Gabriel couldn't bear to go on.
"You... what did you say?"
Dad looked as if he had been struck by lightning, stammering. "Layla... isn't she at her uncle's?" Dad said with difficulty, his words strained.
"Layla's teacher called her uncle, but he was away on a business trip. He's not at home." Gabriel said anxiously. "Chloe told the teacher that Layla was at her sister's house, so the teacher didn't think much of it, and neither did we... David... don't get excited."
Dad's breathing became heavy and labored. In a daze, a screech... slam... the sound of tires screeching as the car came to a sudden stop.
Dad had been in a car accident. "David! David, say something, David..." Gabriel's anxious voice rang out. The sirens of the ambulance and police cars blared, and Dad was rushed into
