Jordan Knottman

‘She keeps claiming she didn’t steal it, but I’m not so sure.’ Dan shook his head while gazing at his new bike.

His twin sister nodded. ‘It’s hard to think of our cousin like that. But Evan knew your bike well, and he’s sure he saw her riding it just two days after it was taken.’
Dan wheeled his bike into the back corner of their mum’s new place. ‘If we tuck them here they shouldn’t be that easy to find.’
As she placed her cycle next to his Maura offered a warning, ‘You’d better make sure they can’t be seen from the street. Remember we will be living much closer to her here.’
They knew they were going to be sleeping at this place for at least two weekends every month now, so their wheels had to be kept safe. Neither of the twins liked to speak about their parents recent split, although they had found it a little easier once their parents had separate houses. As difficult as it was, they found all the moving, tidying and cleaning up had helped reduce their feelings of emptiness and sadness. They guessed their mum had probably found it nice to move only a few streets from where her father lived. Sadly, her brother and his family now lived nearby also.

Looking at the large gleaming silver frames tucked against the wall reminded Dan of recent times. Now that they’d grown a bit older and their parents had moved apart, bike rides alone had become fairly regular, and they were allowed to ride to visit friends even farther away. Turning to his sister, he said, ‘They are great symbols, aren’t they?’
Maura’s face screwed up, ‘What? Sim-bulls? You’re saying they’re great if we want make music?’ Dan laughed. ‘No! Sounds the same, but it’s a different word. Think “signs.” Our bikes really show the freedom and trust Mum and Dad give us.’
A slow smile crept upon Maura’s face, and she nodded. ‘Yes, and you would have been in trouble if they hadn’t been able to buy you a new one.’

Symbol wasn’t a word Dan had thought about much until last week. It began when he rode over to visit their grandpa, Charles Reid. Things had been a little tough for Charles since their grandmother, Lily, passed away last year, so they all tried to visit him whenever they could.
When Dan got to the door, he stopped. Looking in, he saw his grandpa sitting in the front room of the old house. On the low table in front of him lay a beautiful dark red velvet box lined with silk. Dan looked at the box and felt warm inside; he knew it well because it always sat right in the middle of the dresser in his grandparent’s bedroom, but he’d never seen what was inside. Today his grandfather had the box open, and sitting on tissue paper were several metal disks, like rather large coins, and one shaped like a star. Dan saw Charles briefly rub one of the silver disks with a small cloth before holding it to the light to see if it had become shiny enough.
‘They’re beautiful, Grandpa,’ said Dan from the door behind him.
Charles turned at the sound and smiled when he saw who it was. As Dan moved into the room, Charles held them up and drew in a breath. ‘They’re very important symbols to me.’
Dan’s head fell to the side, and a slight frown crept across his face. ‘Symbols?’
Charles replied, ‘I mean they represent so much more to me, present things that cannot be shown.’ Dan thought he now understood because his grandma always liked to wear silver. ‘Oh, were they special to Grandma?’
His grandfather grinned. ‘They were, but not how you think. They didn’t belong to her. They were given to me.’ Seeing the foggy look that covered Dan’s face, he continued, ‘These can’t be bought, and only some of us have them. These were given to me because of the time I was in the army when I fought in the war. It was a trying time when things were really hard. I was terribly lucky to get out alive. When I see them, I think of then, and I mostly remember those who didn’t get to come home with us.’ His grandpa wiped a tear from his eye with his free hand and sat up straight. ‘I’ve got them out because there’s a big march on soon. It will be excellent to see some of my old mates, and I certainly won’t be marching without these.’
‘So everyone will have them?’ questioned Dan. ‘Sure will,’ replied his grandfather. ‘They’re so important we wouldn’t march without them.’ Placing the disks gently on the table, Charles stood up and held out his arms. ‘But I haven’t said a proper hello. Come here for this important symbol,’ he said, pulling Dan tightly to his chest.