"And, maybe they feel I am on their side as well. So, no need to fear me either. As per them, even if you give information to me, I will not use it against them.
Kiara looked at Jake. "Perry," both said together.
"He is the only one who feels I am not that smart and maybe he is the one who gave out my name to the kidnappers. Can he be the mastermind?" Kiara asked thoughtfully.
"I don't think he is that smart. But, you are right. He can be one of the pieces of the puzzle," Jake nodded his head.
"Wow, this thing is not only deep. It is pretty wide also. People at all the levels are involved," Kiara said with disbelief, "We need to act fast. Did you find a way to meet Chris?"
"Actually, I came here to tell you about it. Chris isn't coming to Kingston," Jake said gently.
"What?" Kiara almost screamed.
"Harrison told me that he is going back from Portland,"
Kiara got up and started walking across the room anxiously, "But, we need to see him. Otherwise the whole plan is jeopardized."
Jake got up and held Kiara by her shoulder, "Calm down. We will think of something else."
"I know what we need to do. We get hold of Perry and grill him. We will definitely get the names of the people behind it. We don't need Chris then," she said in a state of disbelief.
"We can't just interrogate someone based on a hunch," Jake reasoned.
Kiara took a long breath, "I know. But, every minute that we waste is making the case slip out of our hands."
Both sat down and kept looking down. There was no word uttered for five minutes when Jake remembered something.
"Did you call Sarah's mother?"
"Oh.. I completely forgot to tell you about that," Kiara said, "We were right about Chris's love with Sarah. But, Sarah loved him even more. He never got a chance to propose to her."
"What?" Jake's eyes got wide, "Then why she went against him. I mean, why she was coming here?"
"She was never against him. But, she was the only one apart from the Coopers who knew about Chris's diary. Chris told her about it during the party. They had a big fight over his work ethics and she stormed out. The next day, diary was with Richard." Kiara said pensively.
"They think that she gave the diary to Richard? When Richard got into a deal with Morgan, the diary was no longer required. Everything was going fine till she came here," Jake tried to put all the pieces together.
Kiara nodded, "As per her mother, she wanted to come to Kingston and do some good for the people. That was the only reason she even took the project. She never knew it will turn ugly."
"Well, if all of this is true and Chris was indeed going to propose to her; he would be devastated by her kidnap,"
His words brought a thought in Kiara's mind that lit her face up, "Maybe he is in Portland to find out about Sarah. I read somewhere that he had differences with his father over the acquisition by Morgan. In fact, he did not go to his office since the acquisition was finalized and now suddenly he has become active. Also, he could operate from New York. What is the need to come all the way to Portland and not visit the factory?"
"You are right. We need to meet him," Jake said in excitement, "But, how?"
Kiara looked at him, but, even she did not have a clue. They kept staring at each other, but there was nothing coming to their minds. They knew that they were just a single step away from making headway, but that step was the biggest riddle for them.
The sky was filled with stars and their reflection in the water added to the spectacle. However, the sadness in his eyes could not let him appreciate any of that.
Chris was sitting in his office continuously gazing at the reflections. Though, he was physically present, his mind was somewhere else.
His eyes looked sleep deprived, but his demeanor gave an expression of restlessness. It was as though someone had taken away his most prized possession from him.
He looked at his watch. It was past ten. He held his head in his hands and closed his eyes for a moment.
Suddenly, his phone rang. He looked at it for a moment. After several rings, he sighed in exasperation.
"Hello, Dad," he said in a low voice.
"How are you, son?" William Cooper inquired. "Did you speak to the in charge of the case?"
"It's of no use. It's been three days and there have been no demands of ransom. They are afraid…," words failed to come out of his mouth.
"Don't worry, son. I will speak to the higher ups," William assured, though he knew there was not much he could do.
"I hope she is still alive," tear drops rolled down Chris's face.
William did not know what to say. "Maybe they have contacted her mother?" he asked after much contemplation.
"No one has approached her. She won't speak to me, but, police have spoken to her,"
"In that case, we can't do much." William said.
"Police have said that they will be issuing a red alert in the neighboring areas tomorrow. They are also checking for any reported murders in the area in the last 72 hours. They are suspecting this to be an accident. Sarah must have encountered someone she was not supposed to. This may have happened in a moment of heat," Chris said, the words barely coming out of his mouth.
"Don't give up so easily. Until and unless there is a firm proof, you should not assume things," William tried to give some confidence to him," Let me know if anything is required. We may have lost our empire, but we are still very influential. I will make sure that this case is treated as special. If required, we may put the pressure on our government links."
"I hope we don't have to go so far," Chris said while wiping the tears, "So, how are your meetings going on?"
"All the agreements are being readied. I suppose, by the first week of next month everything will be in place."
"So, we will lose our dream?" Chris lamented.
"We have discussed this many times, Chris. Don't forget, we are getting paid fifty percent more than our market value. You can fulfill any dream of yours with that kind of money," William said in a stern voice.
