Paradise, CA

It was a lifetime ago but I remember it like yesterday. I suppose it’s because I believe in true love and I never got over him. I couldn’t believe that he didn’t love me, too. We had such a great life together and as far as I am concerned, warmth, unlike a lot of other things in a relationship, is something you just can’t fake.

Gordon grabbed the keys and with a quick blast over his shoulder, “Donna, going to get the milk. I’ll be right back!” and scooted out the door.

I waited. I called the store, “He’d never shown up!” said the clerk. I sat up all night, worrying, wondering. I just couldn’t figure out what went wrong? All, I could do was review our life together. Maybe I was biased, but frankly, I didn’t see a blind spot.

“Twenty-four hours later I was able to file a missing person’s report. The detectives held that guarded look as we spoke, as if I were somehow a suspect or ‘person of interest.’

I assured them that it was a complete mystery. I asked them, “Why they hadn’t been able to find him or his vehicle that was properly licensed, registered and not to mention, insured?”

The proverbial answer, “We’re doing all we can, Ma’am. We ran a trace on credit cards and nothing, the trail is stone cold. We have an APB on him but still nothing has turned up, yet. We’ll keep you posted as soon as we hear of anything pertinent to your case.”

I left the cop shop feeling like someone had thrown cold water on me and left me out to dry in 30° weather. The officer had said, “Stone cold.” That aptly described how I felt if you could call that, feeling. I went home and shut myself in. I put on tea and threw a shawl around me. Later, I wept and I had a glass of wine. Hell, I drank the whole bottle. I woke up on the sofa in disarray to the phone ringing. After digging, I found it under a pillow on the floor and nearly shouted, “Yes,” into the receiver.” The digital read out indicated 4Am.

“Mrs. Wright? It’s detective Jordan, here. I just wanted to let you know we found your husband’s car abandoned outside of Paradise, CA but we haven’t found your husband.”

I appealed, “That’s nearly eight hours drive from here! Can’t the forest rangers or whatever, find him?”

“We are doing our best Ma’am, the local sheriff’s dept will report to us as soon as they hear any details,” he offered. So it’s best you get some sleep if you can, g’night,” click. The line went dead.

That was thirty years ago. Since then I remarried and my new husband died of cancer 30 days ago. I never had any children by my first husband, Gordon, so anything we have left, goes to Jonathon’s children. I don’t care. What have ‘things’ brought me in this life?

However, last night I had a strange dream that I can’t shake. Gordon was in some kind of vortex. Expanding and contracting, he called out to me, “Donna, I don’t want to leave you! I’ll be back as soon as I can. I love you!!!” He was torn upwards in ripples of light waves with his hands outstretched, pleading. I woke up in a cold sweat.

I staggered to the kitchen and started coffee. I retrieved the newspaper from the porch. I put my mug under the spigot, filled it and sat at the table. Opening the rolled up paper, I saw the headlines: “UFO Sightings - Widespread in California.” Subtitle: Reports from LA, SF, San Diego, Oroville and Paradise.

[620 words]