"No matter what method, we need to find her as soon as possible. We can't rely on the police alone; we need assistance from various sources," Laila knew very well that Downey's case was not a big deal in the eyes of the police. At most, it was a simple case of fighting. If handled well, it might be resolved with some money; if not, it could lead to a few days in jail at most.
In the past, Downey wouldn't have cared about spending a few days in prison. He had already reached the point where a few more lice wouldn't bite. However, things were different now. He had a fresh start, with a movie about to be released that could rejuvenate his career. He couldn't afford any damage to the movie or the company's reputation. Otherwise, he might lose the opportunity for good.
Unfortunately, while this incident was crucial for him, it was just a minor case for the police compared to more severe crimes like murder and robbery. They couldn't allocate too many resources just because the person involved was a celebrity. Therefore, Laila didn't place her hopes on the police. She planned to use her resources to find the girl.
Roy furrowed his brow. "Even if we find her, what good would it do? If she had seen Cole drug her, she wouldn't have raised her glass to drink. Without witnessing it, how can it help Downey's case?"
"That's not the point." Laila fast-forwarded the video to the part where Downey knocked over the girl's drink. "See this? The drink spilled all over the girl. If we can find her and locate this piece of clothing..."
She didn't finish her sentence, but both Roy and Downey understood.
"Yeah! As long as we can get the drink from her clothes tested, it will be clear whether the drink was spiked!" Roy slapped Downey's shoulder excitedly. "Buddy, you have a chance!"
Downey also wore a joyful expression, not expecting this possibility.
However, Laila poured a bucket of cold water on their enthusiasm. "Don't get too excited. Even if we find her, you better pray she hasn't washed her clothes, or pray that the drug's effects haven't disappeared so quickly." She had seen in some TV shows and movies that certain drugs could vanish in a short time, making it difficult to detect.
Her words caused the two men's faces to fall again.
It was indeed a highly probable situation. Girls usually liked to be clean and beautiful, and it was unlikely that she would leave the soaked clothes unattended. Once washed, even if they found her, there would be no evidence to find on her clothes.
"What should we do then? Just wait for Downey to be sent to jail by that bastard?" Roy asked anxiously. In his eyes, there was no solution she couldn't think of. If someone could handle things well now, it had to be her!
"I will handle it. For the next two days, let him stay here, don't go outside, and don't read the news or go online. Leave the rest to me." She stood up and walked towards the exit. "I'm going back to the company; I'm leaving this to you."
As her words fell, she had already disappeared from their sight.
Left behind, the two men could only sigh, holding their beer bottles, deep in thought.
On her way to the company, Laila had already briefed Louise on the situation. When she entered the office, Louise was already waiting inside.
"Laila, this situation seems difficult to handle!" Upon hearing Laila's call, Louise almost spilled her coffee on herself. They were in a good position, with the movie promotion ready on all fronts, just waiting to dominate the summer box office. How did such a scandal suddenly arise?
Having been in Hollywood for decades, she knew very well the impact such scandals could have on movie box office. She believed that once the competitors at the summer box office learned about this, even if they didn't actively harm them, they would benefit from their misfortune.
Who didn't know Laila's unparalleled ability to generate revenue with her films? Didn't they see that after the release schedule for "Iron Man" this year was announced, there were no major films directly challenging it in the preceding and following weeks? They simply didn't want to be completely overshadowed.
Now, before others could implement any schemes, they had already handed out a knife, stabbing themselves.
"I know it's not easy." Laila pinched her forehead. "Even if it's not easy, we have to do it. We've come this far."
"Is there really no way to reconcile? Downey can't go to jail!"
Upon hearing the word "reconcile," Laila's eyes immediately turned cold. "No reconciliation!" She didn't specify that the current "no reconciliation" didn't mean the other side wouldn't reconcile with them; it meant she adamantly refused to reconcile with them. Even if Cole came to beg for forgiveness and offered a reconciliation letter with both hands, she would never forget the humiliation she suffered in the hospital room.
After being a daughter of the Moran family for several years, being told to "get lost" by someone? She dared to guarantee that if her mother and her grandfather heard the word "get lost," they would immediately take the most severe measures to deal with them.
A retail businessman can really think of himself as someone who owns several large supermarkets!
Louise, of course, didn't know what was going on in her mind. She thought it was the infamous Cole who refused to reconcile. That's right; she also knew this person was a jerk. One could say that anyone in America who liked to follow gossip tabloids would know about this guy who was always entangled in scandals. Downey hit him, and for the sake of his face, he wouldn't easily let go.
"What should we do? Should we stop the promotional plan? Is it better to postpone the release for a while?" Seeing that the situation was now out of control, she thought it might be better to delay the movie's release for a few months. This way, when this incident faded from public memory, they could release it without any baggage. As long as new scandals appeared, people would forget about the old ones.
Laila had considered this possibility but quickly rejected it. "If we postpone the release, more than half of the funds invested in promotion will be in vain. Moreover, if we delay due to a scandal, what kind of reviews do you think we will get?"
She could almost guess what people like Cooper would say. She believed Downey's words, believed that he genuinely wanted to save that girl, and got into trouble because of it. If he did nothing wrong, why should he be treated unfairly?
"I will find the girl and clear Downey's name!"
"Can you really find her?" Louise was not as optimistic as Laila. Like many others, she had little confidence in the police's abilities. Even if they hired a private detective, without a definite timeline, it would be challenging to obtain any results. If they kept dragging on, the release time might arrive. What use would it be to find the girl at that point? The movie might have already tanked.