#49 A false accusation

My eyes scanned the house once over. It looked like a hurricane had passed through it. However, I didn't have time to pay attention to the damages.
My feet led me towards the stairs, and I climbed them without a second thought. The house was quiet, and except for my irregular breathing and my throbbing heart, nothing else could be heard.
Whoever the attacker was, he had probably left the house.
I headed towards Lily's bedroom, but I found Owen unconscious next to the doorstep. A gasp escaped my lips, and I bent over to make sure he was still alive. His chest was rising and falling rhythmically, and I could sense his pulse on his neck.
He was just unconscious, so I decided to check whether my fears were accurate. My trembling feet led me towards Lily's room, only to find it empty and messy. I called my daughter's name, I searched all over the room, but it was all in vain.
My daughter wasn't there…
My heart was broken once again…
My soul had been ripped away from my body violently…
I went back to Owen and kneeled beside him. His face was bruised and swollen; someone had beat him badly. His right eye was already purple, and another bruise had formed on his left cheek. His upper lip had a cut just, blood was oozing from his temple, and his nose seemed broken. I shook his shoulder a few times and called his name.
"Owen? Wake up? Owen, please…" I muttered desperately.
His left eye opened a bit, and he let out a groan.
"Fuck! Evelyn, they want her!" he whispered breathlessly.
"They took her, Owen. Lily isn't here…" I breathed out as hot tears ran down my face.
"Oh, Evelyn, I'm so sorry… I couldn't protect her... I swear I tried to fight them, but they were five men. I'm so sorry…" the man stammered in a broken voice.
"It's okay, Owen. You did whatever you could. Did they tell you what they want? Shall I call the police?"
The man tried to sit on the floor, and I helped him readjust his position. He might have had a few broken bones, too.
"They wanted Lily. They burst into the house, and they asked for Liliana Russell. I tried to stop them…" he groaned, probably from the pain he was feeling.
"We must get you to the hospital," I muttered under my breath and tried to lift him up.
"No, I'll be fine. We need to find Lily!"
"But you need medical attention," I tried to reason with him.
"Evelyn, these people weren't Greeks. They were Americans. Someone from the States kidnapped Lily. Maybe Sebastian has enemies…"
"Or maybe it's Sebastian himself…" I added as another chill ran down my spine.
"Why would he kidnap her?" Owen asked since he obviously didn't understand my train of thoughts.
"Because he wants to force me to go back to him…" I managed to utter.
"You're being paranoid. Call the police and an ambulance. The abductors didn't say anything about ransom or the caps being involved," Owen informed me.
I did as he said, but I vaguely remember what happened afterward. Owen gave a statement, and so did I. The policemen investigated our house for any possible leads. Then Owen was taken to the hospital to be given proper medical attention.
The policemen tried to reassure me that they would find Lily, but I doubted whether they could truly help me. If Sebastian had taken my daughter, then no one could help me take her back…
I couldn't stand there without doing something. I searched the area around our house, asked the locals whether they had seen Lily, and went to our favorite beach. But she was nowhere to be found. Lily might not even have been in Greece anymore…
Thus, without a second thought, I took the first plane to Athens, and from there, I tried to find the soonest way to reach New York.
Owen tried to persuade me to stay in Greece, but I couldn't just wait for a miracle to happen.
I was sure Sebastian had taken her. I couldn't think of anyone else who wanted to hurt us. I doubted whether Sebastian had any enemies. He was a well-known businessman and a multimillionaire, so he could have enemies. However, I pondered how these hypothetical enemies were able to find us. Not even Sebastian had managed to uncover our location during all these years.
I spent almost two days on an airplane or wandering around an airport waiting for my next flight. My heart wasn't at ease, and my mind couldn't stop thinking of all the possible scenarios. I silently prayed for my daughter to be safe, and I wished I could hold her in my arms again soon.
I didn't call anyone back home, but certainly, Owen would have already informed my family. To be honest, I didn't even know what to tell them. I couldn't even protect my own daughter, and instead, I put her in danger. I went out for a walk, and then all Hell broke loose.
What kind of mother was I?
If only this nightmare could end soon...
My phone battery had died by the time I reached New York. Thankfully I remembered the address of the Leclair Corp. building by heart, so I ordered a taxi driver to take me there.
