Cross Roads

Chapter 259 It was already 8 PM. and Molly and the others still hadn't found her. They were extremely anxious "Where could she have gone? Diana looked worriedly at the darkening sky outside, holding her phone tightly. She tried calling Stephanie, but her phone was off Molly and the others had searched the area twice and finally combed every corner of the neighborhood garden without finding a trace.

They returned to the apartment, where Oscar had sent sburly men to help, scaring off Andrea, who was only brave when dealing with the weak.

"I'm sorry, it's all my mother's fault, Molly said, her face full of shame. She sat anxiously on the sofa, clutching her phone.

Diana didn't bring up Andrea again. The living room was brightly lit by the overhead light. Both women sat on the sofa, restless and worried. They had no idea where to start looking Diana glanced at the clock on the wall and sighed. "Stephanie has always been like this. She is not the kind of girl who are fragile and tearful. Instead, she's fierce and dismissive of boys, thinking they're useless. She's not particularly strong, but whenever something upsets her, she hides away she explained, recalling how Stephanie never reached out to others.

Feeling somewhat reassured, Diana said to Molly, "She probably just wants squiet talone. We don't have to worry too much. We're al hungry. I'll make spasta.” Molly watched as Diana walked towards the kitchen. Despite her words, they both knew Stephanie's temperament well, and neither had much of an appetite for this struation.

Under normal circumstances, she wouldn't care how long Stephanie hid away, but the recent events had been too distressing. She was adroid Stephanie might do something drastic.

"Ms. Clark, why don't we look around again” Molly stood up car keys in hand, ready to head for the door.

At this moment, the door suddenly opened from the outside, and a familiar figure e walked in..

Seeing the person. Molly immediately rushed forward excitedly and grabbed his arm. "Oscar, do you have any news about Stephanie?" Not used to physical contact. Oscar subdy pulled his hand back and replied calmly, "No" Hearing the door, Diana rushed out of the kitchen. Then she heard Oscars response, and her face grew even more worried.

Oscar had sent many people to look for her but still hadn't found her. Where could she have gone! "Oscar, luve you checked the nearby surveillance cameras! She must have left the neighborhood first. There should be cameras in the nearby supermarkets and banks. If Stephanie passed by, they would have caught her on tape. How cyou haven't found her? Molly asked, growing more frantic as she tried to guide him on how to track Stephanie down.

Oscar didn't say much, simply walking into the apartment.

"Oscar, do you not have connections in Havencrest! Maybe we should ask Scout for help. Molly followed him closely as if he were her last hope, Suddenly, she remembered another well-connected friend in Havencrest.

"I know! We should ask Vincent for help. He has a lot of shady friends. He used to be close to Stephanie. With his temper, he would definitely help -us," she continued, giving him ideas from behind, However, Oscar seemed unmoved by her suggestions. He walked straight into the guest room where Stephanie had been resting, carefully inspecting the surroundings as if searching for something.

Molly finally fell silent, watching him sulkily as he searched every corner.

She knew that Oscar, with his abilities, must have already tried the ideas she mentioned. Stephanie's route must have been too obscure, and the nearby street cameras didn't catch her, which was why there was still no news "Hey, we're all apprehensive. What are you looking for here! Wouldn't it be better to go out and search together?" she urged him impatiently.

Just as she spoke, her eyes lit up. Oscar roughly pried of a slight blue glass ornament from the wardrobe handle Molly craned her neck to get a closer look, her expression stunned. "What's that?" "A wireless camera, Oscar replied casually.

Molly saw the tiny circum board and wires behind the glass ornament and quickly added, "I saw Mason find a broken piece in the corner of the living room cabbefore. It looked similar to this, but it was a red ornament. And my mom also found four black wireless cameras in the trash" she said, her eyes scanning the apartment again, a chill running down her spine Chapter 259 She never imagined that her hhad been bugged with so many cameras, their private lives laid bare, "The black ones were mine, Oscar admitted calmly.

