Chapter 46 Children Say the Darndest Things
The daytime foot traffic was heavy, and Nathan was just a small child—his tiny figure was difficult to spot on the surveillance cameras.
Starting from when he left home, they pulled the footage. Initially, he had run out of the residential complex, but after not getting very far, his stamina gave out, and he began walking slowly.
His last recorded location was on Riverfront Avenue.
This road was one of Seaside City's main thoroughfares, running north to south and stretching over thirty miles in total.
Nathan, being just a child, obviously couldn't have walked that far.
Isabella located Nathan's last known position on the satellite map.
This was the furthest they could trace Nathan's movements based on available footage.
Following this lead, the nearest location ahead was a small amusement park, only two miles from Nathan's last position. Further down the road were a museum and a sports stadium that could potentially serve as hiding spots for a child.
After marking these locations on the map, Isabella immediately wanted to take action and start searching.
Laura looked displeased. "I think we should keep reviewing the surveillance footage here. We should find Nathan's exact location first. Going out to search based on what we have now would be exhausting, and if we don't find him, we'll just waste more time."
She had a point, but to Isabella, it wasn't practically feasible.
Glancing into the police station lobby, she saw people waiting in line to review footage for lost items and missing persons.
There was only one computer available for surveillance review—they couldn't expect everyone else to step aside for their situation.
"We can keep watching surveillance, but Nathan keeps moving, too. Just because you see him in this spot on camera now doesn't mean he'll still be there later, right?"
Were they supposed to sit there staring at monitors twenty-four hours a day?
That could only work in theory. In practice, going out to search would be more effective.
Laura bit her lip and instinctively turned to William for support. "William..."
She desperately wanted his validation. As long as he sided with her, at least she wouldn't lose face in front of Isabella.
However, though William remained silent, his body language clearly showed he leaned toward Isabella's approach.
They had to actually go searching to track the child's movements.
Besides, they had a car while Nathan only had his two legs—he'd have to rest eventually.
So Laura reluctantly got in the car and went with them toward the small amusement park.
This particular amusement park didn't do much business in Seaside City.
Partly because a larger theme park had opened in the suburbs, and partly because this one was located near the city's elevated highway. With its small size, few parents chose to bring their children here.
William showed Nathan's photo to the park's security guard, but got only a negative response.
Laura wasn't satisfied and followed up, "Could you please look more carefully? Our child is missing and the whole family is worried sick..."
"Every kid who entered the park today was accompanied by parents, and I saw each one clearly. Your boy is definitely not here!" The guard was getting annoyed.
Laura's words clearly implied he wasn't doing his job properly, and he wasn't having it.
The guard waved them away, equally irritated with Laura, "If your kid's missing, that's because your parents didn't keep an eye on him. Don't blame others, and don't look at me like that!"
"Maybe we should buy tickets and go in to check? I'm worried that..." Laura suggested to William.
Isabella glanced inside and shook her head slightly. "Nathan couldn't possibly be in there."
"How do you know? You haven't even gone in to look, and that security guard is pretty old—what if he just didn't remember?" Laura had been frustrated all day and was struggling to maintain her sweet demeanor.
"His phone watch has been off this whole time, and I haven't received any charge notifications on my phone. He doesn't have any money on him. How could he get in?"
Even though this amusement park wasn't doing great business, admission was still $15.
For Nathan, who had made a spur-of-the-moment decision to run away from home, spending money on an amusement park seemed unlikely.
"Let's search around the area. If we don't find him, we'll head to the museum."
Isabella turned her head, looking toward the area beneath the overpass.
Directly across from the amusement park, under the elevated highway, was a parking lot.
Isabella suddenly had a gut feeling that Nathan was definitely in there.
She took the lead, walking quickly into the parking lot and began searching between cars for any sign of Nathan.
Laura snorted coldly. "How could Nathan possibly be here?"
"He's been out running around all morning. No money for food, no money for the amusement park—the only thing he could do was find a quiet place to rest."
Isabella suspected his mood was probably full of regret by now.
When they reached the very back of the parking lot, her intuition proved correct.
Nathan was leaning against a concrete pillar of the overpass, head tilted, sleeping soundly.
Though he'd only been out for a morning, his clothes were already dirty, and he looked quite disheveled.
The weight that had been pressing on Isabella's heart finally lifted as she walked over, intending to pick Nathan up.
However, Nathan suddenly opened his eyes alertly. Seeing Isabella reaching out to embrace him, he pushed back without hesitation.
Caught off guard, Isabella fell backward, her hand landing unprotected on a sharp piece of gravel. Sharp pain shot through her palm, making her gasp.
After Nathan stood up, he ran straight toward Laura.
"Laura, I missed you so much!" he declared his longing loudly.
"Daddy doesn't love me anymore anyway, so I'm going to live with Laura from now on! I don't want you guys anymore!"
Nathan announced this at the same volume, as if this declaration could sever his relationship with his parents.
William's expression darkened, clearly displeased with Nathan's behavior.
He moved to help Isabella up, his hand already extended, but Isabella showed no appreciation and pulled herself up using the pillar.
"Since Nathan's been found, I'm leaving."
Isabella endured the piercing pain in her hand, glanced expressionlessly at Nathan, then headed toward the parking lot exit.
"Isabella, Nathan's just young—children say the darndest things. Please don't take it to heart."
Laura gently touched Nathan's head, wearing a fake smile, her apologetic tone lacking any sincerity.
"Say sorry to Mommy," she urged.
But Nathan only hugged Laura tighter, "I meant everything I said! I'm going to live with Laura from now on and never go back to that house!"