Whispers Turn to Whimpers: Could He Ever Change?

"Why would the nurse even ask that?" Sherilyn was momentarily taken aback. "He's not in his room?"

Earlier in the day, Galen had indeed stopped by, but he had since left. And given the late hour, shouldn't he be asleep? "He's not there." The nurse shook her head.

During her rounds, she had discovered Galen's room empty, prompting her visit to inquire about his whereabouts.

"What's going on?" The soft sound of footsteps on the floor announced Gilbert's arrival.

Turning around, Sherilyn sensed something was amiss and blurted out, "The nurse says Galen's not in his room, and it's so late..."

"Let's not panic just yet." Gilbert looked down, trying to reassure her. "Have you tried calling Galen on his cell?"

"Not yet..." The nurse answered, "As soon as I noticed he wasn't in his room and knew you were close, I came here first to check."

"I'll call him now!" Sherilyn rushed inside to grab her phone and dialed Galen's number.

But...

[The number you have dialed is currently unavailable.]

Sherilyn frowned, her complexion turning a shade paler. "It's not going through!"

This was definitely alarming.

Gilbert's forehead creased with worry as he tried to comfort Sherilyn, "Maybe his phone just ran out of battery. Let's not jump to conclusions." After a moment's thought, he asked, "Do you have the Martin family's contact?"

"The Martin family?"

"Yes." Gilbert nodded. "Where else could Galen be at this hour? Let's call them, maybe his family knows something."

"I'll call Farley!" Sherilyn hastily swiped her phone, dialing Farley's number.

"Hello..." It took a while before the call was answered, Farley's voice sounded surprised, "Sherilyn? Is that you?"

Sherilyn was in no mood for small talk and went straight to the point, "Did Galen come back?"

"Galen?" On the other end, Farley paused, "Didn't he go to the hospital today?"

He was aware of his son's commitment to donate bone marrow to his granddaughter. And he knew Malvina was against it. His stance was tricky, but in the end, his son still went to the hospital, didn't he?

"Galen, he..."

"Sherilyn, give it here." Gilbert took the phone from her and spoke firmly, "Mr Martin, Galen's currently not at the hospital, and we can't reach his cell. If he's not at home, do you have any idea where he might

be?

"This..." Farley was at a loss, "Galen's missing?"

"Yes, we haven't been able to get in touch."

"What happened?" Another voice chimed in from his side, undoubtedly Malvina's.

In a flurry, Farley hastily explained, "Galen's missing, he's not at the hospital..."

"What?" Malvina's temper flared, spewing venom, "Sherilyn! You're nothing but bad luck! If anything happens to Galen, I'll never forgive you..."

"Mr. Martin." Gilbert didn't want to listen to her tirade, his brow furrowed in frustration, "If you hear anything about Galen, please let Sherilyn know." After hanging up, he looked down at Sherilyn, who was a mix of disappointment and anxiety, "Galen's not at home... where could he be?" Sherilyn felt a void in her heart, her face draining of color.

Seeing her pale, almost translucent

complexion, Gilbert recalled the harsh words bad luck' and compassionately took her hand. He guided her to sit down, glancing at the re@string bracelet around her wrist, suppressing a bitter feeling, "Let's not jump to conclusions. Right now, the most important thing is to find Galen."