Chapter 1
Monday morning in the Missing persons' bullpen was usually a little bit sleepy, everybody gets ready for the next hard week. Today was no different. Jack was in his office checking the mail. Martin, Danny, Vivian and Elena were drinking coffee and chatting around the meeting table. Samantha still wasn't there yet. They were all secretly asking themselves where she was. It wasn't suitable for her to be late for work.
Jack came out from his office and walked toward them. The expression on his face was indescribable. They all looked at him in expectation.
"New case?" asked Vivian.
"No." Jack shook his head. "I just received this."
He put a piece of paper on the table. Danny curiously took it. His eyes opened with surprise.
"What?" he screamed. "That's impossible. She couldn't be quitting. What was her explanation for it?"
"Nothing." Jack said. "She just sent me this and a note."
He read to them:
" Jack,
I'm sorry I didn't give you that myself. It all just happened too fast. I met somebody and I must leave town. Now I need to tell you "goodbye" and catch my plane. Don't look for me, I'll be fine. I'll miss you. Send my best regards to the team. I'm sorry I didn't have the time to say good-bye to them. I hope they will be happy. You were the best friends I ever had.
Goodbye,
Sam."
They all were shocked. What happened with Sam? Martin was the first one to move. He stood up and walked toward the door.
Danny called out to him. "Hey, Martin, where are you going?"
"To her apartment to see her." He answered and left.
Jack sat down with them. They were all confused. What made Sam want to quit? She loved her job. At first nobody said a word. Vivian was the first who began to speak.
"What did she mean, she 'met somebody?'"
"She didn't want to say she's getting married, did she?" Elena asked.
"I don't know." Jack said.
He was totally numb. He didn't understand anything. The question "why?" didn't want to leave his head. He hoped that Martin would call soon and tell them that it was just a stupid joke from Sam.
The time passed slowly. There were no new cases, so they just sat there waiting for Martin's call. Danny looked totally out of senses. Vivian was confused. Elena didn't understand anything.
Suddenly the phone rang. Vivian picked it up.
"Johnson."
"Hey, Viv. It's Martin."
"Martin, wait for a second." She pushed the button so they could all hear him. "What happened with Sam?"
"I don't know. She's not here. The janitor opened the door to her apartment. There is almost nothing missing. Only a few clothes. All her things are here. But she's gone. The neighbors said that she came home Friday with some man. They left an hour later and she brought a suitcase with her. Nobody has seen her since then." Martin sounded upset. "She's missing."