"Dolly!" he said, sobbing now; "for mercy's sake, think of the children; they are not to blame! I am to blame, and punish me, make me expiate my fault. Anything I can do, I'm ready to do anything! I am to blame, no words can express how much I am to blame! But, Dolly, forgive me!" –Leo Tolstoy, Anna Karenina.
Roger Taylor woke up and rolled over, expecting another heartbeat under the blankets. The cold air beside him made him sit up in bed, smacking his flat palms against the surface just in case his short-sightedness was the reason he couldn't seem to find his wife.
"Lucy Pakyl Taylor?" He called with a voice of sudden trepidation. He pulled the blankets down to his feet and found the king-size bed empty. Within seconds he was out of the room and sprinting towards the spare bedroom to his left, to find that empty, too. As a final resort and an act of parental instinct, he ran the other way, to the pastel bedroom of his 1 year old son. Henry's curtains were closed and his cot was empty. Realisation struck. She's left me.
Brian May was sleeping happily when the phone in his kitchen rang loudly. His wife buried her head under the blanket, 7 AM too early for a phone call.
"Brian, this one's yours." She hinted, squirming down. With a weary sigh, Brian dragged his barely awake body out of their room, rushing as not to miss the disturber.
"Brian May." He yawned into the receiver. Roger was on the other end of the line, breathing like there was no oxygen left on the earth. For him, without his wife, there would never be oxygen again.
"Brian, Lucy's taken Henry and done a runner. Brian, she's gone. I've fucked up."
By the time he had heard the word gone, Brian was alert.
"Gone? Gone where? Chrissie! Get up! Lucy and Henry are missing!"
"I don't know. I tried to call Vivienne but she wasn't with her. I haven't been able to call Freddie and John yet." His voice was shaking with anxiety.
"Alright, Roger. Stay calm. I'll be there as soon as I can." Brian reassured, hanging up and leaning against the wall.
"Brian what do you mean?" Chrissie demanded, walking into the room. Her dressing gown was over only one shoulder and her long brown hair was messy and wind-blown.
"Roger just woke up. Henry and Lucy left through the night and no one knows where she is. I need you to stay here in case she calls." He breathed, a hand on his forehead. He kissed her face quickly and ran out the door, disregarding his inappropriate clothing of pyjamas. His daughter was missing and he needed answers.
By the time he arrived at the Taylor house, Roger was sitting in his son's room, crying. His eyes were read and his skin wet as he stared at the empty white cot. Brian walked in and looked at him, instantly feeling all adrenalin leak from his body.
"It's all my fault." Roger whispered, standing up and letting Brian engulf him in a hug.
"We'll find them Roger. I promise. They'll come home."
By the time Brian had got Roger settled and into the kitchen with some coffee, Vivienne Florence had also joined the house. Having called in sick for work, she stood in the lounge room in a yellow dress, pacing. With no makeup, she looked a completely different person than Roger had ever seen.
"As Lucy's best friend, I pride myself in knowing where all her hidey-holes are. She's not at my house, you've looked everywhere here, and Chrissie would have rang if she went there. What about John and Freddie?" She puzzled, stopping to stare out the window into the backyard.
YOU ARE READING
Rain Must Fall
Fanfiction(Re-Upload from 2015) Roger and Lucy Taylor were drunk in love with each other from day one. Married and with a son, their lives were what people would call perfect. But in every perfect life, a little rain must fall. Sequel to Hello.
