Hayley waited for Ashton’s message all evening, but he didn’t contact her. Had he forgotten about their date? She called him many times, but his phone kept on ringing. Why wasn’t he accepting her calls? Last night she had waited till he drove away but had to face her mom immediately afterwards. By the time she went up to the terrace to check up on Ashton, he had already left. Her house being the last on the street, she couldn’t see the crossing even from the terrace.
After a restless night, she woke up on Monday morning to get ready for college. It was the usual scene at the breakfast table. Her parents kept on harping about her lack of interest in her studies. Hayley was too annoyed to sit through breakfast. Picking up an apple, she got up to leave.
“Have your breakfast before you go, Hayley,” said her mom.
“I lost my appetite. You can eat my share.” Picking up her car keys, she stomped out of the house to the garage, ignoring her grumbling parents. With everything going against her, she eagerly waited for the day to end so that she could meet Ashton and ask him about last night’s date. He could have called her at least to cancel it!
Steering her car out of the mansion gates, she drove ahead, but her jaws dropped with surprise at seeing Ashton’s car parked at the side. A smile brightened up her face. So he was here to see her before she went to college! She drove ahead and parked behind his car, yet he didn’t emerge from his. She climbed out and walked up to his car with a frown on her face. The car seemed to be deserted. There was no sign of Ashton inside. Was this some kind of joke? Was he ducking to surprise her?
Unable to control the feeling of dread in her heart, she walked up to his BMW and peered inside. There was no one inside. She tried the door, but it was locked. Her eyes widened with surprise at seeing his mobile phone lying on the driver’s seat. The remote key fob was still in the ignition slot of the car! What could it mean? She checked his phone and saw all her missed calls.
This didn’t look normal at all. Had the car been lying here since last night? Or was it lying here since Saturday night when he had dropped her home? He had informed her that someone was stalking him. Who could it be?
Panicking, Hayley ran back to her car. She drove backwards and into her house. Leaving her car in the driveway, she ran up to the front door and rang the doorbell in urgency. Ashton was in trouble, and she couldn’t waste time at all. She had to ask her dad for help. It was not a time to ponder how her dad would react after knowing she was dating Ashton.
Elsa opened the door and looked at her with surprise. “Did you forget something, Hails?”
“No, where’s dad? Or uncle Robert!” She rushed past her into the house, straight to the dining room. There she found everyone at the dining table, busy discussing her! This time Hayley didn’t react.
“Dad, you’ve got to come along with me,” she cried urgently. Everyone turned to look up at her with surprise.
“Now what happened? Hadn’t you left for college?” asked her mom.
“Yes, I did, but..,” she started, but her granny chuckled, interrupting her.
“Maybe she has forgotten her books at home.” They all laughed, but Hayley was too worried about Ashton to pay attention to their teasing.
“Dad, I found Ashton’s car outside our house. He dropped me home on Saturday night and it’s still lying there. I think he has been kidnapped. He told me that someone was following him on Saturday night. Please let’s go to the cops, dad. We have to find him,” she cried hysterically. There was a pin-dropped silence in the room as they all tried to grasp what she just said.
“What were you doing with Ashton on Saturday night?” asked her granny, with an annoyed look on her face.
“He asked me out on a date. It’s not what you guys are thinking. He took me on a carriage ride in Central Park and then dinner at a nearby restaurant.” Again, there was a bout of silence as they processed the information she just gave out.
“I see! So, are you dating Ashton now?” asked her dad solemnly.
“Yes, dad. I love him. He wants to talk to you after he gets a promotion at work. But that’s not the point. Someone was following him on Saturday night when he dropped me home. Now I found his car lying deserted on our street with the keys in the slot and his mobile phone lying inside. I’m sure his life is in danger. Please, can we save him, dad?” She begged, her face haggard, with tears in her eyes.
“Yes, I think so,” said her dad, to console her. It was evident that something wasn’t right here. Maybe Ashton really needed help.
“How can you overlook what she just told us, Chris? How can you accept her relationship with a random guy when we’ve chosen Jason for her?” asked her mom agitatedly. Tears spilled from Hayley’s eyes, thinking of the ordeals Ashton was going through. They couldn’t afford to waste time. His life was at stake. How could they not sense the urgency?
“This isn’t the time for discussing that, Carol. We need to find the boy, fast. His life could be in danger,” said her dad.
“Have you called his foster parents, Hayley? Or friends? Or maybe at his workplace?” asked Uncle Robert, who had been following everything that was going on around him.
“No.” Hayley searched the internet for the contact number of Silver Spring Resorts while her dad called Daniel Van Every.
“No, they haven’t heard from him since Saturday morning,” said her dad, disconnecting the call.
Hayley called the Resort but they informed her he hadn’t returned since Saturday evening.
“I’m sure he might be two-timing you. These young men can’t be trusted,” said her granny with a scoff.
“Mom, I’m sure he would have taken his car in that case. Why would he leave it here?” pointed out uncle Robert.
“And his phone,” added Hayley worriedly.
“Let’s call officer Thornhill right away, bro,” said Uncle Robert, getting up. Her dad agreed, and they called the officer of the NYPD, who was known to them. The officer immediately agreed to come over and investigate.
After ten minutes, he arrived with his team and they updated him about the case. He started his investigations with Ashton’s car and the surrounding area.
“I have a hunch he has been kidnapped. Did you see the car which was following him on Saturday night, Ms. Barclay?”
“No, officer.” He nodded and spoke to the traffic control department, asking for footage of the cars entering their dead end on Saturday night. They visited the ATM center for its surveillance footage but found the camera broken.
“All the surveillance footage in the vicinity has been destroyed, Mr. Barclay. This isn’t the work of a petty kidnapper. I’ve taken the tyre samples and sent them to our forensic department. Tell me, whose house is the one where Mr. Pierce had parked his car? How did they not object to it lying there since Saturday night?” asked the officer.
“The mansion belongs to the renowned attorney, Thomas Shelby. It has been lying vacant for the last two years after he moved away to LA.”
“That’s a pity. Otherwise, we could check if they have any surveillance cameras switched on around the property. I doubt if the kidnappers had access to that,” said the officer, inspecting the house.
“There’s an old caretaker who lives on the property. We can talk to him,” said her dad, leading the way. They went up the closed gates and spoke through the intercom. After a few minutes, an old man opened the gates and spoke to them.
“The cameras aren’t working, officer. I’ve called the technician who installed them on the property, but he hasn’t arrived to fix them yet.”
Disappointed, they were about to go when the officer looked at the old man with hope. “Have you seen what happened on Saturday night?” The old man shook his head, his eyes wide with fear.
“Can you tell us about the car? It will help us in our search.”
“It’s a black Maserati with a golden G printed on the number plate. I couldn’t see anything else. They kidnapped the young man,” said the old caretaker in a whisper.
“Thank you for your cooperation. Have a good day,” said the officer as they walked away. They checked Ashton’s phone for any clues, but there were none. The officer called traffic control, and the hunt was on for a black Maserati with the Golden G printed on the number plate.
Hayley refused to go to college and her dad didn’t pressurize her. “We’ll find him. Don’t worry!” he consoled her.