The father stopped breathing.

The girl in his arms began shaking harder.

He slowly turned toward the darkness inside the SUV.

“Emma?”

No answer.

The woman stepped closer, but kept her hands where he could see them.

“That’s what I was trying to tell you.”

The father looked at the crying girl beside him.

“Who are you?”

She covered her face.

“I don’t know.”

His expression broke.

“What do you mean you don’t know?”

The girl forced herself to speak.

“I woke up in your car.”

The father’s grip loosened.

The woman whispered,

“She came to the window while you were paying. She told me she wasn’t your daughter.”

A soft sound came from the third row.

Fabric moving.

A frightened breath.

Then a small hand slowly appeared around the edge of the rear seat.

The father stepped toward it.

“Emma… sweetheart?”

The first girl suddenly grabbed his sleeve.

“Don’t.”

He looked down at her.

Her eyes were wide with terror.

“Why?”

She stared past him into the dark vehicle.

Then whispered,

“Because that voice has been calling you Dad since before I woke up.”