New York was the same as I remembered. I was used to looking at an endless blue sea and a bright sun instead of grey buildings and a cloud of smoke…
Once the building of Sebastian's company came into view, a chill ran down my spine. A gasp escaped my lips when I realized how many years had passed by since the last time I was there. It felt unreal...
I paid the driver and walked towards the entrance. Some people looked at me frowning, while others didn't even bother to set eyes on me. I must admit I didn't look that presentable since I hadn't slept for the past 36 hours and my clothes weren't appropriate for that place.
Yet, no one stopped me from walking towards the elevator. A familiar anxiousness stirred up inside my stomach when the elevator stopped. It was time to face the ruthless billionaire...
I abruptly asked the receptionist about Sebastian's whereabouts. However, I quickly located him in the meeting room through the glass walls before she even had the chance to reply. After taking a deep breath, I waltzed towards the room, ready to face the man who had stolen my happiness once again.
My heart almost stopped beating once his grey eyes met my light blue ones. I couldn't stop the love I carried deep in my soul from rushing inside my veins. For a moment, I questioned myself whether I had taken the right decision back then.
Sebastian looked just like I remembered. His grey orbs stared at me with so much love and desire. But when he sensed that something was off, it seemed like his hope was crushed into the harsh reality.
"Where is she? I want my daughter back, Sebastian!" I said through gritted teeth, ignoring all the other people present in the conference room.
Sebastian frowned and stood up to walk closer to me. His eyes looked at me questionably, and he still couldn't believe whether I was truly there…
"What do you mean, Evelyn?" he asked in a hushed voice.
"Someone took my daughter away from me, Sebastian. I want her back!" I replied, glaring fiercely at him.
"Why on earth would I kidnap my own daughter?" the billionaire asked me in pure shock.
I wasn't sure whether he was so surprised because Lily was missing or it was the fact that I suspected him that hurt him more.
"Someone kidnapped her, and if it isn't you, then I don't know who…" I managed to utter.
The arrogant demeanor I had all these days broke into shreds. Hot tears rolled down my cheeks, and small sobs escaped my lips. I fell apart in front of him. As much as I blame myself for my outburst, deep down, I knew I couldn't help it. Sebastian was my other half. Only in his presence, I felt safe to let down my guards and show all my emotions. Even if that meant I would get hurt once again…
"Someone, call the police and my brother. And, everybody, get out of this room right now," Sebastian's commanding voice broke the silence my words had set in the room.
Sebastian's hands were the next thing I felt. He wrapped his arms around me tightly and pecked my hair lovingly. His masculine scent filled my senses, making me feel safe and protected.
"I'm so sorry, my love. I promise everything will be okay …" Sebastian whispered in my ear soothingly.
I was sobbing uncontrollably and whispering Lily's name like it was a prayer.
Nick and two police detectives walked into the room a few minutes later. Apparently, Owen had called Nickolas to let him know what had happened only a few hours ago. The youngest Leclair brother had immediately called the police. Hence, they all came to the conference room so shortly.
The two Leclair brothers tried to calm me down to tell them what had taken place the past two days.
I could see the glares Sebastian shot towards Nick's way while I narrated the events. The billionaire was furious because Nick knew Lily was missing and hadn't mentioned anything to him all this time. But I could also tell that Sebastian was mad because Owen was with me all these years…
After I gave them a detailed description of what happened and showed them a few photos of the house and how the kidnappers had burst into it, the detectives had a few questions for us.
"Ms. Russel, why did you suspect Mr. Leclair?"
I turned to look at the middle-aged detective who had asked the question. Truth be told, now I wasn't even sure why I thought it was Sebastian behind all this.
"Well, when Mr. Leclair and I broke up, it wasn't under the best circumstances. I left the States so I can start a new life away from him. Mr. Leclair has never met his daughter, and I thought this was payback. I know it sounds foolish and childish, but…" My voice broke, and another sob escaped my lips.
"It's okay, Ms. Russell. Please take your time," the other man said and gave me a comforting smile.
Nickolas offered me a glass of water, and I took a few small sips to calm down.
"When Owen said that these men, the kidnappers, are Americans, I couldn't think of anyone else that might want to hurt me, except Sebastian. I wanted to blame someone else than myself for all this mess," I breathed out, and a new stream of hot tears ran down my cheeks.
