My Daughter Went Missing, So Did My Sanity

How terrified must my little girl have been in that final moment of her life?

I swallowed the bitterness rising in my throat, sat beside her and gently asked, "Clara, how have your dad and grandma been treating you lately?"

She gave me a sweet smile as she answered, "They’ve been really nice to me."

I paused, then continued softly, "What about your homeroom teacher? Is she kind to you?"

"She’s very nice. She takes good care of me at school," she replied naturally, her innocent face glowing with happiness.

Then, she blinked her big, watery eyes and looked at me in confusion. "But Mommy, I’m not sick today, so why can’t I go to school?"

I stroked her soft little cheek and said sincerely, "Because Mommy just can’t bear to be apart from you."

In my past life, taking her to kindergarten led to her sudden, senseless death.

In this life, I would never let anything happen to her, no matter what.

After breakfast, Clara settled on the couch in the living room to watch TV. I gathered the dishes and went into the kitchen to clean up.

Halfway through, my phone rang. It was her homeroom teacher.

"Mrs. Adams, is everything all right? Clara didn’t come to school today. Is she not feeling well?"

The exact same question I had heard in my previous life.

My heart tightened.

As I walked toward the living room, I spoke politely into the phone, "I’m sorry, Ms. Hannah. Clara isn’t feeling well today. I was just about to inform you…"

However, before I could finish the sentence, my voice caught in my throat.

Because just moments ago, my daughter had been sitting quietly on the sofa watching TV…

Now she was gone.

A surge of panic flooded my chest.

I immediately hung up the phone and began frantically searching the house.

I called her name over and over, but no matter how loud I shouted, the house remained silent.

There was no sign of her.

Terror gripped me.

Scenes from my past life flashed through my mind like a waking nightmare. My legs buckled and spots danced before my eyes.

With trembling hands, I called the police, my voice shaking with fear.

Unfortunately, just like in my previous life, the police soon delivered devastating news. They found my daughter’s body in a pond near our home.

I ran there like a madwoman and arrived just in time to see them pull her tiny, lifeless form from the water.

Just moments ago, she had been full of life, smiling sweetly at me, warm in my arms.

Now, she was pale and cold, her fragile body soaked and still.

It felt like I had fallen into a frozen abyss. I could not breathe.

My legs gave out as I stumbled forward, collapsing beside her and pulling her into my embrace.

I clutched her tightly, trying to warm her with my body, sobbing her name over and over.

However, no matter how desperately I cried or how tightly I held her, she never opened her eyes again.

My heart shattered into pieces when I realized that my daughter had left me once again.

Why?

Why, even after changing what happened in my previous life, after doing everything I could to keep her close…

Why did the outcome remain the same?

Why couldn’t I save my daughter?

The pain hit me like a tidal wave. I could not even find the strength to cry.

When my mother-in-law and Kelvin heard the news, they rushed to the scene.

Seeing my daughter’s lifeless body in my arms, my mother-in-law let out a scream of grief.

Then, as if in a trance, she pushed me aside and wrapped her arms tightly around her granddaughter.

"Clara… my precious girl… how could you die just because Grandma went to the hospital?"

Kelvin fell to his knees, his tears streaming as he reached out to her tremblingly.

"Clara… please get up. Don’t scare Daddy like this."

"Are you mad because Daddy didn’t take you to kindergarten today? I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Please… come back. You can ask me for anything, anything at all. Just open your eyes…"