The rush of air from the apartment brought something else, a smell from earlier, of coffee. When I left the house I remembered smelling mom’s coffee. I went on that thinking she was in the kitchen having breakfast.
    “ Mom, are you home? Ashley?” I called out with more hope than question.
    Receiving no response made it harder for me to open the door to the kitchen. Mom always sat at the island in the center of the kitchen. It was dad who designed it. He was the chef of the house