Then—
A tiny voice.
"Mara?"
It was so faint I thought I imagined it.
"Mara... are you inside?"
A little girl.
One of the flower girls.
"I'm here!"
I screamed.
"I'm locked in! Please get help!"
Silence.
Then tiny footsteps running down the hallway.
Hope exploded inside me.
Surely she'd tell someone.
Surely an adult would come.
Five minutes passed.
No one came.
Later I would learn exactly what happened.
The child had found Eleanor near the chapel doors.
She innocently said,
"Mrs. Vale, the pregnant lady is crying in the bathroom."
Without missing a smile for the photographers, Eleanor leaned down and answered,
"She's practicing breathing exercises before surprising everyone after the ceremony."