Chapter 1197
Alicia, gritting her teeth, began shouting at the passengers not far away, who hadn’t left and were on the same plane as her, “The police are arresting innocent people for no reason! They’re taking away innocent people!”
At this point, she believed that she could potentially save herself by rallying public opinion.
However, she was shocked to find that the passengers didn’t seem to pay much attention to her. While a few observed her curiously, no one reached for their phones to record, and none stepped forward to intervene.
“It’s futile, Alicia. To them, this is just a staged performance. These passengers are all background actors who were on the plane with you to make you believe you were really leaving the country,” Rosalie explained, dispelling Alicia’s confusion.
“Background actors?” Alicia was bewildered.
“Yes, just like the trial you experienced. It was all an act. Your actual trial is scheduled for a month from now. For now, you’re still considered a suspect and will be dealt with legally in a month,” Rosalie clarified.
Alicia remained in a daze for a considerable time. It had all been a ruse!
She believed she had been sentenced to probation, but Rosalie now informed her that she’d have to wait another month for the real trial.
And when that time came, probation would likely be the least possible outcome for her sentencing.
“Wow! Y-You’re lying! You’re all lying to me!” Alicia cried out, her voice growing shrill. She desperately tried to break free from the grasp of the police officers restraining her, intending to rush toward Rosalie and unleash her anger.
However, her attempts to break free were futile, for she couldn’t move at all.
The more she struggled, the tighter their grip became.
“Haven’t you been lying to Amelia all this while?” Rosalie retorted coldly. “I’m relieved we didn’t allow someone like you to escape abroad.”
Alicia’s last plea was directed at Amelia. “Amelia, I… I didn’t lie to you. I truly know where Riley is. If you tell them to let me go, I-I’ll reveal Riley’s location to you!”
But this time, Amelia refused to believe her.
“I won’t be a fool any longer and trust that you really know where Riley is!” Amelia looked drained, as though all her energy had been sapped.
Rosalie held her hand and comforted her, “Let’s go, Amelia. I’ll take you home, and you can rest.”
Just as they were about to return to the car, Alicia suddenly cried out, “Amelia, do you have the heart to let Riley suffer a fate worse than death in a psychiatric hospital? For her to be tormented all her life? Don’t you want to save her?”
Amelia froze and turned to gaze at Alicia in astonishment. “W-What did you say?”
“I… I can tell you where she is. Just let me go free, and I’ll tell you!” Alicia pleaded desperately. However, she was pulled into the police car, which then drove away from the airport.
Amelia instinctively tried to follow the car, but Rosalie firmly held her hand and said, “Amelia, don’t worry. If you want to verify whether what she said is true or not, check the psychiatric hospitals.”
Amelia suddenly snapped back to reality and heard Rosalie continue, “If Riley were indeed sent to a psychiatric hospital, there should be records. If we can’t find any, it’s possible that Alicia is still lying. She might be attempting to deceive you by exploiting your emotions about finding Riley again.”
“You’re right, but there are so many psychiatric hospitals across the country. If we have to search them one by one…” Amelia began.
“Could it be possible, that a woman like Riley has ended up in a psychiatric hospital? Perhaps… did Riley develop some sort of mental disorder?” Amelia pondered.
“Then start with the city where Riley was originally at, and then check the surrounding areas. As long as there is a record with her name and photograph, it will be much easier if she hasn’t hidden her identity,” Rosalie suggested. “At least, start by checking it out. If we really can’t find anything, then we’ll attempt to extract the information from Alicia.”
“Thank you, Rosalie!” Amelia expressed her gratitude.
If it weren’t for her friend’s solution, she could have gone through all the trouble, allowing Alicia to be genuinely sentenced to probation and flee abroad with the money, while she couldn’t acquire any information about Riley’s whereabouts.
Ultimately, according to the address Alicia had provided on the plane, it seemed that from the start, Alicia had no intention of revealing Riley’s location.
“You can thank me once you find out where Riley is,” Rosalie said as she led Amelia back to the car and sent the woman back to the condominium.
Meanwhile, Warren was deeply concerned when he saw the state Amelia was in upon her return to the condominium. He inquired, “How did it go? Did Alicia reveal anything about Riley’s whereabouts?”
Amelia shook her head.
Rosalie stepped in, explaining, “In the end, when Alicia was in a state of panic, she mentioned that Riley was in a psychiatric hospital. So I’ll start by checking psychiatric hospital records nationwide to see if I can find any information. Please take care of Amelia. Her body…”
“I understand. I’ll make sure she’s well taken care of,” Warren assured.
With that, Rosalie and Jonathan left. Warren gazed at Amelia, who seemed lost in thought, and gently said, “All right, it’s getting late. Go wash up and get some rest.”
“Okay,” Amelia replied softly, her mind still preoccupied with concerns. She walked toward the bathroom, but her head was lowered as she walked, lost in thought. She didn’t even notice the bathroom door unti she heard hurried footsteps approaching. Just as she was about to collic with it, she found herself embraced by a strong pair of arms, which snapped her back to reality.
“Don’t you watch where you’re going? You nearly hit the door just now,” scolded Warren, his tone laced with concern.
Amelia looked up, muttering, “I’m sorry…”
“It’s not me you should be apologizing to. It’s yourself and the baby in your womb,” Warren chided. “Thankfully, you’re home now. What if you walked like that and collided with a car outside?”
“I’ll be more careful next time,” she promised.
Warren pursed his lips and guided her to the bathroom, instructing her, “Stay here, and don’t move. I’ll fetch you some fresh clothes.”
He picked out a set of clothes from the wardrobe, placed them in the bathroom, and turned on the heater. “All right, go ahead and take a shower. I’ll be waiting for you outside.”
As the bathroom door closed, Amelia stared at her reflection in the mirror, her face marked by worry and furrowed brows.
In reality, Warren was right. If she continued walking absentmindedly, it could be detrimental to her baby. However, at that moment, she couldn’t contain the swirling thoughts that consumed her.
