On a hectic Saturday evening, in the transit area of Terminal B at Otopeni International Airport, dozens of people were rushing to catch the last flights.Amid all the commotion, Lena, a volunteer with the canine control team, was making her rounds alongside Rex, a German Shepherd trained to detect dangerous substances and hidden persons.

At one point, her gaze fell on a plain brown suitcase, which appeared to be abandoned near a corner wall, just a few meters from the boarding gate. She stopped suddenly, and Rex flinched. The very next second, the dog moved quickly toward the bag, sniffing intensely, and then sat down next to it, whimpering softly.

‘What is it, boy?” Lena whispered, feeling her stomach tighten.

She immediately called the intervention team, and in less than a minute, the perimeter was secured. They tried to identify the owner using the surveillance cameras, but the footage only showed a man who, upon noticing the inspection, abandoned the suitcase and disappeared into the crowd.

“We might have something serious…” An officer said, looking at Lena.

As the zipper of the suitcase was slowly pulled open, it felt like the entire world held its breath. Inside, among hastily folded clothes and a few old toys, there was a little girl — about five years old. She wasn’t crying. She wasn’t saying a word. She was just staring.

A police officer named Andre took off his helmet and knelt down in front of her, tears barely held back in his eyes.

“What’s your name, sweetheart?” he asked, his voice trembling.

The little girl blinked twice, then whispered faintly:

“Ana…”