The Riviera. Karen Aldous

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       Chapter 4

      ‘Dad.’

      ‘Jack…yes.’ Cal’s voice sang from his heart as it swelled and a huge sigh blew from his airways.

      Reaching the latch entrance, he reached up to a cord and switched on a ceiling lamp. He heard a sudden scuttling sound. ‘Jack.’ He stretched his neck to seek his son.

      ‘Yeah. I’m here but don’t make me go in or go to school tomorrow. Dad, I’m staying here or you take me to England. I hate it here, Dad.’

      Cal climbed the four remaining steps slowly, gauging a fear in Jack’s plea he’d never witnessed before. As he turned to follow the voice, his eyes met the scrunched frame tugging at a dark-blue sleeping bag. The roof space was small and shallow. Jack’s deep-hazel eyes bulged, confirming Cal’s suspicion.

      ‘How long have you been here?’ Cal asked, now attempting to crawl into the cramped space.

      ‘I got cold down…I was down at the marina but I got back here just before it got light. Mom will make me go to school. Dad, don’t tell Mom where I am.’

      ‘Your mom is beside herself with worry. You need to explain, Jack.’

      ‘She won’t listen, she’ll send me to school.’

      ‘There are a lot of people out there searching for you so they need to know you are safe.’

      Cal just wanted to stay and talk but he had to let Kelly know and the guys who had spent the entire night out in the bitter cold with no sleep. God knows, they needed a rest.

      Cal took a deep breath. ‘OK. I’ll do a deal. You promise to stay here and I promise I won’t let her up. I’m going to tell your mom you’re OK because she needs to tell everyone to stop searching. I’ll be right back, alone, I promise. Is that a deal?’

      Jack slid back down into the sleeping bag. ‘Not Mom? No I said.’

      Cal shook his head. ‘Your mom will be relieved you’re here. I’m telling her, not because you have to go to school but to stop the panic and the search. There are a lot of people worried about you, Jack. I’m just going to tell them that we will talk alone. Just you and me. I’m going to make that clear.’ He paused, searching for Jack’s approval. Jack continued to look down, fiddling with the sleeping-bag zip. ‘Is that clear, Jack? Do you trust me?’

      ‘Will you be staying here, Dad? I want you to stay. Mom will send me to school.’

      ‘I’m going nowhere, son, until I’m happy you’re happy.’

      After several seconds, scared eyes peered up. ‘I trust you, Dad, but Mom will start fussing and bossing…’

      ‘Jack, do you trust me?’

      Cal watched as his son lay still, contemplating, his eyes flitting back and forth to the zip and back to him. He could only imagine what was going on in Jack’s mind. He knew Kelly was controlling and just loved to tell her friends about every detail of her daily dramas. Was this what his son was afraid of? Did she inadvertently humiliate him? He was sure he wouldn’t have appreciated it himself at sixteen. One thing was certain and that was, this boy was intent on hiding or running away. What was it his son couldn’t face?

      ‘I want to go away, Dad. I want to be with you but not here. I want to go to England.’

      ‘I understand you’re struggling, Jack. We can talk about this. Give me five minutes and…’

      Both their heads turned as Kelly shouted from the back door. Cal glanced at his child.

      ‘Five minutes and I’ll be back. Trust me?’ Cal raised his hand for a high-five.

      Jack grimaced and raised a hand to his father. ‘Don’t bring her here, please.’

      ‘I promise.’ Cal scratched the back of his head. Torn between trying to keep his son calm and needing to let Kelly know her son was safe, Cal couldn’t make false promises.

      ‘Trust me. Five minutes.’

      He scrambled back down the steps and across the neat-lawned garden. For a house worth several million dollars, the garden was relatively small, only a hundred foot long by, Cal guessed, eighty foot wide. The summerhouse was at the end of it and away from the house. It made sense he would take refuge somewhere close. He wondered if Jack had been planning this for some time. It wasn’t the most obvious place to have a sleeping bag to hand. He was sure the space would have been checked the previous evening. He stepped into the back lobby.

      ‘Oh Cal, there you are. Still nothing to report but Lizzie rang you,’ Kelly said as Cal entered the kitchen lobby.

      He headed straight for the unit where his phone was charging in the kitchen and waited for Kelly to follow. At once, he saw Bob, Brett’s father leaning on the island and Harry raiding the fridge and Bea throwing her coat onto the back of a dining chair.

      Kelly then spun back grabbing her hair in frustration. ‘Nothing at the harbour. Bob, you should go home and get some sleep. Cal can…’