Nickolas came closer to me and wrapped his arms around me. He tried to soothe me and comfort me. "It's not your fault, darling. You couldn't have done anything more to protect her. They were five, and maybe more. You couldn't fight all of them, Evelyn…"
"They might hurt her because of me, Nick…"
"We will find her, I promise you. But you need to be strong and work with the detectives, okay?" Nickolas told me and pushed me back to wipe my tears with his thumb.
I nodded since I didn't have the courage to utter anything else.
"Mr. Leclair, we need to examine every possible scenario. Do you have anything to do with Liliana Russell's kidnap?" I heard the detective ask.
My eyes went back to Sebastian. His face was expressionless, but I could see the pain and the anxiousness inside his grey orbs.
"No, sir, I had nothing to do with my daughter's kidnap," Sebastian replied and then turned to look at me.
I felt even worse now that I accused him of nothing. I knew Sebastian all too well; he'd never lie for something so important.
"Then, Mr. Leclair, do you have any possible enemies that might want to hurt you or your family?" the detective countered back.
"No, I don't have an open dispute with anyone," Sebastian replied once again.
"I can confirm his words," Nickolas said, and the two detectives gave him a nod.
"Same question to you, Ms. Russell."
"I can't think of anyone else who might want to hurt me," I replied truthfully.
"Do you know if the same applies for Dr. McWaters?"
"Owen didn't mention anything. I'll ask him, but I doubt he has any enemies."
"Very well, then. We'll talk with the Greek police officers to see what they gathered, and we'll be in touch," the older detective stated.
"Do you think it's possible to ask for ransom?" Sebastian asked, making the two detectives exchange a quick glance.
"They would have called you already if this was the case. However, we can't exclude anything. These are our phone numbers. Call us if anything changes," the younger detective replied and gave us two business cards.
We thanked the two detectives, and after they bid us goodbye, they left.
Nickolas and Sebastian talked about something in hushed voices. I didn't even try to eavesdrop because my mind was very preoccupied with the latest information I had absorbed. We had no idea who had Lily, and there was no lead about how to start searching for her.
This was just too weird and painful. I couldn't understand who was behind all this and what these abductors wanted. If it wasn't for money, then what could their motive be?
"Evelyn, darling, come, I'll take you back to my house. Sophie is there, and she wants to see you," Nickolas said, putting an end to my train of thought.
My eyes snapped to meet Sebastian's grey ones.
"You need to rest and eat, Evelyn. I'll just make a few more phone calls, and I'll come to check up on you later, okay?" the billionaire told me in a soft voice.
"I'm sorry for accusing you. I shouldn't have acted so carelessly," I said in a small voice.
"There is no need to worry about that, Evelyn. Our main concern is to find Lily," Sebastian replied.
I could sense the worry in his voice, but I couldn't comfort him when I also felt like shit. I just let Nickolas lead me out of the company and towards his car.
None of us talked until we reached his house. Sophie was there, just like Nick had told me. My best friend helped me eat, have a bath, and wear clean clothes, literally like I used to do with Lily. Sophie didn't question me anything, and I didn't want to go through these painful events once over. At last, she just tucked me in bed and caressed my hair until I cried myself to sleep.
I stayed there for the next three days. My parents and Sebastian's family came every day to check up on me. They were all devastated about what happened, but none of us could do anything to help. We just waited and waited for the phone to ring. We didn't have any trace of the kidnappers, and the police were examining the possible leads.
The police officers back in Mykonos searched our house for fingerprints and found nothing but ours. They had collected different samples of blood since Owen had managed to injure some of the kidnappers. However, it would take time to analyze the samples and compare them with the database. Besides, we didn't even know if these men were in the system.
Traffic cameras and footage from the airport in Mykonos had been collected, but it didn't show Lily. Besides the usual airplanes, none other had landed or left Mykonos. So, that meant either the kidnappers had a private plane, or they used a boat. The video surveillance footage didn't show Lily in Athens' or New York's airport either.
It was like Lily had vanished from planet earth…
Sebastian had already hired a group of private detectives to investigate Lily's disappearance. Nickolas informed me that they were very capable of handling even the most complicated cases.
The billionaire was pacing back and forth in Nickolas' living room as I was aimlessly looking at the newspapers in my hands. Nick was on the phone and Sophie was cooking when the doorbell rang.
A few moments later, Clara Leclair walked towards us, and she looked as pale as a ghost. Her lower lip trembled, and it seemed like she was about to collapse.
"The kidnapers… I know who took Lily," she finally said, leaving us all flabbergasted.