The Girl Who Was Taken

Livia struggles through her rounds in the pathology department. She replays her conversation with Jessica over and over in her mind and pays little attention to her work. As a result, she only does the bare minimum, and when she presents the results of an autopsy, her work is sloppy. Her professor berates her in front of her fellow pathologists. He reminds her that every corpse on the operating table was once a person someone loved and that they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect. Livia admits that he is right and that she failed in her duty to the deceased.

She also feels that she failed as a sister to Nicole, recalling a conversation in which Nicole begged to come stay with her for a week. Livia told her no, arguing that she worked long hours, was rarely home, and didn’t feel up to having company. She rethinks Nicole’s request through Jessica’s insights about that summer and wonders if Nicole wanted to get away from something. Livia suspects that Nicole’s behavior might have been a cry for help, and she feels guilty for not realizing that sooner.

Livia drives to her hometown after her shift and spends the night in her childhood bedroom.