Donnie
I’m worried about my mom. I haven’t heard from her in three days. After what happened at Ness’s and Dug’s I was a little on edge. I don’t know why. I don’t know if I really believe if people can have extra sensory gifts. I tried calling my mom and it went to voice mail. All eleven times I have called.
I know she has been so frustrated because I don’t return her calls, so I know she would answer if I called. I know in the pit of my stomach that something is wrong. I just do. I think my grandmother is worried too. She has tried to call and check on her too. As much as we argue and not get along, we still keep in touch with each other. My grandmother won’t say anything but I can tell she is worried. I am planning to sneak out and take the pickup while my grandparents are sleeping. I am going to talk to Dug. I know it will be late and me knocking on the door is going to scare them but I have got to talk to Dug about the neighboring man he talked about. He is the only “clue” I have. Dug and Ness don’t know it yet but we are about to be the Scooby Gang and find out what the fuck is going on. I know my mom and she would answer the phone and if she couldn’t she would call me back. Some serious shit is going on. I am going to call the cops too and put in a missing report. Jeez, if my mom is hurt, I don’t know what I will do. This is like some horrible episode of some TV show. I hope my mom can keep her wits about her.
Then my mind goes off and thinks what if she left because I was just a dick to her. I feel bad about that. I hope she didn’t just leave. I don’t think she would do that. I really don’t.
I waited until I knew my grandparents were asleep and went and got my grandfather’s keys to his truck and took off down the road toward Ness’s.
When I pulled into the driveway at Ness’s, the lights in the house were on. It was one o’clock in the morning so I found that odd. Even odder was Ness opened the door to welcome me before I even got out of the truck. She opened her arms to me. All the worry I felt came to the surface and I let her hold me. I let her hold me when I should have been nicer and let my mom hold me when she was here. If something happened to her, I would never forgive myself for being so hateful.
“How are you?” Ness asked me. I could see the creases in her forehead and her wrinkles seemed more pronounced. She was wearing the worry on her face. “Come in and let’s drink some coffee and start brainstorming. I know your mom and she is probably more worried about you more than her own well-being. “
She led me into the kitchen and I sat down at the table. “I’m a horrible son.” I said sadly. “I was so mean to her.”
She put a steaming mug of coffee in front of me and a little cup of milk and sugar. “Stop it, Donnie. Now is not the time to try to right the wrongs. When she comes home is when you can right them. Right now, we need to figure out where the hell she is at.”
I mixed my coffee the way I liked it, with milk and lots of sugar. “I don’t know where she is and I am terrified.”
“She is with the neighboring man,” Dug’s voice said behind me and I almost jumped out of my skin. I turned and looked at him. He was in Star Wars pajama pants and a white t-shirt.
“Who is that, Dug? I don’t know who that is,” I said with my voice shaking.
Dug sat at the table. His eyes were tired and his face looked sallow. I knew his mind was trying to figure out whom the neighboring man was.
“I am sorry; I don’t know who he is. Just that he is. I see him but not his face. I try so hard to see his face, because Ev is my friend and I want to save her. I do. I love her,” he said. His voice was sad.
I felt really bad for him. I took Dug’s hands. I looked him in the eye and said: “Dug, it’s time to tell me and your ma what you see. We need to know. There may be a clue in what you are seeing.”
His eyes widened and the innocence in that expression caused my heart to ache. “A clue, like they find on Scooby Doo? I love Scooby Doo. I wish we had a Mystery Machine to drive around in.”
I laughed. “I do too. Wouldn’t that be great?”
“It sure would. You could drive, I would look, and we would drive all over in this neighborhood looking for your ma,” he said with childlike wonder. Behind that wonder was something that stood out.
“Is he in this neighborhood?” I asked.
“Oh yes….I just don’t know where. I know he has a house here. I know he is close, but not what he looks like. Just that he has your mother chained in his basement,” he told me. My heart lurched into my throat. “His basement is neat and tidy. It has a bed, which is where he keeps your maand I have a feeling he is gonna get mad at her soon, Donnie and that scares me. It scares me bad.”
The hair on my neck stood up. “He has her chained in the basement?” My voice was almost awhisper. “What does he want her for, Dug? She’s kind of boring.”
He looked at me and some anger crossed his features. “Your ma isn’t boring. She is fun and interesting but most of all: SHE IS DIFFERENT. People always want birds and butterflies that are different. That is why he wants her. He wants her bad, Donnie and he isn’t a nice man. His brain is messed up. He isn’t nice at all. He wants to keep her like a bird in a cage.”
“We need to put in a missing person’s report. We need to call the cops. We can’t tell them Dug saw this, Donnie. They will try to commit him and I am having none of that shit. I’m old and I’m tired but he is my son and in my heart of hearts I know he has clues in whatever he sees that will lead us to her and then we will call the cops again,” Ness said. She walked over and got her cordless phone. She gave it to me. “You are the one who is going to have to call them since you are family. Answer what you know when they come here but don’t say anything about Dug’s visions. Just that we are good friends with your mom. I’m afraid if you tell them about Dug’s vision’s they will think he had something to do with her being gone. People don’t understand Dug and his size scares them or they think the worst because he is so tall.”
“I’m scared, Ness,” I admitted. “I don’t know how to do this or even how to handle this. My grandmother is wreck, my grandfather thinks my mom got mad and just left, but she wouldn’t do that to any of us. As mad and as hurt as she has been, she wouldn’t just leave. I know she had dreams of living in a big city when she was growing up, but I honestly don’t think she would just up and leave me. My grandfather is probably trying not to think the worst. He just wants to think the worst of her and not the worst that could happen to her.”
Dug wrapped his huge arms around me. “She didn’t leave, Donnie. She was taken. She would never leave you. She loves you, she surely does.” I let the giant man-child hug me and I hugged him back and then took a deep breath and dialed 911.
After I made the call, they said they would send out an officer to interview us. I looked at Ness and Dug and realized that even in their predicament; her old age and his Down syndrome, they had a strength like I had never seen before in any person’s I had ever known. I was proud to know them and planned on keeping them as friends no matter what. I knew that I could learn from them more than they could ever learn from me. I felt tears coming to my eyes, as I realized my mother was such a good judge of character. No wonder she loved Dug and Ness and no matter what, I would protect them.
Ness sat down across from me and drank her coffee. She reached one hand across the table and took mine and Dug sat beside me and leaned his head on my shoulder. “I’m so glad we are friends,” he told me. I couldn’t reply because tears were burning my eyes and snot was clogging my throat.
I guess, I’m not very tough. I’m scared.