Tony arrived at the restaurant in less than an hour. The whole area was filled with panic but, not a single person was hurt. Tony looked around and realized that the scene looked too clean which meant that the thugs only came to get Lily.
“The CCTV footage.” He said to Marcus who immediately nodded and went in search of the manager.
Since Tony was well known in Paris, especially in a restaurant that was a few blocks away from his hospital, he was immediately granted access to the CCTV footage.
Two minutes later, Marcus came back with the manager, a young French man with dark hair. He looked like he had run miles just to get to the main restaurant as he was sweaty and filled with panic but Tony knew that it was because of what had happened in his restaurant.
“Mr Martinez…” He stuttered, shaking fearfully as he wondered why Tony was in his restaurant after such chaos.
“The footage, now.” Tony requested. He didn’t have the time to explain to him as every minute he wasted could put Lily in danger.
“Y…yes, of course.” The manager nodded and hurriedly led Tony to the small security room which had four computers showing every part of the restaurant.
Without being told, the manager sped the video up to the part before the kidnap.
The footage showed Lily and Oliver sitting at the table, laughing and talking. A few seconds later, he saw Oliver pointing at the bodyguards who were a few seats away from them, and after a while, he saw Lily stand and say something to them to which they nodded and leave immediately.
“Fuck…” He gripped his hair out of annoyance. It was obvious that Oliver had made Lily send the guards out…- a mistake Lily should have never made but, he couldn’t completely blame her. She was always too trusting. He should have been more strict with the guards so that they do their jobs properly.
Tony’s eyes narrowed when Oliver got up to use the restroom and when he returned, the kidnappers entered the restaurant only minutes later, as if waiting for a signal. His hands clenched into fists as he watched one of the men shoot Oliver before dragging Lily out.
“Go back.” He ordered, his eyes catching a moment in the footage.
The manager immediately obeyed his command, rewinding to the moment before Oliver was kidnapped. He carefully studied the screen and that was when he noticed Oliver’s weird behavior. He was about to get shot but he was calm…too calm.
“Show me the footage from the restroom and hallway before this.” He said and the manager nodded.
Tony watched as Oliver pulled out his phone from his pocket, glancing over his shoulder to make sure no one was watching. Then, he sent a text and shoved the phone back in before returning to the restaurant to join Lily.
“Fucker!” Tony yelled, almost breaking his phone which was in his hand.
“I should have known! I should have fucking known! How did I let him into the hospital?” Tony said with anger.
“Download this footage and send it to me immediately.” He ordered in a cold and dangerous tone.
The manager nodded and began with the transfer. As soon as he was done, he handed the flash over to Tony who stormed out and got into his car. Before he left, he turned to Marcus.
“Make sure the others are treated properly. After that is done, you’re all fired.” He said coldly and zoomed off.
In the car, he called Raphael, one of his trusted friends and doctors in his hospital.
“Hey, man. What’s up?” Raphael said as soon as the call connected.
“I need you to run a background check on the new employees, all of them, especially Oliver Maguire.” He said as soon as the call connected.
“This is sudden. Is there a reason for this?” Raphael asked and Tony sighed.
“There is but, I cannot tell you right now. I promise to as soon as things are more settled. Please get this done quickly.” He added and Raphael understood that he needed it in a few hours.
“Of course. I’ll get to it.” He said and Tony thanked him before ending the call.
Tony arrived at his house in less than fifteen minutes which was the usual time to get home from the office. But, because he was in a hurry to find Lily, he drove like a madman.
When he entered the house, he was glad to see that Rachael wasn’t in the living room. He quickly hurried to his room and opened his drawer.
There it was, lying in a box- it was Lily’s old phone, the one that had Louis’s number.
Without thinking of the consequences, Tony typed the number into his phone and hit the call button. After three rings, the line clicked.
“This is Tony Martinez.” He said immediately without giving Louis a chance to speak.
“Bring Lily back and I’ll give you anything you want.”
*
*
Lily’s consciousness returned but she was immediately met with a throbbing headache at the back of her head. She slowly tried to open her eyes, ignoring the pain in her head.
She looked around and gasped when she realized that she was in a poorly lit room, its source of light being the tiny window behind her.
She tried to move but realized that her hands and legs were tied with a strong rope that dug into her skin.
Panic rose within her and soon, she found herself screaming. “Help!”
“Somebody, please help me!” She cried out, looking around for anything that could help her escape.
She screamed again but no one came to her rescue. Determined to leave the dark room, she continued screaming until she heard the door click and open, revealing a bulky man with a gun in his hand.
“Shut the fuck up before I make you. No one is going to hear you, okay!” He barked, his voice rough and impatient.
“Wait here and keep your mouth shut. The boss will be here soon.” the man added before slamming the door shut.
Lily’s heart raced as she struggled to process his words. ‘The boss? Could it be Louis? Had he finally decided to make his move?’
She swallowed hard and looked around, finally noticing that Oliver wasn’t with her in the room.
“Oh lord. I hope he’s okay.” She panicked, recalling him getting shot.
A few minutes later, she heard footsteps at the door and a muffled noise. She listened keenly and heard a faint ‘boss’.
Lily’s heart skipped as she realized that Louis was finally here to finish what he had started.
Her breath hitched as the door clicked again and slowly opened. Her heart was in her mouth as she expected to see Louis but, confusion replaced the fear in her heart as she stared at an unexpected person,