No Little Duck Came Back

"The superyacht was moving too fast, and the waves were high. We lost Mr. Jesse," the captain admitted.

My father splashed wine across the man's face. "What does any of that have to do with me, you idiots? Go find him! Why should I have to tell you the obvious?"

The commotion startled my mother. She approached with a frown. "What's wrong? That useless little thing still hasn't come up on deck?"

My father tugged his tie down in irritation and unbuttoned his collar. "The bodyguard said he hasn't been following us. They're searching now."

My mother sneered, showing no concern, "Oh, I see. He's hiding behind an emergency float or somewhere like that. It's just another stunt for attention. I've seen it before. Once, he hid in a closet and refused to come out just to avoid piano practice."

"But that isn't it," I screamed.

Back then, my ears hurt. My hearing aid had broken, and every sound had been unbearable. I couldn't take it anymore, so I had tried to escape the noise.

My mother could not hear me. She took a sip of champagne instead. "Leave him alone. Let him stay in the freezing water a little longer. He'll climb back soon enough. I wouldn't dote on a pathological liar and drama king."

Tears rolled down my cheeks. "The sea was bitterly cold, Mom. I can no longer climb back onto the yacht. I can't do it anymore."

The sky had turned completely dark, nearly black. The only light on the water came from the emergency boats and the superyacht, casting a harsh glow over the freezing sea.

The wind grew colder. The waves worsened. I curled into myself at the corner of the deck, arms wrapped around my knees. I could no longer feel the cold, yet I still shuddered.

I had thalassophobia.

When I was five, Amber shoved me into the deep end of a swimming pool. I nearly drowned. I could never forget the feeling of water closing in on me. It became a nightmare that never left.

It also became a sore point for my parents. My father called me a coward who couldn't overcome trauma like a real man. He said I was a disgrace to the family.

"We still couldn't find him, sir," Max, the bodyguard captain, reported as he and his team returned from the sea. Anxiety showed on their faces.

My father's frown deepened, but not from concern for my safety. He hated the embarrassment. To him, it meant his authority as a father had been challenged.

"How the hell is that possible? How can it be so hard to find a boy?"

"Maybe some fishermen rescued him," Amber said lightly between licks of her ice cream.

She swung her legs from her seat. "Maybe he's laughing to himself, thinking about how worried we'd be. Jesse's always been good at hide-and-seek. And he knows Mom and Dad would worry as time passed. Then you'd pay more attention to him. I bet that's what he's doing right now. Later, he'll ask for compensation."

My father lashed out, kicking a row of chairs aside. "That little shit! How dare he try to manipulate us? He'd risk his life just to get his way? Who taught him to play dirty?"

My mother grimaced in disgust. "Today is supposed to celebrate Amber's achievement, and he's already trying to steal her spotlight with this nonsense. I swear, we should send him to one of those genius boot camps. It would be better than having him at home, where I have to look at that annoying face."

I hovered near Amber. I noticed how her lips glistened with butter and cream.

I would never taste that again.

"Why did you have to lie, Amber?" I asked my unhearing sister.