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I waited out the couple of hours until the sun rose, then went into the garden again. I could see the work they had been doing in the new vegetable beds, but their plants were several months behind mine; it would be a long time before there were any tomatoes or potatoes. I went around the edge of the garden, and at the side found several boards that had been prised off the fence and were lying broken on the ground. It didn’t look like Vik’s work; he would have been more careful and would have made a way of getting in and out that was neater, something he could secure.

I cautiously looked through the gap but couldn’t see anyone. I stepped through into the neighbours’ garden, which was rather overgrown, and saw the hole in their back fence. It looked like they had come in this way, through the back gardens, smashed the door to the conservatory, stolen the food from the kitchen, and left via the front door. I glanced around and saw a flash of red amongst the weeds. I bent down… it was a tin of Heinz soup. Maybe they had come back this way then. So who had gone out the front door? It must have been mum and Vik. But then, where were they?

I went back to the house, opened the side gate, and moved my bike into the garden. When the power came back on, I emptied the tin of soup into a bowl and put it in the microwave. I was tired and hungry. I hadn’t slept all night and wasn’t thinking too well. The knockers might come back… there was still food here, and it looked like they hadn’t searched very thoroughly… I really wanted to be safe at home but I was worried for mum and Vik. Had they escaped? If so, they would surely come back to the house. I tried calling Vik’s mobile, but again it went to voicemail. I left a message, explaining where I was, then decided against tidying up, and went to find somewhere to sleep.

I walked through the house and then looked at the living room door. It was locked, which on reflection, I found peculiar. Why hadn’t the knockers opened it? I suppose it was dark at the time, maybe they had just focussed on the kitchen; the only mess was downstairs, it looked like they hadn’t even bothered to go up to the bedrooms. Maybe in the dark they hadn’t seen the door here or had been too busy carrying their spoils away and hadn’t ventured further into the house.

I unlocked the door and stepped inside. In the morning light, it looked fresh and familiar. The old carpet and mismatched wooden bookcases, the cracked leather sofas, and oversized TV. It all seemed normal. In fact, it looked incredibly inviting. I locked the door behind me, grabbed a thick blanket from the pile, and snuggled up on the longer sofa. I was asleep within minutes.

I woke up to the afternoon sunlight streaming in through windows across my eyes. I had tangled myself thoroughly in the blanket as I slept but felt refreshed and alert. I listened carefully before I stood up, months of cautious living finally paying dividends; as I paused, I heard muffled voices beyond the door. I arrested the movement I had barely started and eased myself back down again, untangling the blanket from my legs as I did so.

Chapter 6: Missing

Was it Vik and mum? I listened carefully… no, there were two female voices. I silently slipped from the couch and stood up. I crept towards the thick wooden door and tried to listen. The voices were speaking quietly and I could hear very little. I crouched down to the key hole and removed the key.

‘So what do you think we should do then?’ I heard one voice say.

‘Leave it, there’s no key, perhaps it’s locked for a reason.’ the second voice said impatiently.

‘Maybe the key is on the inside,’ said the first women, her voice rising, ‘maybe there is someone inside, and they locked the door!’ she sounded alarmed.

‘Look,’ said the second voice, sounding impatient, ‘there wasn’t anyone here last night, there isn’t anyone here today, let’s just get the rest of the food and go,’ her voice became more muffled as I heard her step away from the door and towards the kitchen. Huh, they were just two women nervously searching for food. I relaxed back onto my heels, and then stiffened. Something wasn’t right, they had come last night, but mum had stopped answering the phone in the morning.

I needed to know what was going on and where mum and Vik were. I listened carefully but didn’t hear anyone else. I eased the key back into the lock and round and opened the door gently. The door opened inwards so the women didn’t immediately notice and I was able to get a good look at them as they raided the kitchen. They were younger than me, both wearing jeans and jumpers, both with dark hair, one was slightly shorter, but they both looked thin, and when they turned slightly I could see that their faces looked drawn and tired. The shorter one was scooping up the packets and remaining jars, and placing them in rucksacks. The taller was going through the cupboards.

I stepped out into the hallway and moved to the kitchen door. ‘Hi,’ I said. Both women jumped, and looked shockingly scared. I had never seen that level of fear on anyone’s face before. Then they took in what I looked like and some of the fear drained away. ‘Don’t be afraid,’ I said, lifting my hands in a calming manner, ‘I’m looking for my mum and brother,’ I continued, ‘they live here, have you seen them?’

‘What?,’ said the taller women; it was the impatient second voice I had heard from the sitting room.

‘Have you seen my mum or brother?’ I asked.

‘Where did you come from?’ said the shorter woman; the other, first voice. This was both of then then.

‘I was in the living room, sleeping when I heard you,’ I said, smiling slightly at the shorter one, ‘you were right, I was just inside the door,’ I turned to the taller woman again and repeated the question, ‘have you seen my mum?’

‘what?’ she said again, ‘no!’

They had backed together into the corner by the sink and both looked slightly nonplussed. They were in my house, stealing stuff, but I wasn’t angry or threatening, I was smiling at them. I reached up to open an overhead cupboard and pulled out three mugs holding them in one hand by the handle. ‘Coffee?’ I asked.

Now they looked really confused. ‘We’re taking this stuff,’ said the taller women aggressively.

‘Yes,’ I replied, ‘I can see that, I don’t mind, but I’d really like to find my mum and brother.’ I moved over to the kettle which was behind them. ‘Excuse me,’ I said, indicating the kettle.

They moved aside and I picked up the kettle and filled it at the sink. Then I set it to boil and opened the cupboard with the coffee. It was empty. The shorter women opened her bag and pulled out the coffee jar.

‘What are you doing?’ hissed the other.

‘Well, coffee sounds nice, I’m tired and hungry,’ she said, as she pulled out a chair and sat down at the kitchen table. I opened the cutlery drawer, took out a spoon and the back-door keys as I did so. I spooned coffee into two mugs and then looked at the taller women. She stared at me and then nodded slightly, so I added the coffee to the third mug. There was a huge jar on the kitchen counter with some brown crystals right at the bottom. I opened it and put two teaspoons in my cup.

‘Sugar?’ I asked. They both nodded yes, and I added the sugar and poured in the boiling water.

‘I really miss milk,’ I said.

‘Yes,’ said the shorter women wistfully, ‘I miss cereal in the morning and milky tea with biscuits.’ I passed round the cups and joined her at the table as she continued, ‘I miss bread too, and pizza and chips….’ Her voice died away as I nodded.