252

252
  Chapter 252
  Olivia 
  ~•~
  It had been over two days and we still hadn’t heard from Riley. The last time I spoke to her, she agreed to come back to the house. 
  I canceled everything I had planned for that day just to wait for her, but she never showed up. I tried calling her numerous times but her number was unavailable. 
  I made sure to call everyone I knew to ask if she was at their house, but they claimed that they hadn’t seen her. I didn’t even know how to feel. 
  Did she ghost us again just to teach us a lesson or was she actually hurt? I was feeling restless the first day and decided to stay calm, hoping she would reach out later, but she didn’t. 
  I was able to get some sleep the first time but on the second night, I couldn’t even close my eyes for up to five minutes. I was up thinking about my daughter. 
  Her friends from school claimed they hadn’t heard from her either. Even Harper, her closest friend, had no idea where she was. 
  She said Riley told her that she was on her way back to the house. It became strange because I didn’t think Riley would lie to her friends about her whereabouts. 
  Even the Mason boy had no idea where she was. 
  I had cried my eyes out and done everything I could do by myself to find her, but I still couldn’t get a hold of her. 
  Initially, Alexander felt she was just messing with us. But after analyzing the entire situation, he realized something was wrong the next day. 
  A part of me hoped that she just ghosted us and would come back whenever she was ready, but I couldn’t shake off this strong feeling that something was wrong. 
  What if someone had kidnapped my baby? 
  I was waiting for Alexander in the living room. We decided to finally go to the police station. I was mad at myself for taking too long. 
  We could have gone to the police on the first day, just to be on the safer side. I wouldn’t forgive myself if she was actually in danger and we took so long to find her. 
  After a few more minutes, Alexander came downstairs. 
  “Calm down, we are going to find her.” 
  His attempt to reassure me failed. I was angry at him. I knew it wasn’t the time to throw blame around but it was his fault. Everything that was happening was his fault. 
  If only he had shoved away his ego, Riley wouldn’t have left the house. I just hoped that we would actually find her without a hassle. 
  He walked to the car while I quietly trailed behind him. My heart was heavy and I couldn’t stop my tears from rolling down my face. 
  When Alexander saw that I was in tears again, he pulled me into a comforting hug. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry you have to go through this.” He whispered in my ear. “I take full responsibility, I’ll let her be with whoever she wants when we find her.” 
  I held back a scoff. So it took something bad to happen before he considered changing his mind about Riley’s love life. 
  I fought back my tears, sniffling quietly. 
  After a while, he broke the hug and opened the front door. I got inside and settled down on the passenger’s seat. Alexander closed the door before going back to the driver’s seat. 
  “You don’t want the officers to see you like this.” He handed me a tissue. “Wipe off your tears, baby.” He added, his voice soft and sympathetic. 
  “Officers? Please, we need detectives to start working on the case right away!” I replied, by voice filled with determination. “There’s no time to work with the police officers.” 
  Alexander sighed as he nodded in agreement. “Yes, you’re right.” He replied, starting the car engine. “I’ll request for detectives instead.” 
  As we drove to the station, Amanda called to ask if we had seen Riley. “I could have sworn that she was going back home when she left,” Amanda replied when I told her that we still hadn’t seen Riley. “It’s all my fault, I should’ve taken her home myself.” 
  Ever since Amanda realized that Riley was missing, she wouldn’t stop blaming herself. No matter how hard I tried to convince her that she had nothing to do with it, she didn’t listen.
  “It’s not your fault, Amanda,” I assured her. “Alexander and I are on our way to the police station. We will find Riley soon.” I added like I was so sure. 
  “Okay, keep me posted,” Amanda replied and I nodded. 
  After the call ended, I put my phone back in my purse and focused on the road. “Drive faster,” I said to Alexander and he nodded. 
  He increased his pace and in no time, we arrived at the police station. Alexander parked the car in the driveway and we went into the station together. 
  It had been a long time since I last visited the police station. I didn’t like being there. 
  As we walked through the hallway, all eyes were on us. I was sure that they were all wondering what we were doing at the station. 
  I knew it would be on the news soon. 
  I didn’t care though. I just wanted to find my daughter. 
  Alexander requested to see the detectives. At first, they wanted to protest against it. But he offered them a large sum of money and they agreed. 
  I guess that was one of the perks of being a billionaire.
  They led us to the office and took down our statement. They also asked for Riley’s personal information and we gave them everything they needed. 
  “We’ll get back to you in a few minutes, let’s start by tracking her car.” One of the detectives informed us as he gestured for us to have a seat outside his office. 
  Alexander intertwined his hands with mine, hoping to give me some sort of comfort while we waited. While the detective did their job, I prayed silently that Riley was safe. 
  A few minutes later, the detective came back. “We found her car.” 
  My heart skipped a bit. “Where is her car? Where is she?” 
  “Her car is parked at a gas station, but it has been there for two days.” The detective replied solemnly. 
  My heart flew out of my chest. “Two days?” 
  Riley didn’t ghost us. Riley was actually missing!