The Mystery In Rock Hill
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When I first came to this town, I was in a state of mind that could be called only one thing: confusion. And confusion is a good description of the feelings that had overtaken me on my arrival in Rock Hill, South Carolina. For one thing, I felt very tired. It had been a long journey from London and I hadn’t slept much during the night before.
I knew something was wrong when I saw the man who was sitting at the table by the window of the room I had rented. He was a tall, thin, balding man with a neatly trimmed beard, and he looked so out of place in Rock Hill that it almost seemed as if he had stepped out of an old painting.
He wore a dark blue suit, a white shirt, and a red tie, and his hair was tied back in a ponytail. His face was pale and he had deep-set eyes that were looking straight ahead of him. It was obvious he didn’t know anyone else in the room and he was obviously lost.
He looked around at the other people sitting around the tables in the bar and then back at me, but there was no expression on his face. I watched him for a while and then made my way over to his table.
“Excuse me,” I said. “Are you new here?”
He nodded and then looked up at me. The man was obviously not from around these parts. There was a kind of sadness about him as if he was in some sort of trouble.
“Can I help you?” I asked.
“I’m looking for someone,” he said.
“Someone? Like a girlfriend or something?”
“No, not like that. A friend.”
“A friend, huh?”
I had a feeling he was talking about me, but I couldn’t be sure. So I just nodded.
“Where do you want to find this person?”
“At the library.”
“You can’t find a friend at a library,” I said. “There’s no such thing as a friend in a library.”
“What are you talking about?”
“It’s a library. You don’t get friends in libraries. I’ve never seen anyone with a friend in a library. People come here to read books and learn stuff. They don’t need friends to do that.”
“Then where would they meet people?”
“I don’t know. Maybe a restaurant or something. Or a coffee shop. I guess it depends on what kind of person she is. Where did you say you’re from again?”
“London.”
“London! London must be a very big place, then. You could meet her anywhere in London, I guess. There are millions of people there. I don’t know how you’d find someone in such a huge city. What kind of friend are we talking about, anyway? Are you seeing her or something?”
“No.”
“How can you be sure you haven’t met her before? I mean, you might have met her without realizing it.”
“I’m not seeing her.”
“Are you sure? Maybe you just haven’t recognized her. She might be the type of person who looks different when you see her in daylight. I’m not saying she’s ugly or anything, but I mean, maybe you’ve seen her at night and didn’t think much of it because you were too drunk or something.”
“No. I’m not seeing her.”
“But you’re looking for her,” I said. “That’s a strange thing to do. Why do you want to find her?”
“Because she needs help.”
“With what?”
“She’s in trouble.”
“Trouble? As in danger?”
“Yes.”
“From whom?”
“I don’t know. But she needs help.”
“Why are you so sure she needs help?”
“Because she needs me to help her.”
“But why can’t she ask for help herself?”
“She can’t leave the house. I don’t know what it is, but she can’t leave the house. She has to stay here.”
“At home?”
“In this town.”
“Do you know where she lives?”
“I don’t know her address.”
“Then how can you help her?”
“I’ll find her. I’ll take her to London and bring her to the library.”
“To the library? Why there?”
“Because she knows about books. I’ve heard her talking about them.”
“Are you sure that’s where she lives? I mean, how can you be so sure?”
“I just know.”
“Maybe you’re right. Maybe you’ve met her somewhere else.”
“Not a chance. I’ve never seen her before in my life.”
“You’re sure?”
“As sure as I can be.”
“But you must have seen her around town.”
“Maybe once or twice, but that was it.”
“What did she look like?”
“She had long brown hair and green eyes. She wore a white dress with a red scarf around her neck.”
“Did she say anything?”
“Yes. She said she couldn’t leave the house.”
“You don’t know what happened to her?”
“I don’t know anything.”
“Then how can you be sure she needs help?”
“Because I know she needs me.”
“Maybe she’s just pretending she needs your help.”
“No. I’m sure she’s in trouble. And if she is, then she needs my help.”
“But why can’t she ask for help herself? Why do you have to go to all this trouble?”
“I don’t know. I guess she can’t ask for help because she’s too afraid.”
“Of what?”
“I don’t know. I can only imagine.”
“Who are you, anyway? What’s your name?”
“I’m called Sam.”
“Sam? Like the Beatles song? Or maybe Sam from Lord of the Rings?”
