The Absconsion

The Investigation

Tombeck: Daniel, what did you find till now?

Daniel: I have checked their phone records and everything related to them in the past few days, and found something interesting.

Tombeck: Well, tell me.

Daniel: All the people who were reported missing, boarded a cab a few days earlier. All of them went to a place away from their neighborhood. It is not clear where they went. I found this information from the victim's families, friends, neighbors and some of them booked a cab through their phone. We tried to track where they went, but their mobile phones were switched off. Literally, all of their mobiles were switched off. I became suspicious then, so I sent officers to check the surroundings of the victim's houses and near one of the houses, we found a burner.

Tombeck: A burner? Why would they need a burner, anyway? For some reason, let's say they needed a burner, then I think they took the cab to find a store that sells burner phones. I want you to enquire at all the electronic stores regarding the purchases of burner phones in the past week. I need a complete list. And also, the bank accounts of all the missing people received deposits of the same amount from a shell company. I feel like the victims did not go missing randomly, but were lured into a trap.

Daniel: I feel the same way. I will get you the list as soon as possible.

Tombeck was worried because if he could not get to the bottom of this soon, then things might go out of hand and he will not be able to save those people. Till then, they only know about people who were reported missing, there might be many other people whose complaints might not even be registered yet.

On the other hand, Elly's parents were very sad and afraid because they do not know where their daughter had gone and till now, they received no update from the police. Their mind started to imagine the worst, but they could not afford to lose hope. The only thing they can do was pray for the well-being of their daughter.

Elly's friend Nita was filled with guilt. She started to feel like she made a mistake by keeping Elly's secret. If only she had not allowed this, everybody would have been happy and pain-free. But now, she was not able to look Elly's parents in the eye. If something were to happen to Elly, the tragedy would be on Nita's conscience, and then she would have to live with that guilt forever.

                                                                                       ----*----

John's mother who needed rest was restless from the moment she thought John was missing. This extreme stress was showing adverse effects on her health. Her being worried is of no use to the current situation.

Marek: Mrs. Lee, I know that you are worried about John, but he is fine and he will be back soon. He went away to perform his responsibility which he overlooked for so long. Your responsibility is to eat well and sleep well in order to stay healthy. If you constantly think about John and stress yourself out, then it will deteriorate your health. John would not want to see you in that state when he returns. He should not feel guilty that he had left his mother in such a state. He would feel that it was his fault your health has gone worse. So, please, stop worrying about him. He will be back with all things required to perform the surgery in a couple of days. So, close your eyes, free your brain from all the thoughts, take deep breaths, and sleep, Mrs. Lee.

                                                                                            ----*----

' Can you call, Jacky? He has not called. I want to talk to him once. '

' I tried. But his phone is not in the coverage area. '

' I pray that he is safe. '

' Do not worry, Aaron. He might not have enough time to charge his phone or there might be a poor network. I am sure he will be alright. '

' Thank you for saying that. I am really happy that Jacky went away. '

' Why would you even say that? '

' You took care of me as he is not there. Otherwise, you never talk to me or tell me stories. You used to take care of me before. But now, you do not even look at me. Thanks to God that you are taking care of me again and I am so happy. '

' I do not have any problem with you, little one. It is just that I am angry at your father for leaving me all alone. I wanted to show my anger to him by being distant and ignorant to his children. '

' Aren't we your children too? '

Lisa wanted to say yes, but she didn't. Being nice to Aaron felt like she was losing a battle. She could not help but take care of the little one, but she did not like it for some reason. It is like the negative half of hers wanted her to be ignorant and cold. The thought of being their mother was not acceptable to her negative half. The day when she comes to peace with her demons is the day she could live peacefully as herself.

Aaron, who was expecting a yes from his mother, was disappointed when he received no answer.

' I am feeling sleepy, mom. Good night. '

Lisa came out of the trance and said, ' Don't you want to listen to a story before you sleep. '

' It is alright. I do not want to bother you anymore. '

Lisa hated herself because a small kid was showing empathy and here she is, all matured but zero affection. If this goes on, she felt like her heart would become a stone.

' No, I like reading stories to you. And today I am going to tell you a story about The Dog and the Greedy Tortoise.

Once there was a famine in the animal kingdom. This famine had lasted so long that food had been completely depleted. The animals knew they had to do something real quick or they would all die off one by one. They called a meeting where every animal was in attendance and they determined that they had to do something drastic. It was decided that the mothers would be sacrificed to ensure the continuation of the animal races. They would eat their mothers

The dog was extremely sad because he loved his mother. He thought about this action a great deal and decided he was not going to sacrifice his mother. Instead, he hid her in the sky. Every day, he would go to a particular spot where he sang a song asking his mother to drop a rope.

His mother would drop a rope and the dog would climb to the sky where his mother would have a feast waiting for him.

One day, as the dog was singing for his mother to drop the rope, the tortoise was passing by and hid himself to observe what was going on. He heard the song dog was singing, then he saw a rope being dropped from the sky and with which the dog climbed to the sky.

The following day, the tortoise went to the same spot, and, disguising his voice like the dog’s, he sang the song he had heard the dog sing the day before. A rope dropped from the sky and the tortoise began to climb this rope. At this same time, the dog was just approaching the same spot when he saw the tortoise climbing to the sky. The dog immediately started to sing to his mother. This time, he sang that he was not the one climbing the rope and that his mother should cut the rope. Dog’s mother got a pair of scissors and cut the rope, sending the tortoise crashing to the ground.

This caused the tortoise’s shell to break into several pieces. He managed to glue these pieces together, but that was how the tortoise ended up with the rough shell we know today. '

And by this time, little Aaron was in deep sleep. Lisa unknowingly became emotionally connected to Aaron. She did not realize the love she has for her kids.

                                                                                        ----*----

' Did you find out anything about his whereabouts? '

' No, sir. My best men are on the job. We would find him sooner or later. '

' If he is managing to keep himself hidden for this long. I am sure, he is planning something big. I believe you remember what would happen, in case you fail to locate him by the end of the week. '

' I do remember, sir. I would not let you down. The task will be done. '

' What about the police? Did they find out anything about Zain? '

' They are currently investigating, sir. If they inform me about anything, I will notify you at the earliest. '