The Mysterious Disappearance

Krimston Village, a place among other villages in the state called, Catable. There was one thing different about this place that it was completely disconnected from the outer region of the Catable by a river. The river was coming from a nearby mountain, which separated one side of the village from other regions of the state and was falling into a bay. The opposite side of the village was touching the seashore. The village looked like a small island.

Krimston’s geographical structure had made several challenges for the villagers travelling to and from the city. They had a single bridge for them to cross the river and go to the city but you won’t see many people going out of the village as it was difficult to travel such long distances except those few who work in the city. One would see a vast deep forest as soon as they entered the village. There was a time when nobody wanted to pass through these woodlands fifty years back but now things are different. It was believed that some strange things killed many people.

Today Krimston village was experiencing bad weather as if something bad was going to happen. Villagers were closing their doors and windows to save themselves from thunders and cooler winds. It was midnight, people shutting off their lights and going for sleep. One home had its light still on, it was Mrs. Thomson’s. She was living with her baby. Baby James was sleeping in his room in a small bed. Mrs. Thomson was about to sleep, but before she does; she came to her child’s room and covered him with a blanket. Then she went to her room shutting off the light. It was very dark and almost all the people had slept. She was in a deep sleep when a sound came of opening a window slowly. It was almost past three in the morning. A dusty smoke was coming in, like a shape of woman, an evil power, dark black, came near the boy from the window; the baby opened his eyes up and he looked at the black dust, but without being scared he looked at it and suddenly started glowing with a nice smile on his face. The black smoky dust could not bear the light coming from the baby and vanished.

It was clear that something was trying to kill the baby or maybe trying to take the baby with it, but Mrs. Thomson was not aware of it. Ten years had gone, James was no longer a baby. He had taken admission in an ordinary school in the same village. One day Mrs. Thomson was making breakfast for James. He was sitting on a dining table, waiting for the breakfast eagerly. He was wearing a classic green school uniform with a white shirt inside. He was thin but the uniform was too tight. Why it shouldn’t be, he was wearing it from the last two years. The uniform was also stitched from a few places. He had minty eyes and had curly long hairs; he had not been to a barbershop for a long time. It was very clear that they had financial problems.

Mom, hurry up, said James eagerly. I am late for school.

It’s almost ready, she said.

Mrs. Thomson brings breakfast on the dining table.

I want you to come early from school and don’t go into the dark forest and yes, come before the evening, she told James.

Yes, mom. I will, he said.

Mrs. Thomson was always worried about James going to the deep forest, she always warned him to be cautious. After hearing the daily advice, he left for school and was walking down the streets and stopped in front of a house. That house was Samson’s. It was a well built and beautiful house. Samsons were rich. Mr. Varies Samson owned agricultural land in the village, which was given on rent; he had 100 cows and 50 buffaloes. Samsons were good people, they did not boast of wealth. They always treated James like their child. As compared to Samson’s, Thomson’s had only a small grocery store. There were many big stores in the village, that’s why Thomson’s business was not doing so well.

James shouted from outside, Sam, Lucy, I have arrived.

Lucy and Sam, Samson’s kids, twins, came outside their house and they left for the school together.

Sam and Lucy both had black silky hair. They were wearing new uniforms, which were well ironed. Lucy was a friendly little girl, and very talkative and gets angry easily. She was very pretty; her skin was white, same as her mom and Sam of course. Lucy and Sam were almost of the same height, but Sam was a little less. That was the reason; Lucy always called him little brother. They often had small debates on most of the things with each other; this was one of them. They never get agreed on each other. But most of the time Lucy was right. But he keeps making fun of her knowingly. Above all, they were siblings; and they very much loved each other.

Sam, Lucy, and James, they were good friends. They were going to an ordinary school in the village as villagers could not send their children to the city because of the long-distance and a dark forest.

Later that day, James and his friends were discussing something important in the school compound.

Has been a long time and I don’t have any clue, what had happened to my father, said James in a sobbing voice. I feel like mom has been lying to me that he has left her.

Why your mom would lie to you about your father? Lucy questioned.

Because she doesn’t want to tell the truth, said Sam.

Sam, this isn’t funny, said Lucy angrily.

I know, I am just saying, she won’t tell James, said Sam.

