Eternal Promise

The Price We Pay

Present Day

Rain pummeled the windows of Rachel's Uber, mimicking one of the worst days of her life.

She had more than a few "worst days" under her belt already. By the age of 27, she had buried both her father and her fiancé. Somewhat mercifully, her father had died when she was just a kid, but Patrick, her fiancé's, death had only been a year ago. The past year had been mired in a sea of grief that had nearly cut her off from all of her friends and family.

But this day also qualified as one of the worst. The day in which she had gotten the worst news. The day in which everything changed. The day that led to her riding in a rain-soaked Uber in the darkest, seediest part of London.

London had the reputation of being a rather dreary city but Rachel had still not been fully prepared for the torrential downpour that greeted her when she arrived at Heathrow after an eight-and-a-half-hour-long flight.

Not that any of it mattered. Rachel had not come here to sightsee or visit friends and family. She had come here for a purpose. Rain or shine, she would complete the task she had set out on since she had received the news that her younger sister was missing just over twelve hours ago.

It had been a pretty typical day. February in Atlanta was a toss-up. Some days could be sunny and gorgeous while others were endless weeks of snow and ice. However, you could always count on winter being pretty mild for the most part. Low-fifties for a high, high-thirties for a low. Rain had been falling since the early morning, and the ICU she worked in had already seen some victims of a car crash on I-85.

She worked in the best hospital in the city, a feat she had accomplished only after busting her ass since she was 16. After graduating summa cum laude from the University of Georgia, she had gone to Emory University for her Masters in Nursing. Rising to the top of the class, she hadn't even graduated before the university's main hospital asked her to join their staff. Promotions followed quickly after that.

Rachel had chosen the ICU without hesitation after spending weeks in middle school at her father's bedside. It was the one place she felt most in control. Her family had lost almost everything because of a nurse's foolish error. She made sure that would never happen to anyone ever again.

But this February day was different. The rain had caused ungodly traffic which had made her uncharacteristically late, and she'd still been silently berating herself and the entire city when she'd gotten to her station and put her badge on.

When her boss approached her, Rachel was already apologizing.

"It's no excuse, I should have woken up earlier, I'm terribly sorry-"

The look on her director's face would haunt her for the rest of her life. "Rachel..."

Rachel immediately knew that tone. She'd heard it twice before, once when her father died and again when Patrick had passed away. It was hard to forget.

Her boss' eyes shone with unshed tears and Rachel could see her throat bob as she pulled Rachel toward a quiet corner. "Rachel, your mom called."

Ice filled Rachel's veins.

"Your-your sister.... is missing."

Everything had slowed down at that moment.

The sounds of the hospital disappeared as a low hum filled Rachel's ears.

She hadn't said a word; she couldn't. She had turned and walked away from her boss, ignoring the calls and questions as her feet carried her down the hall and out the front lobby. Not even the pounding rain registered when she stepped outside into the crowded parking lot and ripped off her badge.