“No.”
“Okay, then. You’re not Sam.”
“How can you tell?”
“It’s hard to explain. I don’t think you’re Sam.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’ve never heard anyone called Sam before.”
“Maybe she’s changed her name.”
“If she has, she hasn’t told me about it.”
“But she wouldn’t do that,” I said. “She wouldn’t change her name without telling someone.”
“No. She wouldn’t. But still, you can’t be sure.”
“I know. And I can’t explain why I know. It’s just something I feel.”
“What are you doing here, anyway? Don’t you have school?”
“I’m on holiday.”
“So why don’t you go home?”
“I can’t. I need to stay here.”
“Why?”
“To find her.”
“What for?”
“Because she needs me.”
“But what if she doesn’t need you?”
“She does. I know she does.”
“Have you seen her?”
“Yes.”
“Where?”
“In the park.”
“The park? What park?”
“There’s a park in town.”
“Can you remember the name of it?”
“No. Sorry.”
“You can’t remember the name of the park where she lives?”
“No. But I know the area. I know where she lives.”
“That’s not the same thing as knowing the name of the park.”
“It’s close enough.”
“Are you sure she’s in trouble?”
“I’m sure.”
“What kind of trouble? You said she’s in trouble. What kind of trouble?”
“I don’t know. Maybe she’s being stalked by someone.”
“Stalked? By whom?”
“I don’t know.”
“If you don’t know, how can you be sure she’s in trouble?”
“I just know.”
“Then why don’t you just ask her for help? She can’t be too far away from here, can she?”
“I can’t talk to her. I don’t know what to say. I need to find her first and then—”
“And then what?”
“Then I’ll take her to London.”
“London? Why there?”
“Because I know people there. And they know people everywhere else. They can find her and bring her to the library.”
“If she’s in trouble, then maybe she doesn’t want to go anywhere.”
“I can’t help that.”
“But why do you have to go all the way to London?”
“Because she’s there.”
“Why London?”
“It’s where I need to go.”
“Do you know anyone in London?”
“Not really. Just the library.”
“How will you get there? The train?”
“No. I’ll walk.”
“That’s a long way.”
“I can walk.”
“Whoa. Slow down. You’re only ten years old. How far are we talking about walking?”
“From here to the train station. Then from the train station to London.”
“And how long is that?”
“I don’t know. It’s not far. Just twenty or thirty miles.”
“That’s a lot of walking, Sam.”
“I can do it.”
“If you say so,” said Dad. “But I think you’d better come home with me. You look tired.”
“I am tired.”
“So I’ll drive you home and we’ll call your mother and she can pick you up. How does that sound?”
“Fine.”
“Okay. Let’s go.”
We drove to the town and turned toward the station. Then we went past it and started down the road that led to the park. We parked at the bottom of the hill and climbed to the top. I followed Dad through the bushes and across the grass and gravel of the parking lot, but I stopped when he reached the bench.
“What are you doing?”
“I’m going to wait here for her.”
“Where’s she supposed to come from?”
“The other side of the park.”
“Then how will you know she’s coming?”
“She’ll see me.”
“And what if she doesn’t? What if she can’t see you?”
“I’ll hear her.”
“Hear her? How?”
“I just know. She’ll be coming soon.”
“You don’t know. You don’t know anything.”
“I know something.”
“What?”
“She’s in trouble. And I have to help her.”
“Are you sure you can’t talk to her?”
“No.”
“Then you need to stay here and rest while I go and find your mother. She’s probably worried about you.”
“Can’t you leave me here and go and look for her?”
“No. I can’t. I have to go back to work.”
“But you don’t have to work today.”
“Yes, I do. If I don’t show up tomorrow, they’ll fire me.”
“Then go and find her. You can still get fired. Then I’ll take care of the library until you get back.”
“I can’t leave you here by yourself. You’re only ten years old. What if you get lost?”
“I won’t. I’ll stay here on the bench.”
“Fine. But let me know when she comes.”
“Okay.”
Dad turned around and left, walking slowly away from me, then stopped and turned back. “You sure you won’t come with me?”
“I’ll stay here.”
“Okay. Come on, then. Let’s go home.”
He walked down the hill and into the park, then started back toward the car. I watched him walk out of sight behind the bushes and then turned my attention to the park. I knew where to find her. I’d found her before. The only problem was that I couldn’t remember how.
The End