3. Missing child

I sit in the back of the cab, staring out the window as the city whizzes by.

The streetlights blur into a stream of yellow, and the sound of the engine drones on like a constant hum in the background. My mind is preoccupied, however, with thoughts of my friend who left me last night with some random guy and hasn't contacted me since.

I can't help but feel a sense of worry mixed with frustration. How could she just leave like that? We were supposed to have a girls' night out, but she got swept up at the moment and now I'm left alone, wondering where she is and if she's okay.

I take a deep breath and try to push the thoughts out of my head. Maybe she's just sleeping it off and will call me later. Maybe she's fine and I'm just being paranoid. But the longer I sit in silence, the more my mind races with questions and doubts.

The cab slows down at a red light, and I catch a glimpse of myself in the rearview mirror. My eyes look tired, and there are dark circles under them. I know I shouldn't worry so much, but it's hard not to when I care about someone so deeply.

"We are here." The cab driver said as he drove me into a school compound.

"Oh," I muttered as his voice jolted me from my reverie.

As the cab pulls up, I reach for my wallet and pay the fare. But my mind is still preoccupied with thoughts of Samantha, and I can't help but wonder when I will hear from her.

The director's last statement about me turning in my resignation letter if I make a mistake during tomorrow's interview, also kept ringing in my head. 

If I don't want to lose my job, I needed to start preparing for the interview as early as possible.

The school was not particularly huge, but it was lovely, with modest buildings. Many parents were hugging and kissing their children as they approached the school gate.

They were all acting as if they hadn't seen the kids in an eternity.

This is a junior high school, not kindergarten, I thought as I stared at one woman, who still hadn't let go of her daughter. With that terrible expression on her face, I was sure the girl was feeling uneasy.

I stood at the school gate, patiently waiting for Max. I'll look up every time a child comes out of the school building, hoping it's him.

I was there for nearly thirty minutes, but Max did not appear.

When I got tired of waiting, I walked up to the security guard at the entrance of the school, feeling a knot of anxiety in my stomach. "Excuse me, sir," I said, "I'm looking for my cousin. He's supposed to be here, but I can't find him anywhere."

The guard looked up from his desk and gave me a stern look. "What's his name?" he asked.

"His name is Max," I said. "He's in seventh grade."

The guard consulted a list on his desk and shook his head. "I don't see any Max here leaving the school. Are you sure he's supposed to be at school by now?"

"Yes, I'm sure," I said, feeling a growing sense of panic. "I've talked to his mom, and she said he was at school and that I should come pick him up."

The guard sighed and pushed back his chair. "Let me check the school grounds then, Stay here."

I watched as he walked out the door, my heart pounding in my chest. I tried to calm myself down, telling myself that Max was probably just playing hooky or had gone somewhere without telling anyone. But the nagging feeling of worry wouldn't go away.

After what felt like an eternity, the guard returned. "I'm sorry, ma'am," he said, "but I couldn't find your cousin anywhere on the school grounds. Are you sure he's supposed to be here? Because I saw two of his classmates just now, and they said he left immediately after the school was out."

I nodded, feeling a lump form in my throat. "Yes, I'm sure," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. "But, how could he leave school on his own?"

The guard sighed and rubbed his temples. "Why don't you call his mom and ask if she was the one who came to pick him up?" The man suddenly proposed.

As soon as I heard him, I took my phone from my bag and dialed Aunt Clara's number. She finally answered the phone after the second attempt.

"Hello Andrea," her voice came from the other end of the phone.

"Hello, aunt, did you get Max from school?"

"No, aren't you supposed to be the one to pick him up today?" She responded sharply.

"Yes, but I can't seem to find him at school. He was said to have already left the school grounds."

"What?! My son left school on his own? How is that even possible? What exactly is going on?" As she spoke, I could hear the rage in her voice.

"Calm down, aunt; let me first look around."

"I can't calm down Andrea! I'm on my way right now!"

"But—- hello! hello!" I was about to say something when I realized she had already disconnected the call.

"Miss, what happened?" When I placed down the phone from my ear, the security guard inquired.

