CHAPTER 52: CHAPTER 52: IT’S HER, IT’S HER—RACHEL SHAW IS THE CULPRIT

Listening to the woman, the two men turned to look at Sophie, their eyes shining with greed, without hesitation, "Yes, we will do as you instructed, but the money..."

"You won’t miss out," the woman said, stepping away.

Sophie couldn’t see the people in front clearly, but the woman’s voice felt familiar to her.

The two men escorted the woman out, and the door was opened and closed again.

Sophie moved her small hand, trying to get up, but as soon as she supported herself a little, her weak arms couldn’t hold on and collapsed.

At five years old, Sophie already understood the concept of kidnapping.

Sophie also knew that this time was different from when she was taken by the bad daddy.

The bad daddy wouldn’t harm her and would even buy her lots of candies to cheer her up.

But this time, it was different; these people meant to harm her.

Sophie’s innocent mind couldn’t fathom why anyone would want to harm her.

She only knew that from now on, she might not see Mommy, her brothers, her godmother, Uncle Strange, or the bad daddy...

Was Mommy worrying about her now, would her brothers be crying anxiously?

Suddenly feeling very sad.

Sophie was unable to move, but her mind became increasingly clear as the drug wore off.

The two men soon returned, and Sophie felt a dark shadow looming over her.

"Oh, this little girl even cried."

"You heard what we said just now, right?"

"Little girl, don’t blame us; we have to earn a living too. Finishing this job with you will keep us comfortable for a long time."

"Stop the chatter, let’s finish this quickly and get our money."

With that, the two men walked to the side, put on long waterproof aprons used in slaughterhouses, donned gloves, and picked up sticks with dried blood in the corner, walking towards Sophie...

...

A five-year-old disappearing from school is no small matter, and the school had already notified the police before informing Ivy Summers.

The school checked the surveillance cameras but found nothing unusual; they only saw Sophie telling the teacher she was going to the restroom, but she didn’t return, and no one saw her leave the school; she was just gone.

Sophie had always been well-protected, and she never encountered danger in Yrador, nor did anyone dare to touch her. Ivy Summers never thought the day would come when Sophie would suddenly disappear.

The school couldn’t find her, and no one saw her leave the school. This news left Ivy Summers in a panic, with a very bad premonition.

"Sophie’s Mom, don’t worry. We’ve informed the authorities; the child will be found."

Ivy Summers, with reddened eyes, stared at the teacher, "My child went missing from your school. Shouldn’t your school give me an explanation?"

"Sophie’s Mom, I..." The teacher was close to tears, never expecting something like this to happen.

Ivy Summers pressed her lips together, taking a deep breath, knowing it wasn’t the time for blame.

Maybe Sophie’s disappearance wasn’t so simple.

"Ivy, I’ll go get Nathan and Leo out first."

Ivy Summers nodded, "Okay."

Ella Morgan rushed to the classroom. Because a student went missing, the school had already let all parents take their children home, fearing something else might happen.

At that moment, Nathan and Leo were in the monitoring room, surrounded by several security guards, teachers, and the principal.

The two kids were very serious, their fingers moving swiftly and skillfully on the keyboard, working in tandem, one checking the surveillance inside the teaching building, and the other checking the school entrance’s surveillance.

Soon, Nathan’s calm eyes tightened, "The surveillance has been altered."

Leo turned his head, "Mine too."

It was clear that part of the footage had been replaced, so the security guards watching the surveillance noticed nothing unusual.

The entrance surveillance was the same.

During the time Sophie went missing, there was no vehicle coming or going at the entrance.

But the entire school had been searched, and no one could find her; obviously, Sophie was no longer at the school.

The situation was clear; this was a premeditated kidnapping.

"Nathan, Leo."

Ella Morgan rushed in anxiously.

The two little ones, seeing Ella Morgan, couldn’t hold their composure any longer.

Leo burst into tears, "Godmother... we couldn’t protect our sister..."

Seeing them checking the surveillance and now crying, Ella Morgan realized the situation wasn’t optimistic.

Her eyes stung, and she patted Leo, comforting him, "Good Leo, don’t cry now; your sister will be fine. Nathan, did the surveillance reveal anything?"

Nathan lowered his head and shook it, "Someone altered it."

"Altered?"

The planning was so thorough; whoever arranged all this was definitely not simple.

"Is there any way to restore it?"

"I’ll try, but it will take time." Nathan immediately continued looking at the computer, working hard to restore the surveillance.

The police quickly arrived to investigate.

Ella Morgan took Ivy Summers’s slightly trembling hand and pulled her aside, "Ivy, this is obviously a premeditated kidnapping. Did you offend anyone here?"

Ivy Summers pressed her lips tightly and shook her head, "No."

"Then... could it be Damien Lancaster?"

"Damien Lancaster? Are you saying Damien Lancaster took the child?"

"Hasn’t he been investigating? Could it possibly be him?"

"No." Ivy Summers shook her head.

Damien Lancaster had already done a paternity test; at this moment, he must be convinced that Sophie isn’t his daughter. Since he believes that, why take Sophie?

And though Damien Lancaster might be a bit of a jerk in matters of the heart, he’s not a bad person. Even if he knew Sophie was his child, he wouldn’t stoop so low to take her away like this.

Ivy Summers closed her eyes, trying hard to think about who it could be.

Not only was Sophie taken, but even the surveillance was altered... This person must have some power and means.

An enemy?

Ivy Summers’s heart sank suddenly.

Rachel Shaw?

Sophie had once offended Rachel Shaw; Rachel had even tried to scald Sophie with water!

If there’s anyone in Aethelgard who’d do such a thing.

It’s only her.

"It’s her!"

Ella Morgan’s eyes widened, "Who?"

"Rachel Shaw!"

Besides Rachel Shaw, Ivy Summers couldn’t think of another person.

Ella Morgan frowned, "Did she find out Sophie is your child?"

"I don’t know." Ivy Summers bit her lip, looking extremely distressed.

"Then let’s quickly tell the police to arrest Rachel Shaw."

"No." Ivy Summers grabbed Ella Morgan, steadying her frantic emotions, murmuring, "It’s no use, no use. If she’s dared to do this, she’s fully prepared. We now have no evidence, only suspicion it’s her. Telling the police like this is useless; them investigating would only alert her."

"Then what do we do? Rachel Shaw is so malicious; if Sophie falls into her hands..."

Ella Morgan dared not think further.

"No, Ivy, you must tell Damien Lancaster that Sophie is his child and have him send people to find her. He has power and authority, and his search would be much quicker than ours."

Ivy Summers pressed her lips tightly, clenching her trembling hands, preventing panic, "I’ll make a call."