It was already 8 in the evening but Crystal and the others still didn’t find Christina.They were very
anxious.
"Where do you think she can go?" Betty looked worriedly at the dark sky outside while holding her cell
phone in hand.She had been trying to call Christina, whose phone was, however, turned off.
Crystal and the others searched the neighborhood twice as well as every corner of the community
garden.The result was still disappointing.
In the end, they went back to the apartment.
Thanks to those strong and tall men Derek had asked Larry to send here to help, Mrs.Zhu was scared
away.
"I'm sorry.My mother has gone too far"
Crystal looked ashamed while she was sitting on the sofa, holding her phone anxiously.Betty did not
say anything more about Mrs.Zhu.Both of them were sitting on the sofa in the small living room under
the light, anxious and uneasy.They didn't even where to look for Christina.
Betty glanced at the clock on the wall, sighing.
"Christina is never a crybaby like other girls even when she was a child and sometimes even despises
some boys for being useless.She isn't a particularly strong girl, but once she meets something unlucky,
instead of crying about it in front of everyone, she will just hide and try to make it through by herself"
Thinking of this, Betty calmed down and comforted Crystal, "She probably just needs some time
alone.Don't worry too much.It's already past dinner time.I'll go to the kitchen to cook some noodles."
Staring at Betty's back as she walked towards the kitchen, Crystal was still worried, Although what
Betty said about Christina's temper was true, neither of them had an appetite at this time.
Under normal circumstances, Crystal wouldn't worry about Christina no matter how long she hid alone.
But now, concerning all the terrible things that had happened recently, she was really worried that
Christina would hurt herself or make rash decisions that she would probably regret in the future.
"Betty, how about we going out and looking for her again..."
Crystal stood up, grabbed the car keys, and was about to walk towards the door.
Just then, the door was opened from the outside.
A familiar figure came in.
Upon seeing him, Crystal rushed forward and grabbed his arm excitedly.
"Derek, any news about Christina?"
Derek, who was not used to physical contact, withdrew his hand and replied calmly, "No"
Betty also ran over from the kitchen when she heard the door opening, whose face turned back into
gloom as she heard Derek's answer.
With so many people Derek had sent to look for her, Christina was still nowhere to be seen.Where else
could she go?
"Derek, did you follow the route consisted of nearby surveillance cameras? She must have walked out
of the community first and would definitely pass supermarkets and banks nearby.The surveillance
cameras there would record her as long as she passed by.How could she not be found?"
Crystal taught him how to track her in an urgent voice.
Derek didn't reply and just walked into the apartment.
"Derek, is that you don't have enough friends to help here in A City? Maybe we should ask Chandler to
help us..."
Crystal followed Derek as if he was her last hope.
As she spoke, she suddenly remembered another "friend" in A City who might be helpful.
"I see.We should turn to Charles for help.He has a lot of friends here and used to have a good
relationship with Christina.I think he'll help us."
Crystal tried her best to come up with more ideas as she followed Derek.
However, Derek didn't make any reply to her suggestion.
He walked into the guest room which Christina had used and looked around carefully as if he was
looking for something.
Crystal finally quieted down, staring at him angrily as he was searching every corner of the room.She
knew that Derek must have tried out all the ways she had just suggested.
Maybe Christina's route was remote so the nearby street surveillance didn't record her.
"Hey, we're all worried.What are you looking for here? Why don't we go out together..."
As she was urging him impatiently, Derek suddenly took a small round blue ornament made of glass
from the closet.
After a closer look, Crystal was stunned.
"What is this?"
"Wireless camera" Derek replied in a low voice.
Crystal also saw the small circuit board behind the glass ornament.
Her mind went blank for a moment and then she quickly came to her senses, "Larry found a broken
piece in the corner of the TV cabinet in the living room which was similar to this one.But that ornament
he found looked like ared Chinese knot..."
"Also, my mother once said that she found four black wireless cameras in the trash can"
Crystal looked around the apartment again as she was speaking, feeling a little more frightened.She
had never expected that someone had been spying on her family and their privacy.
"Oh, the black ones are mine." Derek admitted it calmly.
Crystal's mind went blank for a few seconds and then she glared at him.
"Why are you so perverted?"
