Chapter 202: She Is Missing
"I have bad news, Erik. Aryana was kidnapped from the cruise ship last night! The bodyguard you hired to watch her from the shadows colluded with the kidnappers."
"What?" The pen Erik was holding snapped into two.
"Find out who the kidnappers are right now! Exhaust all our resources to bring her back!" Erik stood abruptly from his chair and approached Marlon who stepped back. The expression on Erik’s face was new to him. Was it fury or worry or both?
"Bo... Boss, their getaway boat was caught in a tornado and capsized. The kidnappers’ bloated bodies were recovered. Aryana... she.. is missing." Marlon has difficulty saying those words. He was scared to say that probably his wife was also dead. When he received the news, he was shocked and it took a long time for him to recover.
Time stood still.
Erik felt as if an iron fist squeezed his heart. It stopped beating for a few seconds and he cannot breathe. Clutching his chest, he staggered backward and fell down as he lost consciousness.
"Erik!" As a trained military officer, Marlon did not panic. He checked Erik’s pulse before calling for an ambulance. As Erik’s friend and subordinate, his was filled with worry.
An hour passed when Erik regained consciousness. Against the doctor’s advice, he boarded a helicopter and scanned the area where the cruise ship traversed the night before, hoping against hope that miraculously, he could find his wife safe and sound.
Marlon alerted the Marines, and rescue boats were deployed.