Chapter 63 Kidnapping

Chapter 63 Kidnapping
Ashley's POV

I woke up feeling like my head was about to explode. I groaned and crawled out of bed, every movement making the pounding worse.

"I can't drink that much ever again," I muttered, pressing my hands against my temples.

I couldn't even remember how I got home last night. There were scattered images in my brain. Susan raising her glass to mine. James asking me why I'd been drinking so much. Everything was a jumbled mess.

"I'll ask James about it later."

After washing up, my headache wasn't quite as brutal. I headed downstairs and found the house empty. Usually by this time, James would already be feeding Matthew breakfast.

I searched upstairs. James and Matthew were nowhere to be found.

I called James. He picked up right away.

"Matthew woke up really early today. I took him to the supermarket. We'll be home soon. I left some Menudo in the kitchen for you. It should help with the hangover."

For that instant, I felt like James had returned to being the considerate, caring James who looked out for others from before.

"Thank you so much."

I found the Menudo still warm in the kitchen. I drank a whole bowl. The spicy heat made me sweat instantly. My swollen, aching head felt so much better, like someone had finally let go of the giant hands that had been squeezing my skull.

After washing the bowl and putting the leftover soup in the fridge, James still wasn't back. I thought maybe they got held up somewhere, so I went upstairs to change and left for work.

I wasn't even close to the office building when James called.

I answered and told him I'd already left.

"Ashley! Matthew's missing!" James's voice was frantic.

I slammed on the brakes. The sudden stop threw me forward, then the seatbelt yanked me back into my seat.

"What? Where?" My brain was buzzing.

"The supermarket parking lot. The one near our house," James said.

I did a U-turn. James explained what happened over the phone.

He'd taken Matthew to buy some household stuff. When they got to the car, he remembered we were out of jam. Matthew said he was tired and couldn't walk anymore, so James told Matthew to wait in the car while he went back for the jam. When he returned, Matthew was gone. James immediately found the parking lot manager and checked the security cameras. The footage showed two strangers taking Matthew.

"Ashley, I'm sorry! I shouldn't have left Matthew in the car." James's voice was full of guilt.

"Did you call the police?" I asked.

"Yes."

My hands were shaking on the steering wheel. My mind was chaos. I couldn't think straight.

"I'll be right there," I told James and hung up.

I drove fast. Luckily, traffic was light and I made it to the outdoor parking lot without any problems.

James saw my car and ran over. When I stepped out, my legs were so weak I almost fell. Someone caught me.

"Thank you," I said.

Once I was steady, I realized two people had helped me up. James and Morrison.

I hadn't expected Morrison to be the one the police sent over.

But seeing him made me feel a lot calmer. Morrison was responsible. With him here, finding Matthew would go more smoothly.

"What's the situation now?" I asked Morrison.

"We checked the cameras. This was definitely a kidnapping. The cameras didn't catch these two men's faces. They know what they're doing. This isn't their first time."

"What do we do now?" I looked at Morrison desperately.

I had no clue what to do. All I could think about was whether Matthew was scared, how he was doing. I couldn't think clearly at all.

"Have the kidnappers called you?" Morrison asked.

I hadn't gotten any calls, but I pulled out my phone to check anyway. I prayed I'd just missed the ringtone somehow.

But there was nothing! Except for James calling me, no one else had contacted me.

Morrison looked confused. "Kidnappers usually contact family members to make demands. That's how we figure out what they want."

The kidnappers hadn't contacted me. The cameras didn't catch their faces. We had no way to find them.

"Who would do this? Why would anyone do this to Matthew? Matthew! My Matthew!" I completely broke down.

Matthew was like my second heart. Just thinking about Matthew leaving me forever made me feel like I couldn't stand up.

I stepped back and leaned against the car.

"Matthew keeps going through stuff like this. He's so little. He must be terrified," James said worriedly.

A thought suddenly flashed through my mind. Julio had kidnapped Matthew! He'd done this before more than once!

I turned and opened my car door, starting the engine again.

"Ashley, what are you doing? You're not in any condition to drive."

Morrison opened the door and grabbed my arm.

"Julio! It's Julio!" I told Morrison.

Morrison didn't ask for my reasons. He just told me to get in the police car so we could go find Julio together.

Julio's POV

"I want to go out!" I said impatiently to Kerr.

Kerr poured my glass full of wine. He was still respectful, but I didn't like what he was saying.

"Master Julio, the police won't let you leave. Your father also said you should stay home for now."

I slammed my wine glass down hard on the table.

"Enough. Leave me alone for a while."

Ever since I got back to Los Angeles from the cruise ship, I'd been taken to the police station. After giving my statement, Bill bailed me out.

That cop Morrison had started investigating the assassin from the cruise ship and my parents' case from three years ago all over again.

Morrison was stupid as hell. He insisted I'd killed all those people. He was as annoying as a mosquito.

Now I was stuck at home. I couldn't go see Ashley. It made me irritated.

The doorbell rang right then. The noise gave me a headache. I told Kerr to answer it.

I wasn't planning to deal with whoever it was. Kerr knew I wasn't in the mood to see anyone. He'd handle it.

But thirty seconds later, someone was standing in front of me.

"Julio, where did you hide Matthew?" Ashley asked anxiously.

Seeing her made me instantly happy. My mood lifted. I wasn't irritated anymore. My head stopped hurting.

"Ashley, you came to see me? You missed me too, didn't you?" I stood up and pulled Ashley into my arms.

I'd missed her so much. I buried my face in Ashley's hair and breathed in deeply.

It was Ashley! Her smell! She'd come to find me!

I was shaking with excitement all over. I lowered my head to kiss her, but James burst in and punched me in the face.

"You psycho! Give Matthew back!"

James was crazy, showing up and yelling.

What Matthew? I had no idea where any Matthew was.