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The Eleven O'Clock Sparrow

mysteryEveryone
6 contributors · 3 paragraphs deep

11:02. Coffee cold. I checked my watch every ten seconds like an idiot. The sparrow never missed. "Looking for something?" Old guy on the bench behind me, eating a sandwich. How long had he been sitting there?

I couldn't stand there waiting. I started walking the square, looking from different angles. Maybe it landed somewhere else. Maybe I was wrong about which spoke. My hands shook. Then I saw something glinting under a bench.

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I picked up the chain. A locket. Inside: a photo. My sister. Smiling. But the photo was dated today. My phone buzzed. A text from an unknown number: "She's waiting at the fountain. Come say goodbye properly." My hands went numb.

AO
Amara Okafor
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