Chapter 113

Three days later, Josie got a call from the police.

Hayden told her the investigation was wrapped up, and she just needed to come in and sign some papers to close the case.

Josie didn’t waste any time. She headed to the station that afternoon. As soon as she arrived, she spotted Sean getting out of his car.

“Sean?” Josie blurted out in surprise.

Sean walked over. “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”

“Hayden said I just needed to sign my name,” Josie replied, not wanting to trouble anyone.

Sean knew her well enough not to push it, but his face was tight. “Let’s go. I want to hear the results too.”

Hayden filled them in.

The five men who kidnapped Josie confessed that they were just following orders from a man named Reynard Sandoval, who owned an entertainment club. He told them to kidnap Josie, keep her overnight, and then he would show up to save her, hoping to make Josie willingly work at his club.

According to the investigation, Reynard was an heir to a wealthy family about twenty years ago, but he squandered his family fortune living a life of indulgence and idleness. When he was young, he even did time in prison for getting into fights. After getting out, he toned down his act a bit and opened an entertainment club, where he often lured clueless young girls into working for him.

After Reynard was arrested, he confessed that the reason he had Josie kidnapped was that he had happened to spot her near the hospital a few days before it all went down. He thought she looked sweet and innocent. His club had recently attracted some big shots who were into her style. That was when he started having dirty ideas.

Josie just couldn’t accept that explanation. “I’ve got nothing against him. If he wanted me to work for him, there are a million ways to ask. Why go straight to kidnapping? I don’t believe that’s the real reason.”

Hayden shrugged. “We didn’t buy it either, so based on your suspicions, we looked into his recent activities. The results showed that lately, he’s only been at the hospital or the entertainment club. He hasn’t gone anywhere else. We also checked all his communications devices, but there’s no evidence at all that he was acting on anyone else’s orders when he had you kidnapped.”

Josie’s brows furrowed. “I have some people I’m suspicious of. Did you investigate them too? Are you sure Reynard never had any dealings with them?” Josie pressed.

Hayden shook his head. “The people you’re suspicious of have special status. We can’t directly investigate their social circles, but we did secretly check all their communication devices, and there wasn’t any sign of contact between them, let alone any private meetings. From the evidence we have so far, these people have absolutely nothing to do with each other. They probably don’t even know one another!”

Josie looked disappointed. If it weren’t for everything she’d been through in her previous life, she might have thought she’d misjudged Natalie. But now, all Josie could think was that she’d really underestimated Natalie. She never expected Natalie could cover her tracks so well that no one could pin anything on her.

It seemed like there was nothing more she could do about it now. Josie rubbed her face. “So, what kind of punishment are those guys actually facing?”

“Once you sign the paperwork, we’ll file charges, and then the court will sentence them according to what they’ve done,” Hayden replied.

Hayden reassured them, “Don’t worry, these guys are in serious trouble, not just for kidnapping you, but the club is getting shut down too. We’re going to dig deep into what’s been going on at that club. Trust me, this is going to be a big case.”

As they left the police station, Josie felt a heavy weight on her chest. She knew that someone would soon take Reynard’s place after he went to prison. The Kinberg family’s roots in Aloville ran too deep. There was no way she could shake their hold right now. Getting her revenge would be anything but easy.

“Still not willing to let it go?” Sean reached out and stopped her.

Josie nodded. “You might not believe me, but I’m certain Natalie is the mastermind behind all this. If she pulled it off once, she’ll definitely try again. I was just lucky this time. Who knows about next time…”

“I believe you,” Sean said, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. He added, “From now on, whatever you do, don’t do it alone. I’ll be there to back you up.”