She keeps ignoring the topic, said James.

No worries, I have an idea, we will come to your house today, and we will pretend that we have come to your house to study, said Lucy positively.

Then what, his mom will tell us everything. I don’t think it will work, said Sam briskly.

Little brother, you suggest something then, said Lucy.

Sam started thinking a little.

Leave it, said Lucy quickly; you will spend all day thinking about your genius idea. I say we should do what I have told; we will find some way to ask your mom.

They agreed upon Lucy’s idea and as soon as they completed their respective classes, they went straight to their houses. They first visited Sam and Lucy’s house, where Mr. and Mrs. Samson were sitting in the garden in front of their house. Sam and Lucy told them that today they will go to James’ house. They took permission to stay for the night and went straight to James’s house. Upon arriving at the house, they knocked on the door.

Open the door Mom, James shouted from outside.

Mrs. Thomson was cooking food, she heard James’ voice.

I think James has arrived, she said to herself. She also shouted from inside, “Wait, I am coming, James”. She opened the door and saw James along with Lucy and Sam. She was surprised seeing them, as it was about to get dark, mostly the kids do not come at this time.

Hello Kids, come inside, she said.” What makes you come here?” asked Mrs. Thomson. Don’t you think your parents will get worried?

Mom, they have come to stay here tonight. We thought that if we study together sometime, that would be much helpful in understanding complex subjects, said James. They have taken permission from Mr. and Mrs. Samson, said James quickly to avoid further questions.

Very well! That sounds like a great thought. I am so proud of you. Come inside and go to James’ room and start your studies; I will call you once the dinner is ready. Mrs. Thomson said this and they all went inside the house.

All went to James’ bedroom which was very small, Lucy and Sam jumped on the bed and James got one old chair to sit. After all get comfortable they started discussing how to ask Mrs. Thomson about James’ dad. After some time Mrs. Thomson thought to take dinner to the bedroom so she came to the room taking four plates of stew with messed potatoes and sat next to them in an old chair.

Delicious, said Lucy. James and his father are very lucky to have you, Mrs. Thomson, she said intentionally.

Thank you, sweetheart, said Mrs. Thomson.

Without wasting much time she immediately said, May I ask you a personal question Mrs. Thomson if you don’t mind?

Of course, said Mrs. Thomson frankly.

James told me that his father left you, but I don’t see any reason to leave such a good family, said Lucy. It was clear Lucy was trying to open up the talks which Mrs. Thomson was avoiding for many years.

An awkward silence spread around all the four.

Never mind, said Lucy quickly to break the silence, I thought he shouldn’t have left you.

Mrs. Thomson understood immediately, what the kids are up to. She looks at James. James thought this is the best moment to ask her about his father.

Mom, can you please tell, why dad left us, said James in a calm voice.

You want to know, let me tell you, your father didn’t leave us, said Mrs. Thomson. He was disappeared, she said and her eyes filled with tears.

Everybody started listening carefully, as their plan seemed working. However, James was not quite happy with the plan as it was hurting his mom’s feelings. But, Lucy had made her mind to get all the information from Mrs. Thomson.

Disappeared! Where? James shockingly asked.

Hey son, I don’t know, but your dad is gone. We have tried enough to find him for a long time. It seems impossible now after this many years, she said crying.

Mrs. Thomson, but you have to promise us that at least you will tell your whole story tonight, said Lucy.

Mrs. Thomson agreed and started telling her story.

Mr. and Mrs. Thomson’s were living in the Krimston village, a newly married couple were about to celebrate their first anniversary which was on the immediate weekend. Mrs. Thomson was looking beautiful, blonde, and a soft-spoken person. Mr. Thomson, a fit young man with a French beard, always wearing a cowboy hat and was a confident man. Both were sitting in their home on a cold night, looking at each other. They seemed happy and in a romantic mood.

“Honey, shall we throw a party for our anniversary?” asked Mrs. Thomson.

Angelica my love, Sure we will. I love you so much, said Mr. Thomson.

I love you too, she said. Yeah and please don’t forget to invite Mr. and Mrs. Peterson.

I won’t. They are our new neighbors and are very decent people. I should start making a list of our guests then, he said.

