00:00Denise hadn't taken it very seriously when the little girl had presented her with the drawing,
00:04but as she made her way back to the kitchen, she reconsidered the girl's words.
00:08Something she said was disconcerting.
00:11Reaching into the back pocket of her jeans, Denise grabbed the piece of paper.
00:15As she studied the drawing closely, it became more and more obvious.
00:19The child was in danger.
00:21The young girl had come into the cafe at a woman's side, and Denise had eagerly welcomed them.
00:26She assumed that it was an average lunch date between a mom, but she would soon find out her mistake.
00:32Her shift had been progressing smoothly, but then she started feeling someone's eyes on her as she moved through the
00:38cafe, helping other patrons.
00:41Curious, she turned to find the young girl staring at her with an unusual expression.
00:46Her eyes held the look of desperation, as if she needed something from Denise.
00:50The waitress didn't think it was too unusual and made her way to their table, assuming they wanted to put
00:55in an order.
00:56Do you maybe have some paper? I want to make a drawing for you, she continued.
01:01Denise suddenly saw the despair in the girl's blue eyes.
01:04Something was definitely off.
01:07She made her way to the closet in the cafe's staff room, where they kept some art supplies for kids.
01:12She quickly became engrossed as she dropped the paper and crayons off at the little girl's table.
01:18She couldn't imagine why she would want to draw something for Denise specifically.
01:22While Denise continued with her waitressing duties, taking care of all her customers, she found herself regularly looking over to
01:29the girl and her mom's table.
01:31She felt like there was something weird about the duo.
01:33The woman looked pretty annoyed and was constantly whispering things into her daughter's ear.
01:38Denise wondered what their story was.
01:40When she arrived at their table, the girl immediately extended her little arm to Denise, clutching her drawing.
01:45She said, I drew this for you.
01:48Her next words would be ingrained in Denise's brain forever.
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01:59Denise Young had lived in the town of Omaha since she was born.
02:03She spent her time either working at the town's cafe or at college, where she was an English major.
02:08Her lifelong dream had always been to build a great life for herself, and she was determined to work to
02:13achieve her personal goals.
02:15Working at the cafe definitely wasn't part of her dreams, but she needed some income to pay off her student
02:21loans.
02:22Her day-to-day schedule was usually college classes in the morning, followed by an afternoon shift working at the
02:28cafe.
02:28But Denise knew that it would be worthwhile in the long term.
02:32She made sure to tell herself every day that this was all necessary to get the life she needed, but
02:38this time, she took on a heavier burden than she could carry.
02:41The Thursday morning had been just like any other.
02:45Denise attended her classes as per usual, handing in her most recent assignment and then spending some time with her
02:52friends.
02:53When her last class for the day ended, she headed straight to the cafe for her shift.
02:57When the woman first walked in with the little girl by her side, it made Denise smile.
03:02That's when Denise first realized that something wasn't right.
03:05The woman was sitting beside the girl.
03:07A sour expression on her face, she was speaking into the girl's ear.
03:11That's when Denise noticed it.
03:13When the little girl beckoned Denise over, her stomach dropped.
03:17Do you have paper and crayons?
03:20I want to draw you a picture.
03:22She handed the paper to the girl and watched as she got sucked in.
03:25But why did the girl want to draw her a picture?
03:27It was no more than ten minutes later that the girl caught her eye once again and asked her to
03:32come over.
03:32As soon as she reached their table, the little girl handed her the piece of paper.
03:36The woman slowly took the paper from her hands and looked down at it.
03:40It's beautiful.
03:42Trying her best to be polite toward the girl's random gift.
03:45But then, the girl mouthed something truly strange.
03:49It's my real mom, the girl mouthed.
03:52But before Denise could process those words, the woman spoke up.
03:56Could we get the bill?
03:57Staring at her phone as she ignored the little girl beside her.
04:00Denise looked down at the girl as she made a small hand gesture.
04:03Motioning to the bottom of the paper, the woman said.
04:05We are in a rush, so I need it now.
04:08Denise obliged and quickly made her way to the back.
04:11But as she walked, she quickly glanced back at the girl, seeing the desperation in her eyes.
04:16What on earth was going on?
04:19Was she trying to tell her something?
04:21Denise's mind was clouded by a thousand thoughts a second.
04:25When the little girl handed Denise the drawing, she didn't think much of it.
04:28But as she walked into the kitchen, she thought about what she'd said.
04:32Something about her words just didn't sit right with her.
04:35She reached into her back pocket and pulled the drawing out.
04:38Her eyes scanned over the paper, but the longer she stared, the clearer the picture became.
04:43The girl was in trouble.
04:44The woman in the picture was blonde, while the woman beside her had long, dark hair.
04:49But then, she remembered something else.
04:52The girl wanted her to look at the bottom of the paper.
04:54She saw something truly terrifying.
04:57Call 911, she's not my mom.
04:59Denise was instantly terrified for the little girl.
05:02She had to inform someone about this.
05:04Denise knew that she couldn't take the bill out just yet.
05:07She had to keep the woman and the little girl in the cafe until help could arrive.
05:12She ran to her manager, Steve, and explained the entire situation to him,
05:16even showing him the drawing and the girl's secret note at the bottom.
05:20Distract them.
05:20I'm calling the police, Steve said.
05:23The girl looked up at her again, her eyes pleading.
05:26She averted her eyes to the woman.
05:28I'm sorry, ma'am.
05:28We are having some trouble with the machine.
05:30It'll just be a moment before I can print the bill.
05:32She lied with a shaky voice, but the girl knew the truth.
05:35Can you hurry it up?
05:36We need to leave town before it's too late.
05:38We're working as fast as we can, ma'am.
05:40Denside glanced down at the little girl and shot her a reassuring smile.
05:44Help was on the way.
05:46All she needed was to keep them around for a little while longer.
05:50Denise waited in the back, her stomach twisting with uncertainty.
05:53She wondered who the woman was and what she was doing with such a young child.
05:57Something about it just didn't sit right with her.
05:59Something sinister was going on, but justice was about to be served.
06:03It wasn't long before she saw the flashing blue lights outside.
06:06The second police stepped through the doors.
06:08Steve led them to the table.
06:10When the woman spotted the officers, she tried to run, but she was much too late.
06:16They instantly grabbed hold of her and cuffed her.
06:18The little girl jumped up from her seat and ran toward Denise.
06:22According to the officers, the little girl, Maddie, had gone missing from her hometown nearly two weeks prior.
06:28No one knew what had happened to the little girl.
06:30The strange woman was her aunt, who had always wanted a child of her own.
06:36She had taken the child from her sister and was trying to flee.
06:40Denise couldn't believe her ears.
06:42In the end, the woman was arrested, and thanks to Denise, the little girl was reunited with her parents.
06:48The parents sent Denise multiple gifts, thanking her for saving their little girl.
06:52In the end, it all worked out, but Denise would never forget the day she saved an innocent child.
06:57She truly was a hero.
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