The Daughter Extraction

A Glimmer of Hope

•LUNA•

I was afraid this was going to happen. My fear got worse when I couldn't find him at the house, and I searched everywhere for him but to no avail.

My heart started to race after realizing that he must have left. I was hoping it wouldn't come to this after our conversation yesterday.

But the house looks the same, and most of his stuff is still here. He couldn't possibly leave everything behind like this, could he?

Fear and disappointment overcame me, and I walked out to the porch with tears pooling in my eyes.

I ran my fingers through my hair and started to sob. But before I got carried away with my emotional breakdown, something in the distance suddenly caught my eye.

I quickly wiped my tears away and squinted to look closely. There, near the frozen lake, was a dark figure standing with a long stick in their hand.

Relief suddenly flooded my chest, knowing it was probably Alec. I started heading in his direction and confirmed it was him when I spotted his vehicle parked nearby.

He was out here fishing.

I stuffed my hands into my pockets and trudged down the snow toward him. He sat in his chair nearby, and that's when he finally noticed me.

His face remained expressionless even after seeing me. I walked up to him and stood right by his side, looking down at him as he sat in his chair.

"Hi." No response.

I glanced at the fishing line that was dipped into the small pothole in the lake. The end of the fishing rod was resting below his feet, and his eyes were pinned on the line the entire time.

"Do you mind if I join you?"

He slowly looked up at me, his eyes dangerously narrowed. I flashed him a smile before sitting down on the ice beside his chair.

"You'll get frostbite if you sit there like that," he said to me.

"I don't mind. I'm all dressed up anyway, so the cold doesn't bother me."

He scoffed before leaning forward and adjusting his fishing rod.

"I couldn't find you at the cabin earlier and was scared for a second that you had left."

I glanced up at him, but he didn't say anything, his expression unchanged.

A few minutes went by, then an hour, and we just sat in silence, waiting for a fish to catch the bait.

"Do you think we'll catch a fish in this weather?" I asked aloud.

"They're probably just hiding because it's the cold season, but if you look at it this way, ninety percent of the fish population—"

"Stop. Talking." He coldly interrupted.

I clamped my mouth shut and looked around the deserted lake. My butt had turned numb from sitting in the same spot without moving, so I grabbed onto the armrest of his chair and slowly got up to stretch.