Breathe Out

Still shaking a little.
Let's go over the evening's activities.
Missed dinner.
Markers.
Panic.
Police.
OK, I think I got your attention.
Shortly after hubby got home, we put dinner on the table. Only Chase came at the first call, so I went looking for Marina and Sierra. Marina was in her room, cutting out her latest kirigami artwork. No Sierra. (But you knew this would be about Sierra, didn't you?). I search the house. No Sierra. Hubby searches the yard. No Sierra. Back inside. We search the closets, under the bed. No Sierra. Back outside. Back inside. Voices are getting tenser, louder. Panic is rising.
I see a neighbor across the street. I know Sierra likes her daughters. Seen her? No. Across to another neighbor, an elderly woman Sierra likes to talk to. Seen her? No.
Heart is pumping, the scene seems surreal. She can't be gone, she was just here a few minutes ago. I'm uttering prayers under my breath. We run about, checking the basement, down the hill in our back yard (more of a steep incline that ends in a stream.) Neighbors are coming out in the street. We finally decide we're in over our heads and call the police. I must give congratulations to our police department. They respond quickly.

And then Marina finds Sierra hiding behind the front passenger seat of our car. With a marker. She had written on the front seat. An x, a null sign and two % symbols. She had written on other places as well.

And yes, Mom, I remember I once hid in a car when I was little. But I had the sense to come out when you talked about calling the police.

Heart rate returning to normal. If I wake up with white hair, you'll all know why.
If this is 5, what is 15 going to be like???