I was getting ready when the phone rang about 1:00 p.m. Zack said, "We need you here. Can you come right away? Alyssa is gone." I thought or said, "Gone where?" Zack sounded a bit frustrated and said, "Come over right away. We need you."
I talked to the girls for a minute and grabbed my purse. Daddy was a few houses away with Holly. I walked quickly to him, trying to understand what Zack was saying. I said to Daddy, "I think Alyssa died."
As I drove to Steve's I called Zack who said, "The Chicago Police Department was here." I knew then that Alyssa really was dead.
We gathered at Steve's. We were all in shock. It just couldn't be real, but it was. At 23 years old, Alyssa had overdosed. Her pain was over, but ours was just beginning.
