Acheros blew a loud breath of relief as he stares at the photo on the phone. He's relieved that somehow, the clothes recovered aren't like the ones Loralai wore the day she went out. But he can't still help but to worry knowing that Loralai might possibly changed her clothes, considering that she brought a small bag on the day she left. Without anything to think of but the better, he also concluded that the clothes and the ashes on the photo aren't Loralai's. Well, that's what he hopes.
"So…" The police looked at them alternately. "Is she…?"
"Nope," Dayanara said, smiling as she returns the police officer's phone. "Well, that's what we see based on the clothes."
The two may not show it, but they are already thinking of other possible ways to find Loralai. The woman has no parents according to her, that's why they don't have any idea where she might possibly went. But, the fact that Loralai might only be around, somewhere hidden, boosts their hope and eagerness to find her.
"I'm glad. So, I'll get going now. I hope you'll find her as soon as possible. It's dangerous outside, she won't be safe unless she's here."
They've never felt genuine happiness before as they are feeling now. Acheros and Dayanara haven't find Loralai yet, but the fact that she is alive makes them happy. Just you wait… Dayanara never imagined that this day would come. The day when she will freely show what she feels towards Loralai. They may not have a deep relationship, but Loralai's roots have some deeper connection. Dayanara wouldn't have adopted Loralai if they have no connection.
For the whole day, they did nothing except trying to find Loralai anywhere. If she wasn't near around, maybe she got far away. Somewhere that needs thoroughly searching to find her. They might not really know what they are doing at the moment, still, their goal is to find Loralai and keep her safe in their household as what she deserves.
In the following days, Acheros and Dayanara are still trying their best to find Loralai. But as hard as they are searching, Loralai seems hidden very well somewhere. It's like she is hidden from one place to another. They can't find her anywhere. Even in the darkest hidden places ever existed. Now they are suspecting. If she wasn't dead, maybe she is kidnapped or something.
Overthinking made them worry even more. They've been thinking things that might happen to Loralai if they can't find her quickly. But that alone seems impossible. It's not as easy as they thought it is. In the middle of their searching, the school called and reported that their son, Callum, suffered some injuries because of a villain attack. They immediately went to the school and was greeted by chaos. Classrooms were burning and students are gathered in an open space while the fire fighters are trying their best to kill the fire.
Acheros and Dayanara can't hold a sight of Callum from the sea of crowds. There are a lot of parents outside like them, worrying about their children. Out of patience, Dayanara called Callum, whom answered immediately.
"Hello? Callum! Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine," Callum answered on the other line. His voice sounds weak and fear is evident. Dayanara was badly worried. "I'm okay now. They're gone."
"Thank God you're safe," Dayanara blew a loud breath of relief upon hearing the condition of Callum. "We're outside. Please come out, let's go home."
"Let me tell my professor. See you."
As Dayanara ended the call, a loud sigh escaped her mouth. It's just a moment of silence for everyone, and here we go again – villain attacks again. The dangerous murderer just surrendered himself, and now, a new set of villains showed up and are ready to cause chaos? Just how lucky they are to experience such events? The thought of Loralai entered Dayanara's mind. For a moment, she forgot that they are looking for her. Her worries about Loralai are buried as soon as she heard about Callum's situation. She realized that no matter how strong the care you are feeling to a person, the person you love and treasure will still go first above all.
Its not like she doesn't love and care about Loralai, its just that, blood is thicker than water. Callum will always go first out of anything. Their son is the first of their priorities, and if they need to set aside other things just to attend to Callum, then they are willing to set aside everything.
After a minute or so, the saw Callum walking towards their direction, wounded and is full of dirt. Dayanara and Acheros didn't wait for Callum to reach their place. As soon as they saw Callum approaching, their feet moved on their own to go to Callum.
"Oh my God," those were the words that escaped Dayanara's lips while staring at Callum. He has wounds on his face, elbows and knees. Callum also has scratches on different parts of his body, but is severely wounded on the part of his feet. His uniform is creased and is full of dirt. He also has burns in his face and arms. "Let's go home."
Dayanara is panicking as she walks faster towards their car. Not long enough, they are on their way to their house. Absentmindedly, while they are travelling along the road, Dayanara's sight pans on the forest part where Loralai's saw shadows the last time. And to her surprise, she saw shadows. It was a woman, and a man, standing side by side oh the far side of the forest, enough to see them from the road.
Dayanara was surprised and felt scared. For a second, she thought that she is just imagining, or hallucinating, seeing things that seem to be impossible. But she can't be mistaken. Those are shadows of a man and a woman. Her eyesight is clear. And she has a bad gut feeling about what she saw. A creepy scary feeling crept inside her, and she can't think straight now. All she can think about is the school accident, and the shadows, which she thought has some kind of connection to each other.