I am Dead, But My Love for You Remains

"I don't know if I'll ever get to see our child again," John said.

'But John, you did see him.'

'The child in front of you is ours.'

After stepping out, everyone continued analyzing the case.

But John wasn’t himself.

"John, do you have anything to add?" someone asked.

John shook his head. "Hasn’t the family come to claim the body yet?"

"No, not yet."

"How could they be so careless? Whose wife, sister, or daughter is she? Don't they even know she's missing?"

John exclaimed, throwing his cup in frustration.

'I have no family left.'

'If anyone could claim my body, it would be you, John.'

'My father entrusted me to you before he died.'

'Who else would come but you?'

And my mother, who became blind because of too much crying.

She wouldn’t be able to see to recognize me now.

She cried until her eyes went blind because of her father's death.

I dared not think what would happen to her after I died.

If possible, I hope my mother would never come to claim me.

"Has the photo been restored?" someone asked.

"Not yet, but it should be done tonight."

"I see," John replied quietly.

Michael walked out, looking for me. John was smoking on the side.

But I couldn’t answer him.

He tried calling several times, but no one picked up.

John grabbed the phone and hit the hang-up button.

"Why are you calling her? She won’t answer," he said.

He was right. I wouldn’t answer.

Michael sent me a message, warning me to be careful.

But I never replied.

"When I used to message Yara, she’d reply within seconds or at least within a few minutes. Now, it's been two hours and nothing."

Michael noted, shifting his focus to the child.

He picked up the half-destroyed photo again.

"John, have you tested the DNA?"

John snatched the photo from Michael.

"Are you done yet? Are you sick or something? Michael, are you out of your mind?"

“How old is the victim?” Michael asked.

"Twenty-seven," John responded.

"Yara is twenty-seven too, right?" Michael stared into John’s eyes.

John snorted dismissively, "Don’t scare yourself. Look at this," he said, holding a piece of information.

It was a ticket for a trip out of the province that I had bought for the holiday.

But he was wrong.

I never got on that bus.

I was taken hostage on my way to the station.

"She should have left for holiday, and should be celebrating on some beach right now. All she ever did was remind me of her father’s sacrifice. I’ve taken care of her for years. I think I've repaid the favor by now."

So, this is how you see me, John.

Your kindness was just out of guilt for my father.

You think I’m a hypocrite who repaid favors poorly.

Was our engagement just your way of settling a debt?

Michael punched John in the face.

"You’re a piece of shit. Yara was blind to fall for someone like you."

"What’s it to you? This is between me and Yara," John snapped.

"You better hope the person lying here isn’t Yara! If this was your fiancée and child, would you still say such awful things? You should be ashamed when you visit Captain Garcia's grave."

Michael retorted before storming out.

He sat in front of his computer, eyes glued to the progress of the photo restoration.