A mother comes to her 8-year-old daughter’s school to pick her up but finds her missing. She is concerned and searches everywhere for her until she arrives home late at night and discovers her daughter with a baby in the foyer. Madison Hunt, the daughter of Barbara and Edward Hunt, was six years old when the family relocated to Sausalito, California. Barbara escorted Madison to and from school for the first two years, but when Madison turned eight, Edward suggested that Barbara let Madison go to school on her own because it was so close to their house!
Barbara was a stay-at-home mother who enjoyed driving Madison to school every day. Madison, after all, was still too little to be left alone, she reasoned. But when Edward persisted, she gave in. She gave Madison a phone and placed a tiny diary in her backpack with their home address and important contacts so Madison could reach them if needed. That was actually beneficial.
Madison would always contact Barbara to let her know if she went to a friend’s house after school or was late because she went to the park near her school. That gave Barbara peace of mind that her kid was safe. Barbara was bored at home one day, so she decided to surprise Madison by picking daughter up from school. She had also planned to take her to a local ice cream store after that.
Barbara arrived at Madison’s school just in time, and as the bell rang, a flood of students surged out the front door. Madison’s companions, Alice and Katherine, were sighted by Barbara, but Madison was nowhere to be found. Madison, she reasoned, was probably delayed by something, so she elected to wait. When Madison didn’t come out after a few minutes, Barbara decided to go inside and seek for her. She went to her classroom to see if she was still present.
Mrs. Blake, Madison’s teacher, was sitting at her desk, reading over some paperwork, she saw the classroom was empty. “Are you Mrs. Blake?” Barbara approached her with concern. “Did you happen to see Madison?” I waited at the gate for her, but she never came out.” “Oh, Mrs. Hunt! I’m sorry!” I apologize! It completely escaped my mind to call you! Madison hasn’t gone to school in more than a week. I was worried she was sick! She didn’t show up today, and do you see what I’m carrying?
We had a test, and she missed it!”What?”Mom ran through Barbara upon hearing her 8-year-old daughter hadn’t been attending classes. “What do you mean? She leaves for school every morning!” “That’s strange, considering she hasn’t been attending her classes, Mrs. Hunt. Is everything okay at home?” Barbara was at a loss for words. She dashed out of school and dialed Madison’s number, but the girl didn’t answer. She called her multiple times with no success, and Madison’s phone was turned off at one point.
Barbara was sinking on the inside, wondering where her daughter was. She looked for Madison wherever she could, in parks and restaurants near the school, and contacted every friend she knew, but no one knew anything. Barbara was crying by this time and she finally called Edward and told him everything. He asked Barbara to wait near the school and was there in a few minutes. They searched all of the places between their house and the school, including parks, cafes, restaurants, and their neighbors’ houses, but Madison was nowhere to be found.
By the time Edward and Barbara were on their way home, it was already 8 p.m. They didn’t notice when the day turned to night as they searched for Madison. Barbara was crying on the way back from school, and they had resolved to contact the cops as soon as they arrived home. But they were still two houses away when Barbara saw Madison from afar waving bye to a boy on the street. “Edward!” she cried. “Maddy is there! She’s right there, outside our house!”
“What?” Edward narrowed his eyes and realized Barbara was right. “Jesus! Thank God!” As soon as they parked the car and got down, they ran to her. Suddenly, they glanced at each other, perplexed, when they discovered Madison wasn’t alone but was holding a baby wrapped in a white towel. “Who’s that baby, Madison? And who was the small boy who just left?” Barbara inquired, perplexed.”Sorry, mommy,” Madison lowered her head. “Can we please go inside and talk?”
“No, Madison!” Barbara said sternly. “You need to answer me first! Do you know how worried daddy and I were? We were going to call the police!” Madison shook her head. “No, Mommy! Please! They’re going to take Layla away! Please do not call the cops! I must keep Layla safe!” “Darling,” Edward told Barbara. “Let me handle this, okay? So Madison is the baby’s name, Layla?” he asked. “Where did you find her, honey?”
“Layla is my friend Terrence’s sister, daddy. His granny is sick and cannot care for Layla, and she refuses to go to the hospital because she says the cops will take Layla away. Layla’s parents went to the angel two months ago.”Edward and Barbara exchanged a worried look, and they realized Terrence’s grandma was worried that social services would take Layla away since she couldn’t care for her.
“And why didn’t you go to class, honey? Mommy called you today, but your phone was turned off.” “I’m sorry. I go to Terrence’s house every day to look after Layla, so I don’t have time to go to classes… I return home when he gets home from school. We were playing with Layla today, and I didn’t check my phone.
“When I finally decided to call mommy, the phone was dead. Terrence’s granny was very sick today, so Terrence and I spent the entire day caring for her. That’s why I was late. I’m sorry. I didn’t tell you anything because I was scared I wouldn’t be able to play with Layla again.” Barbara and Edward understood that it wasn’t really Madison’s fault. She was just trying to help a friend, so they didn’t scold her but explained that it was wrong to skip classes.
“Can we keep Layla with us? Terrence cannot take care of her alone, and his granny is sick.” “Well, honey,” Barbara said. “We can’t keep someone else’s baby like that with us, but daddy and I will figure out a way to help her. Let’s go inside now. It’s getting cold.” The following day, Baraba and Edward went to Terrence’s house and told his grandma, Mrs. Peterson, everything. They also offered to assist her in raising Layla so she would not have to turn to the authorities and risk losing custody of Layla.
The older woman was in tears and couldn’t stop thanking Edward and Barbara. As time went on, Barbara started spending more time at Terrence’s house and looking after Layla and Mrs. Peterson. She fell in love with Layla, and one day, she asked Edward if they could adopt her and Terrence. Edward was more than happy to have Layla and Terrence as his children, but he suggested Barbara ask Mrs. Peterson first.
After much hesitation, Barbara proposed the idea to Mrs. Peterson, and she was surprised when Mrs. Peterson agreed. “You see, honey,” she said. “I am an old bird, and I am always worried about what will happen to my grandchildren after I die. I’ll be relieved and glad to know they’re in good hands if you take them in.””Oh, Mrs. Peterson, thank you so much!” Barbara said. “We were also wondering if you wanted to move in with us… The kids, you see, would love to have their grandmother by their side. What do you think?”
“Angel,” she said. “You are a true angel, sweetheart. I am sure that God sent you and your husband to help us. Oh my goodness, thank you so much! Thank you very much!” From that day on, Mrs. Peterson, Terrence, and Layla moved in with the Hunts. Edward and Barbara started the adoption process soon, and two months later, Terence and Layla were legally theirs.