Plot Twist
an excerpt

As she lay the phone down on the arm of a nearby rocking chair, it dawned on Annie subconsciously that she and her father were talking in a way that was mostly civil for the first time in years. It was a shame that she was too worried to notice. Pushing back the thought quickly, she crossed the room, and carefully examined the pictures that lined the far wall: she and Annie as girls at Christmas time, the elder girl holding her baby sister on her lap as she gave the camera a toothless grin; Rachel at her first science fair award ceremony; Annie’s senior picture from when she graduated high school; photos of their grandparents, aunts, and uncles, and a family photo of the three of them—

“Oh my God, it’s gone!” With horror, Annie realized that the family photo was missing; only the silver frame that held it remained. In fact, every picture on the mantle that once featured Annie’s mother was gone. Annie ran back to the rocking chair, blurting to David in a hurry, “you’re never going to believe this, but the photos are gone.”

“I thought I heard you scream,” said David, sighing wearily. “But all of the photos are gone?”

“Just the ones that Mom was in, coincidentally. Just like the picture I had in my wallet that was gone at the police office.”

At that moment, Rachel came flying down the stairs, skidding to a stop when she reached the bottom. “Annie, I found the documents, and tax returns, and a bunch of other things, too, but there’s a little bit of a problem—”

“Let me guess,” her sister said, speaking before the blonde could finish, “you found the documents, but there is no mention of Mom anywhere on them, with no sign of tampering or erasure, and you know for sure her information was on there a while ago.”

The younger girl looked dumbfounded. “How did you know that?” she asked.

Annie beckoned, and the girl came over to where she stood in front of the mantle. “Look, Rachel. All of Mom’s pictures have disappeared, just like the one in my wallet. Dad says her name is gone from our birth certificates, too.”

“What? That’s crazy! Have we been broken into? Maybe someone stole the pictures.”

David had overheard their conversation through the phone, and contributed, “that’s always a possibility, but how do you explain the missing information on all of the legal documents?”

Annie paused for a moment, then nodded. “He’s right. It’s not like information like that just disappears. If there was a robbery, the documents would be missing completely. They can’t just steal the words off the page, you know.”

Rachel’s eyes narrowed, and Annie saw with alarm that her right hand was beginning to ball itself into a fist. “Then what the hell is going on? This is all wild, Annie, and none of it is making sense. The only people that are going to believe that mom ever existed at all were people that knew her, and the cops aren’t going to give us the time of the day.”

“Not as long as we don’t have evidence to show for our case, anyway,” mused Annie. “I thought Dad could help, but he’s as stuck as the two of us are now!”

“Listen, honey,” David said, “I’m going to keep looking, and see what else I can dig up. There has to be something here that’s still in one piece.” After a moment’s hesistation, he added, “I”ll see if I can find the legal papers from the divorce.”

“Yeah, okay, it’s worth a shot, I guess. I’m going to go up and take a look at the things Rachel found, and see if there’s any evidence…God, I sound like something out of a damn Nancy Drew novel.”

“Do you need me to come down to stay with you and Rachel? Are you two sure you’re going to be okay stayong at home by yourselves?”

“Daddy, I’m not twelve anymore. Rachel and I have made out just fine without you for the past nine years, and we’ll make out fine now, too.”

“I’m sorry, Annie,” the man said weakly. “Really. Call me if you need anything at all.”

“I’m sorry too, Dad,” she said bitterly, “I’ll call.”

“And Annie?”

“What?”

“I love you, both of you.”

“Yeah, okay.”

Before he could reply, Annie pushed the off button on the portable, disconnecting the call.

“Now what?” asked Rachel, looking defeated.

“I have no freaking idea,” sighed Annie, slumping down into the rocking chair and starting a rhythmic pace.