Problem

" and you are certain that your daughter wasn't involved with anyone who might want to hurt her ?", the police asked Mrs.Tomlinson and she shook her head . It was now three days officially since her daughter Bria was missing .

"Mi tell yuh a ready detective. Bria anuh eh kind a person fi mix or mingle wid people.  A mean now that she deh out deh pon har own and she start college, mi agree seh she aguh meet people but, Bria know how fi handle harself . Mi know this connected wid whateva happened to Chris . Mi feel like whosoever eh person be who kill Chris and did a stalk mi daughter,  watch har until she lef fi college and then him tek har".

Detective Perterson wrote something down on his notepad then said ,

" I do agree that that is possible Mrs.Tomlinson and we have reopened that case and doing a deeper investigation into the incident especially since we have reason to believe that it might also be connected to what happend with your daughter and Tray Douglas the night that she was almost kidnapped by him and killed . We still haven't recovered neither Chris's body or Tray's but, we had found Tray's car in an woodland area completely burnt and destroyed. Did you know that your daughter was in a relationship with Romero Davis?", he asked and Mrs.Tomlinson shook her head.

" no but, she a 18 now suh suh free fi do weh she want and as I said , she know how fi handle harself. She is a good judge of character suh if she did deh wid somebody,  that mean seh she trust that deh person deh because,  she had never been in a relationship before in High school. Bria was always focused and just wanted to achieve her subjects".

" both your daughter's phone and Romero’s phone was found back at his house when his body was discovered by his room mate whom he shared the apartment with and both phones had been destroyed beyond repair.  We have tried to recover whatever information we could that could possibly help us with our investigation but, there was nothing on your daughter's phone that showed any signs of her being in danger and neither on her boyfriend's phone but, base on all that you have told us concerning your daughter and her stalker, we have reason to believe that Bria was taken due to the fact that she had entered into a relationship with Romero which would explained the reason he was killed ", detective Perterson stated.

" suh whosoever had been watching her took her because mi daughter decide fi deh wid somebody else instead a him? Wah kind a sick twisted thinking that ?"

" that is what it appears to be Mrs.Tomlinson. whosoever was stalking your daughter clearly did so to show a sign of ownership and control and the moment your daughter left from around both of you as her parents,  this person continued to watch her maybe debating with themselves whether they wanted to take her at the time or not but, then your daughter got into a relationship and this person felt threatened by that relationship and deicided to not only erase that threat who was Romero Davis but, to also took your daughter to avoid her from being with anyone else. As I stated we are still investigating but, whosoever this person is , they are smart and they have resources possibly  more advanced than us as the JCF".

" you stated that you had spoken to the person who installed your surveillance system outside of your house?" , decteive Peterson asked and Mrs.Tomlinson nodded .

" yes and him seh that the system hadn't been triggered when the person come inna the house which mi explained to him seh that nuh right because some form a alarm shoudah go off".

" that is true but, there are ways that this person could have went around that and prevented that from happening. Please give me the contact information for that security company".

Mrs.Tomlinson gave the detective the information he requested and he wrote it down then got to his feet.

" ok Mrs.Tomlinson thank you so much for your time.  We are going to continue to do everything that we can to find your daughter and in the meantime please be safe and take precautionary measures because there is no telling how far this person is willing to go to establish their control" and she thanked the detective and walked him out .

When her daughter Celine came from school Mrs.Tomlinson immediately noticed that something was wrong . Celine looked tired but, more so than usual.  Dark circles under her eyes showed that she hadn't been sleeping well and she concluded that it had to do with the fact that her sister was missing.

" evening mummy", Celine stated weakly and Mrs.Tomlinson returned the greeting then said,

" put dung yuh bag and come here " and Celine went upstairs to put her bag down in her room before coming back downstairs to where her mother was seated in the living room and up close Mrs.Tomlinson noticed with alarm that Celine's feet was slightly swollen and she was covered in a sheen of sweat.

" Celine! Wah happen to yuh? How yuh look suh?"

" mi nuh feel good mummy. Mi head a hurt mi three days now and mi feel weak and dizzy " , Celine responded weakly as she leaned her head back against the back of the couch she was seated in.

" suh why yuh neva seh anything? Yuh feel sick ? Look pon yuh foot dem Celine, dem look like dem a swell . This nuh normal ", Mrs.Tomlinson stated concerned.

" mi neva did feel suh bad at first.  A did just eh head ache dem on and off and eh dizziness but, then mi start feel weak and he headache start stay fi longa and todeh a school mi did affi guh a the nurse office because mi nearly faint and mi did vomit up mi breakfast and mi lunch " , Celine stated and Mrs.Tomlinson noticed too the whiteness around her lips and when she  rested the back of her hand against her daughter's forehead , she felt cold and clammy.

" no man this look serous Celine.  Hear wah gwaan guh change out a yuh school uniform. Mi aguh call yuh fada and mi a carry yuh dung a hospital now now because this nuh look right at all".

