Free Times of Trouble by Victoria Rollison

of the
baby?’ Jared asked, not showing a hint of concern, just sly
curiosity.
    Vince grunted,
without committing to an answer. He was expert at only speaking
when it suited him, which was usually when he was giving
orders.
    ‘ Good to hear things
went well for you in London, Jared. But we’ve still got one little
problem. We need more information.’
    Jared nodded and
replied: ‘Time for some more pressure? Do you want me to give him a
call?’
    ‘ No, I'll do it. And
lose that car out front.’
    Jared let himself
out. Vince waited to hear the car reversing out of the driveway,
and went back into the house.
    ‘ Melissa, you can
come back down now. I’m ready for dinner.’

Chapter 8

    ‘ Mum, you’re not
cleaning the house because Liam is coming today, are you?’ I
teased, knowing full well why she had been up so early, dusting,
vacuuming and polishing every visible surface. It made me thankful
we didn’t have visitors more often, as the flurry of activity was
exhausting to watch.
    ‘ I’m just giving
everything a once over. I wouldn’t want him to think we live in a
pig sty.’
    The house was far from
a pig sty before mum started cleaning, and now it looked more like
a display home, with 1980s furniture instead of modern white sofas.
While she busied herself scrubbing the kitchen sink, I started
mentally to prepare myself for Picasso’s exit. Even after all the
anxiety and misery over the last couple of days, I still hadn’t
completely come to terms with the fact my piano was about to leave
the house. The realisation that I wouldn’t be able to play anymore
filled me with dread.
    Eager to stop staring
at Picasso like a love sick teenager, I logged onto Facebook to see
if I had found the right Tina Gianopoulos. Much to my excitement,
there she was, under the heading ‘Friends’. Thank goodness. Wasting
no time, I emailed her to see if she knew anything.
    ‘ Dear Tina, I wasn’t
sure if you would remember me, but you obviously do as I can see
you've added me as a friend. This may seem like a strange request
from someone you haven’t seen for over 10 years, but I was
wondering if you are still in touch with my sister Sophie? The
reason I ask is she moved to London a few years ago and, as awkward
as it is to admit, we haven’t heard from her since. Now I’d really
like to get back in contact with her. If you could give me any idea
where she is, or what she is up to, or even a phone number, I’d be
really grateful. Hope all is well with you, Ellen’.
    It was a bit of a
rambling email. I hoped it didn’t sound too full-on or crazy. It
seemed ridiculous, even to me, to ask someone you hardly knew if
they still spoke to your sister, who you had lost touch with. Who
loses touch with their immediate family? Mum and I do, that’s who.
It was a long shot, as the chances of Sophie still having a
friendship with Tina were very slim. But I might as well try to do
something useful. I might not be a lawyer or a private
investigator, but I was sure there were some things I could do to
help find Sophie. I clicked over my profile for a while, wondering
if I should fill in my ‘likes’ and ‘hobbies’ or if I should add a
photo like everyone else seemed to. Then I clicked onto Tina’s name
on my friendship list and realised I could look at her entire
profile, which included her list of friends. So this must be how
people network! With a rush of adrenalin, it became clear that if
Tina was still friends with Sophie, there was a chance she was in
her list of friends. If Sophie had got married, or changed her
name, surely I'd recognise her in her profile picture? Tina had
over 200 friends; I hastily scrolled through the names. The most
expensive search in the world would be over very quickly if I could
find Sophie through Facebook. I wondered again if Liam had ever
thought of looking for Sophie online. But my hopes disappeared as I
got to the end of the list, and Sophie wasn’t there. Her life must
have been far