He stopped outside an old, abandoned house.
I peeked around the tree.
When I saw who was standing in the doorway of that decrepit old house, I thought I might faint.
“Daniel!” I stumbled toward the door.
My son looked up. His eyes widened with fear.
A shadow moved behind Daniel. He glanced over his shoulder, back at me, then did the last thing I ever would’ve expected. He ran.
“Daniel, wait!” I picked up speed, sprinting past the old man and into the house.
A shadow moved behind Daniel.
A door slammed. I raced down the hall and skidded into the kitchen. I tugged the back door open just in time to watch Daniel and a girl race into the woods.
I raced after them, screaming his name, but they were too fast.
I lost them.
***
I drove straight to the nearest police station and told the desk officer everything.
“Why would he run from you?” he asked.
I lost them.
“I don’t know,” I said. “But I need you to help me find him before he disappears again.”
“I’ll send out an alert, ma’am.”
I took a seat. Every time the door opened, my whole body went rigid.
I kept asking myself the same questions on a loop: What if he’s already on a bus? What if he’s gone? What if that was my only chance?
Close to midnight, the officer walked over to me.
“I need you to help me find him before he disappears again.”
