A/N: This will be a tough chapter my loves so please brace yourselves.  

AUTHOR'S POV 

~two weeks later~  

The Bourgeois family have been in great spirits lately. Now that Laurent has filed the restraining order against Erin and doesn't have to see her on campus his eyes don't reflect the same angst. It's more of a glow. Larry has noticed such glow and he loves it. Plans for the weekend with their babies are made days in advance and when Friday's have hit time seems to slow down when they're working because of the excitement they feel ready to take the girls where ever they have requested to go. Ayden always has a great time joining in on the fun but it's mainly because of seeing his big sisters always cheerful and laughing. Since Emma asked Laurent if they would take them back to the ice skating rink again they made it a point to go a few days later and now that another weekend has come the first part of their Saturday was spent having an even better time there. That made the third time they've taken the girls ice skating and in that short time the girls have already improved so much on the ice. They've gone from holding both hands of their papa to only needing to hold one and their speed has picked up too which also means that their loving papas are also getting better. Laurent has come along way from the time he brought Larry to the rink for date night and fell flat on the ice. He's gliding across gracefully and Kaylee looks up at him with that adorable smile to tell him he's doing a great job. He smiles and tells her the same. It's safe to say that this is the entire family's favorite activity so Larry and Laurent plan on making it their go-to family outing at least a couple of times a month. Now it's a beautiful Sunday evening and they've just finished having dinner. Ayden is on the floor as happy as ever with his sisters who are sweetly playing with him. They pick up his toys and hold them in from him and every time he reaches for one Larry and Laurent get a nice chuckle at it. This day has been spent inside because Laurent is under the weather. He wore a coat and gloves at the skating rink but still managed to catch a cold. He's spent a lot of time with his family but he did take an afternoon nap as rests helps in healing from sickness and his love has helped by giving him medicine along with plenty of fluids. Laurent really doesn't want to miss work the next day so between the fluids, medicine and rest he's hoping that he feels well enough to go. Another thing that's common for Sunday nights before bedtime is to watch a family movie of the girls choosing that they all enjoy. Afterwards, it's bath time then bedtime stories but instead of reading to the girls separately they gather on the sofa and while Larry reads in his soft voice those little eyes eventually begin to flutter and they fall asleep snuggled next to each of them. Larry closes the book then they both look down at their sleeping beauties before standing up to pick them up and carry them to their beds. They both are in such a deep sleep because of the busy activity of the entire weekend and after goodnight kisses they are left to their sweet dreams. They stop by Ayden's room together to make sure he's still sleeping peacefully then make the walk to their bedroom. A hot shower is just what Laurent needs as it should also help him to sleep better but Larry suggests that they take a hot bath instead because he wants to take care of Laurent in every way. He put several drops of their favorite body wash in the water to make it a bubble bath as those would make the bath even more soothing and he makes sure he's sitting behind Laurent. With a loofah in his hands he dunks it into the water then raises it to allow the water to drip onto Laurent's back which instantly relaxes him and once his back is completely wet Larry takes it up a notch by rubbing his hands all over then ending at his shoulders to give him a soothing massage which prompts a moan to escape Laurent's lips. Larry also takes his thumb and pointer finger to grip the back of Laurent's neck to stretch the muscles...

Laurent: "Mmm bebe. You love me so much". 

Larry: "You already know", he whispers. 

Larry then uses his thumbs to make a trail of light presses on the outside of Laurent's spine and when he arrives at the small of Laurent's back those thumbs go into a deeper massage causing Laurent to shiver at the sensation. Larry chuckles at such a reaction then begins placing light kisses on his loves back which causes him to shiver again. Larry then picks up the loofah and applies a generous amount of body wash on it to begin a back scrub. He also loops his arm around to scrub his chest, abs and even reaches his thighs. His thighs puts his hand very close to Laurent's manhood so with playful words... 

Laurent: "You're trying to get something started". 

Larry: "What makes you say that"?

Laurent: *laugh* "You know why I said that". 

Larry laughs with him then gives Laurent a slow, soft kiss on the back of his neck before replying in a soft voice...

Larry: "I just want to take care of you baby". 

Laurent: "You always take care of me and you always do a great job. Thank you". 

Larry: "Always baby. It's good to know that I'm doing a good job but you deserve it". 

Laurent: *smile* "Thank you again". 

Larry: *smile* "Welcome again". 

