Were you mine?

Chapter 90-Marionette

The officer pressed play, and the room filled with the chilling conversation between Lea and the kidnapper. The three siblings listened intently, straining to catch any familiar detail in the distorted voice. After a few minutes, the officer rewound the tape and played it again, then once more for good measure.

"Anything?" he asked, looking at their confused and frustrated faces.

Jake's eyes widened as the realization hit him that Lea was in the eye of the storm. He lunged for his phone, frantically dialing Lea's number. "Come on, Lea, pick up," he muttered, pacing back and forth. After several rings, his heart sank as the call went to voicemail. "Her phone's switched off!" he exclaimed, panic setting in. "We need to trace her! She could be in serious danger.She couldn't even stand up properly up in her room. She is driving out there and doing what crazy stuff..." The officer put a hand on Jake's shoulder, trying to calm him. "Listen, I understand you're worried, but we can't trace her without tipping off the kidnappers. That could spell doom for the child. It's better if we try to trace the kidnappers instead. We need to stay one step ahead of them.That way we save them both."

Jake looked at the officer, battling the desperation in his eyes. "But what if they hurt her? What if she’s already in danger?" Phill stepped forward, placing a reassuring hand on Jake’s arm. "Jake, we have to trust the officers. They know what they're doing. We’ll find her and Kai."Jake shook his head, his brows furrowed in a painful concentration. "No, it’s no use. It doesn’t sound like anyone we know." Phill nodded in agreement, "It’s definitely altered. This isn't a natural voice.If they knew the police were tapping Lea's number they wouldn't use their natural voice, would they?Not that we would know the kidnappers personally.Like it's not guaranteed."

Mercy, however, had a different glint in her eye. "If they used a voice changer, I might be able to help. Give me a moment."

She dashed to her laptop, fingers flying over the keyboard as she accessed her suite of AI tools. "Why do you have so many voice changing apps in your device? " Phill asked, a little confused. Mercy scratched her head and looked a little timid as she replied in a low voice, " This is supposed to be a secret. I use them for my high notes. Please, lets keep it in the family. " She continued working after getting absolutely no reaction from Jake. She had hoped to lighten his mode a little but he just sat there like a rigid body of stone.

The others watched in tense silence as the minutes ticked by. Finally, Mercy looked up, her face was a mixture of triumph and anxiety.

"I’ve managed to revert the altered voice back to its original sound," she announced. "Let's listen."She pressed play, and the clear, unaltered voice of a young female, filled the room.

As soon as Jake heard it, he gasped, his eyes widening in shock. There was no way he couldn't recognise that voice. " No way! t's Rosa," he whispered, disbelief mingling with fury as he clasped his hands into a fist. "There’s no mistake. That’s Rosa.That devil??? Rosa???She took away my baby? " Jake turned around about to leave the door but the officers pulled him back. " Young man, please do share every detail you can possibly give about this person you mentioned but make no mistake. One single wrong move from your end and it would jeopardize the life of both your wife and your kid. " It was like for the tenth or twelfth time the officer had mentioned Lea as Jake's wife. He was actually getting so used to it, he didn't see the need to correct him.

" But I want to personally wring her little neck after we get Kai and Lea safely out of her clasp... That vixen. It wasn't enough for her to poison our relationship. She went after my kid? I swear I want to kill her with my own hands! "

The officer nodded, taking note of Jake’s reaction." We cannot promise that can happen. Taking the law into your own hands is never the answer. But she will be punished and adequately.I can assure you that. We might need to find out if she has any more accomplises."

Phill grabbed Jake's shoulder as he nodded. "Alright, we need to move quickly. This information changes everything. We’ll issue an alert for Rosa immediately and mobilize our teams to find her and rescue Kai."

" Not without me, officer! " The front door swung open and everyone turned around. In walked Elizabeth Rodgers and along with her came the detectives working on Kai's case. The officers looked puzzled as the three of them exclaimed together.

" Mother? "

" What are you doing here? "

" Please, we don't want a scene! "

She looked at each child before turning back at the officer with a smile. " I came here to offer a crucial link that might help solve the puzzle you are working on. But given the hospitality from my own blood, I would much rather talk to you instead... privately. " She pretended to take the officer away but Mercy blurted forward . " Mother, please. If you have anything useful, talk about it right here. We are really not in the right mind to play your games. We are tired... almost exhausted. We just want the kiddo...Wait a minute, " Mercy suddenly froze. " How do you know about Kai? "

Elizabeth heaved a deep sigh, " Darling, you hired my dogs to do your bidding. Wouldn't they even tell me about my grandson? That's not the issue here. The real issue is the master mind pulling all the strings behind the curtain... "

" We already identified her. She was... She had a history with Jake. Bet she is out here getting revenge... dumbass b*tch... " Phill cursed. Elizabeth looked rather amused. " My dear boy. Look how love changed you from a gentle, reserved one to a cussing, handsome man. " Before anybody could protest she stiffened her back and her voice changed to no-nonsense. " She is just a marionette I am afraid! You are yet to meet the puppet master. “