Policeman Sees Own Photo in Old Stack of ‘Missing Children’ Files, Learns He Has 7 Siblings – Story of the Day

Officer Parker had seen some really tough days as a kid and grew up to become a successful cop. One day, he found his childhood photo in a stack of missing children's case files, and it revealed things about his past he had never imagined.

Officer Parker took a sip of black coffee from the paper cup while he sat behind the desk, rereading the case files.

"Pulled an all-nighter again? You better look into the mirror once in a while, mate," his partner, Officer Reece, said as he walked in.

"Tough case, man," sighed Officer Parker, tossing the file on his table. "I'm not sure who is lying. And guess what? I went over their statements ten times. Is it their housekeeper? Children? Was everyone in on it together?"

"Well, we've still got some time for that. Wanna grab a quick breakfast? My wife was asleep so she didn't cook."

"Your treat?" asked Officer Parker.

"Looks like it," smiled Officer Reece. "But the coffee's on you!"

So the two cops drove down the street to the old resto cafe, grabbed a double chicken sandwich and some coffee, and returned to the station to review the files. They were both working on a case involving the murder of a millionaire businessman and his wife.

While Officers Reece and Parker were discussing the case files, something came to Officer Parker's mind. "I believe a similar case occurred in the early 2000s," he said. "They had closed the case because they only had circumstantial evidence. Not admissible in court."

It's a small world we live in, and we never know when we'll run into people who were once a part of our lives.

"I remembered it too," Officer Reece added, "so I asked Chad to get the old case files from the storeroom. By the way, let's call the maid for questioning again. Read her statement. She doesn't have an alibi after 11 p.m. that night. She claimed to be sleeping, but who knows?"

"You're right," said Officer Parker. "Hey, Chad! Here!"

The clerk, Chad, brought the files and Officer Parker pulled out the case file of Cynthia R., who had gone missing in 2001.

While looking for possible leads that day, Officer Parker also chanced upon a stack of case files of missing children. He opened one of those files out of curiosity to see if it contained information about Cynthia's case and was surprised to find his childhood photo inside.

"Jesus! I must be hallucinating!" he whispered under his breath.

"What's wrong?" asked Officer Reece.

"I wonder what my picture is doing here," said Officer Parker in a non-serious tone. "Wait, there's a report too?" He was suddenly serious.

Officer Parker read his case file and buried his face in his hands. "Can't believe this is happening to me! I was reported missing back then, Reece. Can you believe that?"

"You were?" he asked. "Who filed the report?"

Officer Parker closed his case file and stuffed it in his drawer. "My mother," he said. "She did. I'm going to go over that later. Let's get done with Cynthia R.'s case for now."

"Wait, your mother…"

"That's right, her. She never cared about me, and I ran away from home. Blah, Blah, sad story... Strangely, she reported me missing. What a strange woman! Maybe I'll just put that file back!"

But that night, when Officer Parker was alone at the station, working late yet again, he pulled out the file from his drawer and reread it. He sighed in frustration when he saw his mother's name there.

Sylvia was many things, but she was not a mother. She had no maternal instincts at all. So when Officer Parker was a little boy, his grandmother used to look after him. Gran Dorothy was his everything.

But when he turned 10, she passed away, and Sylvia was the only one he had left. One night, Sylvia came home drunk with another unknown man, and Officer Parker decided that night that he didn't want to stay with her anymore. She never cared about him, and all she did was bring new men home every time she was drunk.

So he just ran away from that messed up life. He begged on the streets as a kid, worked part-time at diners, and slept in parking lots, but he never returned to Sylvia.

Years later, when he fulfilled his dream of becoming a cop and serving people, he never considered returning to her. Not even once. He had left her and his dark childhood behind.

"I don't know why she would even report me missing when she didn't care?" sighed Officer Parker. "This is insane!"

Although he didn't want to do it, Officer Parker decided to find Sylvia. To put it mildly, he hated her. But he needed answers.

***

Six months later…

Officer Parker took time off from work after solving the millionaire's murder case to track down Sylvia, but he was barely successful.

"She must be dead by now, for all we know," he told Officer Reece on the call. "It's been years, Reece, and she wasn't in the best of health."

"What about that informant?" asked Officer Reece. "He said he knew the motel where your mother worked."

"He's the last ray of hope in this dark search. I wonder if this will lead to anything... Honestly, I'll stop looking for her if this doesn't yield any results. I will."

"Cheer up, dude. Let's wait for a heads-up from him. What if he tracks her down?"

"I don't know," said Officer Parker. "I really don't. Maybe I shouldn't have started this in the first place."

That night, Officer Parker didn't sleep a wink. Every time he closed his eyes, Sylvia's blurred face flashed in front of his eyes. Finally, he was up and on his laptop, checking if the informant had sent him any information.

When he checked his email that night, Officer Parker's eyes widened in shock. As per the informant, Slyvia was alive, but that wasn't all. Officer Parker had seven siblings, and he had no idea about it.

The man had sent him Sylvia's address, and Officer Parker left his home right then to drive all the way to the city where Sylvia lived.

***

Around 6 in the morning, Officer Parker knocked on Sylvia's door, and a frail woman answered it. She was not very old, but she was thin and spoke very softly.

"Mom?" asked Officer Parker, looking at her. "Is—Is that really you?"

Sylvia's hand went to her mouth. "Darnell?" she asked. "Is that… Jesus!" She threw open her arms around him and began crying.

Officer Parker wanted to hug her back, but he didn't. "Can I come in?" he asked, holding back his tears.

"Oh yes, yes!" she exclaimed, wiping her tears. "It's your house. You can come here whenever you want."

Officer Parker noticed her house was spick and span, unlike his childhood days, and there was a wall lined with photos—of Sylvia smiling with his seven alleged siblings and those siblings smiling with one another.

"Looks like I've got siblings," he said as he sat on the couch. "I work as a cop now, and I found out I have a big family."

She poured two cups of tea and brought them to the front table. "You do," she said. "I took them in. They are not your biological siblings, but yes... they still are, in a way, your brothers and sisters."

"I'm sorry, Darnell. I was a bad mother, wasn't I?" she said. "I failed to look after you when I was supposed to, and you were forced to leave me."

"Why did you file the missing report? Bear in mind, I have a good life, and I don't need you. But I need my answers."

"Can we just say I felt guilty?" she asked, moving her index finger along her cup's rim. "After you left, I missed you. You could say I had a change of heart. I volunteered at the church for a while, hoping to atone for my sins. There, I met seven children needy of a loving home and took them in. They helped me overcome the grief of not having you around, but I kept looking for you until those officers declared your case closed."

Officer Parker sighed. "I never expected to see a changed you," he said. "After dad passed away, well, I don't know… all of this is still hard for me to process."

"Take your time," she said. "I'm not asking you to forgive me, but I would really appreciate it if you did. I couldn't have you around as a son back then, but I want to make up for our lost time together. I really do."

And well, while it took Officer Parker some time, he decided to forgive his mother and embraced her and his seven siblings. He finally found a family, albeit late in life, and that was enough for him.

What can we learn from this story?

• Forgiving is never easy, but it helps heal past wounds. It wasn't easy for Officer Parker to forgive Sylvia, but he eventually embraced her.
• It's a small world we live in; we never know when we'll run into people who were once a part of our lives. Officer Parker came across his childhood photo while investigating a case, and it turned his life around.

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If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a cop who hated Christmas until he spent it in a shelter with a homeless man he once saved.

This piece is inspired by stories from the everyday lives of our readers and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only. Share your story with us; maybe it will change someone's life. If you would like to share your story, please send it to info@amomama.com.