Unravel // Van McCann

8. Did They Know?

I found it hard to listen to her sobs. She couldn't form coherent sentences as she spoke through the phone.

"I—I'm scared," Georgia sobbed. "I don't...I don't want to lose her!" She went through another fit of sobs and even though I couldn't see her, I imagined her small frame shaking, her face a wet mess. She sniffed loudly and you could tell her nose was stuffed. "I'm flying back tomorrow morning. Caught the first flight back. I can't thank you enough for checking on her and taking her to the hospital."

"You're welcome," I finally replied.

I wasn't the best at consoling someone. I always felt my words weren't sincere enough. It's not that I didn't feel sorry—I did—but it felt like words weren't enough. But what I lack in words, I make up for in action. I've always been big on physical touch. If she were here, I would've hugged her. There's nothing more comforting than holding someone.

We talked for ten more minutes before she hung up. I put my phone away and stared off into the distance. There was a lot going through my mind. I was worried about the long-term damage Ada will go through. Will she be the same after? Will she ever recover? It's unfortunate because she's the one who knows the most about Megan. What will this mean for the case? That it's over?

I doubt I'll see her anytime soon. Ada will be in the hospital for God-knows-how-long. I can't imagine them sending her home so soon without rehabilitation. She won't be able to live on her own anymore. Her daughter will have to take care of her or they'll have to hire a caregiver. And if someone's around Ada the whole time, Megan will definitely not be there.

If I were Georgia, I'd cancel the case and suck up the loss. Her mother's health is more important. She's got bigger stuff to worry about rather than figuring out who's been living with her mum, which is a shame because I was looking forward to closing this case. Like I said—I'm emotionally invested. Even if the case was to get cancelled, I will always be thinking about the why. I know who she is but I don't know why.

My case and Theo's case are now linked but I'm the only one that knows that and I don't even know if I should tell Theo, let alone my supervisor. I need to talk to her and figure out why she's hiding. It was strange but I wanted her permission. If she said no, would I still listen? There's no way to tell.

"You alright, buddy?" I heard Theo ask. I slowly turned to face him and began rubbing my eyes.

"Yeah, mate. Just tired is all," I replied. I could tell Theo didn't believe that was it but he didn't question it.

"I thought you were having an existential crisis for a minute. Well you're in luck! It's time to go home. I'll see ya tomorrow."

Theo walked off and I continued sitting there for a moment before deciding to pack my things and leave. If my case is at a stopping point for now, I can live vicariously through Theo's case. The unfortunate thing was that I never really paid attention to his case. All I remember is their house going up in flames and her parents thinking she survived the fire due to authorities not being able to find her remains but that's it.

Well she survived, that's for sure. But what caused the fire? Was it an accident or intentional? There were so many questions to ask that I could feel a headache coming on. That was when I realized I had to leave and now. There was too much going on, I felt like my head was going to explode. And the fact that I'm still waiting to hear back about Ada's surgery didn't help either. People always say to never bring work home. I was doing just that. Despite physically leaving work, I was bringing work home with me.

As soon as I came home, I showered hoping that would relieve the stress and anxiety, but I still didn't feel better. I decided to grab takeaway from a Thai restaurant since I had nothing appetizing to eat. After that, I decided the best way to silence the thoughts in my head was to get stoned.