Chapter 4

The celebrations began.

The town's mayor welcomed everyone and offered a few words to usher in the New Year. People gathered around, chatting and enjoying the festivities.

Mom joined in the celebration, but her mind was clearly elsewhere.

Nearby, a long string of firecrackers had been laid out in the open space, ready to be lit.

Just as someone was about to light them, Mom suddenly shouted, "Wait!"

Everyone turned to look at her.

"Sadie hasn't arrived yet." Her voice sounded a little hoarse. "This is such an important occasion. The whole family should be here."

I narrowed my eyes. Mom really did still care about me.

"She might be watching from somewhere nearby. Let's set them off first, before we miss the auspicious time."

"But..."

"Mommy." Lily suddenly tugged at her sleeve, pointing with her other hand toward a shallow pit not far away, partially covered in snow. "Was Sadie... there yesterday?"

Mom followed the direction of her finger. There seemed to be something at the bottom of the pit.

Dad noticed it, too. Frowning, he walked over and brushed away the thin layer of snow.

It was the sweater and coat I'd taken off last night. They had frozen solid.

Dad's hand stopped in midair, and Mom came over, too. She stared at the pile of clothes for several seconds before abruptly looking around.

All she could see was a vast, empty expanse of white snow.

Lily tightened her grip on the button eye in her palm and asked softly, "Sadie took off her clothes... Wasn't she cold?"

Dad picked up my sweater and stood motionless.

"What does that brat think she's doing, leaving her clothes here? Is she trying to pull some pathetic stunt to make us feel sorry for her?" Mom strode over, snatched the sweater from Dad's hands, and shook it.

Tiny shards of ice fell to the ground.

"Does she think we'll feel sorry for her just because she left her clothes here? That we'll go searching everywhere for her? Dream on! If she freezes to death, she deserves it! She's so damn inconsiderate!"

But Dad's face had gone pale. "Last night... Could she have been here the whole time?"

Mom paused, then slammed my sweater onto the ground even harder. "It's a ploy! It has to be! She wants us to panic and regret scolding her yesterday! She's probably hiding in someone's warm house right now, laughing at us!"

Lily pulled free from Mom's hand and ran to the edge of the pit, digging through the snow the way Dad had.

Suddenly, she pulled out something small. It was my hair tie.

She laid it beside the button eye in her frozen little palm, then looked up at Mom and Dad in turn.

"It's Sadie's."

Mom snatched the hair tie from her hand, gripping it so tightly that her fingertips turned white.

The neighbors began to sense that something was wrong and gathered around.

"Her clothes are here, but she's nowhere to be seen? She didn't go home last night?"

"In weather this cold, where could she have gone wearing only an undershirt? Could it be..."

"Don't talk nonsense!" Mom interrupted sharply. "Nothing could have happened to her! She's doing this on purpose!"

But I could see Mom's hands trembling.

Dad said nothing more. He began searching for me, circling the old oak tree.

The neighbors, sensing that something was seriously wrong, joined the search.

Mom held Lily in her arms. Then Lily quietly asked her, "Is Sadie hiding, too? Just like I did yesterday, in that pit?"

Mom heard her. She suddenly froze, her gaze shifting toward the pit. "Sadie... Don't scare me like this. If I find out you've been deceiving us, I'll beat you to death!"

She kept talking like that, but she released Lily and slowly approached the pit. Then she began digging with her hands.

"If you're playing a trick on us, I'll disown you! I'll make sure you forget us for good..."

Before she could finish, the pink fabric of my undershirt came into view.

And then... my face.