Chapter 27
Twenty-Seven
Gage
My heart hammered in my chest as I stared in disbelief at the space Daisy had stood just a few minutes ago. How had she just vanished into thin air?
Julie took off running, frantically screaming Daisy’s name while I went in the opposite direction.
I ran through the aisles, leaning up on my tiptoes to see over as many heads as I could while I tried to find her.
The blood pulsed in my ears as I pushed my way through the crowded space, shouting her name as loudly as I could.
Patrick was walking down the main aisle when he spotted me and came to a stop. I shook my head, my jaw tight as I clenched it and tried to stay calm. I couldn’t afford to lose my shit right now because I needed to stay clear-headed so we could find Daisy.
“What the fuck happened?” he growled, standing inches away from me.
“She’s gone,” I answered tightly, shoving a hand through my hair as I watched his features change. His face hardened as he took off running to the front of the store.
“Daisy!” I called out loudly, repeating her name over and over as I rushed through the store.
“Hey, watch out,” a woman snapped as I bumped into her.
“I’m sorry. Have you seen a little girl? She’s about this tall and has long dark brown hair and green eyes,” I said quickly, praying for someone to help us find her.
“No. But there are kids everywhere, so it’s hard to tell. What is she wearing?”
My mind raced as I struggled to remember. Why hadn’t I thought of that? There were easily over a hundred kids in the store, many who would fit her description.
“Ummm. She had on a red sweater with a heart on it, I think?”
“I’m sorry. It doesn’t ring a bell. I’ll keep an eye out for her, though,” the woman answered before returning her focus to the toys on the shelf beside her.
I took off sprinting through the store again, stopping as I heard the crackling overhead before the Christmas music was replaced with an announcement.
“Attention all employees, we have a Code Adam. Repeat, we have a Code Adam. Little girl, age five, with brown hair and green eyes. Last seen wearing a red sweater and black pants.”
The speaker stopped as people started whispering around me. I didn’t have time to stop and listen because Daisy was still missing. I took off down the aisles, calling her name as loudly as I could, praying she would hear me.