Her brown eyes shimmered with unshed tears, and snowflakes clung to her hair like tiny crystals.
“Sir,” she said quietly, “my mom didn’t come home last night.”
The words hit Andrew like a punch.
A child.
Alone.
In the freezing snow.
He kept his voice calm.
“What’s your name?”
“Anna Morales.”
“Nice to meet you, Anna. I’m Andrew.”
He spoke slowly and carefully.
“Can you tell me what happened?”
Anna wiped her nose with her mitten.
“We live on Pine Street. The apartment with the green door,” she explained. “My mom always comes home after work. Always. But she didn’t last night.”
Her voice trembled.
“Our neighbor watched me this morning. She gave me breakfast. But she had to go to work too, so she told me to go to school.”
“You went to school?” Andrew asked.
Anna nodded.
“But I was scared,” she whispered. “What if something bad happened to my mom?”
Andrew felt his stomach twist.
“Did anyone call the police?”
Anna shook her head.
“They said maybe my mom worked late and forgot to call. But she never forgets. Even when she’s busy, she always calls me.”
The certainty in her voice was absolute.
Andrew pulled out his phone.