Chapter 342 Clues
I tried to calm them down, "I get it, Lucas's dad can be a real pain, but he's got some serious connections. Right now, Lila's in deep trouble, and we might need his family's help to get her out of this mess. The main thing is to rescue Lila ASAP."
Lachlan looked worried, so I continued, "I know you probably don't want to deal with them, especially since you're both university professors and all that. Don't stress. I'll reach out to them and do everything I can to bring Lila back safely. Try to relax and get some rest."
I gave Amy a knowing look, and she got it right away, helping Lachlan and Jessa to the lounge.
Watching them leave, I sighed heavily, filled with worry. "This is a big mess. The kidnappers are too cautious; they even deactivated the callback number, leaving us no way to trace them. Our partners in the neighboring city are already on their way to the location, but I have no confidence they'll find any useful clues."
Alaric paced with his arms crossed. "Yeah, these kidnappers are clearly prepared. Should we contact Lucas?"
"Let's split up. I'll contact my partners, and you can call Lucas," I decided quickly.
Alaric walked to the window and dialed Lucas's number, but it just kept ringing without an answer. He took a deep breath, tapping his fingers on the windowsill. After a long wait with no answer, he checked the number to make sure it was correct. Just as he was about to give up and redial, a sweet voice finally answered, "Hello, who is this?"
Alaric was momentarily stunned but quickly recovered, speaking rapidly, "Hi, is Lucas there? It's urgent."
There was a slight pause before the sweet voice responded calmly, "Mr. Jackson is in a meeting for a new project and can't take your call right now."
The person was about to hang up when Alaric hurriedly said, "It's an emergency. Please, can you get him for me?"
The voice remained unhurried, "I'll let him know after the meeting. He'll get back to you as soon as possible."
Alaric sighed in frustration, "Please make sure he calls me back as soon as he can."
After hanging up, Alaric looked out at the street and suddenly said, "Diana, if this happened to you, I don't know how worried I'd be."
I was too focused on coordinating with our partners in the neighboring city to notice Alaric's emotional shift. Soon, new information came in. I stared at the pictures and emails on my computer screen and said to Alaric, who was still by the window, "The factory looks abandoned, filled with debris and old buildings. The area is huge, and they haven't found any solid clues yet."I scrolled through the photos carefully. After a moment, I continued in a low voice, "They reported that the factory is empty."
"How is that possible?" Alaric turned sharply, his face filled with disappointment. "The tracking program shouldn't have such a major error."
I shook my head slowly, pointing at a photo on the screen. "Look at this brooch!"
"What about it?" Alaric quickly leaned in.
I explained excitedly, "It's identical to the one I gave Lila for her birthday. She was definitely held here at some point, but now..."
I paused, looking at Alaric with hope. "It looks like you'll have to keep tracking her," I said.
Alaric nodded firmly, "I'll head back to the office and continue the search. I won't miss a single clue."
He quickly ran out the door, leaving the office quiet. I turned back to the empty warehouse photos on my screen, filled with worry. Lila, where were you? Hold on, I was on my way to save you.
Just then, Theo walked in, looking concerned. "Diana, I just got back from the branch office and saw an elderly couple crying in the lounge. What's going on?"
Overwhelmed with emotion, I couldn't help but vent, "Lila's been kidnapped. I know Lanny's behind it, but I can't save her."
Theo's face turned serious. "Kidnapped? What happened?"
I clenched my fists on the desk and recounted the day's events to Theo. I said, "We can't just stand by while Lila's in danger. I have to confront Lanny and resolve this."
Theo sighed, patting my shoulder. "Diana, I understand, but we can't act rashly. We need to find Lila first."
"Of course, Alaric is tracking her phone," I said, calming down a bit.
"I suggest you keep trying to contact Lucas. He's Lila's husband, and Nicholas's influence could be crucial in finding her quickly," Theo said after a moment of thought.
I hesitated and replied, "If Lucas knew Lila was in trouble, he'd do anything to save her. But Alaric tried calling him, and he was in a meeting."
"Try again and stress the urgency. No meeting is more important than Lila's safety. He cares about her deeply and won't ignore this," Theo encouraged.
Taking a deep breath, I nodded. "Okay, Theo. I'll call Lucas again."
I sat back at my desk and dialed Lucas's number. The phone rang for a long time before the cold, mechanical voice said, "Sorry, the number you dialed is not available. Please try again later."
"I need to think of another way. I can't let Lanny win," I muttered, touching the brooch on my collar that matched Lila's.
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