THE PRICE OF HER TEARS:15
1225 Words
Episode 15: The Child Who Vanished
“By the time you hear this…”
“…one of your children is already missing.”
Gilbert’s chilling words echoed through every corridor of the safe house.
For a heartbeat, Florence couldn’t breathe.
Then instinct took over.
“My children!”
She pushed past Daniel Joe and ran toward the bedroom where Angela, Tracy, and Divine had been sleeping.
Daniel followed close behind.
“Florence, wait!”
Detective Samuel barked orders into his radio.
“Lock every exit!”
“Nobody leaves this compound!”
Armed officers scattered in every direction, searching every room while the emergency lights continued to flash crimson against the walls.
Florence burst into the bedroom.
The blankets were tossed aside.
The door to the adjoining bathroom stood open.
Angela and Tracy were huddled together in one corner, crying uncontrollably.
Florence’s heart nearly stopped.
“Angela!”
She rushed to them.
“Where’s Divine?”
Angela could barely speak through her tears.
“Mummy…”
“He was here.”
“We were sleeping…”
“And then the lights went off.”
Tracy buried her face in Florence’s shoulder.
“When we woke up…”
“…Divine was gone.”
A piercing scream escaped Florence’s lips.
“No!”
She searched beneath the beds, inside the wardrobe, behind the curtains—anywhere a frightened little boy might be hiding.
But Divine was nowhere to be found.
Daniel gently held her shoulders.
“Florence…”
She pushed him away.
“No!”
“He has to be here!”
“They couldn’t have taken him!”
Mama Grace entered the room, her face pale with fear.
“Oh, dear God…”
Detective Samuel arrived seconds later.
His expression alone told Florence everything she dreaded.
The officers had searched the entire floor.
There was no sign of Divine.
Samuel spoke carefully.
“We’ve sealed the compound.”
“No vehicle has left through the main gate.”
Florence grabbed him by the arm.
“Then find my son!”
“Please!”
“He is only a child!”
Samuel nodded firmly.
“We will.”
“I promise.”
At that moment, one of the officers rushed into the room.
“Sir!”
“We found this.”
He handed Samuel a small toy car.
Florence gasped.
It belonged to Divine.
She had bought it for him on his fourth birthday.
It had never left his side.
Samuel examined it closely.
Taped beneath the toy was a folded piece of paper.
Daniel carefully unfolded it.
Only one sentence was written across the page.
Locker 27… or the boy dies.
The room fell silent.
Florence felt her knees weaken.
Gilbert knew.
He knew about Peter’s message.
He knew about the locker.
Daniel looked at Florence.
“You received another threat before, didn’t you?”
She slowly lowered her eyes.
“I…”
“You hid something from us.”
Tears streamed down her face.
“He said…”
“If I opened Locker Twenty-Seven…”
“…my children would die.”
Daniel closed his eyes briefly.
“You should have told me.”
“I was trying to protect them.”
“I know.”
“But now Gilbert believes fear will make you obey him.”
Florence looked at the note again.
Her son was somewhere out there.
Alone.
Terrified.
Waiting for her.
“I don’t care what’s inside that locker anymore.”
“I just want my child back.”
⸻
Across the city, inside an abandoned warehouse, Divine sat on an old mattress.
His small hands were tied loosely with a piece of cloth.
He wasn’t crying.
Instead, he looked around the dim room with wide, frightened eyes.
A masked woman entered carrying a cup of water and a sandwich.
She knelt beside him.
“Are you hungry?”
Divine nodded shyly.
“My mummy says I shouldn’t collect food from strangers.”
The woman smiled sadly.
“Your mummy is very wise.”
She removed the mask from her face just enough to drink from the cup first.
“See?”
“It’s safe.”
Only then did Divine accept the food.
As he ate quietly, the woman gently brushed the hair from his forehead.
Tears gathered in her eyes.
“You look just like…”
She stopped herself.
A heavy door slammed somewhere behind her.
Gilbert entered the warehouse.
His expression hardened the moment he saw the woman standing so close to Divine.
“I told you not to get attached.”
The woman quickly stepped back.
“He’s only a child.”
Gilbert’s voice became icy.
“And children grow into witnesses.”
Divine looked up innocently.
“Are you my daddy’s friend?”
Gilbert stared at the little boy for several seconds before forcing a smile.
“You could say that.”
He turned to the woman.
“Leave us.”
After she walked away, Gilbert crouched in front of Divine.
“Your mummy loves you very much, doesn’t she?”
Divine smiled proudly.
“She loves me more than anybody.”
Gilbert nodded slowly.
“Good.”
“Because she’s about to make the hardest decision of her life.”
⸻
Back at the safe house, Detective Samuel gathered his officers.
“No leaks.”
“No mistakes.”
“I want every CCTV camera within a ten-kilometer radius reviewed.”
“Check every highway, every fuel station, every abandoned building.”
“We don’t have much time.”
The officers hurried away.
Daniel walked toward Florence, who sat silently clutching Divine’s toy car.
“There may be another way.”
She looked up.
“What?”
“The locker.”
“If Gilbert wants what’s inside so badly…”
“…then whatever Peter hid there is powerful enough to destroy him.”
Florence’s eyes filled with determination.
“Then we open it.”
Samuel overheard them.
“It’s too dangerous.”
Daniel nodded.
“I know.”
“But we don’t have another choice.”
Just then, Samuel’s phone rang.
He answered immediately.
“Detective Samuel speaking.”
His face changed.
“Are you certain?”
He listened for several more seconds before ending the call.
“What is it?” Daniel asked.
Samuel spoke slowly.
“Peter regained consciousness.”
Florence stood instantly.
“Can we see him?”
Samuel shook his head.
“Only for a few minutes.”
“He keeps repeating the same sentence.”
“What sentence?”
Samuel looked directly at Florence.
“He says…”
“…don’t let anyone else open Locker Twenty-Seven.”
Florence frowned.
“But why?”
Samuel swallowed hard.
“Because according to Peter…”
“…the person waiting beside that locker isn’t a police officer.”
“He is Gilbert’s inside man.”
Before anyone could respond, Daniel’s phone vibrated.
An unknown number.
He answered cautiously.
A distorted voice whispered only seven words.
“You’re protecting the wrong woman, Counselor.”
The call ended.
At that exact moment, Mama Grace collapsed onto the floor.
Clutched tightly in her trembling hand…
…was an old photograph of a young woman holding a newborn baby.
Across the back of the photograph, written in faded blue ink, were words that made Daniel’s blood run cold.
“If Rebecca dies… tell Florence the truth about her real father.”
- Writer
