The Last Laugh novel Chapter 6

***

The day went on smoothly. After aunt Christina had gone outside looking for a certain Rob, she returned minutes after, looking less panicked. I wondered why.

-

We watched TV for a very long time while aunt Christina cooked. I was okay with watching only TV because the cartoons were interesting and plus, I could stay with Heather. We were secretly holding each others' hand throughout, without Sawyer or Aunt Christina seeing.

At around four PM, after we'd eaten and returned to our TV, uncle Ken to our surprise came into the house. He was with three other men who were his friends. He looked at me.

"Hey Sheridan, where's your dad?" he asked.

The question surprised me.

"M– my dad?"

"Yes."

At that moment, aunt Christina came in from the kitchen.

"Honey, you're back so soon?" she asked. He turned to her.

"Christina, where's Paul? We waited for him and when I tried to call, his phone was off."

I got confused. Everyone was.

"But daddy, he left since morning." Sawyer said.

"Yes." Heather added.

Uncle Ken frowned, confused.

"Left for where?" he asked.

"Well, to join y'all for the hunt." Aunt Christina answered.

Uncle ken looked at the other three men in confusion.

"I haven't seen Paul since after I left him this morning."

I began to feel uneasy.

"What? Are you sure?" aunt Christina asked.

"What sort of question is that? I'm telling you I haven't seen Paul."

"We didn't even see him on our way back from the woods either." one of the three men said.

My heart began to race.

"But he– he was supposed to join y'all." I stammered in a trembly voice.

Uncle Ken looked at me.

"Don't worry, Sheridan. He's not lost. You're dad's a strong man, okay? Maybe he had other plans. Let's wait till this evening."

"Okay."

I prayed silently for my dad.

***

It was 8 o'clock in the night and my dad hadn't returned yet. Uncle ken tried to call again and again. His phone was off. It soon began to rain. Heavily. I was panicked. Uncle ken still tried to console me. Telling me my dad would be forced to return because of the rain and that his phone was probably off because of a low battery. That calmed me down.

"Wh– what??"

"I spent the whole night under the rain and only returned at six this morning. Son, I– I didn't find him."

Goosebumps took over me. I looked at uncle Ken in disbelief.

"Wh– what?"

"I informed the sheriff this morning. Son, it seems your father is missing."

"What?! Noooo!" I screamed, tears rolling down my cheeks, "No! No!" I screamed endlessly, crying out my lungs.

Uncle Ken quickly wrapped me in his arms. I cried even more, holding on to him.

"Nooooo! Nooooo!" I cried against him, feeling like I had to die. I just wanted to die!

"Daddy! Nooo! Where is he??" I cried angrily, beginning to kick my legs and now struggling to get out of uncle Ken's grip. He wouldn't let me as he begged me to calm down.

I cried so much that I was out of breath. If uncle Ken had let me go, I would've probably hit my head hard against a wall or broken something. I was furious as I screamed my agony against my uncle's chest. He held me tight in his arms.

"Please, son. I'm begging you to stay strong, please." he begged. He too wasn't okay. I could hear the pain in his voice. He was as desperate as me. He was clearly as hurt as me. As I cried, I looked up at his face once, his eyes were shut tight as tears rolled down his cheeks.

"We'll find him, Sheridan. I promise." he sobbed.

Heather and Sawyer stood at the door watching. I saw clear pity in Heather's eyes. Sawyer just watched impassively. Uncle Ken asked aunt Christina to take them away so they would not assist at the scene. It was a very sad one. I was broken and furious like never before.

After about an hour, uncle Ken succeeded in calming me down before leaving to freshen up and continuing with the researches along with the sheriff and other officers.

I lay silently on the bed, my face red and my eyes swollen from too much crying. I was half dead. I didn't want to move, do or eat anything. I simply lay there, my mind far away while I stared at the ceiling. Where was my father? What had happened to him?