Celine nodded and got up from the couch weakly , her hands shaking a little as she left the living room and made her way upstairs to her room.

Mrs.Tomlinson called her husband but, his phone went rang for awhile before going to voicemail.  She sighed as she sent him a WhatsApp message,  informing him of the situation and that she was taking Celine to the hospital, she had just gotten up from the couch and was on her way upstairs when she heard a dull thud and with her heart in her throat she rushed up the remaining steps and pushed opened the door to Celine's room and screamed when she saw her daughter still in her school uniform collapsed on the floor .

" Celine! Celine! " , she screamed her daughter's name over and over as she knelt down beside her, shaking her and checking for a pulse,  her heart hammering in her chest. Oh god nuh mek she dead because a mi sin !

She thought to herself as tears filled her eyes.  She realised that Celine was still breathing though it was too slow and too shallow and her pulse was weak. She dialled the emergency number and informed them of the situation and they told her that they would send out an ambulance right away but, she had to stay on the line until they had arrived.

She tried calling her husband again but, once more it went to voicemail and she curse angrily, for a moment forgetting that she was supposed to be a Christian. Half and hour later they had arrived at the St.Ann's Bay hospital and her daughter Celine was rushed to the emergency section.

Later.....

The sterile scent of antiseptics clung to the air, the rhythmic beeping of monitors filling the tense silence. Mrs. Tomlinson sat rigidly in the stiff hospital chair, her fingers wrapped around Celine’s cold, frail hand. Her daughter looked impossibly small on the hospital bed, an oxygen tube resting beneath her nose, her skin pale beneath the harsh fluorescent lighting.

The last few hours had been a blur, Celine collapsing, the ambulance ride, the rushed whispers of the doctors as they wheeled her into the emergency room. She had been fine yesterday. She had smiled, laughed, lived. And now…

Mrs. Tomlinson glanced at the doorway for the tenth time. Still no sign of her husband.

She had called him again and again, but every attempt went straight to voicemail. Her grip on Celine’s hand tightened, frustration curling in her chest. Where was he?

The door creaked open. A man in a white coat stepped inside, a clipboard clutched in his hands. Dr. Bennett his ID showed . His expression was careful, composed, but the flicker of hesitation in his eyes sent dread slithering down her spine.

"Mrs. Tomlinson," he greeted, his voice soft yet firm.

"Let’s step outside for a moment."

Mrs. Tomlinson swallowed hard, her heart thudding against her ribs. She cast one last glance at Celine, still unmoving, still far too quiet, before she rose to her feet and followed the doctor into the hallway.

The moment they stepped out, heavy footsteps echoed against the linoleum floor.

"What's going on?" Mr. Tomlinson’s voice rang out.

Mrs. Tomlinson turned, her jaw tightening as she took in her husband’s disheveled state, his tie loosened, his shirt slightly wrinkled, as if he had rushed here only because he had to.

She crossed her arms.

"Yuh nuh si seh mi did a call yuh eeh? Multiple times , wah happen to yuh phone?", she questioned.

"My phone was off," he said flatly, his expression unreadable.

Mrs. Tomlinson swallowed her anger and turned back to Dr. Bennett.

"Please. Tell us what’s wrong with our daughter".

Dr. Bennett exhaled slowly, glancing between them before speaking.

"Celine has acute kidney failure. Her kidneys are no longer filtering toxins properly, which is why she's been experiencing swelling in the legs , fatigue, and shortness of breath and the headaches".

Mrs. Tomlinson felt the world tilt beneath her feet.

"Kidney failure?" she repeated, her voice barely above a whisper.

Mr. Tomlinson stiffened beside her.

"Wah that mean? What happen next?"

Dr. Bennett’s expression darkened slightly. "At this stage, Celine will require dialysis immediately to help cleanse her blood. But long-term… she will need a kidney transplant".

Mrs. Tomlinson swayed, pressing a hand to the wall for support. A kidney transplant? Har daughter aguh need wah next organ fi survive?

She felt like she was about to faint. There was only so much she could bear. First Bria's gone missing, possibly being held and hurt by some sick twisted smaddy and now har other daughta deh near death door ? Oh Jesus, please nuh punish dem because a mi God . Mi promise just spear dem life Jesus and mi will stop, she prayed silently.

"She, she did alright . Celine anuh wah child weh sick regularly", she whispered, as if that would change the reality before them.

Dr. Bennett nodded solemnly.

"I understand how difficult this is to process, but we have to act fast. We’ll begin running tests to see if either of you are a match for donation. And if not… we’ll have to find a donor."

The weight of his words crushed her. Mrs. Tomlinson barely heard the rest of what he said, her world narrowing down to the pale hospital bed beyond the glass window, where her daughter lay, so small, so fragile.

She turned to her husband, expecting to see the same devastation mirrored on his face.

But his expression was… detached.

Cold.

Like he was calculating something rather than fearing for their daughter’s life.

And for the first time, Mrs. Tomlinson felt a deep, unsettling suspicion coil in her gut.

Something wasn’t right.