"Sorry, we haven''t found anything yet. If there was anyone in that car, they''re gone."


    ra''s hand dropped to her side. She''d bitten her lip so hard it was almost bleeding.


    She''d been standing by the river since sunset, waiting, watching, barely moving as the sky turned from deep blue to pitch ck. The search teams kept working, dragging the water with their bigs and floodlights.


    Finally, they pulled the car out. It was empty. Not a single clue inside. An expert came over to exin-because of the recent flooding, the current was strong enough to sweep away anything, even bodies.


    The river was wide and fast, especially with the tide rising. People always gathered here to watch, but tonight, the crowd was bigger. Everyone wanted to see for themselves.


    With the tide so high, there was no way anyone could have survived. If anyone had been in that car, they were gone.


    ra stared at the empty metal shell, her eyes burning, rimmed red.


    Someone in the crowd recognized Dn''s name and started whispering. The news had already reported that Dn was missing-maybe dead. Social media was a mess, everyone specting, sharing theories.


    Ryan finally found her by the water, after pushing through a wall of people.


    "ra, it''s already midnight. Let''s go home, okay?"


    Her mind was buzzing. She barely heard him. All she could do was stare at the river, nk and numb.


    Ryan tried again, gentler this time. "They haven''t found a body. That''s something. There''s still hope. Let''s get you home."


    ra blinked and turned to him, her voice t but stubborn. "He''s not dead."


    Dn wasn''t the kind of person who just disappeared. He was too stubborn for that.


    But then her steps faltered as she remembered how terrible he''d looked earlier- pale, exhausted, barely holding it together. Even if the car hadn''t gone into the river, even a small ident could have been too much for him. He''d been hanging on by a thread.


    Her thoughts spun out of control. She managed a few steps before everything went dark and she copsed.


    "ra!"


    Ryan caught her before she hit the ground, panic in his voice. He rushed her into his car.


    Halfway to the hospital, ra stirred and pushed herself up, wincing. She looked out the window, voice hoarse. "Take me home. I''m fine."


    "ra, you scared me to death. Let''s just get you checked out, okay?"


    She pressed her hand to her forehead, throat raw. “I said I''m fine. Just take me home. I need to sleep."


    This had to be a nightmare, she thought. She''d wake up and everything would be normal again.


    Ryan let out a shaky breath, just relieved she was talking.


    Once they got home, ra didn''t say


    a word. She went straight to her room didn''t bother showering, She just copsed on her bed putting a pillow over her head.  s


    It''s just a nightmare. She''d wake up and everything would be fine.


    She was so tired she actually fell asleep and didn''t wake up for two whole days.


    Ryan kept checking on her, quietly opening her door to make sure she was still breathing, terrified shred do Something drastic But she was only sleeping.  s


    Still, he worried. She couldn''t go on like this forever.


    "ra."


    She opened her eyes slowly, staring at the ceiling she''d seen a thousand times before. She sat up.


    Ryan had someone bring up a tray of food. He sounded desperate. "You''ve been asleep for two days. Please, eat something."


    ra didn''t even look at the food-she just grabbed her phone and checked the


    news.


    Dn''s disappearance was still everywhere. She''d rested, but the nightmare wasn''t over.


    Ryan''s voice broke a little. "ra...


    pet


    you''re scaring me. Dn''s gone. But


    you have to keep living, right?. managed before him, didn''t you?"  s<fn2b88> ???s ??????? ?s ?????? ?? fin?novel</fn2b88>


    ra got out of bed, but her vision swam. Low blood sugar. Ryan caught her, steadying her. “At least eat something."


    She leaned against the wall, waited for her head to stop spinning. "I need to go somewhere."


    Ryan put the tray down and hurried after her. "You''re not well. Where are you going right now?"


    ra ignored him, grabbed her keys, and left. She drove straight to Palm Bay.


    No one stopped her at the door. In the huge foyer, the staff were sitting around looking lost, some wiping away tears. Everyone had seen the news.


    ra paused, then headed upstairs and opened the master bedroom.


    Everything was exactly the same as when she''d left. Dn hadn''te back.


    She checked the study next. It was quiet, untouched.


    No sign of him anywhere.