CHAPTER - 26 Tina goes missing

The day when Tina went missing, no one expected that their ebullience would end so soon. After bidding her goodbyes to her father and grandmother, Tine started to jog on the sandy beach. This was her favorite time of the day. The ocean breeze hugged her body and she felt refreshed.

She started to plan her schedule while suddenly a chilly wind passed her. She could feel something was wrong but could not point out what it was! She looked behind her several times to check if someone was following her. But she could see no one. So she continued to jog. 

'Was it my imagination? Is what dad said might be true? Am I really over exhausting myself?' She wondered.

She stopped her jogging and turned around while wiping the sweat with the towel that she brought. She analyzed the beach area once more. When she could not find anything wrong, she kept on running until she realized something was definitely out of ordinary.

She kept on feeling that someone was following her but when she turned around she could not see anyone. She decided to go back home and started to run in that direction.

“Who is it? Who are you? Come out of your hiding,” She stopped again and shouted.

Other than a cool breeze she did not get any response. After shaking her head for a few seconds with her closed eyes, she tried to listen to her surroundings. Other than the sound of the ocean waves, she did not hear anything else. But when she opened her eyes, she saw a huge garden instead. 

“Where am I?” She turned around and tried to figure out what happened.

“How did the sand turn into solid mud and what are all these flowers doing here?” She wondered.

There was no sea breeze and no beach sand below her feet. All she saw was a vast garden with numerous flowers.

“Where am I? Am I hallucinating? Did I lose my consciousness? What is happening to me?” She shouted and hit the plants with her hands.

Everything felt real. But how did she come here? She was standing right on the beach. She jogged every day on that same route. She pinched herself and realized that she could feel the pain. 

“So, it’s not a dream? I am conscious? Did I get teleported to some other place? But how is that possible?” She talked to herself.

She rubbed her eyes forcefully as she thought to check if she was really hallucinating. Even after rubbing them several times, she could not see the ocean waves, and neither could she hear any seagulls screeching or squawking.

It was all silent around her other than a few butterflies fluttering around searching for tasty flowers to sit on. She walked on the mud path that appeared out of nowhere to search for an exit from this vast place.

She feared that she would miss the conference today as well and her mother would become distressed because of that. 

“What is happening around me? Why does this place look so unfamiliar? I need to wake up from this bad dream soon. Or else my whole plan for the day would be messed up. Wake up, Tina. Wake up,” She hit her head to wake her up.

But still, nothing worked. All she saw was the unfamiliar place that she thought was her imagination. 

“This is not happening.” She said and started to walk further into the garden.

...

"Isn't it time for Tina to come back?" Millie asked while looking at the entrance of the house.

"Yes, she is always punctual. Her running time would not exceed more than forty-five minutes and she should have been back five minutes ago." Kylie said and checked her wristwatch.

"I guess, I took some minutes of her time today in the morning. So, maybe she decided to jog for a little more time. she must be back at any time now." Mason explained but he took a glance at the door.

"Can you all stop thinking and worrying about Tina all the time? She is a grown-up girl and she knows what she is doing. Give her some space," Abel complained to them.

Millie started to munch some nuts while Kylie stood up to walk near the door ignoring Abel’s protest. Mason also looked at the door once again with concern. It is not like Tina to miss her schedule. She is always punctual and she considered every second of her life important. She really should have been back by now.

"Stop looking at the door every two seconds and finish your breakfast. If not then go and stand next to your mother to monitor Tina's every movement. I can’t believe you all. Weren’t you just complaining about Grace trying to dictate Tina’s life, just a few minutes ago? What are you doing now?" Abel scolded Mason.

Millie coughed. Mason took a glass of water and handed it to her. She rejected it and stood up from the chair.

"I think I over-ate a little. I will take a stroll along the beach." She declared and signaled Kylie to follow her.

"I will join you. Anyway, the morning walk I did was not enough today. We had wanted to come and check on Tina before she leaves. I am coming, wait for me," Kylie announced and almost ran behind Millie.

"Didn't you complain that I made you walk more than two thousand feet today? Also, you said you wanted to rest here. What happened to that plan?" Abel stared at his wife’s running back and shouted.

"He has become old and gets easily confused and forgetful. I told him that yesterday but not today. Look at him! He is getting more and more disoriented day by day" Kylie complained loudly to Millie.

Then she started walking in the front without even waiting for Millie. She was almost running while holding her chest in hand. Millie looked at her comical self and had to try hard to hide her laugh. She slowly walked behind Kylie. She could imagine the face of Abel turning red from anger.

"He really deserved it! From morning, instead of helping us think of a good plan, he kept on criticizing us. I don’t understand why he cannot see the sufferings Tina is going through?" Kylie huffed and started to criticize her husband

Millie by now had caught up with her and started to look around for her granddaughter.

"We will separate from here. You can go on this side while I take the opposite side." Millie said and walked away.

Kylie nodded her head and moved towards the path where Tina was actually jogging just a few minutes ago.

When she saw someone walking on the side of the boardwalk, she approached him and asked,

"Did you see a girl with short black hair and brown eyes go this way?"

He shook his head without even looking at her and walked away. She felt like something was wrong with that guy but she did not have time to think about that now.

Her main priority was to find her granddaughter, Tina. They searched for the possible area nearby for almost thirty minutes before going back to Mason's house.

"What happened? Where is Tina?" Abel asked when he looked at their tired face.

Millie shook her head and sat on the front porch chair. Her legs were killing her as she had been almost running around while searching for Tina. She had asked everyone around that place and no one knew or saw her today.

"She did not come back yet?" Kylie asked in shock.

"No, she did not," Mason immediately ran inside the house to get his phone.

He then dialed Grace's phone number to let her know about Tina. Kylie pulled his hands down to see who he was calling.

"What are you doing?" She had just asked when the call was picked up on the other end.

Before he could say anything, Grace's impatient voice came through the phone.

"Mason, did I not tell you that I am going to meet an important client today? I will talk to you later!"

She disconnected the call after saying whatever she wanted to say. Kylie huffed after hearing Grace's response.

"What is more important to her than her own daughter who is missing now? Why is your wife so snappy?" Kylie asked him.

"Let us relax and take a deep breath! We don't know for sure if Tina is really missing or not. Mason, why don't you give her a call and check? Maybe she went somewhere nearby and got into a situation from where she could not come back." Abel said.

Mason immediately dialed Tina's phone number. He found that it was switched off. He felt a warning wave in his heart and he understood that there is definitely something wrong.

"Her phone is switched off," Mason said with a shivering tone. 

He described the situation and the chief said he will look into it right away. He even sent his search team to the beach.