Caller Unknown

It was a typical Friday night for the girl sitting in her room listening to music, drawing out new sketches and ideas for her art portfolio. She was lost in the music as well as the movements of her pencil as the new creation was slowly coming to life on the page in front of her. Suddenly she was startled when her cell phone rang, she jumped from the sound as she did the pencil made a thick line through the middle of the paper compromising the new drawing. Cursing under her breath she picked up her cell phone and looked at the caller ID, it read Caller Unknown, she declined the call. Setting her phone back down she picked up her eraser and started to get rid of the thick line in the middle of her paper. Halfway through erasing the line her phone rang again pausing with her task at hand she again picked up her phone and again it read Caller Unknown, declining the call again she set back to her current task. Five minutes later her phone rang again the screen was still flashing caller unknown and it was beginning to irritate her. This time instead of declining the call she let it go to voicemail hoping maybe they would leave her a message about who they were and what they wanted.

Five minutes passed and her phone rang again. Watching it ring in her hand she finally decided to just answer the call.

“Hello?” She asked, somewhat leery of talking to the person on the other end.

“Is this Adalia Dresden?” the voice on the phone was a man's voice, she didn't recognize the voice, but what made her fear worse was that this person knew her name.

“Who is this?” She asked, neither confirming nor denying that she was Adalia.

“I'm a friend of your father's. I'm sorry to have learned of his passing.”

“What's your name?” Adalia was not going to give any information without learning about the person first.

“Right sorry poor manners on my part, my name is Declan Merrick. Our father's were good friends throughout their lives before your father left Ireland.” Even as he identified himself Adalia had no idea who this man was, she couldn't remember her father ever speaking about Ireland.

“I'm sorry Mr. Merrick I do believe you have the wrong number. My father never said a word to me about anyone or anything in Ireland.” Adalia hoped her statement would end the conversation.

“I beg your pardon, this is Adalia Dresden the daughter of Keiran Dresden is it not?” Declan asked Adalia never faltering in his speech.

“Yes I am Adalia Dresden, daughter of Keiran Dresden, but I assure you Mr. Merrick my father had no ties to Ireland at least none that he ever shared with me before his passing. Sorry that you have wasted your time speaking with me.”

“I have papers here that need your signature, your father left you his ancestors land and property here in Ireland.”

“Why do you have these papers? Why didn't the lawyer have them?” Her heart was starting to speed up in fear of what was going on.

“Your father left specific instructions detailing that these papers were never meant to be in the hands of the lawyers. You should be receiving a packet shortly inside it has a plane ticket here to Ireland along with a key to the estate that you've inherited from your father's passing” Declan stated firmly.

Adalia was beginning to slowly freak out about the conversation that she was having with this person that she didn't even know. Suddenly there was a knock on the front door of her apartment. It was a loud enough knock that she knew even Declan heard it through the phone.

“Right on time that would be your ticket and key to a new adventure.”

“How do I know that you aren't some psycho that is stalking me and planning to kill me?” Adalia asked the fear rising in her voice. She heard Declan chuckle through the phone at her question.

“I can assure you Ms. Dresden I am not a stalker, and I do not plan on murdering you. I'm doing this on behalf of your father he was a very good man during his life.”

Adalia wasn't sure what she should do, as she got up from her bed the knock sounded again and than the footsteps receded from her door. Quickly she walked into her leaving room only to find the packet had been slid underneath her door for her to find. Carefully she walked over picked up the packet before heading to her kitchen counter where she carefully opened the packet. Indeed Declan Merrick was telling the truth there was a plane ticket and a key inside the packet addressed to her. Setting the ticket and key on her counter her thoughts began to swarm of all the questions of why, when and how did this whole situation come to be.

“Ms. Dresden are you still there?”

“Yes, yes I am still here. Why now?”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Why are you contacting me now? My father passed away nearly two years ago.”

“You are correct and I am so sorry to have not contacted you sooner, but it was your father's wishes.”

“This just doesn't make any sense, my father never mentioned anything about Ireland to me in my whole life. This has to be some sort of mistake.”

“It is no mistake Ms. Dresden. I will be awaiting your arrival at the airport the day after next.”

“And if I don't come?”

“Than I shall come to you Ms. Dresden. Have a wonderful evening” The line went dead before Adalia could ask anymore questions.

Adalia rushed to her room and grabbed a couple of bags in order to pack for this impromptu trip. While she was packing she realized that she needed to call someone about what was going on. Thinking hard for a moment she decided to call her brother, maybe their father had mentioned something to him about Ireland since he was older than her by about four years.

Sitting back down on her bed, she dialed her brother's number and listened to the ringing hoping and praying that he would answer her call.

“Adalia what's wrong? You never call this late” Her brother Alexander asked with concern filling his voice.

“Alex did dad ever talk to you about anyone or anything in Ireland?”

“What?” The tone in his voice changed and Adalia noticed it.

“Alex the truth please.”

“Alright yes dad mentioned a few things about Ireland. It's where his family originated from, last I knew he still had his ancestors land there. His childhood friend had been taken care of it for years for him since he moved here to the states.”

“Did dad ever say what he was going to do with the property?”

“No at least not to me. Why Adalia? What's going on?”

“I just received a call from a man named Declan Merrick saying that he has papers for me to sign in Ireland because dad left the property to me. I also just received a plane ticket and the key to the estate.”

“Adalia I have no idea honestly dad never talked to me about anyone named Merrick, at least not that I can recall. Are you going to go?”

“I don't know what to do honestly Alex. If I don't go to Ireland he said he would come to me”

“All of this just seems highly unusual. When does the flight leave?”

