Then, a strong hand slowly took the bottle syrup from me. He smelled fresh, cleaned and I barely resisted the urge to take another deep breath."Thanks,"
. Silence descended upon us.
He uncapped it and measured the dosage with a transparent small cover. I watched him as he did it carefully without being clumsy.
He has done this before, the thought came to me unexpectedly. He had administered a child's drug before.
Is it a personal past of his? Or a past that stems from helping another battered woman with a child on the streets?
I bit my lips to keep from asking. He doesn't want to tell me anything. The thought hurt me a bit because it meant this man was hurting.
Whatever it was that turned him into an alcoholic was still haunting him. Tears for him burned at my eyes.
"Don't look at me that way, Lady," he murmured firmly, without taking his eyes away from the syrup he was measuring.
"Jasamina," I whispered.
"What?"
"Jasamina. That is my name."
His hands paused. He lifted his head and looked at me. His eyes searched mine carefully. Then, he returned his eyes to what he was doing before.
"It doesn't matter," he muttered.
My lips turned up a bit and I stared at Jaimie. I ran my hand against his soft baby mass of hair. "I know," I whispered.
Silence came again. He helped me give the drugs to Jaimie. He coughed a bit, resisted a little, but finally, the syrup went down his throat.
There were two more syrups, and that was how we administered the drugs to my baby. I shuddered to think what I would have done if he wasn't with me.
Afterward, I settled Jaimie on the bed. It was time for me to sleep too.
Why was this so different? The thought that he would leave didn't sit well with me.
As if he heard my thought, he said. "I'll take the floor, you try to get some sleep. You need your strength."
I don't know why I felt relieved that he wasn't leaving but that was exactly what I felt. The thought that a man was sleeping next to me should have terrified me but it didn't.
"Good night." I whispered as I laid down my head. I was almost drifting to sleep when I heard him mutter, "Tanner. My name is Tanner."
A little smile touched my lips and my heart calmed, "Good night, Tanner."
XAZIX
After spending countless hours and sleepless nights, I had finally made some progress. I arrived at Jasamina Mccully's former workplace, a quaint bookshop, hoping to glean some information.
Approaching the front desk, I met an old man who appeared calm and collected despite his age.
"Good day, sir," I greeted him with a clear and firm voice.
"Good day, how may I assist you?" he replied.
I pulled out my investigator's card and held it up to his face. "I'm investigating the disappearance of Jasamina Mccully, who used to work here," I stated firmly.
The old man's expression turned blank. "I don't know anyone by that name," he replied curtly.
"But she worked for you," I pressed.
"Mina worked for me with her little girl, Mia," he replied, his voice growing strong and angry. "That girl doesn't deserve to be hunted like an animal, so you and everyone else like you can go find another job instead of pursuing an innocent girl!"
His words caught me off guard, leaving me momentarily speechless.
"If you'll excuse me, I have work to do," he said as he stood up and walked away.
I stood rooted to the spot, hoping he would reappear and give me a concrete answer. But he didn't. The rest of the workers seemed unwilling to talk, so I left with the little information I had.
Next, I made my way to Jasamina's former residence. Despite my best efforts, I was unable to obtain any information from her neighbors. One plump woman even rudely kicked me out of her house and warned me never to return.
Undeterred, I continued my search until a woman named Vivian caught my attention. She had been calling out to me since I left the library, and her desperation piqued my interest.
Normally, I wouldn't have bothered with someone like her, but in situations like this, when the culprit was on the run and everyone else seemed to be tight-lipped, I was willing to make an exception.
I had a solid lead to start with, but I needed more information to track Jasamina down. Would Vivian be able to provide the crucial details I needed? The stakes were high, and I couldn't afford to miss a single lead.
As I stood in front of the woman who rushed towards me, I couldn't help but notice her bouncing breasts as she approached. She was clearly desperate and her voice reflected it as she asked if the reward money was still on. Despite having encountered many desperate individuals in the past, her tone caught me off guard.
"It depends. What do you know?" I responded curtly, not wanting to waste any time.