MY 5-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER CALLED ME AT WORK: “MOM LEFT WITH HER STUFF AND SAID TO WAIT FOR YOU, DADDY”

It was a normal Tuesday—until my phone rang. I almost ignored it, then saw the caller ID: HOME. I picked up, expecting my wife, Laurel. Instead, I heard

It was a normal Tuesday—until my phone rang. I almost ignored it, then saw the caller ID: HOME. I picked up, expecting my wife, Laurel. Instead, I heard my daughter Alice’s shaky voice.

 

“Daddy? Mommy left.”

My stomach dropped. “What do you mean, sweetheart?”

“She took her suitcase. She hugged me and said, ‘Wait for Daddy.’”

 

I bolted out of my office, drove home like a madman, and ran inside. Silence. No sign of Laurel. Alice was curled up on the couch, sleeping. When she woke up, her first question was, “Daddy, where’s Mommy?”