ASMSG Scifi Fantasy Paranormal Emagazine April 2015 | Page 45

tossed in a heap on the floor beside the front
entrance.
She was warmly welcomed by her two younger
siblings before she could remove her coat and boots.
The laughter coming from the front room brought a
smile to my face. I rose from the chair and left the
comfort of the kitchen to welcome my daughter
home. I’d missed her and was just as excited as the
twins to see her again.
As I waited patiently for my turn to welcome her
home, I glanced out the front windows overlooking
the sun porch and noticed a figure standing there.
Puzzled, I raised an eyebrow at Ashley.
Ashley disentangled herself from the grip of her
siblings and shrugged. “Dad wants to talk to you. I
don’t know.”
Marcus entered the room as well and asked, “Do you
want me to go out there with you?”
I shook my head. “No, that’s alright,” I answered as I
reached out for a hug from Ashley.
He probably just wants to complain about the paltry
amount of child support he pays out each month, I
thought to myself.
We rarely, if ever, spoke to one another since the
divorce and we most certainly never spoke to each
other in person. If we did communicate, it was only
through text message or email and it was always
regarding Ashley, whether it was school, leisure
activities or more recently, driving lessons. I was
puzzled but curious and admittedly, a little nervous.
He wasn’t alone either, I’d noticed. His wife Amy
was with him. This would be the first time we’d met.
As an afterthought, Ashley added in a whisper,
“They’ve been acting weird all weekend.” She rolled
her eyes and made a face as she headed to her room.
My eyebrows rose with interest and I quickly ushered
the rest of my family into the kitchen for snacks. I
was sure that whatever it was they needed to discuss,
they would prefer a little privacy to do so. Returning
anxiously to the front room, I took a deep breath and
gripped the door handle. I turned it hesitantly and
stepped into the covered but cold sun porch.
“Hi!” I said, a little too cheerfully.

They both had tight, serious and perhaps even fearful
looks on their faces. John reached out his hand to
shake mine and Amy gave me a small, pinched smile.
We eyed each other anxiously and John made a few
awkward introductions.
After shaking Amy’s hand as well, I asked them, “Is
everything okay?” I was beginning to feel concerned.
“Where’s the little one?”
Amy relaxed her smile a little bit and replied, “Oh, we
left her with my parents. She wanted to stay and play
with her cousin.”
I looked at John and asked again, “Is everything
okay?” I felt a tight knot of unease take root in the pit
of my stomach and the cold, creeping darkness did
very little to dispel the anxious feeling.
“We had a nice weekend. Ash is driving really well,”
he began. “I just have something you need to see.”
He fumbled clumsily in his coat pocket for something
and I was immediately filled with dread. Initially, I
feared that they wanted Ashley to live with them or
something just as ridiculous.
Instead of pulling
anything that might resemble legal documents from
his pocket, he had in his hand a tiny flash drive.
“I think you and Marcus should take a look at this.
There are some copies of pictures, documents and
some videos,” he said as he handed me the flash
drive.
“Um, okay…..thanks,” I replied with confusion,
accepting the tiny device.
He floundered for a moment, looking small and out
of place, perhaps a bit uncomfortable. We hadn’t
seen or spoken to one another in years. He seemed
to become self-conscious, as though suddenly
realizing exactly how many years had passed since our
last meeting in person. It was an awkward moment
for all three of us.
“Hey, you remember when Ash was little, my friends
I use to play online with? The U.S. army guys from
Washington?” he blurted out suddenly.
“Yes,” I replied with a slowly nod. “Yes, I do.”
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