Larry gives him another kiss but this time it's on the cheek. He eventually finishes Laurent's scrub down and sweetly tells him to dry off to get dressed then get comfortable in bed while he stays behind to scrub himself down. Larry doesn't spend too much time in the tub and when he drys off he walks into the bedroom to see Laurent under the covers. He slides into some comfy clothes then climbs in bed with him...

Larry: "How do you feel baby? Is the medicine helping"?

Laurent: "I feel the same so it hasn't kicked in yet...but the bath was amazing". 

Larry: *smile* "I'm glad I can make you happy". 

Laurent: *smile* "Why do you think I married you"?

Larry hears that and can't resist giving his love a kiss for such sweet words so he leans over to do exactly that. Laurent will always welcome a kiss from Larry of course but since he's under the weather he's worried that it would affect Larry so he whispers against his lips, "you might get sick bebe". Larry kisses him again then whispers back, "it's oki. I need to kiss you". One kiss turns into several soft, love filled kisses before they finally muster up the strength to pull away and spend the next several moments merely gazing at each other. There's a look behind Larry's eyes as if in this very moment he just fell harder in love with Laurent. The same look is also in Laurent's eyes. Larry makes sure the duvet is fully covering his love then after sweet whispers of goodnight to each other they close their eyes for sleep...

~morning~

The alarm clock goes off and this is the first time that the blaring of it causes somewhat of distress in Laurent. He slowly opens his eyes and feels a throbbing in his head and it hits him that after all his love did to help him feel better he still doesn't feel well. He feels Larry get up so he turns around and looks at him...

Larry: "Good morning baby. Did sleep help"?

Laurent: *shakes head* "No. I think I need to stay home. Just for today". 

Larry: "Another day of rest will help. I'll take the girls to school after taking Ayden to mama's house". 

Laurent: "Are you sure"?

Larry: "Yeah baby. Don't worry for that". 

Laurent: "Thank you my love but I can still help getting them ready". 

Laurent does feel a bit weak but getting three kids dressed with hair styling for the girls, making breakfast then going to two different destinations before Larry goes to work would be a lot for him this morning so he's happy to help out though Larry does insist that he stay in bed. Laurent insists even harder and he does have enough strength in him to help. He freshens up then goes to the girls room to wake them so they can get freshened up and dressed. While Larry is getting Ayden dressed along with packing his bag Laurent makes breakfast. While the bacon is sizzling in the pan he takes out a bottled water and retrieves a bottle of Aspirin to take two of them in hopes that after more sleep his headache and other symptoms will be much better. After breakfast is finished Laurent puts the girls backpacks on them and squats down. He gives Kaylee a big hug then looks at her with a smile...

Laurent: *smile* "Have a great day in school bebe. I love you". 

Kaylee: *smile* "I love you too papa". 

He then looks over at Emma who's smiling and eager to get her hug. Laurent smiles at her and wraps her in his arms then pulls away...

Laurent: *smile* "You have a great day in school too bebe. I love you". 

Emma: *smile* "I love you too papa". 

He raises his eyes to Larry who's holding Ayden. He stands up to give him a kiss and tells him that he will see him later in a sweet baby voice before looking at Larry...

Larry: "Baby if you start to feel worse just call me and I'll get off early". 

Laurent: "Thank you bebe but I'll be oki after more rest".

Larry: "Oki well you have plenty of orange juice and please drink some water too". 

Laurent: *smile* "I will".  

Larry smiles and winks then looks at the girls. With a warm smile he says to them, "let's go girls" so they cheerfully follow him as Laurent watches his family walk out the door. He also walks over to the window to watch them all get inside the car. Larry gets the sense that he's watching so he looks directly at the window and winks at him again. Laurent winks back then watches Larry get in the driver's seat and seconds later he's backing out to take off down the street. The quietness of the home will help him get the additional rest he needs but first he goes to the kitchen to eat a light breakfast along with his first glass of orange juice for the day. Since he isn't well enough to teach he has to alert his classes so by way of class emails he informs them that classes are canceled only for today and he will see them next time. Afterwards, he shuts down his laptop then heads for the bedroom and now comfortable under the duvet he allows sleep to consume him...

Laurent slept well into the afternoon though when he woke up he discovered that he still has a headache. He walks over to the bathroom to see if there's anything stronger he can take but sees nothing. He didn't think he would have to go anywhere today but he can't take the relentless pounding anymore. He has a thought of texting Larry to bring something home but there are still several hours before Larry gets off of work and he can't wait that long. He freshens up then gets dressed so he can drive to a drug store to get what he needs...

