“He was supposed to show up.”

No one tried to explain that sentence away.

A father could have loved her deeply and still be missing.

A little girl could trust him and feel abandoned.

Both emotions were real.

That afternoon, a search dog led handlers to the pumping station a second time.

This time it indicated strongly near a narrow drainage culvert the previous team had overlooked.

A rescuer crawled toward the entrance with a headlamp.