Revenge on the Mafia

The Bath

I got home and called out, "Mum?" I looked all around but there was no one there. I went upstairs as naturally as I could, locking the door behind me. I don't know why I bothered really, as I was now sure Mum wasn’t here. I took the front part of the bath off. It was easier than I thought, but I couldn't see anything though. She definitely said bath, right? I silently asked myself. I felt around and one of the floorboards under the bath moved slightly. I froze for a second and looked around. No one was here to catch me and the door was locked anyway. Even though she told me to do this, I still felt like I did when Mum caught me in her purse. I lifted the floorboard up and felt around with my hand. There was a small box with a handle.

The box had a simple 4-digit combination lock on it. Mum didn’t mention a password. I tried my birthday in it, as that’s the password for our alarm system, our Netflix account and anything else I can think of. I carefully pressed 1206 but the box didn't open. Then a number 2 appeared. I tried my Mum's birthday - 0101. It remained locked, however the number now said 1. I realised I wasn't sure of my Dad's birthday. Was it 0912 or 0812? I started to panic, not wanting to know what happened if I got the next guess wrong. Would that even open it if I got it right? I knew the day he disappeared was 0405 as Mum talked about it when we alone and the weeks leading up to the anniversary of his disappearance have been hard for us both. I tried that and held my breathe. It opened and the number disappeared. I let out a sigh of relief as I opened up the box. There was a letter that covered everything else. Under that, there was a taser, a mobile and another note at the bottom.

'Turn the shower on before reading.' The note on top said. I turned the shower on and read the letter.

“Emma, if you're reading this, I’m sorry. I have got too close and it is unsafe for me to return home. I realised the house has been bugged for some time, along with our phones. I have taught you well this year but you need to read this very carefully and act upon it exactly. I'll help as much as I can but it's now up to you to find who kidn*pped your Dad. 

1. Hide this burner phone even in the house. You never know who is watching. 

2. Pretend you found the letter underneath this one under your pillow and then like nothing is wrong.

5. Tell Kim at the bakery  the gingerbread was in a fox.

6. Only in an emergency, call the number on the burner. 

Emma, you can do this. I believe in you. Flush this note down the toilet before you leave this bathroom and have a shower.

Love, 

Mum xoxo”

I read the letter a few times and committed it to memory. Then I flushed it down the toilet, put the empty box back where it was and made it seem like no one had touched it. Then I showered, unaware how much water was from the shower and how much my eyes were contributing. Since Dad disappeared, my Mum worked me hard. Not just self-defence and karate, but surveillance, disguise and anything else she has thought I would need. But now I felt so alone. I couldn’t tell anyone or my Mum’s life – and potentially mine – would be at risk. Now, it is perfectly natural to be upset but after I get out, I won’t be able to cry. No one cries when nothing is wrong. After I get out of here and find that letter, that’s how it must be.

I regained control of myself and stepped out of my shower, wrapping myself in a towel and the taser, note and mobile in my clothes. Then, I went to my bedroom and put the bundle on my pillow as I got some new clothes on.

I put my taser and mobile in my bag, the note under my pillow and the clothes in the laundry. I think I was waiting for something to happen. But nothing did. So after I dried my hair, I laid back on my bed as I usually did, with my head on the pillow and my usual phone in my hand. I heard the paper I just put there and thought now was as good a time as any, so I sat up and spent some time reading the note.

“Hi Emma,

My phone fell into some water earlier so not point in calling. I’ve got a business meeting in Spain for a few days.

Behave yourself whilst I’m gone. No parties!

Love,

Mum”

This was very well thought out, I reflected. It explained why she wasn’t available on her mobile and why she was gone. There was no date or mention of a day she would be back. Considering what happened to Dad, I’m glad that she had the forethought to plan in advance as escape. I just hope that she planned for me too.

I phoned the gym and told Mick about Mum’s phone and the note and he sounded genuinely relieved. I went downstairs and started eating the dinner I made earlier, note in my hand. Cooking was one of the things Mum taught me. Not just over the last year, but since I was able to hold a knife. However, since Dad disappeared, everything was more focused. Even the level of spice.

Just then, my doorbell rang. At the door, was Frankie.

“Hey Frankie, what’s up?” I said, opening the door. Having him here just made me feel better. He was 19 and had this vibe to him that just made me feel safe.

“Hey Em, is your Mum back yet?” He asked.

“No. She said she was going away on business for a while.”

“Can I come in?”

I looked at him and saw his cheeky grin. Then I saw a bag of popcorn. I let a smile form on my face and opened the door.

“Course. Do you want to eat dinner with me? I made extra, thinking my Mum would be back tonight so there’s loads now.” I said, leading him into the kitchen.

“Its smells amazing but I just had a burger.” He said smiling.

“Okay.” I said, sitting down to eat.

“What did you Mum say again? You said earlier that she would be late?” He asked.

“Yeah, but then I got this note saying she was on business for a couple of days.” I said, pointing at the note. It wasn’t unusual for her to travel for a few days, as it’s the nature of her job but he knew to do it this suddenly, without notice was strange.

He looked at it, then at me.

“Hmm. She said to me that she wanted to see me later but I’ve not been able to get through to her.” He explained.

“Maybe to say she was going away?” I offered. It was unlikely Mum would he have told him before me, but maybe she just wanted someone looking out for me? I thought to myself.

“Maybe.” He shrugged.

“That looks delicious.” He said, looking at my fork.

“Have some!” I pleaded. I’d be eating it for days otherwise.

He smiled and got a small plate.

“Mmmmm. That’s good food, right there!” He applauded.

“Better than a burger, that’s for sure!” I smiled.

After dinner, Frankie asked if I wanted to watch a movie so we put on the Avengers, even though we’ve both seen it more than once.

“Emma?” He said, in a tired voice.

I looked at him. “Yeah?”

“Do you think I should stay here until your Mum gets back?”

As much as I liked him, I needed to be free to go around as I pleased right now, without being watched.

“Thank you but I can look after myself.” I smiled.

He put his hand on my knee and rubbed his thumb. This no longer felt protective. Nor was it aggressive. But it was definitely different to our normal dynamic and I didn’t hate it.

“You smell good.” He said, his face unreadable.

I ignored all my instincts to let him stay in the spare room.

“Strawberry shower gel.” I smiled innocently, letting out a yawn.

“I’ve got such a long day tomorrow. I need to be up at 6am for the athletics club.” I said, hinting for him to leave.

“I’ll leave you to it. Shall I come round tomorrow?” He asked, with an uncertain look on his face.

“Seven o’clock sound good?” I asked, smiling.