Washington, Missouri
2006

Thirty one year old Jason Hollister sat in his office. He folded his
arms behind his head, and stared at his desk. He started to
daydream, knowing it was the only way to bring peace to his
thundering heart, and shaking hands. Closing his eyes, he let his
mind drift back to when he was eleven. That day changed not
only his life, but the lives of his friends. It started on a snowy
afternoon in Missouri as he played in the snow.
It was freezing outside and he loved it. Building the igloo gave
him power, and when he grew up he wanted to be an architect.
As they all dug in the snow, Jason saw something glitter. Digging
deeper, he reached down with his gloved hand, and grabbed
what he thought was a stone. As he pulled it out, his breath
caught in his throat, as he tipped it toward the sun. The object
winked almost like a diamond, and the force he felt flow through
his fingers, almost tickled him, which took him by surprise.
"What you got?" Chuck asked him.
"I don't know. I just found this in the snow."
"Let me see," McKenzie said to him, elbowing her way through all
the boys who surrounded Jason. Finally, sitting next to him, she
held out her hand.
Jason looked at her, then the object in his hand, and gently he
put it on her glove.
The flash happened so suddenly; all the boys shielded their
eyes, and watched in horror and fascination as she vanished.
The snow where she sat was charred, but the stone was still
there, glittering and winking at them from where McKenzie had
been.
"What'd you do that for?" Chuck asked.
" Why'd I do what?" Shaking his head, Jason looked confused,
then stared at him with his big brown eyes. "I didn't do nothin.
You saw what happened. I gave her the stone, and she
disappeared."
"Well you better do something to get her back, or her parents will
be mad at you," Chuck said, as his blond hair peeked out from
beneath his hood, and his breath steamed in the cold, winter air.  
 "How am I suppose to do that?" Jason looked at him.
"I don't know. I guess whatever you did to make her disappear,
do the opposite to bring her back." Chuck was serious.
"But I don't know what I did." Jason stared at Chuck, then, Spike
the other boy who had been playing with them.
Picking up the stone, Jason absently rubbed it with his fingers.      
 "Here Chuck, take the stone and see if you can bring McKenzie
back."
"No way. Are you crazy? I'm not disappearing like she did.         
What'd I look stupid or something?"
Jason looked over to the charred snow again, then back at his
friends.
"If you don't do something, you're going to be in big trouble.
You'll be grounded forever, Jason." Chuck told him, scooting
backwards out of the igloo and Spike followed.
"Wait! Where are you going?" Jason panicked.
"Home, where we belong. If we stay here, you'll make us
disappear too." Spike told him.
"But I didn't do it," Jason whispered, realizing he was all alone.

"Mr. Hollister, you have a call on line two. Mr. Hollister did you
hear me?"
Sitting straight up, Jason stared at the phone. "Who is it?" he
asked his receptionist.
"She says her name's McKenzie."
"What?" he asked, shocked.
"Her name's McKenzie. Are you alright?" Jane asked him.
"Yeah, fine." Jason told her, as his hands shook.
Picking up the phone, his heart once again thundered. "Jason
Hollister."
"Jason? I don't know if you remember me, but my name's
McKenzie. I must meet with you. Are you free today?"
Jason's mind tumbled around her words. "Today?"
"Yeah, today. Can you meet me? I need to talk to you."
"Who is this?"
"I told you McKenzie. Look, can you meet me or not?"
Looking at his calendar, he shook his head. "Yeah, give me an
hour to clear my schedule. Where do you want to meet?"
"At the park down by the river. Pull over the railroad tracks and
go to the right. I'll be there."
"Wait. What kind of car do you drive?"
He heard her laugh. "Don't worry, I'll find you. See you in an
hour."
Excerpt: Chapter One
Vanished
By  L.A. Thunder