Chapter 244 - Sasha’s Disappearance
Lilia, who had already changed into a white T-shirt and black training pants, bolted into the living room. She looked at Dina and Rini who were standing near the door.
"Is the news from the film crew true?" Lilia asked in disbelief, "Sasha has disappeared since yesterday and no one has heard of it yet?"
Dina didn't immediately answer Lilia's question. The young woman stole a quick glance at Jean who was relaxing on the sofa. Seeing that Jean didn't show any reaction regarding this topic, Dina concluded that she was allowed to tell Lilia.
"Yes, it's true." Dina nodded, "No one has seen her since yesterday afternoon. They all assumed that Miss Sasha had left the set, but today the hotel called Mr. Louis about Miss Sasha's room. That's when they realized that she was missing." Dina explained.
Lilia's assistant told more details about what happened. It all started with the hotel staff who walked into Sasha's room to clean up this morning. The staff was suspicious because the room was barely touched, as if no one had occupied it. The only sign that the room was occupied was the presence of Sasha's suitcase which was still tightly closed.
The staff reported the situation to management, who thought Louis had purposely booked the room as a spare. Management called Louis to ask if they could lend the room to other guests in need if no crew members were using the room.
The management's action was understandable, as the hotel was located only 300 meters away from the river and had spectacular natural views. The hotel had become famous as a favorite lodging place for travelers and always needed an empty room.
That's when Louis realized that Sasha had disappeared. The director tried to call Sasha, but her cell phone was turned off. He asked all the film crew members and the actors, but they all said that no one had seen her since yesterday's shoot.
Everyone deliberately kept their distance from Sasha because of her arguments with Lilia and also because of her identity as an investor. To them, investors were like a time bomb that could explode at any time. They were afraid to do something that would offend Sasha and cause her to withdraw her investment, thereby destroying the entire filming progress.
That's why it took them a whole day to realize that the woman was missing.
Louis tried to contact his acquaintances in Magetan and Jakarta. But unfortunately, no one saw Sasha or was able to reach her. At that point, the crew started to panic. If something happened to Sasha while she was supposed to be present at the filming, the other investors would withdraw their funds!
Louis finally made the decision to report this case to the police. He and the crew were unfamiliar with this area. Coupled with the large number of people who came to watch the filming, it was almost impossible to find Sasha on their own. While the director was reporting a missing person case, the rest of the crew scattered around the river and conducted a massive search.
Apart from the police, Louis was also trying to ask Sonny for help as the head of the tourism department. Unfortunately, it so happened that the man had to go to an important business meeting in Jakarta so that he couldn't help Louis. However, Sonny showed his support by contacting the police directly and telling them to help find Sasha until she was found.
Around ten in the morning, Lilia was still in the sitting room of her hotel room. She threw a grain of wine into her mouth while glancing at the man beside her. Jean looked busy with the iPed in his hand.
"Jean, will your subordinates be able to find Sasha, just like they found Leila back then?" Lilia asked while chewing on her wine. The pulp was sweet and chewy in texture, indicating its superior quality.
The hotel had provided the fruit for free as a form of their welcome. Lilia ate the fruit to regain her strength as she didn't know what to do about the situation.
Lilia took another grain of wine and fed it to Jean. The man opened his mouth obediently, like a chick that was fed by its mother.
Dina and Rini exchanged astonished gazes from near the door. They never thought that they would see the cold and terrifying fourth son of the Widjaya Family being fed by his wife. The gentle expression on Jean's face made their boss suddenly look more human than usual.
But Jean would still punish them if the man found out that they were laughing at him. So the two women were desperately holding back laughter while continuing to observe this situation with great interest.
Meanwhile, Jean finally looked up from his iPed when he heard Lilia's question. The man couldn't hide the faint surprise in his eyes.
"Are you worried about Sasha?" Jean asked in surprise.
The Hiroshi Family's daughter had never treated Lilia well. On the contrary, Sasha always tried to cause trouble and make life difficult for his wife. If Jean was in Lilia's position, he wouldn't care about that woman's situation. He would instead hope that Sasha was never found again. Lilia's words just now made Jean amazed.
Lilia smiled and shook her head when she saw Jean's surprise. She could guess her husband's thoughts, but Lilia wasn't that kind of person. To be honest, she didn't really care if Sasha disappeared. The woman was an adult and should be able to take responsibility for her own safety.
But Sasha was still Jean's childhood friend. Lilia was worried that the man might be worried about the fate of his best friend, who had disappeared somewhere. If possible, Lilia wanted to save Jean from the pain of losing his best friend, just like Lilia experienced when Rachel disappeared.
"Hmm ... I'm a little worried." Lilia shrugged her shoulders, "It's just that, I wonder why Sasha disappeared. Is she lost? Or…kidnapped by someone?" Lilia's voice changed softly as she mentioned the last possibility. Her own experience of being kidnapped by the mafia flashed through her mind.
Hearing that, Jean typed something on his iPed screen before thrusting it out to Lilia, "Look at this."
The woman leaned over to see the screen. The screen contained footage from a traffic camera installed on one of the highways near the hotel. The recording was silent and the picture's quality was low. However, the footage captured Sasha walking down the river where Lilia was filming yesterday.
The time on the tape was 10:12 a.m. The Hiroshi Family's daughter was making a phone call while walking. Her expression was not very clear, but she was stepping out in such a hurry. Lilia concluded that whatever Sasha was talking about on the phone was making her panic.
Lilia turned to Jean with an amazed look. The man was able to get the traffic camera video in just half an hour since Sasha was found missing. Even though they were far from Surabaya, the main household of the Widjaya Family, still, it didn't diminish Jean's abilities!
"Where did Sasha go?" Lilia asked as she watched the woman's figure disappear into one of the narrow alleyways.
Jean pulled back his iPed when the recording ended, "I have no idea. Sasha was last seen in this place."
Unfortunately, the security system in Magetan was not as good as a metropolitan city like Surabaya. Traffic cameras were only installed on major roads and did not cover places with low population.
Lilia rubbed her chin, "Does Sasha have any acquaintances here? When she disappeared, she was on a phone call. Is she trying to meet that person?"
Jean turned off his iPed and put it on the table, "Don't think too much about it.. Just wait for the news from my people."