“We’re taking her to a daycare,” one of the police officers says. “They’re better equipped to take care of her, after all.”
“Which daycare?” the woman asks.
“Sunny Hills.”
“Really?” The woman slides a fresh diaper under Laura’s butt. “Her bag and clothes are labeled with that daycare’s name.”
“Well, in that case, she’s probably enrolled there. They’ll be able to look her up once we drop her off,” the police officer says. The woman tapes the fresh diaper onto Laura.
“Good. Hopefully, you track down her family.” The woman hands Laura, clad in only a diaper, to the police officer. “Goodbye, Laura!” she coos. Laura suckles her pacifier in response, eliciting a smile from the woman.
Laura is brought out to the police car and buckled into a car seat. The trip to the daycare is short, thankfully. Laura can feel herself getting antsy. She’s hungry and cold. The police officer who wasn’t disgusted by her messing herself is the one to bring her in and drop her off.
“We’ll look her up,” the receptionist says cheerfully, “and let you know what we find out. But in the meantime, she looks like she could use some clothes and milk.” The police officer leaves. Laura is handed off to a daycare worker, who dresses her in a soft, pink onesie and then gives her a bottle of milk. The daycare worker heads back to reception as Laura hungrily guzzles down the bottle.
“Any luck?” the worker asks. The receptionist nods.
“Yes, actually. She is in fact enrolled here. I don’t know how she wound up in that woman’s basement, but I’ve contacted her parents and informed the police.”
“Great.” The daycare worker takes the empty bottle from Laura and pops her pacifier back into her mouth. “While we wait for her parents to show up, I’ll put her in the play area.”
Laura is carried over to a large play area and set down in front of a pile of blocks. Playing, however, is the furthest thing from her mind right now. She’s apparently a daycare attendee. But how?