The mistake of Jack - Chapter 3 - FICTION

Miranda decided to take her car and look for Jack. She locked the door behind her and sent a message to Tracey, asking her to phone her if Jack came home while she was not there. She took the shortest route to his office and along the way she looked everywhere if she was able to see his car but there was no sign of him or his car in the dark. When she reached the office, she could see that there were no cars in the parking lot and started to panic. Something must be wrong. This is not normal, she thought.

She took her phone out to contact Audrey as she didn’t know what else to do. As she dialed the number, a call came through. It was Tracey.

“Yes Tracey? Is he home?”

“Who?”

“Tell her I’ll be there in about 20 minutes.”

When she got home, old Mrs. Jackson stood waiting on the porch. She is such a nosy neighbor, always up to date with everybody’s business. She obviously had something important to say because she never came over before. Usually, she just peeks out the window whenever there is movement and she only goes outside when she can’t see properly. Her husband died a few years ago and like Miranda, Mrs. Jackson also has no children.

“Good evening Mrs. Jackson” Miranda said as she approached the porch. “Is everything alright?”

“Where is your husband, Miranda?” Mrs. Jackson asked without greeting.

“That is what I’m trying to find out. He didn’t come home after work and I’m worried that something might have happened to him.”

“I went to the shops this afternoon and I saw his car at the gas station but he wasn’t inside. When I drove past there on my way back home, I noticed that his car was still parked there and now, his car is still not home yet” she said, looking at Miranda as if to see whether she has struck a nerve.

“Which gas station, Mrs. Jackson?”

“The one in 5th Avenue towards the mall.”

Miranda rushed to her car and she feared the worst. Mrs. Jackson stood speechless on the porch as Miranda drove off in search of her husband. As she approached the gas station she could see Jack’s car parked in the area in front of the convenience store. It was already quarter past eight but at least the store was still open. She took the first parking that she could find and rushed over to Jack's car. The doors weren't even locked and she found it very odd as Jack isn’t someone who would leave a door unlocked. Everything inside the car looked normal. She ran over the store and asked the clerk if he had seen the owner of the car that has been standing there all afternoon. He told her that he had only arrived after five o’clock for his shift and that he didn’t notice anything.

“Could you please just check inside the men’s room if there is anyone inside, I would appreciate that.” she asked.
He went inside to check but came out without any good news. The clerk suggested that he contact the manager of the store seeing as he was on duty during the day. Miranda stood impatiently waiting and realized that it was time to phone the police.

“According to the manager, there has been an incident earlier today where a man collapsed in the parking lot. He was taken away by an ambulance after a while but the manager does not know where they took him” the clerk said. Miranda felt both relief and panic. Surely they could have contacted her already. She thanked the clerk and while running to her car, she phoned Audrey explaining what had happened. She asked her to phone all the hospitals in the area, while she drove searching for Jack .

(To be continued...)

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Previous chapters:

Chapter 1: https://steemit.com/fiction/@bdmomuae/the-mistake-of-jack-chapter-1-fiction
Chapter 2: https://steemit.com/fiction/@bdmomuae/the-mistake-of-jack-chapter-2-fiction

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