I was lounging around on the small porch of our Shoal Bay apartment. My mobile phone rang and I reached across to the plastic table, answering the call.
“Hello, Sofia,” I greeted with a grin. “I’m in Shoal Bay. It’s a sunny day and my hair is wet from an early morning swim. How are you?”
“Nina.”
Sofia’s tone was grave. It caused my smile to evaporate.
“My brother, Jarrett, we don’t know where he is,” Sofia revealed.
I gasped, sitting up suddenly.
“Oh dear,” I gushed. “What happened?”
“We just can’t find him,” Sofia admitted. “We’ve tried calling everybody we know.”
“Oh dear,” I echoed.
Sadness seeped from my heart, leaking through my body.
“Have you reported him missing?” I asked.
“Should we?” Sofia wanted to know.
“You can,” I answered. “The police can help you.”
Once we finished on the phone, I headed down to the beach briefly. The sunlight seemed brighter than usual. There was a wildlife park not too far away which we hadn’t visited before, so even though Geoff made the suggestion while sunscreening his legs, I wasn’t interested. We waded in the water for a little while, before the holiday traffic started to fill up the sand. I dawdled back inside the apartment as my mobile phone rang. While I expected it would be Sofia’s name on my screen, she wasn’t who was calling me.
“Oh, hello,” I responded.
I wasn’t thinking that it would have been Mum and Dad.
The younger sister of missing Sydney man Mitchell del Reyan, Nina del Reyan lives on Dharug land in western Sydney. She has recently commenced a teaching degree at Macquarie University. Nina loves her family and friends and is deeply committed to finding answers and justice for the families of missing people.
Abbey Sim is the founder of Huldah Media. She is a creative writing, law and theology student who lives on the lands of the Dharug people in Sydney, Australia. Abbey desires to explore themes of hope, love and longing through her storytelling. She is the author of 'Shadow' and 'From the Wild'.
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