~meanwhile~

The afternoon brings a time of recess at Kaylee and Emma's school. Kaylee's class is one of a few enjoying the playground and she's been happily playing with her classmate, Mila. In addition to the usual playground set up of monkey bars and swings there are also playhouses with make believe kitchens and such. Kaylee and Mila are inside one of them and had been pretending that they were making lunch when Mila suggests that they do something else before recess is over...

Mila: "Kaylee, let's go on the see saw". 

Kaylee looks at it and though she loves the see saw, especially when her and Emma get on one together, she sees the maze that she wants to go through instead...

Kaylee: "Let's go through that maze". *points*

Mila looks in the direction Kaylee is pointing and seems a bit hesitant as it appears to be a big one so she turns around to reply...

Mila: "Can we...."

Mila's words stop so abruptly because Kaylee is no longer standing there and as she looks around she doesn't see her anywhere. She calls out, "Kaylee"?! She's thinking that Kaylee will call out where she went off to...but Mila doesn't hear anything. She looks all around and when she still doesn't see her she immediately runs over to their teacher, Ms. Larue, who's been standing in a huddle with teachers from the other classes that are out. Mila taps her on the arm...

Larue: *smile* "Yes, Mila"?

Mila: "I don't know where Kaylee is. I was playing with her and when I turned around she wasn't there". 

Ms. Larue's smile fades then her eyes begin darting all over the playground. Panic quickly sets in and the other two teachers who heard her conversation with Mila are also worried. They go off in different directions and begin calling her name. The other kids stop playing as they sense the urgency and are wondering what's going on. Eventually one of the teachers who's been helping her find Kaylee directs them all inside of the school while the other teacher takes off for the principal's office to alert him of the emergency leaving Ms. Larue to keep looking for Kaylee who is still nowhere in sight. She stops for a brief moment and as her chest heaves while her eyes look extremely frightened she's looking around also very confused as to how Kaylee went from playing happily with her classmate to disappearing in a split second...

*****

Larry just got out of a meeting and on the way back to his office he was stopped by a colleague who asked him to review a report. His assistant, Shannon, is at her desk that's diagonal from where Larry is standing when her office phone rings. Larry is still reviewing the report while conversing with his colleague when he suddenly hears, "Mr. Bourgeois" so he looks up...

Shannon: "You have a phone call". 

Larry: "Please take a message and I'll call them back". 

Shannon: "It's Mr. Mendes, the principal at your daughter's school and he said it's an emergency". 

Larry's eyes go wide and he hands the report back to his colleague then dashes over to the desk to take the call. In an extremely panicked voice...

Larry: "What happened"?

Mendes: "Mr. Bourgeois, I'm sorry I have to inform you of this but...Kaylee is missing". 

Larry: "What?!! How can she be missing?! She's supposed to be safe at school! How did this happen"?!

Mendes: "Yes sir and I'm very sorry. Her friend, Mila, was with her because they were playing together but she turned around for a moment and when she turned back Kaylee was gone. I also placed a call to Laurent Bourgeois but I didn't get an answer".

Larry is literally frozen as his mouth is open and his heart is pounding...but he very quickly drops the phone to run to his office for his phone and keys then leaves the building. He's shaking but will make sure he gets to the school without delay so he can look for her while also looking in the surrounding areas. He's crying and his shaky hands make a call to Laurent but he doesn't answer so Larry assumes that he's asleep due to taking more cold medicine. He's sure that's also the reason the school couldn't speak with him so he takes a few breaths then tries again. This time Laurent answers and in a groggy voice he greets him with, "hey bebe". Larry begins crying harder as he replies, "baby". Laurent quickly sits up in bed...

Laurent: "Bebe what's wrong"?

Larry: "Kaylee". *sniff* "She's missing". 

Laurent: "What"?!!

Larry: "The principal told me that she disappeared when she was playing with her friend at recess". 

Laurent: "Where the hell was her teacher"?

Larry: "I don't know baby but I'm on my way to the school". 

Laurent: *sigh* "Oki bebe. I'm coming too. I'll see you soon and we will find her, oki"? 

