Mario slowed as he turned into the street Live in Heaven sat in, he knew this road better than the back of his own hand. He knew this road was quicker to get to Clarissa and Katy's home, he knew that he needed to follow the road from Live in Heaven to the girls house.

As he looked up at the line up of cars, he seemed confused.

The street was usually normally quiet, maybe it helped that he normally drove past after the girls shifts at night or when he had rare moments to pop into see his daughter and her friend.

Mario sat behind a car, he watched as the brake lights light up before watching the car slowly pull forward than the brake lights appear in front of him again.

He watched as a car drove past him, he leaned his head out his car window.

Mario could make out the line up of police cars blocking the road, he tried not to let his thoughts overtake him as he heard a car horn beep.

He looked behind him at the driver impatiently waiting.

Mario held back his reaction as he slowly moved his car forward, he watched as another car past him. He watched as the car in front of him crept forward.

He could make out the blue and white patterned police tape stretched between two police cars.

Mario jolted his attention in front of him as he noticed the car in front of him indicate, he watched as the car manoeuvred itself to the other side of the road before driving past Mario.

He moved his car closer to the police tape.

Mario took full notice, the tape in front of the Live in Heaven entrance doors. The police cars blocking both ends of the road.

He stopped his car, he unbuckled himself before stepping out of his car.

Mario noticed a young woman standing guard by the tape, he watched as she jolted to attention as she noticed him.

"Sir."

"Hannah." Mario shifted carefully under the police tape "What happened?" His civilian jumper hiding his police shirt underneath.

"uh." Hannah let the words escape from her thoughts.

"Mario."

Mario looked up at a Sergeant, roughly the same age as him called out his name. "What happened?" He watched as Sergeant Gavin Whiskey excused himself from a group of police officers he was talking to.

Sergeant Gavin braced himself as he stepped towards Mario "It's Clarissa."

Mario wanted to scoff, he thought Gavin was joking but there was something in Gavin's tone that spoke the truth "Where is she?" His eyes scanned around; he couldn't see her.

"She."

"No." Mario didn't want to hear it.

"Mario."

"No." Mario repeated his word.

"I'm sorry."

"No." Mario struggled to hold his tough police persona, he wasn't one to break and crumble in front of his fellow officers. "Where is she?"

Gavin wasn't sure how to say it.

"Gav, where's my daughter!?"

Gavin breathed slowly, how was he supposed to tell a colleague, let another a friend the truth "You can't be involved."

"Fuck, Gav. I'm not asking to be involved. I'm asking where my daughter is."

Gavin breathed slowly, he could see it plainly written on Mario's face, he knew Mario wasn't ready to hear the truth, but Gavin knew that he needed to rip the band aid off "She's." His eyes shifted down the alleyway.

Mario followed his eyeline, he pushed past "Sweetheart!" He called out letting himself find hope in Clarissa calling back.

Instead all he saw was several officers looking around.

Instead he saw his daughter's bag perched against the commercial wheelie bins.

Instead he saw a white sheet covering someone laying still underneath it.

"I'm sorry."

Mario pulled his gaze to Gavin standing beside him "That's her bag, Gavin. Tell me where my daughter is." He refused to let himself admit that Clarissa; his daughter, was under that sheet.

"We're trying to figure out what happened. We'll do everything we..."

"Gavin. You are not telling me that's my daughter. My daughter is alive. Katy rang me telling me Clarissa hasn't come home. I'm supposed to be finding her."

Gavin could hear it in Mario's voice.

"How do you know it's her?" Mario was trying to find any fault in this scene, he was trying to prove to himself that his daughter was going to walk through her front door at any second, he was trying to prove to himself that Katy would ring and say Clarissa is home now.

Gavin knew Clarissa's identity; he was her godfather. He had watched the young girl grow up to be the young woman she was trying to be. He knew for certain that it was his goddaughter lying still on the ground.

"You don't do you?"

Gavin didn't need to add insults, he could see Mario was trying to find every hole in this moment. Gavin knew he'd do the same thing if it was him and his children "Would you like to confirm her identity?"

"Gav. You know what Clarissa looks like."

"Humour me." Gavin felt like he was going to regret his words "Give us a moment." He called out to the police officers in the alleyway.

No one asked why as they noticed Mario, they all just silently stepped out towards the police cars and police tape, they waited for their next instructions.

"Mario." Gavin bravely stepped towards the white sheet.

Mario tried to hold onto the last ounce of hope he had, he refused to believe Gavin. He knelt down carefully by the white sheet.

Mario carefully reached for the corner of the sheet.

Mario pushed the sheet away from ground, he could see curls squashed up against the concrete.

Tears fall down his face as he noticed the smudge makeup over her face.

Mario yanked the white sheet off the body.

Mario couldn't hold his grief back as took in the scene.

He wasn't sure what to notice first as he took it all in, jeans and her underwear down by her ankles, a missing shoe, chipped painted fingernails, blood soaked between her legs, marks around her neck.

"My baby." Mario began to feel like a failure of a father for not being able to protect his daughter.