Chapter 84 - Scarlet's Favourite Story

Claire checked her gun safety and led the small team of bodyguards. Every single one of them had radios and an earpiece. They were dressed like normal office workers and walked around discreetly. Claire too walked around carrying a file to hide the gun she was holding. Scarlet was in more danger than she thought she was.

The ex-commando first invaded the security room to review footage when Alex sneakily sent her a text about not seeing Scarlet after twenty minutes when she excused herself to the bathroom. Scarlet had also left her phone in her bag in the locker so nobody was able to find out where the young writer was.

Larissa had no choice but to let Alex search for her sister when the young heiress insisted. Jasper accompanied her and they found abandoned crutches on their very first try. Immediately, Alex called Carol who then relayed the message to Claire who had already seen images of Scarlet running away with a briefcase. The secretary then went to tell Alex and Jasper to follow Larissa as she arranged for someone to make a company-wide announcement. This was to create some sort of chaos while hiding Claire's secret operation.

Larissa wasn't too happy to be stuck with babysitting duties but the lady was still sane enough to understand that Mr Wilde still had the final say in everything. By now, about forty minutes had passed since Scarlet had excused herself to the washroom. The admin manager also knew that the briefcase was gone. It was most likely stolen by Scarlet and to prevent herself from being caught under suspicion, the manager decided to go along with the flow of the events. Trying to retrieve the briefcase and looking for the missing girl would only blow her cover immediately. If things started going south, the admin manager wouldn't hesitate to cast away her lover to save herself.

The ex-commando saw the last footage of Scarlet hopping down a hallway with the briefcase but the cameras didn't catch her anywhere else. Cody's face was also clearly captured but they seem to still have not fond Scarlet even though they'd discovered the abandoned crutches. That gave Claire a peace of mind. As long as Scarlet remained hidden, they still had a chance.

The head maid spent a good amount of time with the young writer and tried to think of how Scarlet would react in such a situation. Although the tiny girl was usually very logical, her writer's heart could be easily swayed with strong emotions. Claire knew that Scarlet had done reckless things in situations that spiralled far out of her control. From the history that Jenna had told her about the young adopted mistress, Scarlet had frequent outbursts of rebellion against her biological parents and was often punished because of them. The logical side of Scarlet's mind was a defence mechanism that prevented Scarlet from suffering too much emotionally.

In a situation where Scarlet knew she couldn't run far, Claire knew that the writer would choose to hide. The question was knowing where she would hide. Cody knew that a kid who had a broken leg was running around with his evidence. It shouldn't have taken them long to think about searching hiding spots.

"Guard the hallways in section C and keep the targets out of it. Search for small and narrow spaces that can easily be accessed by someone who doesn't have a reach of over a hundred and fifty centimetres."

"Roger!"

Claire herself made her way down the stairs to the second floor. Scarlet was smart. Like the siblings in Hansel and Gretel, she left them clues. The best place to start searching for those clues would be in the toilet where her crutches were abandoned.

The head maid made it to the toilet but someone had already cleaned the mess. She clicked her tongue in annoyance. Sometimes the cleaners were too needlessly efficient and the head maid wished that for once, they didn't do that.

Carefully, the ex-commando scanned the scene for clues. It wasn't difficult to notice the white powder patches on the floor for someone with a trained eye like her. Instantly, the head maid knew what to follow. This powder came from Scarlet's school shoes. The girl would often use a shoe whitener to colour her school shoes because she didn't wash them as often as she liked to keep them in pristine condition. Being the perfectionist she was, Scarlet often coated the shoe in whitewash thoroughly. When that paint dried up, it would produce clouds of white powder on high impact. If Scarlet was hopping down the hall, that white powder would last for a bit.

Following the trail, Claire took a right turn towards the cargo lift area where the last specks of shoe white paint were found. The head maid paused to think. The pursuers must be close by the time Scarlet reached the cargo lift. The girl certainly didn't have the strength to climb stairs in a cast. She also didn't have enough time to wait for the cargo lift to arrive so she would have to find a place to hide it out.

Claire circled the area a few times and didn't know if Scarlet was still in the area. Then her sensitive ears picked up on sounds coming from the broom closet. Claire readied her gun and removed the safety on it. The door was usually locked from the outside but from what Claire could see, it was unlocked.