Larry's crying voice breathes out an, "oki" and he releases the call. He has to grip the steering wheel firmly as he's very shaky and highly emotional. He finally arrives at Kaylee's school and once out of the car he runs inside. The principal is waiting for him and before he can say anything Larry instructs him to take him to the playground which he does swiftly. As Larry follows him he catches a glimpse inside the office where two officers are inside and a little girl sitting down looking up at them which he's sure is the girl who was playing with Kaylee. There's a lady sitting next to her and it's unclear as to if it's another teacher waiting with her until her mother arrives or if it is her mother. Larry has felt like this has been a nightmare from the moment he received the call but as minutes go by and now seeing the cops he realizes it isn't. Their sweet girl has disappeared. His tears have returned tenfold and when he finally reaches the playground Larry sees how open the space is. There's a fence but it isn't high enough. Since the playground is in the back of the school there are a few homes in proximity. He wonders if the cops have had a chance to go door to door and ask the surrounding citizens if they saw anything. For now, he looks at the principal...

Larry: *sniff* "Where was my little girl playing"?

The principal observes the deep turmoil in Larry's face and to choke back his own emotions he gulps before replying... 

Mendes: "Her classmate said they were right over there". *points* 

Larry looks over in that direction then instantly runs right over to it. He searches the grounds to see if something of hers may have fallen off but he sees nothing. He then looks up and calls out in a loud but also weakened voice because of his tears, "Kaylee"?! He waits a moment or so before taking off to run out of the playground and into the streets. He calls her name over and over...internally praying that she hears his voice and will appear then run to his arms only he doesn't see the silhouette of her or her long, brown curls creating their own wind as she runs. Panic stricken he jogs up the street...each moment more unnerving than the last. He then turns back in the direction of the school and sees that Laurent has arrived and he immediately begins running towards him. Laurent spots him and begins running to him too. They're already crying hysterically before they even reach each other and once they do they tightly embrace. Larry cries out, "how could this have happened"? Laurent closes his eyes as he holds on tightly to his love. He then whispers, "we will find her bebe". After moments in their embrace they pull away and Laurent joins Larry in searching in every possible area until they catch sight of the police officers who have been called so together they walk towards them. They're informed that they have taken the official statement from the little girl who was playing with Kaylee before her disappearance. Then he took the statement of Kaylee's teacher and just the mention of her name makes them furious. One of the officers begins asking them questions that they're hoping will give them some information that will cause a major break in the search...

Officer: "Is there anyone that either of you know who would want to seek out revenge"?

Larry sniffs as he shakes his head...but he knows that Laurent does so he holds his hand as he explains to the officer...

Laurent: "Yes. I know someone. Her name is Erin Lebeau. She was one of my students but she was recently expelled". 

Officer: "What warranted the expulsion"?

Laurent: "Sexual harassment. I reported her to the dean and she was told to stay away from me but she didn't listen so the university expelled her. You can get more information for her through Dr. Bouchet". 

The officer hands over a pen and pad for Laurent to write down Dr. Bouchet's information and once both are back in his hands...

Officer: "Oki. Thank you". 

Laurent: *nods* "Welcome".  

Officer: "Her teacher gave us a full description of her and several officers are out looking for her now. There's also been an alert put out which should hit all radio and news stations very soon". 

Larry: "Please find her".  

Officer: "We will do everything in our power to find her". 

The officer walks away so Laurent turns to his love and with tears falling from his eyes...

Laurent: "I'm getting back in my car to go and look for her". 

Larry: "Yeah. Me too". 

Laurent: "I um, I think mama should pick up Emma because when she doesn't see Kaylee she will ask where she is. I can't talk to her for this right now and mama has a way of explaining things".  

Larry: *sniff* "Yeah she does". 

Laurent: "Oki. I'll call her right now". 

Laurent pulls out his phone and Larry turns around to look down the street then all around again looking for Kaylee. He then hears Laurent's voice...

Laurent: "Mama"?

Right away mama hears the distress in his voice and it frightens her so in a worried voice...

Mama: "What is it son"?

Laurent: "Kaylee is missing". 

Mama: "Oh my God. No! How"?!

Laurent: "She disappeared during recess. No one saw anything". 

Mama: "The teacher wasn't watching her"!

Laurent: "No she wasn't". *sniff* "Mama, we need you to come and pick up Emma. Larry and I can't talk to her for this right now but we also need to go and look for Kaylee". 

Mama is in tears herself and when Laurent hears her crying he drops the phone as more tears build in his own eyes. He then brings the phone back to his ear...