Molly stared at him for a moment, shocked. "Why are you so creepy? Installing those things, he should have at least informed them first. Oscar ignored her accusation and placed the disguised camera in her hand. “You should be more concerned about who planted this here His tone was flat, but those who knew him well could detect a hint of anger. Then he turned and walked out. Molly stood there, dumbfounded, staring at the tiny camera in her hand. A chill ran down her spine.

Who could it be? Even Oscar hadn't noticed, so who had the skill to do She quickly ran out after him. “Oscar, should we turn the place upside down and search thoroughly?" Being spied on made her feel incredibly unsafe, and she had no idea what the person's intentions were.

Meanwhile, Diana, holding her phone, suddenly shouted joyfully. "Stephanie texted me? Molly was stunned for a moment, then forgot all about the surveillance cameras. She rushed over, excited. Did Stephanie text you? What did she say?" The message read: [Don't worry about me. I'm staying at a hotel and need stalone. It I'll conta contact you tommerour.

It was indeed a text from Stephanie's phone. The brief message finally allowed Molly and the others to sigh in relief.

"Oscar, do you think this message could be fake!" Molly, still cautious, took Diana's phone and ran to the balcony to show him.

Oscar stood by a a cabon the balcony, his slender right hand stroking a whiteboard, lost in thought Molly brightened the phone screen and held it in front of him. He glanced at it briefly. “It's from Stephanie,” he said with calm certainly "Really? Don't you need to check What if someone's pretending to be her? What if she's in danger?" Molly was still skeptical, her mind racing with conspiracy theories after discovering the cameras Oscar pointed to a symbol on the screen with his slender finger and calmly answered, "These two "—" symbols. It's a code Stephanie used to playfully communicate withMolly didn't fully understand, but it reassured her that Stephanie was safe.

Finally, her stomach growled with hunger, so she joined Diana for spasta.

As they are, the grumbled, "Why did she go to a hotel and not tell us which one! If she doesn't cback by noon tomorrow, we'll search all the hotels to find her." In reality, Stephanie wasn't at a hotel.

She had planned to stay at a hotel for the night but was still alone in an old park in a rundown town This old park had fallen into disrepair, and most of the nearby residents had moved away. Overgrown with weeds and almost deserted, it had a ghostly feel, with a lone streetlamp flickering eerily. At night, the park was desolate and spooky, The seesaw

and the small carousel were rusty and peeling, and a large children's giraffe slide stood to the far leftm Beneath the slide was a U-shaped opening where children once loved to crawl and play. Stephanie huddled there alone, her limbs drawn in tightly as she stared vacantly into the distance.

She had been hiding here for hours. After leaving Molly's apartment, she didn't know where to go. She had nowhere to go As she wandered aimlessly, she spotted the dilapidated slide and darted inside like a hunted animal, seeking refuge.

Stephanie sat in a corner, silently watching the sunset, and the world turned dark.

She knew Molly and the others would worry about her, and she didn't want to cause them more trouble.

When she turned on her phone, she saw numerous missed calls and messages from Diana. This realization darkened her mood further, She felt increasingly useless, a burden in everyone around her, Her eyes were red and swollen as she looked at the screen of her phone. She quickly typed and sent a text message.

And now, her mind was blank.

Stephanie knew she should leave and find a hotel for the night, but she felt a strong aversion to moving she didn't want to leave this desolate place. She just wanted in hide. She was terrified of facing the outside world and interacting with others. She didn't want to see want to see anyone or say anything.

The park was silent, her mind blank, but her nerves were on rilge. When a car pulled up nearby, its screeching brakes breaking the stillness, she was Chapter 250 filled with panic and helplessness.

Stephanie hoped it was just someone passing by, But she was wrong. Soon, steady footsteps approached her hiding spot. Her face turned pale, and she grew increasingly anxious Who is it? Who had planted those cameras in the apartment? Who is trying to harm me?' she thought.

Holding her breath, Stephanie trembled uncontrollably as the footsteps drew nearer. Finally, the person stopped at the the opening of the slide. The dim streetlight outside cast a long shadow that fell across her path, making her freeze in terror. Then, she heard a familiar voice, "How much longer are you going to hide in there!" On this early winter night, that deep, calm voice echoed amid the desolate silence, reverberating through the empty park.

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