I only remembered in my dreams. He came tapping at my window and rattling at the front door, calling out to me to invite him in. I woke up two or three times with a start and once even got out of bed and peeped through a crack in the curtains to convince myself that no one was there. I’ll never understand why teachers try to get anything done the last day of school before winter break. Some of them even spring pop quizzes on us. They try to act like they’re not just as excited about two weeks off as we are, but most kids know the truth. It was still before lunch when I first heard the rumor that Don Updike was missing. Then there was a counter rumor that he had just taken off early to go skiing. Either way, he was definitely not at school. By lunch, the rumor that he was missing had gained strength. He’d been out canvassing for Liz with a couple of friends. They all lived fairly close to each other but had split off to head to their respective homes at about seven-thirty. His buddies had made it home, but Don had not.
