CHAPTER THREE: Find her
1440 Words
Redrigos Mansion
A heavy silence settled over the Redrigos mansion as news of Sara's escape finally reached the household.
Inside his private study, Mr. Sanchez Redrigo slowly turned his chair until he was facing Lucas.
His expression was unreadable.
But his eyes...
They were cold.
"What did you just say, Lucas?"
Before Lucas could answer, Mr. Redrigo snatched the glass of wine from his desk and hurled it against the wall.
Crash!
The sound echoed through the study.
Pieces of broken glass scattered across the polished floor.
Fear instantly swept through the room.
Lucas flinched.
Even the guards standing behind him lowered their heads, not daring to say a word.
The silence that followed felt heavier than the sound of the breaking glass.
Mr. Redrigo rose from his chair and walked toward Lucas with slow, measured steps.
Without warning—
He slapped him hard across the face.
The force sent Lucas crashing to his knees.
"I'm sorry, boss. This has never happened before. We—"
Before he could finish, Mr. Redrigo cut him off.
"This has never happened before..."
His voice echoed across the room.
"And yet it happened today because four foolish security men couldn't do the one job they were hired to do."
He pointed angrily at Lucas.
"How could you let one person disappear right under your noses?"
"You are all a bunch of losers who don't know how to do your jobs."
"You let a lady escape from a place that was supposed to be heavily guarded."
He took another step closer until he was standing directly in front of Lucas.
"What exactly do I pay you for?"
"To sleep?"
Lucas kept his head lowered, too frightened to meet his boss's eyes.
"I'm sorry, boss," he said quietly.
"I suddenly lost consciousness, and before I woke up, she had already managed to escape."
He swallowed nervously before continuing.
"The security men were changing shifts, which may have created the opportunity she used."
"We searched through Wildthorn Avenue and every road connected to it, but we couldn't find any trace of her."
He paused briefly.
"We followed the trail of blood she left behind, but once we reached the main road..."
"...it suddenly disappeared."
His voice became even quieter.
"It looked like someone may have helped her."
For a brief moment, the room fell silent.
Then Mr. Redrigo walked forward, grabbed Lucas by the collar, and yanked him up.
"Can you hear yourself, Lucas?"
His voice was low.
Dangerously calm.
"Changing shifts?"
He let out a cold scoff.
"Or were all of you sleeping on duty?"
With one rough shove, he pushed Lucas backward.
"I don't care how you searched yesterday."
"All I know is that Sara must be back here before noon tomorrow."
His voice rose again.
"How on earth could you allow such a foolish mistake to happen?"
He walked back toward his desk and placed both hands firmly on it.
"Do you know how many billions of Australian dollars I have invested in a deal connected to Sara?"
He slowly turned around.
"All because of that design."
Then he pointed at Lucas once more.
"And now you stand before me telling me she's gone?"
He shook his head in disbelief.
"You know it has to be Sara."
"No one else."
"If she disappears..."
He paused, his jaw tightening.
"...this entire company goes down."
Lucas felt fear crawl through every part of his body.
Mr. Redrigo slowly walked back toward him and leaned close to his ear.
"If you don't want to lose your job..."
He paused deliberately.
"...or have your mother's hospital treatment stopped..."
Lucas's eyes widened.
Fear flashed across his face.
"...then do the needful."
Mr. Redrigo stepped back.
"Launch a search for Sara."
"I shouldn't have to tell you what to do."
Lucas nodded immediately.
"I'll do that, boss."
Mr. Redrigo straightened his suit.
"Good."
Then he pointed toward the door.
"Now get out of my sight..."
"...and make sure the next news I hear is a good one."
His eyes locked onto Lucas's.
"Find her."
Lucas quickly got to his feet.
Without saying another word, he lowered his head respectfully and hurried out of the study.
As he reached the doorway, he came face to face with Mrs. Victoria Redrigo.
He stopped immediately.
"Good morning, ma'am."