“Tomorrow morning at six”

“This isn't sitting right with me. I don't think you should go, there isn't enough information about any of this to make sense”

“I know Alex, but he swears him and his father knew dad. And that dad personally asked them to complete this task.”

“Adalia just promise me you will constantly be in contact with me”

“I promise Alex I will” Adalia ended the call with her brother and finished packing all the things that she figured she would need for her trip. Crawling into bed to get some sleep, she found herself in a state of constant tossing and turning. Waking up the next morning she dressed in simple clothes, grabbed her bags and than headed for the airport via taxi.

The flight to Ireland was long and exhausting with at least one layover that lasted for six hours. Finally she landed in Ireland ready to be done with this whole situation that she had suddenly found herself in. Walking out of the terminal she noticed many people with signs so that they would be able to find the correct recipients. Browsing the crowd she quickly found a sign that had her name on it being held by a young man that was probably no older than thirty two. Carefully she walked over to the man, who instantly smiled at her.

“You must be Adalia Dresden” His voice was familiar she instantly recognized him as the man she had spoken to on the phone Declan Merrick.

“Indeed I am, and you must be Declan Merrick. It's a pleasure to meet you, though the situation could be better.”

“I agree the situation is indeed an odd one in itself. Are you ready to get your bags?”

“Sure” Declan and Adalia walked to baggage claim so that she could pick up her bags and so that they could head to the car that Declan had waiting for them.

“How long did you know my father?” Adalia was curious to learn all she could as she quickly sent her brother a text letting him know that she had arrived safely.

“I've known your father for the majority of my life. He and my father were extremely close they grew up together like brothers”

" Apparently my father kept a lot of secrets from my brother and I about his life before he had us”

“I'm sorry to hear that. Hopefully you can learn more in your time here about your father and who he was”

“Maybe” Adalia shrugged as they walked outside into the dreary weather of Ireland. As the car pulled up to meet them at the curb Adalia couldn't help the odd feeling of familiarity that was coming from the car. Adalia waited and watched as Declan placed her bags in the trunk of the car before opening the back passenger door for her. Sliding into the car she took a deep breath and tried to mentally prepare herself for what was to come.

Once the door of the car was closed Adalia noticed a man sitting across the way with his hat pulled down over his face so that he wouldn't be recognized. Adalia instantly became uneasy about being in the car with this stranger. Declan sensed the change in Adalia and made a side motion to the man without her noticing. Adalia didn't take her eyes off of the hatted stranger as he removed his hat from his head. Instantly shock coursed throughout her body as she recognized the man sitting across from her was her father who was supposed to be dead, who she buried just two years ago.

“Hello Adalia, I'm glad you answered Declan's call and came here, you probably have a lot of questions. We'll have plenty of time to go over all of them now that your here.” The car pulled away from the curb and headed off towards where Adalia wasn't sure. Adalia slowly pulled out her phone in order to contact Alex. Keiran reached across the car and took her phone.

“I'm sorry Adalia, I can't have Alex knowing that I'm alive. I have to finish what I started first and than you'll be able to contact him.”

“I don't understand. I watched you be buried two years ago in Michigan, by lake Eerie”

“I know you did sweetheart, and I'm so sorry for the pain you've been through because of me. But all of that is about to change”

“What do you mean?”

“You'll see soon enough I promise”

Posters, rewards, questions and reports have been on going for months now. Adalia was missing and had been since she went to Ireland. Alex was completely out of his mind with worry and guilt, he felt like he hadn't protected his sister well enough and now she's gone. He should have gone with her to Ireland, but he hadn't even bothered to volunteer because he had hoped if he didn't Adalia wouldn't go, but he was wrong. Alex's life had gone down hill since Adalia's disappearance he had picked up drinking in order to cope with the guilt he felt. Interpol still didn't have any answers for him about Adalia's case, nor could they find anyone named Declan Merrick it was like this person had become a ghost in the wind.

Sitting in his arm chair Alex was again drinking his sorrows and guilt away in a bottle of whiskey. Slowly dozing off from the alcohol intake, he began to stir when he heard his cell phone ringing. Sitting up fully he began looking around trying to find his phone before he realized it was on his bedside table in his room. Standing up slowly he made his way to his room just in time for the phone to be ringing again. The caller ID showed caller unknown he let the call go to voicemail as he lay down on his bed feeling the world begin to spin as he did so. The phone began to ring again still showing caller unknown on the screen, Alex grabbed the phone and answered it placing it on speaker.

“Hello?”

“Alexander Dresden?” the voice was male that much was obvious.

“Who is this?” Alex's tone turned quite serious.

“I'm a friend of your sister's, I'm so sorry to hear of her passing.”

“Yeah thanks but it's my father that passed away, what's your name?” Alex was becoming impatient with the person on the other line.

“My name is Declan Merrick” Instantly Alex sat up that was the name of the man Adalia had went to meet in Ireland.

“Where's my sister Adalia?”

“Adalia? I'm sorry I've no idea who your talking about. Your the only child listed in your father Keiran Dresden's will in Ireland”

“Your lying. I want my sister back.” Alex could hear a rustling in the background as if the phone were being passed to someone else.

“Alexander” Alexander instantly recognized the voice as his father's.

“Dad?”

“It's me son, remember Adalia is the one who passed away not me”

“No your wrong it was you, I watched them close the lid on your casket and held Adalia as she cried.”

“Come to Ireland Alex, I'll explain everything to you” The phone line went dead. Alex hit redial for the caller unknown number and was devastated when it said the number was not in service. Frantically calling the phone company and asking about the number, even the company stated the number wasn't in service and hadn't been for two years and one month. The caller unknown was just that completely unknown.