My stomach dropped. “Dad… didn’t you see her leave just now?”
He froze. “What?! I just came from the reception desk with the nurse, we didn’t see anyone!”
The nurse’s station faced the only two elevators. Anyone coming or going would’ve been in full view.
But both he and the nurse swore they hadn’t seen a soul, aside from my mother-in-law going downstairs earlier.
We turned the room upside down, checked every corner of the ward, but Zelene had vanished.
We even ran up and down the emergency stairwell, but there was nothing, no trace of her.
My six-year-old daughter had disappeared without a sound.
Just then, my mother-in-law rushed back holding the takeout, only to break down sobbing when she heard the news.
I forced myself to stay calm. If we didn’t find her soon, she might end up like she did in my last life.
I couldn’t let that happen again.
Without hesitation, I called the police.
They arrived quickly and pulled surveillance footage from every hospital camera, but there was nothing suspicious. I begged them to check the streets outside, too, but still, nothing. Not a single lead.
By dawn, the police could only tell us to stay calm and wait for more information. Then they left.
My in-laws and I returned home, hollow and numb. My mother-in-law sobbed as she called Naomi and told her that Zelene was missing.
Naomi caught the first flight home that afternoon.
The moment she found out our daughter had disappeared while she was with me, she completely lost it.
“No wonder she told me last night that you were going to kidnap her!” she screamed. “You’re sick! You’re a monster! Where is she?! Tell me what you did with her!”
In her fury, she grabbed a vase from the table and hurled it at my face.
It shattered against me, and its sharp shards cut into my skin. I felt the burn of blood dripping down my cheeks.
The police tried to calm her down while my father-in-law quickly stepped in.
“Naomi, listen! Garth and I were with Zelene the whole time. She was never alone with him! I only stepped away for two minutes, and even then, I was right by the elevator! He couldn’t have done anything!”
“Then how did she just vanish into thin air?!” she cried. “Tell me what the hell happened!”
Garth's POV
Naomi glared at me with bloodshot eyes, teeth clenched like she was ready to tear me apart.
Before I could say another word, the police got a call.
They’d found my daughter.