"But, Dad, this company was not just our dream. We saw it with mother. Maybe, it was her blessings that made it reach those heights that we could have never thought of," Chris reasoned.
"Now, Chris, don't get me started. You very well know how we achieved what we achieved," William said firmly, "Heck, even Richard and Morgan also know what we did to succeed. Thanks to your diary."
Chris did not know what to say. Had he not told Sarah about his diary, everything would have been fine. Even, she would not have left him and he would not need to have this discussion with William.
"Son, are you there?" William asked softly, "I know I crossed the line again."
"No, Dad, it's fine," Chris said, "Give me till the day after tomorrow. If there is no progress after that, I will come back."
"I will wait for you," William said, "And, please get some sleep. Punishing yourself is not going to bring her back."
"I will try," Chris assured him, "Goodnight, Dad."
Chris closed his eyes and remembered the day he had met Sarah for the first time. He had constituted a panel to find out ways to rehabilitate the people around the Lake Blue leaf. Though it was publicized much as a brave attempt from a corporation that was struggling; for Chris this was just eyewash to raise his company's profile.
Jake offered to go together for dinner, but Kiara did not want to go out. She had some thinking to do and that worked only if she was alone.
She poured a glass of wine and dragged the center table near the couch. By evening, she was really happy with the progress of the case, but now it had come to a standstill again. Not only did they have to meet Chris, they have to convince him to come to Kingston too. If she goes out of the town, Harrison will come to know and then Carlson would. With her track record, it won't take him a minute to suspect that she was up to something.
On the other hand, she was not sure if Jake could convince Chris by himself. After speaking to Sarah's mother,
she wanted to meet Chris herself. She wanted to use all her knowledge about Sarah to get his support.
They did not even know how long Chris was going to be in Portland. She had to think of a back-up plan in case he had already left. May be she could get something out of Perry in that case. That brought another thing in her mind. She had to visit the factory tomorrow. She had made no progress on her report. It was almost five days now. If she did not give him anything tomorrow, Carlson would be after her life.
She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to get Carlson out of her mind and concentrate on Sarah. From the pictures, she had noticed an honesty in her eyes that was rare to find. She was exactly opposite of her; a romantic who never found any fault in others. She on the other end saw everyone with suspicion. Maybe Chris fell for this quality of hers. But, then the same quality led to her kidnap too. It was hard to separate honesty from being gullible.
She gulped the last drops and looked at her watch. It was quarter to ten. She was feeling hungry. Usually, she used to get her dinner by eight thirty. She opened the door and looked around, but no one was there. She saw a dim light coming from one of the rooms in Paul's house. She thought of checking with him.
As she was about to knock, she heard a light sob coming from the other end. She thought about going back, but her stomach growled, making her knock at the door. There was no response for some time till she heard footsteps.
Paul opened the door. His eyes were red. He looked at her," I am really sorry. We couldn't cook tonight. Mother will make something for you."
"No, that's fine. I will order something from Elmo's place," she stopped for a moment, "Is everything fine?"
Paul could not hold back his tears and started to cry. This was an awkward situation for Kiara. She didn't know what to do. She looked at her watch. She had only twenty minutes before Elmo's café closed. She thought of leaving, but Paul was sobbing uncontrollably.
Finally, she patted on his shoulder, "You can tell me. May be I can help."
"You always ask why my mother doesn't like you," Paul said while wiping his tears, "It's because of my sister."
"What about her?" Kiara asked.
"She is having ADHD,"
Kiara looked at him," You mean attention disorder?"
"Yes," Paul started sobbing again.
"But, lots of kids have that. It can be treated, right?"
"Her case is different. She was a normal kid till she was five," Paul said in a feeble voice.
"I don't understand," Kiara asked.
"Doctors say it has happened due to prolonged exposure to pesticides," Paul said ruefully, "It all happened once this factory came here. That's why I hate it; my mother hates it,"
"Oh… That's why your mother doesn't like me. She thinks I will create a report just like the last report and help Coopers," Kiara understood, "Then, why did you let me stay with you?"
"I didn't want to. But, I need money for my sister's medicine," he said while looking down, "Also, I was wrong about you. I feel you are also in some trouble. I saw you meet that officer"
Kiara did not know what to say. She kept looking at him. Paul's sobbing had reduced by now.
"She gets hyper sometimes when we are short on medicine. That's why we missed your dinner today,"
Kiara held him from his shoulders, "How is she now?"
"She is sleeping now. But, we need to see the doctor tomorrow,"
Kiara felt really bad that while she was thinking about her growling stomach, Paul was going through such a trouble.
"I will come with you," she offered. It was the least she could do.
"Really, you don't have to," Paul finally smiled. Kiara knew he wanted her to accompany him.
"It's all right. Don't worry," she smiled in return.
"Ok. The doctor comes at nine," Paul said and turned towards his house. Suddenly, he remembered something, "What are you going to eat?"
"I will order something from Elmo's," she said while looking at her watch. She still had five minutes left.