"His mom stated that she wasn't the one who came to pick him up," I tried to reply calmly because I was boiling with fury inside.

"I'll call the principal," he said. "We'll get to the bottom of this."

I watched as he picked up the phone and dialed a number, feeling helpless and scared. I didn't know what had happened to Max, but I knew that I wasn't going to rest until I found out.

"Hello, miss, what's going on here?" The principal asked as he approach us.

"I'm here to pick up my cousin, but he's nowhere to be found!"

"That's not possible! Such an incident has never happened in the school's history. Please remain calm. Let's go look at the CCTV footage first."

As we turned around, my aunt rushed into the school compound, asking; "Where is my son?" Her voice trembling.

I dashed to her side and grabbed her. I can understand why she's so enraged. This is her only child, and the boy is also sick. How could he have left school on his own?

"Accept our apologies, ma'am; I believe the boy is still on school grounds. We're on our way to check out the CCTV footage." The principal explained elegantly.

"I need to find my son right now!"

"All right, ma'am."

Following his response, we all proceed to the camera room. After explaining what had happened to the man in charge, he began going through the footage one after the other.

We finally found Max's clip after watching almost all of the 4:00 pm footage. He was seen walking out of the gate immediately after the security guard was preoccupied with a parent.

We saw a man standing outside the gate, waving for him to come, and they both left as Max exited the school gate.

"Pause it!" My aunt abruptly stated as she pointed to the monitor. "Could you please zoom the man's face?"

"Yes, ma'am," the man reacted immediately to her request.

"That's Max's father!" My aunt gasped out in fright as our gazes locked.

Everyone in the room began to stare at each other in awe. This is the first time she has mentioned the boy's father to me. So I was taken aback as well.

"As you can see, ma'am, the boy has left with his father." The principal said.

My aunt and I fell silent, not knowing what to say. I'm even more perplexed because this is the first time I've seen Max's father.

Seeing that my aunt was still speechless, I quickly turned to the principal and said; "We'll get going right now! We will notify the school if there is any new information."

"All right, miss!"

I hastily grabbed my aunt's wrist and dragged her out of the room. Then we return home.

As we entered the house, my aunt rushed straight to Max's room, and after finding it empty, she collapsed on the bed, sobbing.

"I can't believe he did this to me. He promised he would never take Max away from me."

"Who promised what?" I asked, genuinely curious.

"My ex-husband," she replied through her tears. "He's been absent from our lives for the past twelve years. I thought he had left for good. I didn't know he would show up and take my son away like this."

I sat down next to her and placed my hand on her shoulder, offering her a comforting squeeze. "We'll figure this out, don't worry. We'll get Max back."

"But how? I don't even know where he lives."

"We can start by contacting the police and reporting a missing child. They can help us locate him. Or can you remember where last you both saw each other?"

"I can't remember any for now." She sighed deeply.

We both paced around the living room for nearly two hours before my aunt finally remembered something.

"I last saw him in a Motel inside town when I went to tell him about the pregnancy."

"A motel?" In disbelief, I exclaimed.

I kept wondering what had brought them together in a motel.

"It was, indeed, a motel. I recall it vividly." She sounded so certain.

"Fine!" I quickly took a pen and paper from my bag and jotted down the address she called out.

She rushed into the room and pulled out an old photograph of a man. The photograph is nearly worn, but the person in it can still be seen. That must be Max's father, I guess.

"All right, let's go!"

"No, aunt, you must remain at home in case he visits. I'll go by myself!"

"Andrea, that place is too dangerous. You're only 20, and something bad could happen to you. Moreover, it's 8:00 p.m., and it's late already." She was worried by the tone of her voice.

"Aunt, I'm 20 years old and can take care of myself. You don't have to be concerned about me all the time. It is more important to get Max back to us because of his health."

"Are you certain you'll be fine?" She clutched my wrists, refusing to let go.

"I promise, aunt, I'll be fine!"

"Good! Take his picture with you. It will aid in finding him more quickly."

"Ok!" I took the picture from her and exited the house...