CHAPTER 3

　　"Listen Alexandro" the doctor begins "What happened to Abby is not a small matter. She practically watched her mother die right in front of her. That's too much for a child her age."

　　Do you think I don't know that? Alexandro wanted to say but refrained from doing so. The subject of Miranda's death always puts him on the edge. He doesn't like talking about it. He doesn't like bringing it up. He has successfully managed to bury her memories in that part of his brain where the sun doesn't shine and that is progress. He has successfully managed to stop thinking about her and that is also progress.

　　Liar!

　　He's trying to move on without her and he doesn't like being reminded about her. Even her name being mentioned is almost like sin so he wonders why this doctor is trying to provocate him by telling him what he already knows.?

　　"Abby's PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) will only worsen if nothing is done about it. We can only do so much but she needs her family in this fight as well"

　　"And what do you expect me to do?"

　　"She needs to start socializing. Being with people about her age will be of great asset to her during these troubled times. I could arrange for more classes for her but she has to start schooling again. You shouldn't lock her up at home and pretend as if everything is okay. Nothing is okay and it will only get worse as the day goes by—"

　　They are suddenly interrupted by Abby's nurse who just barged into the office unannounced.?

　　"Mr. Malhotra" she called out, breathing frantically. Her breaths are coming in pants.

　　The doctor stands up almost immediately after noticing how agitated she had become "What's wrong Alice"

　　"It's Abby" She blurts out.?

　　The color on Alexandro's face drains drastically at the mention of his daughter's name.?

　　"What about Abby" This time, it was his turn to ask. "Where is my daughter!?" He yelled at her causing her to flinch. Today isn't her lucky day. She was certain that by the time this matter is sorted, she would kiss her job goodbye forever.

　　"We were p..playing some g...games and I de...cided to give her a shot but when I got back with the syringe, she wasn't there a...anymore. I've searched the entire hospital but she's gone." Alice stuttered.

　　By the time she was done explaining, the anger on Alexandro's face had been replaced by blatant rage and his eyes had turned red with fury.

　　He turned to Malhotra "If anything happens to my daughter, I will burn down this hospital till there is nothing but only ashes left in its place!" He warned sternly and Maholtra gulped fearfully because he knew that Alexandro meant every bit of that statement.

　　The next minute that followed, the entire hospital has been thrown into utter chaos as everyone is scattered trying to search for Abby and bring her back safely. And what is worse is that the GPS on her tablet has been turned off so there's no way to pinpoint her exact location. The entire hospital is on haywire. Nothing is more important than the situation at hand right now.

　　*****

　　The rest of the following hours went fearfully for Mira.?

　　She was scared that Andrew would definitely tell on her and she would get fired. Maybe she handled the situation irrationally. Maybe she should've tried to reason things out with him rather than hit him with a vase.

　　What would she do if he calls the cops on her? Would they even believe that she did what she did out of self-defense? They would probably rule it out so that it favors Andrew while she gets locked behind bars instead.

　　This is too much for her to bear.?

　　She was so scared to the point that when she was called by her supervisor, the first thing that came to her mind was the incident and if they were letting her go. She had to fix this. No, she needs to and quickly.?

　　Maybe she should just come clean to her boss before Andrew beats her to it. But then again, will it change anything? And it's not like her boss is the nicest woman on earth either.?

　　After her shift that morning, she decided to take a walk to the park before picking up Casey from school. That way, her head will be a bit cleared up to a fault before she faces him. Casey has a way of reading people. He always notices the slightest details and if she showed up there looking like this then he most certainly would know that something is wrong with her.

　　Mira walked down the pedestrian lane that led to the pack when she spotted a little girl running towards the busy traffic.?

　　The first thing that came to her mind was to ignore it and move on but she quickly changed her mind when the little girl accidentally stepped onto the road right before the traffic light turned green.?

　　Mira spotted an oncoming car and her legs started running towards the girl who looked lost and confused. Before the car could hit the girl, Mira hastily pulled her out of the road causing them to fall to the ground with the girl held protectively in Mira's arms.?

　　Mira breathed out in relief when she realized that she was okay and that nothing happened to her.?

　　She stood up quickly from the ground and helped the little girl up too as well.?

　　"What were you thinking running towards an oncoming vehicle!" She shunned her angrily "What if something bad had happened to you?"

　　Mira was upset. But not at the little girl. She was upset that her parents let her wander off on her own to almost an early death. She'll make sure to give them a piece of her mind if she sees them no doubt.

　　She squatted down and dusted her clothes and hair, all the while her eyes searching if someone is coming to claim her.

　　"What's your name little girl and where are your parents?"

　　Silence.

　　"Um...can you hear me?" She waved her hands across her face but still nothing. She was just staring at her.