The Knife

“The Knife” is one of the outstanding stories of the first biannual International Short Story Contest 2018 written by Farwah Rahuman, Ilma International Girl School, Sri Lanka.

The Knife

“You deserve a break, you’ve had a hard time, Mia”

“You’re doing too much Daniel. I owe you one,”I said as we walked down a quiet street in London, ”But I think London is the best place to drain my sorrows.”

I slouch in bed, binding Kathy, while I dread the race through my memory lane. I remember the scream. The very scream that made different emotions battle for dominance in my heart and mind. Panic. Confusion. Misery. Sorrow. But weaved through it all was the feeling of utter hopelessness as if the world was banished from my memory and replaced with the most deadly nightmare that haunts me to date.

It has been a while since Chrissy went out of my life and it was so nice of Daniel to offer me a trip to London to get over it, but I think I never will. With the divorce and all Chrissy has been my only companion. I don’t know how to get over this. Normally, it would be Chrissy pacifying and calming me. I moan for her assuring hand that had once been beside me. Emptiness ate away and I let it stab me with sorrow. Tears threatened to roll, but I refused to let it come.

I woke up with a screeching scream. It was Kathy! She disappeared. I searched far and wide like I have never searched before, Spread my voice to police stations around the area, but there was no trace of finding Kathy. It is like she has vanished in thin air. I am totally losing it now. My sister had just died and adding to that, my daughter disappears. My life is a series of unfortunate events. As dusk arrives, I am numb. Panic twists around my throat and binds it. All my hope has been sucked away. My heart is pumping frantically, like it has never done before and my brain is overflowing with a weird sense of fuzziness that erupted as a result of my unstable consciousness. My world is going slow motion and I am dragged to the thought of my daughter’s situation and fate. Where is she? Is she prone to suffering? Is she hurt? Is She….. She………-

I decided that I can’t take anymore, I marched to the policeman nearby.

“Good evening madam, I was wondering, In your opinion do you think the two occurrences link-your sister’s and daughter’s?. Who knows, we might be able to uncover a criminal.”

I tried to control myself. My sorrow now transformed to anger and unrest, I am dreading the fate of my 10 year old daughter, when he is the least bothered.

“Constable, my daughter’s life is at stake here and all you bother about is your criminal mastermind!”I Yelled at the top of my voice, ”Here you are, acting like a detective or something, when you should be patrolling the streets looking for my girl!”

Saying so, I left the overwhelmed policeman to his work.

If the police cannot do their jobs, I will have to do it for them. I eyed streets far and beyond but there was no sign of my little girl. Fear and panic jabs me once more, egging me with terror. My mind voiced out my horror filled thoughts, and my last sense of hope has betrayed me. I covered in alarm as the bullets of horror whizz past my brain. Just pondering about the fact that there was no prospect of seeing the light of my daughter’s face petrifies me.

I walked down a quiet lane, where a hideous, filthy, shabby figure of a building appeared. Then I heard something. Kathy’s voice! I ran to the building as fast as my legs could take me and yelled,

“Kathy, Kathy!”

“She’s safe and sound” said a familiar voice

I freeze.

“Chrissy?” I twisted around in dread, “I ….I….thought you were dead.”

“Well, you were wrong, weren’t you?

By this time chills run up my spine, “Is… Is….Is…. it really you?”

“It’s time you hushed up”

She directed a knife towards me.

A knife from a memory. A familiar knife.

“Chris? Chrissy! ”I screamed.

Blinding pain erupts and the last thing I remember is blood, and more blood.