Victoria gave a slight nod.
Lucas lowered his head once more before quietly walking past her.
As he disappeared down the hallway, something caught Victoria's attention.
She frowned slightly.
A white bandage was wrapped around the side of his head.
Why was he injured?
Curiosity flickered across her face.
She pushed the study door open and stepped inside.
Her husband was pacing back and forth across the room, his hands clasped behind his back.
The shattered pieces of glass still lay scattered across the floor.
One glance around the room was enough to tell her he was furious.
"Honey..."
She walked toward him.
"What happened to Lucas?"
"Why is his head bandaged?"
Mr. Redrigo let out a long, frustrated sigh.
"The i***t let Sara escape."
Victoria froze.
"What?"
"How could that happen?"
"We were almost done with that deal."
She looked at him in disbelief.
"How could Lucas make such a careless mistake?"
She walked closer and gently rubbed his shoulders, trying to calm him.
"It's okay, honey."
"You know getting angry isn't good for you."
"Please..."
"Calm down."
She waited until he took a slow breath before continuing.
"We have to find a way to bring her back before our enemies do."
She folded her arms.
"Or the company will face serious consequences."
Her expression suddenly turned thoughtful.
"If I had known..."
"...I would have told Lucas to bring her back into the house yesterday."
She sighed quietly.
"I only wanted to teach her another lesson."
"I never expected Sara to outsmart him."
A faint, irritated smile appeared on her lips.
"She thinks she's clever."
Mr. Redrigo rubbed his forehead tiredly.
"Darling..."
"If we don't get Sara back before this month ends..."
"...this company could begin falling apart."
Victoria's expression became serious.
She looked at him carefully before asking,
"Tell me something."
"What kind of deal do you have with Ethan Kessler?"
She paused.
"And why would you involve yourself with a man like that?"
Her voice dropped slightly.
"How did you end up doing business with a devil like Ethan Kessler?"
For several long seconds...
Mr. Redrigo said nothing.
He simply walked toward the large window overlooking the estate.
Standing with his back to her, he stared silently into the distance.
Only after a long pause did he finally speak.
"I'll tell you soon enough, woman."
His voice was calm.
"But right now..."
"...our only priority is finding Sara."
He slowly turned to face her.
"Because if we don't..."
He sighed heavily.
"...we're finished."
"I've already ordered Lucas to launch a search operation."
"Even if they have to turn the whole of Australia upside down..."
His face hardened.
"Sara must be brought back here before tomorrow night."
Lucas
Lucas walked out of the mansion with fear weighing heavily on his chest.
His mother's face kept flashing through his mind.
He couldn't bear the thought of her treatment being stopped.
That was his greatest fear.
And he couldn't let it happen.
Not because of one mistake.
No matter what it took...
He had to find Sara.
Mr. Redrigo had already made the consequences clear.
Failure was no longer an option.
The moment he stepped outside, he gathered the guards waiting in the compound.
They quickly formed a line in front of him.
Lucas looked at each of them, his expression hard.
"We have to find Sara."
His voice was firm.
"Or every single one of you will lose your jobs."
His sharp gaze swept across the group.
"None of this would've happened if you had done your jobs properly."
Silence followed.
No one dared to respond.
Lucas took a step forward.
"Check every possible route."
"Every road connected to where we last saw the trail of her blood."
He pointed toward one of the guards.
"Show her picture to everyone around those areas."
"Ask if anyone has seen her."
He turned to the rest of the team.
"We'll move through every nearby neighborhood immediately."
"No one is to be ignored."
His finger shifted toward the vehicles parked outside the mansion.
"The operation starts now."
"Move!"
Immediately, everyone sprang into action.
Some rushed toward the vehicles.
Others collected Sara's photograph before splitting into different search teams.
Within minutes, the sound of engines roared through the compound as one vehicle after another sped out of the Redrigos mansion.
The search for Sara had officially begun.
- Writer
