CHAPTER 84: YOU’RE THE REASON I DIDN’T FALL APART

I’d been soaked from head to toe, and now the cold had settled deep into my bones. I could feel the water in my socks. My hands wouldn’t stop trembling.

The heater was on, but I couldn’t stop shivering because, the AC blowing gently from the dashboard made it worse.

Without a word, Dominic reached forward and turned it off. His hand brushed the back of my hand for half a second. I just stared out the window, my eyes were still blurry from tears and rain.

"You’re freezing," he said softly, glancing over at me. "You okay?"

I nodded, wiped my eyes with the damp sleeve of my hoodie. My voice was hoarse when it came out. "They said they can’t find her anywhere. One of the nurses called me in a panic. Saying she’s gone."

Dominic’s jaw tightened as he drove.

"Are you sure she’s not just... in a playroom or something?" he asked carefully. "Maybe she wandered off with some other kids...."

I shook my head. "No. Someone sent me a picture of Alia. Like a threatening message."

He looked over. "What?"

I swallowed hard. "An anonymous number. They sent me a picture of her and said, say hi to your little sister."

"What the hell?" Dominic yelled, his eyes kept flicking from the road to me. "Did you inform the police?"

I nodded, barely. "I tried. I...." I looked down at my lap, the broken phone still clutched in my hand like it might suddenly fix itself. "My phone died. Rain killed it. It won’t even turn on."

Dominic didn’t say anything for a second.

Then he reached over to the glove compartment, popped it open with one hand on the wheel, and pulled out a phone.

"Here," he said, handing it to me. "You can use this."

I blinked at it. "You’re giving me a phone?"

He shrugged. "I keep extras. That’s one of my spares."

I stared at him. "You’re... lending me this?"

"Lending?" he chuckled. "Ash, you can have it. Just put your SIM and stuff in. We need to call the hospital again. Just in case."

My hands were still shaking, but I nodded and took the phone. "Thanks, Dom..."

I slipped out my SIM card, my fingers kept trembling so much I dropped it twice. I slid it into the new phone, powered it up, started entering my info.

"Dom... seriously. Thank you." I whispered again.

"Omg! Ash, it’s just a phone." He laughed as he kept driving, then his tone softened. "You don’t have to thank me. I’d give you more than that if it’d help."

And just as I was finishing, the phone buzzed in my hand.

Unknown number.

My heart jumped. I answered. "Hello?"

"Mr. Rivera?" a woman’s voice said. "This is Estrella Police Department. We have a missing child report for an eight-year-old named Alia Rivera. She’s been located safely. We need you to come down to the station as soon as possible."

I sat up straight. "Oh my God. Alia! She’s....wait. She’s there? She’s okay?"

"She’s safe. Someone brought her in about twenty minutes ago."

I didn’t realize I was crying until a tear hit my hand.

"Thank you," I whispered. "Thank you so much."

Dominic looked over. "What? What happened?"

"They found her," I said, exhaling in relief. "Alia’s at the police station."

He exhaled hard, and smiled. "Shit...thank God."

Then he turned the wheel. "Okay. We’re heading to the station now."

He pulled a U-turn, tires skimming the water, and started down the opposite street.

I pressed the back of my hand to my face, wiping away the tears. I felt like I could finally breathe again. It wasn’t over, not by a long shot....but she was alive. She was safe. That was everything.

My phone buzzed again.

June.

I picked up. "Hey."

"Ash?" she said quickly. "Where are you going? I’m behind you in the white car."

I turned to check the side mirror, then spotted the white car trailing behind us.

"I just got a call from the station," I told her. "They found Alia. We’re heading there now."

"Oh my God. that’s amazing!" she gasped. "I’ll tell Marcus. He went to the hospital to wait."

"Okay. Thanks," I said.

She hesitated. "Ash... I’m really glad she’s safe."

"Me too."

I hung up and leaned back against the seat, exhausted.

Dominic reached over, touched my arm gently. "You alright?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Just... everything hit at once."

He kept his hand there for a moment..

"You were shaking so bad earlier," he said quietly. "I didn’t know what to do."

"You did enough," I said. "You were there."

He gave me a small smile.

The windshield wipers kept thudding back and forth as we drove, the rain finally starting to ease. The sound was softer now, then, it stopped.

"I thought I lost her," I said after a long silence.

Dominic didn’t say anything at first. Then he said, "You didn’t."

I turned my head toward him.

He didn’t look back, he just kept driving. "She’s safe. And so are you."

I covered my face with my hands and let the tears fall again....

And then I felt it.....Dominic’s hand reaching across the console, gently squeezing mine.

"Hey," he said. "We’re almost there. You did good, Ash. You never have to go through something like that alone again, okay?"

I nodded, and squeezed his hand back.

"Dom?" I whispered.

He glanced over.

"Thanks for today. You’re the reason I didn’t fall apart."

"You’d do the same for me."

"Ofc, I would."

The car pulled into the same cracked parking lot I swore I wouldn’t see again for a long time.

The Estrella Police Department.

Exactly one week ago, I walked through those doors in handcuffs...arrested, humiliated for a crime I didn’t commit. Branded a criminal.

And now, I was back. But this time, I wasn’t in cuffs. I wasn’t alone. I came for the one person who matters most.