Laurent: "It will be oki mama. We will find her and bring her home". 

Mama: *sniff* "I know you will son. I'm on my way to pick up Emma and I'll see you both when you come home".

Laurent: "Thank you. We love you". 

Mama: "I love you too son. Both of you". 

Laurent releases the call then slowly drops the phone before looking back at Larry whose tears are still on a full stream. Laurent will do his best to be strong for his love...but internally he feels as though he could just fall to the ground...

Laurent: "Let's go and look for her bebe". 

Larry: "Oki. We can call each other while we're searching and keep each other updated". 

Laurent agrees and they head in the direction of the door that leads out to the playground as they're parked in front of the school. They run into Kaylee's teacher and she tries to speak to them but they just bypass her. Once they're outside and tell each other that they're parked in different directions they give each other a kiss followed by a long hug with Laurent's reassurance that they will find her. They get behind the wheel...but before they crank the engines up and pull off they each repeat a silent prayer that she will be found...

*****

It's been hours since Kaylee's disappearance. Larry and Laurent have been scouring the entire city and when the sun was starting to set the hope of finding her before dark began to glimmer. They kept each other updated by phone as they agreed with places that they've checked and where they were checking next...but each area with no sign of Kaylee was complete devastation. Their last call to each other was agreeing to go home for now since the cops are still searching for her and her disappearance has been made known all around the city. Of course going home means that they have to tell Emma what's happening. Emma adores her big sister so the thought of telling her is completely heart wrenching. They pull up at home together and connect hands with Laurent leading his love inside. They walk in and right away they're greeted by that smiling face. She runs to them and they squat down to hug her...but when they pull away she notices the heavy looks on their faces and in her soft voice, "something is wrong". Larry and Laurent drop their heads for a moment before they hear, "where's Kaylee"? They look up and notice mama standing a short distance away with Ayden in her arms...tears steadily building in her eyes. They look over at each other then back at Emma before standing to their feet. Larry picks her up to walk over and sit on the couch. He sits her on his lap and with his love next to him he gently clears his throat to explain...

Larry: "Princess, sometimes bad things happen to good people". *pause* "And um, while your sister was playing at school today, well, we think someone took her away". *gulp* "We don't know who yet but the police are out looking for her right now. You remember who the police are right"?

Emma: "Yes papa. They wear the shiny badges and that's who we call when we need help". 

Larry: "That's right my love and you remember when we talked for faith"?

Emma: *nods* "Yes", she replies softly.  

Larry: "Oki so that's what we need right now. We need to have faith that the police will find her soon so she can come back to us". *pause* "You understand princess"?

Emma softly nods but the more Larry explained the sadness was written all over her face and she wraps her arms around his neck to hug him. Larry picks her up to bring her into him and as he rubs her back he cries, "it will be oki baby". Laurent's tears are also streaming rapidly down his face and he stands up then drops a soft kiss to the top of Emma's head. He then turns around and sees mama standing there with Ayden who is his normal cheerful self as he's too young to understand what's going on. He stops in front of them and when he sees a tear fall from mama's eye he wipes it away with his thumb then plants a soft kiss on her forehead. He looks at a smiling Ayden and he does smile at that sweet face before giving him a soft kiss too. He then steps away and mama thinks he's going to he and Larry's bedroom...but he goes to Kaylee's room. It's quiet and everything is in place just as she likes it. He walks over to the bookshelf where her collection of all the books she loves are and he takes his pointer finger to softly run it across a row before going over to her bed. He sits down then picks up her pillow and brings it into him...pressing his nose against it then inhaling her sweet scent. He thinks about her last violin lesson where she beautifully played the song she's been working so hard on and says in painful voice... 

Laurent: "You have a violin lesson soon my love. I'm ready to listen to you". *sniff* "We already miss your smile. We miss your laugh". *pause* "We miss you but we know you're coming home and when you do we will be here with open arms waiting to hold you". 

Fresh tears roll down Laurent's face and he leans until his shoulder crashes onto the mattress. With Kaylee's pillow pulled into him he weeps silently...and uncontrollably...

----------------------------

A/N: In developing this story, I knew it would be tough. I didn't realize how tough until I wrote this chapter so I asked myself why I decided to write it. That question is best answered by simply saying that it happens. Real life, real life situations. I know this was a big fear with several of my readers and emotions will run high but please, share your thoughts. I'll be replying soon. Love you guys. ❤️