Page 88 of Like A Moth To A Flame

“Sure did,” she said, nodding towards her truck. “And mine, and the shoes for both.”

“Good.” I moved to open the door, and she stepped back to give me room. My legs shook as I stood on the gravel, my thighsjumping and twitching. “You didn’t have to wait out here, though. I haven’t been locking the door or anything. No point.”

I shrugged.

Amelia cleared her throat nervously, and instantly, I was on edge.

“Well,” she said. “There’s something you need to see.”

I let her lead me around her Escalade, and she motioned to the front porch. A neat stack of papers had been placed in front of the door and secured with something heavy. The closer I got, the easier it was for me to see it was a clear glass paperweight with a lunar moth inside, frozen forever.

The moonlight cast an eerie glow over the glass, illuminating the intricate details of the moth’s delicate wings. Amelia watched me closely, her expression a mix of concern and anticipation. I reached out a trembling hand to pick up the paperweight, turning it over to see if there was any clue, any message left behind. But there was nothing, just the ethereal beauty of the moth suspended in time.

Carefully, I picked up the stack of papers and flipped through them. It was newspaper articles, file folders, and binders. Holding them carefully against my chest, I let us in the house.

The wooden floors creaked under our weight as we stepped into the dark living room. The air was heavy, and a shiver ran down my spine despite the warmth of the night. The scent of shame and dust swirled around me as I reached over and flicked on my dad’s trusty light. I placed the papers on the coffee table, and Amelia hovered beside me, her presence a comforting anchor amid my growing sea of unease.

What better place to start than at the top?

Right there on top, in plain black and white, was a newspaper article, torn from an old, yellowed newspaper. The blaring black text was still bold and easy to read.

Local girl missing

Cottonwood Falls police are seeking information about a girl who went missing on Tuesday afternoon. 13-year-old Vanessa Harper was last seen walking home from school along Lake Street, around 4 PM. Police are investigating, but at this point, have no suspects or leads.

Beside the text, a blown out, blurry, black-and-white picture of me smiled up from the paper. It was a copy of one of the photos I’d taken down from the hallway just a week or so ago. It was a school photo taken in my first year of middle school, when I’d finally started parting my hair on the side and decided that the straight, blunt bangs my mom insisted on were ‘too babyish’.

I passed the clipping over to Amelia. She awe’d at the picture before she settled in to read, but I had already moved on. It was another article, dated a week after the first one.

Cottonwood Falls teen still missing after a week

More than a week after Cottonwood Falls police released an Amber Alert for Vanessa Harper, also known as “Ness” or “Nessa”, the 13-year-old is still missing. She was last seen on April 12th, on her way home from school. She was last seen on the corner of Lake Street and Main. She stands at 5’3 and weighs 110 pounds. Shewas last seen wearing a pair of distressed jean shorts, high-top sneakers, and a blue and black striped camisole with lace trim. Speaking to the Chase County Gazette, her father, Police Chief Don Harper said:

“I just want my baby girl home. She’s all I’ve got.”

Two years ago in August, Chief Harper lost his wife, Olivia, to uterine cancer. Vanessa is their only child.

The words brought tears flooding my eyes, and I had to force myself to look away. I couldn’t cry anymore. I didn’t have the strength. I passed the clipping to Amelia and picked up the first file folder, shaking my head to force the emotions away.

Inside the folder were printed emails, handwritten notes, and police reports. I flipped through the documents, feeling a chill course through me as I read about the investigation into my disappearance. The details were jarring—sightings of a girl matching my description in neighboring towns, dead ends in the search, and interviews with friends and teachers who all expressed shock and concern over my sudden vanishing act.

Amelia must have seen the color drain from my face because she reached out a hand to squeeze mine in silent support. I appreciated her wordless comfort as I delved deeper into the file. There were copies of flyers that had been distributed, asking for any information on my whereabouts. The thought of people searching for me, worrying about me, tore at my heart.

This town cared about me, and I had abandoned it at the first chance I got.

Flipping the folder closed, I handed it to her.

“My dad was never the same after that,” I said, picking up the next newspaper clipping. “He drank so much, I hardly saw him except when he was leaving for work. He kept me home and checked in on me constantly. I remember for a while he had a cruiser parked outside 24/7.”

Amelia gave me a sad smile as she opened the folder, reading through it. I focused on the next newspaper article.

Fire leads to the discovery of missing girl

A fire broke out on Maple Street in Cottonwood Falls early Sunday morning. An off-duty firefighter, 24-year-old Thomas Eades, who lived close by, saw the flames and sprang into action. Hearing screams from inside, he risked his own life to save 13-year-old Vanessa Harper, who had been missing for nearly two weeks, kept locked inside a dog kennel in the basement.

Police believe the source of the fire was arson, set by the suspected kidnapper, in an attempt to get rid of evidence.

38-year-old Michael Jacobson has been charged with felony child abduction, attempted murder, unlawful imprisonment, and arson.

---