Chapter 9
Harold stood in the middle of the living room.
He was usually composed, but now he was starting to panic.
He took out his phone and called me again.
The robotic voice said, “Sorry, the number you dialed is powered off.”
Harold’s anxiety began to spread, like a chill running through him.
I looked over at the table. My phone was lying there next to the cake.
It probably ran out of battery and shut down on its own.
Suddenly, Harold grabbed the car keys and bolted out the door.
“Harold, where are you going…”
Lilian’s voice got cut off by the slamming door.
Harold rushed out of the building after the elevator doors opened.
But just a few steps down the stairs, he stopped short.
He suddenly realized he had no idea where to look for me.
He didn’t know anything about his own eighteen–year–old sister.
It was supposed to rain today, and dark clouds were already piling up overhead.
Harold looked up at the gloomy sky, and he felt a pang of fear in his
chest.
Chapter 9
He seemed to feel a bit regretful for not being nice to Clarissa.
He even prayed that she would come home quickly.
And he promised himself he would treat her better, the way a real brother would be to his sister.
Harold bent down, fumbled with his phone, unlocked it, opened WhatsApp, and clicked on the chat with me.
He typed out the message one letter at a time: “Clarissa, where did you go? Come back quickly. I got you a cake and a gift.”
Just as he sent the message, his phone rang.
When he saw the incoming call from Vicente, his hand twitched a little.
He was standing under the dark, cloudy sky when he pressed the answer
button.
“Dr. Sherman, the DNA match report is ready.”
My heart jumped into my throat.
But Harold didn’t seem to catch on.
He said calmly, “Okay, get in touch with the family.”
He was about to walk down the stairs when Vicente’s next words made him stop dead in his tracks.
“The deceased…is your sister, Clarissa. Sorry for your loss.”
In the distance, the first rumble of thunder came.
The rain started pouring down.
Harold’s phone slipped out of his hand and hit the ground. Raindrops
Chapter 9
splashed against the screen.
The rain was pouring down harder.
Harold stood there, drenched..
His hair was sticking to his forehead in wet clumps.
Rainwater was running down his face and dripping off his chin.
After a long while, Harold snapped out of it.
He lurched forward, stumbling into the rain.
When he got to the car, he almost fell but grabbed the door handle to steady himself.
He wiped the rain off his face, opened the car door, and got in.
Harold’s hand was shaking so much that he couldn’t get the key into the ignition.
He had to use his other hand to hold his wrist steady.
Finally, the car started.
In the pouring rain, he drove way over the speed limit.
My soul was sitting in the back seat.
I couldn’t quite tell what I was feeling.
But it was too late.
Everything was too late.