Mr. Thomson continued making his guest’s list while Mrs. Thomson made cookies for their grocery stores. After completing their work Mr. and Mrs. Thomson both went to bed for sleeping. The night suddenly grew darker and darker followed by a strong wind, thunder, and constant lightning. Mr. and Mrs. Thomson could not sleep that night. Mrs. Thomson was having a bad feeling; she suddenly woke up from bed after hearing a strong lightning noise.

I am not able to sleep. I am having a feeling that something bad is going to happen, she said.

Sweetheart, it is just thunder. Don’t worry and try to sleep, I am right beside you, he said.

Both tried to sleep, however, bad weather continued. Two scary eyes were staring at them in a dark scary night, looked like a woman standing in a black cloak, constantly staring at them from their window, waiting for something. Mr. and Mrs. Thomson didn’t know about the woman who is constantly keeping her eyes on their home. The night was over like any other night without anyone getting harmed.

Mr. and Mrs. Peterson were also lived nearby. Mr. Peterson was working in the city. As the city was far from the village, he sometimes preferred to come at the weekend and spent the rest of the time in the city. His company had given him a nice accommodation in the city, so he usually stayed there during weekdays.

But today he thought of going early to the city and coming as early as possible. Generally, the city was a two-day walk, but Mr. Peterson had an office bus. He was taking 2-3 hours to reach the city and was coming back in the evening around 9 pm to 10 pm. It was a very hectic schedule for him and they were planning to shift in the city soon. They both were sitting in a drawing-room, in a bright morning. Mr. Peterson was reading a newspaper and Mrs. Peterson was making breakfast.

Darling, where’s my breakfast? I am getting late for the office. The office bus must be coming soon, said Mr. Peterson.

Coming…Here it is…

Darling, could you please buy some groceries from the Thomson’s store while coming back from the office tonight, said Mrs. Peterson.

Oh here again! Why can’t you buy it for the whole month? It is annoying to go each week; I don’t have much time as you know I am quite busy, said Mr. Peterson.

If you don’t want to bring groceries then we will go outside for dinner, she said angrily.

Oh! Okay, Fine. I will bring it, he said as if he had no choice.

There you are. You could have said that before. Huh! Anyway, here is the list and yes, don’t spend too much time there otherwise you know, she said in a manner of warning.

Yeah, I know, said Mr. Peterson loudly.

Mrs. Peterson did sometimes get angry with Mr. Peterson as he was quite busy and she wanted to live in the city so that they could save some time and maintain some work-life balance.

Mr. Peterson left for the office on a bus, which travels through a deep dark forest and the only bridge. He noticed something strange, hiding behind a tree, something in black, but then he thought it must be an animal. He stopped thinking about it and started thinking to leave early for home. His day was quite hectic as usual. He had last-minute work coming from his boss.

Hey Peterson, I want this to be completed today, his boss ordered.

But, sir, he said quickly.

No “But”, I want this to be completed.

He quickly said, very well sir.

He somehow completed the work fast and left. He was returning back and again felt the same thing he felt in the morning that something was there in the woods. However, he was very much tired and he didn’t have much energy to think and he fell asleep on the bus. After two long hours, he finally reached the village and went straight to Thomson’s store.

Mr. Thomson was standing in his grocery store. He saw Mr. Peterson coming towards his shop. He came near and said Hey Mr. Thomson, How are you?

I am fine. Let me guess. Mrs. Peterson has forced you to come and buy groceries, right?

Yeah, you got it. You are lucky; you have a grocery store. Anyways, better you hurry, otherwise, my wife will not make dinner tonight, he said hurriedly.

They both laughed and he presented a list of items to Mr. Thomson.

Here they are. You can pay me later and yes, I would like to invite you and Mrs. Peterson to our anniversary party this weekend. Don’t forget to come, said Mr. Thomson.

Sure, we’ll be there, said Mr. Peterson.

As the weekend night arrived, people gathered in Thomson’s house backyard. The whole house was decorated with lamps. A big tent was built to have a party. You could see food, wine. Beautiful music was being sung by a group of girls and boys, it was a music band called from the city. Everybody started dancing in a couple. Mr. and Mrs. Thomson was very happy that night and people were greeting them.