Paul nodded and left. Kiara waited till he got inside and then rushed towards her room.
"Thanks for taking my order so late," Kiara said while taking the packet.
"Margaret has said to take good care of you. Otherwise, I would have said no," the boy said with a grin.
"Thanks," Kiara said while taking the packet, but he was not willing to let go.
"She also said that you tipped well," he showed the two dollars that she had given him as a tip.
Kiara grunted and gave him another two dollars. He grinned, "Thank you, Ma'am."
"Four dollar tip for an eight dollar sandwich," Kiara groaned while bolting the door. She did not have any choice though. She could not complain either. Paul had a genuine reason for not serving her today. She started thinking about Paul's family as she took the first bite. No doubt he was eager to help out Sarah's captors. In fact, he had to bring Kiara to his home against his wish. Poor kid.
As the first rays of morning filled her room, Kiara looked at her watch. She could sleep for half an hour or she could get ready to go with Paul. She was supposed to go inside the factory by ten. Finally, with great effort, she got up. She was never an early riser: a quality that her mother always hated. She thought of her and a smile ran down her face.
She thought of calling her sometime during the day. However, if she got wind of Kiara being in a remote location she will get worried. Last time when she went undercover and somehow she got it out of her, she had gone mad and had called Carlson. It was one of the worst moments of Carlson's life. After that, Kiara had promised herself not to tell any work related things to her mother. She had somehow convinced her that she had finally convinced Carlson to give her a desk job.
Kiara dragged herself to the bathroom. She had a big day ahead of her. She had to get something out of Perry today and had to show something to Carlson to convince him that she was doing her job. Once he is satisfied, she will be able to concentrate on Sarah's case.
Kiara looked at Paul's sister as they crossed the muddy road into the main street. She was a sweet little kid, but the tiredness on her face showed the hardships that she had to go on a daily basis. She did not speak to Kiara. Neither did she look at her. She kept staring at the sky. Like a concerned big brother, Paul kept looking at her through the rearview mirror.
"So, what's your name?" Kiara asked her softly. She did not even notice Kiara's presence.
"Her name is Paula," Paul said from the front.
"But, of course," Kiara murmured. Paul looked at her. She nodded her head and gestured him to concentrate on driving.
After ten minutes or so, Paul turned right onto a paved path.
The hospital was located in the heart of the town. The lake as well as Elmo's place was almost equidistant from it. Kiara had crossed it earlier too, but thought of it as an old abandoned building. The hospital looked as sick as the patients visiting it.
Paul opened the door and took his sister in his arms; she smiled at him. Paul smiled in return. Kiara felt warmth in her heart looking at them.
She started walking behind them while looking around. The area around the hospital was in equally bad shape. Grass was as big as the shrubs surrounding the path. It seemed as though no one had trimmed either in years. Used syringes and glass bottles were lying in one corner. The fungus had grown on it giving it a scary look. Anyone could get sick here, she thought.
Paul put his sister down on one of the benches in the lobby.
"I will check for the Doctor. Sometimes he is late," he said and left.
Kiara looked at her watch. It was quarter past nine. She could not afford to reach late and face Harrison's wrath. Paul had promised to drop her, but if the doctor was late, she might have to find another mode of transport.
Again she looked at Paula, but she did not respond to her friendliness. It was also getting awkward as other patients and hospital staff had started noticing her. Each one of them was scanning her from head to toe, making her
even more uncomfortable.
After five minutes or so, Paul came out, "The doctor will see her now."
Kiara heaved a sigh of relief and followed them.
The hospital had more patients than it could handle. Some were lying in the hall, others in makeshift dormitories.
The doctor looked at her as they entered.
She took a chair in the corner while the doctor checked Paula. In between, he kept looking at her, trying to find out who she was. She smiled a couple of times, but after that she ignored him completely. She pretended to read one of the medical journals lying on the side table.
"She did not take her medicine, isn't it?" he yelled at Paul, "You people don't deserve treatment."
Kiara closed the journal and looked at him. His eyes were burning with anger. Paul was looking down, while Paula was just staring at the wall.
After a minute or so, he shook his head and got up. He opened one of the cabinets behind him and threw a box of medicine towards Paul.
"This is the last time I am giving the samples free to you," he said firmly, "You better make arrangements to buy it yourself next time."
Paul nodded and looked at Kiara as he and Paula were about to come out.
"You wait outside. I need to talk to him," Kiara said as Paul reached out for the door.
Kiara pulled the chair opposite the doctor who had gone back to his files by now.
"Hi, Doctor," she said while tapping on the table.
"Yes," he replied back, "I didn't recognize you. And, how do you know Paul?"
"I am a student. I am here to study the impact of the factory on Kingston's ecosystem," Kiara gave the rehearsed answer.
Doctor looked at her for a moment," So, you have already seen the impact, then."
"Do you really think this is because of the factory?" she asked further.
"I don't have any other explanation for her or any other patient lying outside," he replied back.
"But, did the court take your medical opinion?"
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