The time elapsed since Scarlet had gone to the washroom was almost an hour now. If the girl had been hiding her all by herself the past hour without making any noise, she would have been very safe. Nobody could really imagine searching a cabinet of about forty centimetres wide for a person at all. However, forty centimetres was all Scarlet needed to squeeze into.

As the door opened slowly, Claire readied her firearm while preparing for a sudden attack.

Attacked, she was.

From inside the broom closet, Scarlet held her breath as much as she could. The newcomer wasn't as dumb as the rest and was searching for her. Those sharp click of heels could only mean that the person searching for her was a female. It could very well be Larissa and thinking about it made Scarlet's heart race. She'd been in here for a long time and her muscles were cramping badly. There was almost no ventilation either and the young writer found herself soaked in sweat. Still, the fear made her persevere.

Just as the door cracked open, Scarlet braved herself and attacked the woman with the briefcase in her hand, hoping to throw them off balance before making a break for it. The nearest exit was the staircase just behind the cargo lift. She was mentally prepared to run with her broken leg in the cast if the need arose but she wouldn't allow the evidence to fall into the wrong hands.

Claire dodged the heavy swing of the briefcase as the door opened. Scarlet was stunned that she missed but didn't allow herself to lose momentum as she spun around on her good leg hoping to get the lady with the next turn.

Claire dropped the file, hide the gun and caught Scarlet's wrist with her other hand. the poor girl was terrified when she looked up at the person who caught her but after realising that it was an ally, all the adrenaline left her.

Scarlet allowed her legs to fold underneath her as she cried tears of relief. Claire didn't waste any time and contacted the team.

"Target secured. Have someone pull a ride over, we're taking Exit B. The evidence is in my hands, call the mission off."

Scarlet didn't question anything and sobbed into Claire's shoulders while firmly clutching onto the briefcase like a lifeline. She'd been utterly terrified when she learnt that a lot of people were looking for her. The broadcast didn't help and she knew Cody had revisited the toilet a few times. He even had someone clean the toilet up in hopes to get rid of the traces of evidence Larissa planted.

The man Cody had been talking to was also patrolling the area searching for things from fire hose boxes to large bins. Scarlet knew that he'd passed her by a few times but the man never thought to check a broom closet of all things. When Claire appeared, Scarlet thought that her luck had finally run out. The whole time she was hiding, Scarlet asked herself what she should do if she was found. Against an a.d.u.l.t, she would not hope to win. She might stand a chance against Cody who was overweight and lacked exercise. However, against the man Cody was working with, there was no hope. Scarlet could only surrender the evidence and beg to be let off. If it was up against Larissa, Scarlet's only chance was to use the element of surprise to escape.

Who knew that her heroine would come to rescue her instead? 

As Scarlet hiccuped, she thought about the evidence she had and the trouble she caused. Whatever was in the briefcase had better be worth the chaos that followed.

Wilmer sat in the safety of his office with two guards at the door. He was waiting for a call and nearly jumped when his phone rang.

"Did you find her?" he asked urgently.

Claire held onto Scarlet tightly as they entered the car. Nobody was around to see them so they made a hasty getaway. The tinted glass gave them all the privacy they required as they made their way back home.

"Yes, we're on our way back to the penthouse. The evidence is with Scarlet and she is asleep now. All that tension must have worn her out."

"Where was she?"

Claire smiled and looked at the young but brave girl with pride in her eyes. "In a broom closet near the cargo lift. She tried to knock me out and catch me off guard too when I opened the door. If I may, I think that Scarlet would benefit from some martial art classes. The girl has a good head on her shoulders and reacts well on an instinctive level."

Wilmer sagged in major relief at the news. "Let's push this off to a discussion at a later date, shall we? Scarlet's well-being comes first, evidence second. I will have Carol to pick up Alex and Jasper now. Please keep Scarlet at home for the next few days until things are sorted out with the management about Cody."

Claire nodded and ended the call. Thanks to Scarlet, they now had leverage and a hint about who was pulling the strings. A certain part-time school counsellor and informant was keeping a close eye on the man Scarlet saw interacting with Cody earlier from the comfort of the school's consultation room. He heard from Wilmer about what happened and swore that Scarlet's bravery would be rewarded.

Danny scrolled through his contacts and dialled a number he rarely called. It wasn't professional to disturb his students while they were out on a job. However, hacking wasn't his expertise and he required that right now.

"Hello, Elfie? Are you gaming now? I need you to keep tabs on a certain car pronto..."