Mrs. Sophie, Mrs. Cinderella, Mrs. Penny, Mrs. River, and Mrs. Becky all simultaneously greeted Mrs. Thomson, Congratulations!

Peterson’s also greeted them and said, Congratulations to both of you! What a beautiful night.

They gathered around a table and sat together and were drinking wine. All were keen to know, how they met each other and how they got married.

“How you guys met each other?” asked Mrs. Peterson.

We met on a bus. One day Peter was coming here to this village and I was to visit my aunt who lives here. We found each other sitting next to each other. Something was attracting me towards him. Whenever Peter came to the city to buy groceries and returned to his village, I went with him in the name of meeting my aunt. It went for months and we decided to get married.

Wonderful, anyway, you guys are awesome, you guys look great together. Now, we should go. It’s getting late and from few days the weather is not so good, said Mrs. Peterson.

Yeah, it’s strange, said Mr. Thomson. We have never seen such weather before. Let’s hope it does not get worse. After some pause and worried sign on Mr. Thomson’s face, as if he was sensing something, he said Goodnight.

Amid a constantly worsening night, people left after the party. Mr. and Mrs. Thomson also came inside their home. They went straight into the bed, laid down, and came closer. Both were in a romantic mood. That night was special for both of them and they finally made love, to have a kid they had been planning for some time.

The next day, Mrs. Thomson was making breakfast in the kitchen. She called her husband so many times, but Peter; he never woke up in one call.

Peter, get up, it’s late. You have to open the store, said Mrs. Thomson loudly.

Yeah, let me sleep for some time more, anyway, it’s our own business, said Mr. Thomson while sleeping in his bed.

No, please get up and get to the bath. You are becoming lazy nowadays, she said angrily.

Suddenly a very loud noise occurred, Mrs. Thomson ran towards the bedroom, and suddenly Mr. Thomson disappeared in front of her eyes. Mrs. Thomson fell on the ground and few people ran towards their home hearing the loud noise. Mr. and Mrs. Peterson also reached hearing the loud noise. They saw Mrs. Thomson lying on the floor in the bedroom. They splashed water on her face and she woke up and started crying. They asked about the incident to her. She started explaining everything to Mr. & Mrs. Peterson.

“What happened?” asked Mrs. Peterson

Peter disappeared, she said.

“How...?” Mr. Peterson asked shockingly.

I don’t know but he disappeared in front of me, she said.

You don’t worry, we will find him, said, Mrs. Thomson.

Mr. and Mrs. Peterson started looking for Peter in all the rooms, they could not find him. They went outside the house, looked around but sadly no one. Mr. and Mrs. Petersons waited for the whole night with Mrs. Thomson, hoping that he might come. Sitting in chairs, waiting for Peter, all three of them waited the whole night until the clock alarm rang in the morning, but no news of Peter.

A day, then two and then many days, everyone tried to find him for a very long time but there was no clue of him. They had filed a missing complaint in the magical department in the city but there wasn’t any news about him. As time went, Mrs. Thomson loses her hope. It had been 6 months now. Mrs. Thomson was expecting a baby. Mr. and Mrs. Peterson had to shift to the city due to work priorities.

Mrs. Thomson completed her story and said, that is it, that’s how he never came back.

Sam, Lucy, and James completely heard her story. They all felt very emotional. They looked at Mrs. Thomson, who was crying. James got up and calmed her. But this pain wasn’t going to go away that easily.

She said, after your father’s disappearance, similar events occurred in the village that year. Lots of people disappeared. No one knows where those people were disappearing.

You mean, not only dad, but other people also disappeared, said James surprisingly.

Yes. We had never observed such bad whether before, which we had seen in that one year. She got emotional and again tears came out from her eyes and she said I still believe your father is alive.

I know mom, it is very tough being alone in this world. But, I am here for you. Don’t worry I will bring dad back, said James.

Yes, Mrs. Thomson, we will bring Mr. Thomson back, said Lucy.

These events started in this village that was the reason many villagers had shifted to Longwind, said Mrs. Thomson. However we haven’t seen any such events recently, she added.

Mom, let’s get to sleep, you must be tired, said James. He held her hand and took her to the room and put a blanket on her. He told Lucy to sleep with Mrs. Thomson. Sam and James slept in another room.