He should have told them about it first! Ignoring her scolding, Derek put the glass ornament that had
just been found in her hand.
"You should be concerned about whom this belongs to"
He sounded calm but people who were familiar with him could tell that there was a hint of anger in his
voice.
After saying that, he turned around and walked out.
Crystal stood there in a daze as she looked down at the tiny camera, feeling achill on her back.Who
was it? Who could do it without being discovered by Derek? Crystal followed Derek out immediately.
"Derek, shall we search the house thoroughly."
She really felt insecure when she knew that someone was spying on her for unknown purposes.
On the other side, Betty suddenly shouted at them excitedly with her phone in hand, "Christina texted
me!"
Crystal was so surprised that she forgot about all the horrible cameras at home for the time being and
ran to Betty happily.
"Did she? What did she say?"
"Don't worry about me.I'm in a hotel by myself.Need some time alone.Contact you tomorrow."
It was a short message sent from Christina's phone number.
Crystal and the others were finally relieved.
"Derek, do you think this message is fake?"
Crystal was careful, who took Betty's phone and ran to the balcony.
Derek was standing beside the cabinet for sundries on the balcony, whose long fingers of the right
hand were rubbing a whiteboard there slowly as if he was thinking about something.
He glanced at the screen of the phone that Crystal showed him.
"It's from her."
He sounded pretty sure in a calm and clear voice.
"Really? Don't you have to check it out? What if someone impersonated her? What if she's in danger..."
Crystal, on the other hand, did not seem convinced since she had been shocked by the cameras in her
house and her mind was now full of terrifying conspiracies.
Derek pointed at two small symbols on the screen with his slim, pretty finger, and said calmly, "Look at
the two symbols:=="
This was the secret code between him and Christina.
Crystal was still confused but now she believed that Christina was safe.
Now she finally realized she was hungry and went to share noodles with Betty.
She complained at the same time, "Why did she go to the hotel? And which one? Why didn't she tell
us...If she doesn't show up at noon tomorrow, we'll search every hotel for her..."
In fact, Christina was not at the hotel now.
She was going to spend the night in a hotel, but currently, she was still alone in an old park in the old
district.
The park was already dilapidated with most of the residents nearby moving away.
There were weeds everywhere and the streetlights on one side flashed ghost lily.
Few people would come here.It was such a desolate and gloomy place at night.
The seesaws and the small merry-go-round facilities in the park were rusty and paint-shedding.
On the far left was a relatively large children’s slide that looked like the long neck of a giraffe.
Below that, it was a u-shaped hole where children would get into and play together in the past.
And now Christina was alone in there huddling her hands and feet with a confused look.
Not knowing where to go, she had been hiding here for hours after she left Crystal's apartment.
So she hid in the hole in the deserted children’s slide as soon as she saw it.
Just like a small prey that was being chased for her life finally found a safe place to go.
She sat in a corner, quietly watching how the sun went down outside and the world got darker and
darker.She knew that Crystal and the others would worry about her and she didn't want to cause any
more trouble for others.
So she turned on her phone and found that Betty had called her several times and left a few messages.
Her eyes were even darker as she felt that she was such a useless person who failed in everything and
was nothing but a burden to everyone.
Her eyes were red as she sent Betty a text message quickly.
What should she do now? Her mind was blank.She knew that she should get up and find a hotel to
spend the night in but somehow she didn't want to move.She was so afraid of contacting others that
she wished to hide in this desolate place forever.She didn't want to see anyone or say anything.
It was quiet all around.Her mind was empty while her spirit was extremely sensitive.
So, when a car stopped nearby, the harsh sound of brakes just made her panic and helpless.She
thought that it was just someone passing by.
However, she guessed it wrong.
The steady footsteps approached her, turning her face pale...
Who was it? Who had installed those cameras in the apartment? Who planned to hurt her? Christina
held her breath, trembling uncontrollably.
The footsteps were getting closer and closer.
Finally, the man stopped at the entrance of the hole.
She was scared by the shadow of the man that lengthened by the dim yellow streetlights outside.
A familiar voice came in as she was frozen in fear.
"How long are you going to hide inside?"
The deep and cold voice echoed in the desolate park on an early winter night…
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