entry number
○ people who keep journals have life twice. ~ jessamyn west ○
🥀
Amber: Kalina? You there?
Kalina: You're sure it was Gramps?
Amber: Pretty sure. Look.
I opened the second picture that Amber sent to me, seeing the note that was plastered on a random page of Mom's journal with the words "I found her" written on it.
I called Amber, wanting an immediate answer rather than waiting for a text back. She answered on the first ring, her voice laced with worry.
"Kalina, this is bad," she spoke as soon as the call connected. "This is very, very bad."
"Why?" I questioned, not understanding why Gramps finding Mom was a bad thing.
Amber let out a groan. "I knew you wouldn't understand," she said, almost to herself more than me.
"Hey, I'm not stupid," I retorted. "I just... can't fully grasp everything that's going on here."
"That's exactly the problem!" Amber suddenly yelled, making me pull the phone away from my ear. Ouch. "Your grandfather is nowhere to be found, but while I was sleeping, Samara's journal was left on my doorstep. I know that this note is from William, it has to be. Who else knows that your mother is missing? Who else could find this journal?"
I sighed. "Okay, okay, I get it. What do you want me to do?"
"For now, all I want you to do is stay where you are, and don't let yourself be alone," she said, her voice suddenly becoming motherly. "We don't want you disappearing, too. Your father is with me now- he's going to be staying with me until further notice. No one can get to him here, he'll be safe."
"And I'm just supposed to sit back and trust you to keep my dad safe when I barely know you?" I couldn't help the sarcasm that seeped into my tone. Amber's patronizing orders were really getting on my nerves.
"Just..." I could tell that she was having a hard time stopping herself from screaming at me over the phone, but she eventually let out a huff of air and continued. "Meet me at your grandfather's shop on Saturday morning. Be careful."
Before I could say anything more, the line went dead, and I was left staring at Gramps' post-it note. "I found her..." What was that supposed to mean? How?
I remembered all the times that I had caught Mom writing in her journal, always hiding it away before I could ask her what she was writing in there. She always put it underneath the Bible that Dad kept in one of the drawers next to their bed. There were a few times that I had considered snooping, but I decided against it every time, knowing that if I had a diary, I wouldn't want my parents reading it.
Gramps and Dad were the only people that knew where Mom kept her journal. Obviously Dad knew- he had seen it lying underneath his Bible- and Gramps had seen Mom writing in it one day, like I did, and she allowed him to read a few pages. Or at least, that's the story he told me about it when I asked him.
Why did I have to wait until Saturday to meet with Amber? Couldn't I just go to her penthouse and help her figure out Gramps' cryptic message with Dad?
But just then, I met my own eyes in the mirror as I finished brushing my teeth, noticing the heavy bags building up underneath them. I winced at the sight, not liking how unhealthy I had begun to look over the past couple of days.
