HOUSTON — Family and friends of Robert Yost, a fixture in Houston's deaf community, are looking for answers after he was found dead five days ago on the side of the road not far from his home.
"Just sitting here wondering ... was he left lying there, in pain or agony? Or was it quick?" said Chris Yost, Robert Yost's son. "I pray that it was quick that he just passed away."
There are so many prayers and unanswered questions coming from people who knew Robert Yost best, including his son.
He got the gut-wrenching news hundreds of miles away.
"Sad that you can't be there quicker," Chris Yost said. "I feel helpless."
According to Harris County Sheriff's Office investigators, Robert Yost's body was discovered on Point Blank Drive last Wednesday. Chris Yost said investigators told him his dad didn't have his wallet or any ID on him when he was found. Robert Yost was pronounced dead at the scene.
"I don't want to see," said Chris Hamilton, Robert Yost's close friend. "I don't want to see that and have that picture ingrained in my mind forever."
Hamilton knew Robert Yost well.
"Robert was like a second father to me," Hamilton said.
They've been friends since 2010. Robert Yost helped welcome her into the deaf community, where Robert Yost is very prominent.
"He was always ready to help and do for the community and never thought about himself," Hamilton said.
Hamilton signed every word she said during the interview because she said Robert Yost would've wanted her to.
"If there are deaf people that are watching, they need to understand what I'm saying," Hamilton said.
What Robert Yost's friends and family can't understand is why he died. Investigators haven't released his official cause of death. Regardless, they say he will be missed.
"I will always miss his smiles and his teasing," said Hamilton. "He was such a fun person."
"I'll miss talking about the Astros with him," Chris Yost said. "Whenever the season would come, Facebook traffic would always pick up with my dad."
This is still an open investigation with the Harris County Sheriff's Office. If you have information that could help with the case, you're asked to call them.