“Dylan!”
It was the first time Mrs. Ferguson ever called him by his full name, her fury so sharp she nearly lost her balance.
Dylan spun his wheelchair around, ready to leave without another word.
Mrs. Ferguson, shaking, waved over the nearest person, her voice cracking with panic. “What are you standing there for? Go find him! Now!”
She knew Dylan too well. If he said he’d do something, he’d do it—no matter the cost.
She’d thought he was just being impulsive, never imagining he’d actually risk his life.
Quickly, she made another call. “Restore the deleted security footage. Give everything to Aiden.”
With that done, she drained her cold tea in one gulp. All her usual composure and careful scheming disappeared in that single moment.
Meanwhile, Aiden was still frustrated, unable to find any trace of the missing footage. Then, out of nowhere, the entire set of surveillance videos landed on his desk in less than three minutes.
But whoever took Clara had planned it well. It’d been late at night, and the road to the temple was chosen for a reason—there were no cameras anywhere along that stretch.
After that, there was just nothing. No more sign of them on any screen.
Aiden watched the endless stream of cars on the monitor and pointed to one direction.
“Check the traffic cams up there. And look this way too—that’s all wild hills, about ten kilometers from the temple. These cars didn’t come back for a while. I’m guessing they went out there for something.”
What that “something” was, no one could say yet. The truth was still up in the air, and nobody dared to guess.
*
Tara waited at home for three days, not hearing another word about Clara. She finally let herself relax.
She called Mrs. Ferguson, as she always did, just to check in. It was a habit—one that had kept them close for years.
Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Tempted Trapped and Too Late to Run