Looking for a Hero

21. Lost a Hero: Part 2

Marcus was staring at another radar map. He felt like his eyes were gonna dry up and roll out of his head.

"Marcus, hijo. Tienes que ir a casa y estar con tu hija," Anita walked over and ran her hand through her son's hair. (You need to go home and be with your daughter.)

"No puedo mamá. ¿Y si ella aparece? Ella me necesita," Marcus insisted. (I can't mom. What if she shows up? She needs me.)

"Tu hija te necesita ahora," Anita continued. (Your daughter needs you now.)

"But mom, I can't do this without her," Marcus started to sob.

When Marcus had received news that his wife was missing on a mission about three months ago. He tore apart the whole department, but no one had any idea where she was. It had been filed under some super secret classified file which had gone missing.

Tech-No had made radar after radar to look for her. Miracle Guy flew around the world multiple times. Invisi Girl turned invisible and searched through the files too but came up with nothing. Sharkboy tried his fish friends while Lavagirl tried to search around all of the volcano spots. Blinding Fast ran around the world too. Their other friends did the best they could to search too, but everyone came up empty.

"I know this is hard, hijo, but you need to be strong for your daughter," Anita rubbed her son's head, "She needs you right now. She just lost her mother. Remember how you were when you lost your father."

Marcus stifled his sobs for a moment.

"I remember, mom. I was scared and felt like I was so alone," his voice cracked, "That's what I'm doing to Missy. I need to go home."

He jumped up and ran out the door.

***
Marcus found his daughter sobbing in her room. His heart broke that he couldn't fix it. He couldn't find her missing mother. He couldn't even get it together enough to take care of his own daughter, his baby girl.

"Missy," he whispered.

His daughter didn't hear him come in.

"Missy, I'm so sorry," he dropped to his knees.

Missy turned to look at her father. She was so angry that he had left her alone, but she also wanted his comfort.

"Daddy," she croaked.

Missy threw her arms around her father who tightened his grip around her. He held her in as close as possible.

"I'm so sorry, Missy. But I promise I'm gonna do better for you. I'm gonna be there for you," Marcus cried with his daughter.

They both held each other and cried until the morning light.

***
"Good morning, Missy. Time to get ready for school," Marcus walked into her room.

His wife had been missing for eight months now, and he needed to help his daughter move on and heal.

It was hard. It was a hard year for the both of them. He quit being a field work Heroic and only stayed in the office.

He found Missy crying one night because she was afraid he would leave and not return either, so he made a deal with her that he wouldn't go out again if she could try heal from their grief.

He would never forgive himself for abandoning her in their grief all those months ago, like he would never forgive himself for not finding his Reena.

He still had the whole team keeping an eye out, but she was still missing without a trace. Some days he didn't know what was worse, knowing she was gone or not knowing.

"Do I have too?" she groaned.

"Yes, I can get some omelets going," he kissed her head.

"But what if I'm too far behind or what if they think I'm weird," she argued.

Marcus had changed her school again. He and Reena had done so every few years because his daughter was having a hard time making friends. They thought she just hadn't found her group yet and that moving her around would cast that net out. Reena admitted that she was the same way growing up, and that she hadn't had a strong friend group until she joined the Heroics. He hoped it would be a little sooner than that for Missy. He only had the Heroics kids his whole life, and he couldn't imagine not having them in his life.

He had to pull her out of school when her mom disappeared. Helping her catch up in her classes had been a great bonding experience for him as well as make him appreciate Reena's work even more. He had helped Missy with homework before, but he had no idea what he was getting into with the rest of it.

He felt like he was way out of depth with this single father stuff. He never understood how Miracle Guy or Crushing Low did it, but now he felt even less prepared.

He handed Missy her omelets and grabbed some cereal for himself. He hadn't wanted to eat his favorite food anymore. It just didn't taste the same.

***
With Reena gone, the Heroics needed to find a new teacher for their children. Tech-No had been a choice, but he wasn't qualified for it. Marcus would have been good, but he was still dealing with his own grief and raising his daughter by himself.

Their new management team member, Granada, had suggested that she could teach their children instead, as her own daughter had been homeschooled before joining the Heroics program.

Very soon, this became their solution.

***
Not long after that their director, Lorenza Cortez, moved on from her position to another management job.

While they preferred someone they knew better, Ms. Granada had stepped up for the job when Marcus didn't.

It just reminded them of the void that had grown since Reena's disappearance. Marcus wasn't leading them anymore. They got into fights more. Their petty squabbles turned into actual brawls. Overall team moral was sinking. It felt like the end of the Heroics was coming.

***
Marcus sat down at this desk and typed up what he needed to do for the day. His eye was still on a radar on his desk. He wasn't gonna stop searching no matter what. It just might take longer than he wanted to.