The Orphans in the Woods

It was a sunny day and the heat of late August was permeating in the air. Rohan had gathered the packed bags into a pile near the doorway between the living room and kitchen. He heard the mailman's vehicle drive by and peeked from the window curtain to see if he had driven far off enough for Rohan to go outside without being noticed. When he felt safe -- he could not see anyone or hear anyone near, he quietly and carefully went outside to get the mail from the mailbox and open the trunk door of the Mustang. Then he went back into the house holding the mail of the past two days in his hands. He sat at the bistro table and looked over the mail. He could hear his sister grumbling about the house stench from her bedroom.

The mail included a bill from the electric company, a bill from the car dealership, a credit card bill, and a letter from Rohan's teacher, Miss Sherri. He ripped open that letter first.

Dear Mrs. Hamberg,

I tried to call you today when I saw Rohan was not in class. He never misses a day and I hope that he is well. Mrs. Lafayette let me know that Gertrude was also out. I hope everything is alright. I tried to call you, but there was no answer. If the children are ill, I wish them the best of speedy recovery. I will put their assignments in a separate folder for them to catch up with as homework. If there is anything else that I can do to help, please let me know.

Sincerely,

Miss Sherri

Rohan folded the letter and shoved it into his mother's purse. He looked at the telephone on the wall, which he had disconnected, and then he thought about the people who may have tried to call. Miss Sherri? Aunt Velma? Maybe someone from his father's workplace. He took a deep breath feeling anxious and worried for the first time. Then he looked over the other pieces of mail thinking about them. He opened the one from the car dealership. It was a bill for the monthly payment on his father's new truck. Rohan hadn't even thought about it. Where was his father's truck? How did his father get home without it? Rohan was angry at himself for not having thought about that sooner, but also angry that he didn't know what was going on. The mystery about who shot his parents was beyond his comprehension. He could not think of any reason why anyone would want them dead. Did someone kill them just so they could steal his father's truck? That didn't seem to make sense because his father would have just given the killer the keys. Dad wouldn't have died or let Mom die for a stupid truck. There was something missing and Rohan was very upset that nothing was adding up in his mind. He threw the mail into the garbage pail and forced himself to focus on preparations for leaving. He didn't have time today to worry about solving the mystery. He was nervous. Dad had shown him the way to the cabin twice, but it had been during the day with sunlight. Rohan knew how to drive the Mustang, but the challenges were more difficult this time. He had to drive secretly at night and find the cabin in the dark. Yes, he was very nervous.

He looked at the clock again. The sun wouldn't be setting for another three or four hours. Gertrude came into the kitchen and opened a can of tuna fish. She mixed in some mayonaisse, and made two sandwiches. Rohan was taking inventory of the food that he could pack that would last in the cabin without a refrigerator.

He smiled at his sister and they sat at the bistro table trying to ignore the disgusting stench while they were eating.

"You make a tuna sandwich even better than Mom," Rohan told his sister devouring the sandwich.

Gertrude smiled thinking that was probably one of the nicest things her brother had ever said to her.

"No, I don't," she disagreed, "But maybe one day."

Gertrude noticed that her brother's disposition was different. His confidence seemed off. He looked anxious and worried.

"Are you...." she paused knowing the answer, but finished her question deciding it was still the right thing to say, "Are you ok?"

Rohan looked away, a bit dazed for a brief moment. Then finished his sandwich, and looked back at his sister.

"It doesn't make sense, Gretch," he admitted his painful confusion, "Dad's been preparing me for awhile to be ready to take care of myself. Like he was worried that something like this could happen. Yet, everyone we know loved Mom and Dad. And the truck. I didn't even think about it until today. Dad's truck isn't here. How did Dad get home without his truck?"

Gertrude sighed trying to catch her breath. She wanted to cry, but she didn't want to burden her brother with her tears. She tried to hold it in and be brave.

"I don't know," Gertrude told him with terrified eyes, "And what's worse is I'm really scared Bro. What if they want to kill us too?"

"Nah," Rohan assured her, "They would've come back and tried already. This is about Dad. I think the missing truck is a clue, but I can't figure it out."

"You think they killed Dad to take his truck?"

"No," Rohan explained, "But the fact that he got home without his truck explains something that I can't figure out."

"I don't want to think about this," Gertrude told her brother, then added, "Let's just pack up and get out of here. We will probably feel a lot better once we get to the cabin."

Rohan nodded in agreement. He was grateful that his sister was starting to think of the cabin the way he was.