Trapped (Jariana)

(2)

Frankie

"You should come over, Ty. Mom won't be back for another 2 hours and Ariana took Toulouse on a walk."

"Maybe I will." He smirks.

I glance out the window quickly and look back down at my laptop, where I'm face timing Tyler. I thought I saw something running towards the house, though. Like, a dog. And it looked a lot like Toulouse. I look back up and see him dragging his leash. Ariana is nowhere to be seen.

"Tyler, I gotta go. Talk to you later." I close my laptop and run to open the door.

Toulouse jumps up on my legs, barking as though he's trying to tell me something.

"What is it? Where's Ari?"

He barks rapidly in response, biting at my shirt. Then, he jumps down from my legs and runs through the door. I follow him, not bothering to close the door. Toulouse leads me to a group of trees, and starts barking again at something on the ground. I reach down to pick it up.

It's a phone.

Ariana's phone.

"Oh my God!" Toulouse lays on the ground and starts locking his paw, proud of his accomplishment.

"Come on, boy!" I pat my pockets for my phone, but it's not there.

I left it at home.

"Great." I mutter under my breath.

I go knock on the nearest door but no one answers. This happens at the next 2 houses, but on the third, a woman opens the door.

"How can I help you?" She says.

"I need to use your phone. My sister... She... She's gone. I need to call the police. Can I use your phone?"

"Oh, yes. Of course. Follow me." I walk into her house and she leads me to the kitchen.

She gives me a house phone, which no one uses anymore but that's not important, and I dial 911.

"911, what's your emergency?" A young womans voice comes through the phone.

"I need the police on N 56th street. My sister disappeared while she was walking her dog."

"What's your sisters name and how old is she?"

"Ariana and 16. She's a junior at Roosevelt High School."

"Alright, I'm sending someone now. What is the last known location?"

"She was at home, then she told me she was gonna walk her dog. About 20 minutes later, the dog came back barking. He led me to some trees and found her phone laying on the ground. She was nowhere to be seen."

"Are you a legal guardian?"

"No, I'm her brother. I'm 18. A senior a Roosevelt. Our mom is at work and our dad doesn't live with us."

"Got it. Can I have a number for your mom?"

I give her the number and she says she's gonna have someone notify my mom.

"The police and an ambulance are on the way. I need you outside to tell them the location."

Thank you so much for your help."

"Just doing my job." I hang up and thank the woman for letting me use her phone.

"It's no problem. I hope you find your sister."

"Thanks again." I walk outside and the police cars and ambulances arrive a few minutes later.

I show them where I found Ariana's phone, which they took for evidence.

"If you want, I'll have one of my men give you a ride home." The police chief says.

"No, I need to wait for my mom."

"Okay. Tell me if you need anything."

Toulouse whines at my feet and I sit on the ground next to him. I rub his head, which he lays in my lap.

Toulouse was Ariana's dog, and he probably doesn't know what to do without her.

"Where's my daughter? Where is she?" I hear my moms voice before I see her face.

It sounds worried, stressed, and overwhelmed. I stand up and turn around. My mom wraps her arms around me, kissing my cheek.

"Mom, I'm sorry."

"Its It's not your fault. Don't start that."

"Ms. Grande, pleasure to meet you." Chief Taylor shakes her hand.

"I want to assure you that we're doing everything we possibly can to find your daughter and assure her safety."

"Thank you so much. I can't lose her."