The Forgotten

The Second Disappearance

The next day, Emily returned to the Ravenswood Medical Center, the events of the previous day weighing heavily on her mind. She couldn’t shake the image of the missing boy’s vacant eyes, the eerie emptiness that had gripped her as she examined him. It wasn’t just sadness or pain, it was as if the boy had been drained of something vital, something irreplaceable. She kept turning the memory over in her mind, trying to make sense of it, but she knew she needed to focus on her work. The reality of her duties as a pediatrician required her full attention.

As she entered the department, the bustle of the hospital enveloped her, temporarily pushing aside her dark thoughts. The past couple of days had been chaotic, with the search for the missing child consuming the entire town’s energy. As a result, Emily hadn’t had a proper introduction to the full staff or the equipment she would be working with.

Today, the head nurse, Mrs. Clayton, a stern but kindly woman in her fifties, took Emily on a tour of the department. “We didn’t have a proper chance to introduce you to everyone yesterday,” she said with an apologetic smile. “But I’m sure you’ll find your way around just fine.”

Emily was shown around the various sections of the pediatric wing, each room bustling with life, each bed occupied by a child fighting a different battle. There were bright, cheery murals on the walls, and the sound of laughter mingled with the beeping of monitors and the soft murmur of nurses and doctors conferring with one another. Despite the warmth and color, Emily couldn’t shake the feeling of something darker lurking just out of sight.

As the day wore on, she immersed herself in routine checkups and vaccinations, the familiarity of her work providing a welcome distraction. The children’s innocent chatter and the parents’ grateful smiles eased the tension in her chest, if only a little. By late afternoon, she was feeling more settled, her earlier anxiety starting to ebb away.

But just as she was finishing up a consultation, the double doors to the pediatric wing burst open. A frantic couple rushed in, carrying their son in their arms. The boy’s face was pale, his body limp, and most unsettling of all, his eyes were vacant, devoid of any sign of life. He wasn’t crying or showing any sign of pain, just staring ahead as though nothing around him registered.

Emily’s heart sank. It was the same look, the same emptiness that had haunted her the night before. She felt a cold dread creeping up her spine, but she pushed it aside, forcing herself to focus on the task at hand.

“Please, help him!” the mother cried, her voice trembling with fear.

Emily quickly motioned for the nurses to bring a gurney. “What happened?” she asked, keeping her voice calm as they laid the boy on the bed.

“He was playing in the basement,” the father explained, his voice tight with worry. “We heard a crash and found him like this. He won’t respond to us. He just keeps staring like he’s not even there.”

Emily nodded, her mind racing as she ordered various scans and tests to be done immediately. As they wheeled the boy into an examination room, she couldn’t help but feel a gnawing sense of déjà vu. Once the scans were completed and the boy was moved into a room for observation, Emily turned to the parents.

“How long has he been like this?” she asked, her tone gentle but probing.

The father was about to speak when the boy suddenly stirred. His eyes fluttered for a moment, and he opened his mouth, his voice a faint whisper. “I want my toy…”

Emily’s breath caught in her throat. The same words, the same strange request. The father, without hesitation, rushed out of the room to fetch the toy. Emily watched him go, her thoughts swirling with questions. Once he was gone, she turned back to the mother, her expression serious.

“Please,” Emily said, “how long has he been in this state?”

The mother hesitated, her eyes welling up with tears. “For the past month, he’s been having nightmares,” she finally admitted. “He would wake up screaming, saying he felt like he was fading away, something is taking him away. And about three days ago, he just… stopped. He stopped talking, stopped crying. This… this is how he’s been since then.”

Emily’s heart sank further. The parallels to the previous case were too strong to ignore. She leaned closer, lowering her voice to a whisper. “Whatever you do, don’t leave him alone, not even for a minute.”

The mother nodded, her hands trembling as she reached out to stroke her son’s hair. Emily left the room, her mind racing with possibilities. As she stepped into the corridor, her phone rang. She glanced at the screen and froze. It was a number she recognized all too well. Her ex-husband.

Emily felt a surge of emotions, anger, frustration, but mostly pain. It had been months since they last spoke, and now, of all times, he chose to call? She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself before answering.

“What do you want?” Emily’s voice was cold, her grip on the phone tightening.

“I just wanted to see how you were doing,” his voice was cautious, almost hesitant. “I know it’s been hard for you, and I wanted to talk, maybe meet up.”

“Don’t,” Emily cut him off, her voice sharp. “Don’t call me again. We have nothing to talk about.”

She ended the call and immediately and told Sasha, the receptionist, to never put through another call from that number. As she was speaking, a sudden commotion erupted from the boy’s room. Emily’s heart skipped a beat, and she rushed back, fear gripping her.

The mother was hysterical, her voice rising in panic. “He’s gone! My son... he’s gone!”

Emily’s eyes darted around the room. The bed was empty, the room as it was before, except the boy was missing. The mother said that the door was still locked from the inside.

“I only went to the washroom for a moment,” the mother sobbed. “I locked the door before I left. How could he just disappear?”

Emily felt a chill run down her spine. Another child, gone without a trace. The staff quickly organized a search party, but as night fell, there was still no sign of the boy. The fear that had been gnawing at Emily all day now settled like a heavy stone in her chest. Something was terribly wrong in Ravenswood, and it was only just beginning.