It seemed that City P had always been winter in my memory. Maybe I had not been in City P for a long time, just two winters. When I first came to City P, I lost my child and almost drove myself crazy.
The second time I came to City P was four years later. When I set foot on this land, no one had changed, but I seemed to be in a different mood.
It was late when we got back to the villa. My cell phone was off. I charged it and went straight to bed.
Dennis had a lot going on. He didn’t seem to pull any punches when it came to the Gibson’s. A lot of the Gibson’s buildings had collapsed, so Hank probably had his hands full already.
The next day, when I woke up, Dennis was gone. The holiday was coming.
Dennis had a lot on his plate. I thought that after the annual meeting, his things would be much less and he could have a good rest.
Now it didn’t seem that easy.
City P, which had been sunny for several days, suddenly began to snow heavily.
Finn made breakfast, and instead of doing anything else as usual, she was in the kitchen, scrubbing the table that she had wiped for the umpteenth time, as if she had something to say.
I lost my appetite, so I looked back at her and said, “What’s wrong?”
Perhaps she did not expect me to ask suddenly, she paused and said, “Madam, the holiday was coming soon. Do you have any plans?”
I was slow to realize that she was asking about her annual leave schedule. It was Dennis doing all this stuff, but I guessed he had been too busy lately to talk about it.
I thought for a moment and said, “Finn, are you going home for the holiday?”
She nodded and smiled. “We’re all going home for the holiday.”
“Have you bought your ticket yet?”
She shook her head, “My rest time has not been decided yet. My son and daughter-in-law are still waiting to be informed when the holiday will be, and then they will book my ticket home.”
After thinking about it, I said, “Finn, you can go back whenever you want, it’s just me and Dennis in this house, it’s okay.”
She smiled for a moment and nodded, “All right, well, thank you, ma’am.”
I looked around and realized that I had forgotten my phone upstairs, so I looked at Finn and said, “Finn, could you please go upstairs and get my phone?”
My phone had been charging since I got back last night. It should be ready.
Finn handed me my phone and I turned it on and read the headlines for a while. Probably because the holiday was coming, so everyone was looking forward to the holiday.
The Internet was full of holiday plans. It was snowing heavily outside, so it was not very convenient to go out.
So, I just sat at home reading to kill time.
It was noon when Alex called and I almost fell asleep.
When I answered the phone, he spoke before I could, with a touch of impatience in his voice, “Clara, where are you?”
“I am in the villa.” He was cranky before I could get the last part out.
“Clarie got lost in H Town. Didn’t Dennis tell you that?”
My mind just went blank. For a moment my head was buzzing and I couldn’t hear anything.
Alex called my name several times on the phone, but I didn’t hear him.
Until Finn saw me smash my glass on the floor and walked over.
She held me up and called out several times, “Madam, madam…”
I came back and looked around. I was still a little bit numb.
Finn looked at me and said with concern, “Ma’am, are you all right?”
I shook my head, still confused. Alex’s words were still ringing in my ears, “Clarie got lost.”
I tried to get up, but before I could, my legs gave way and I fell.
“Are you oaky, madam?”
I shook my head and realized, belatedly, that my phone was still talking, so I reached for it.
I held it to my ear. I opened my mouth, but my voice suddenly stopped.
“Clara, are you all right?” Alex’s anxious voice was on the other end.
I opened my mouth and found myself momentarily speechless. Finn’s hand trembled when she saw that.
She offered me a cup of tea, looked at me, and said, “Take your tea, ma’am. Take it easy.”
I nodded and drank some tea, finding the tea bitter.
It took me a long time to find my voice, and then I spoke into the phone, “Alex, what did you say?”
I said, my voice cracking.
Alex said, “Clara, listen to me, take it easy now. I don’t know exactly what’s going on with the Bennett family in H Town. You might want to go over to H Town and see what’s going on.”
“Okay…”
I said, and my first thought was to call Mario Bennett.
After I hung up on Alex, I called Mario Bennett, but I didn’t get through for a long time.
It was the same for several calls in a row. I had to call Folly.
Fortunately, Folly was quickly connected, “Clara, what’s the matter?”
“Do you know anyone in H Town? Could you have someone ask me about the Bennett family in H Town?”
Perhaps she could hear the anxiety in my words, she froze for a moment, and then comforted me and said, “All right, I’ll call them now.”
After a pause, she said tentatively, “Clara, what’s the matter?”
“I don’t know. Alex said Clarie got lost.”
She was shocked and said, “When? Why haven’t we heard anything? Doesn’t Clariana facetime you every night?”
I nodded, tears welling in my eyes. “But yesterday and the night before, Dennis and came home late, so we didn’t call her. I was going to call today to ask, but I just called Mario Bennett and I couldn’t get through.”
With that, my voice began to choke.
Folly exhaled on the other end of the line, “Okay, hold your horses. It’s still up in the air. Let’s call and ask. I know someone in H Town. I’ll get someone to check it out.”
I nodded, in order not to take up any time, after hanging up the phone, I directly booked a flight to H Town. Clariana had been at H Town with Mario for a dozen days.
She should be back by now. I might as well go to H Town and pick her up.
I drove my car all the way to the airport. Dennis was calling back and forth. I saw it, but I had no intention of connecting.
When I got to the airport, I got my ticket and boarded the plane. The stewardess reminded me to turn off my phone and tablet.
I glanced at Dennis’s message and felt anxious, he said, “Clara, pick up my phone. I’ve got someone on Clarie.”
I turned off my phone, the plane took off, and a big hole began to crack in my heart.
Some things couldn’t be cured in a lifetime. Clariana was what I need to live for. After a few years together, she was already my own child. I had already lost one child, and I couldn’t lose another.