Christopher got in the car with Patrick and instructed him to drive slowly to the apartment.
"Sir?" Patrick asked in confusion.
"Go on. It's a matter of urgency." Christopher continued to act in panic.
Patrick did as told.
It was a near miracle when they've spotted a car on the side of the road in complete dark.
Christopher jumped out of the car before even Patrick pulled over and stopped completely. The car window was still rolled down making it easy to spot an unconscious driver laying on the steering wheel.
"Call the ambulance." Christopher instructed Patrick as he approached the car himself.
"Jonathan." Christopher moved the driver knowing his name from Grace.
"Sir?" The driver opened his eyes sluggishly.
"What happened?"
"I don't know, sir. I-… I don't remember."
"The ambulance will be here in a moment." Christopher said to the man. His gaze went straight to the back of the car, searching for signs of Emilia.
Patrick helped Jonathan out of the car, sitting him on the patch of grass on the side of the road and giving him some water to drink.
Christopher started to search through the backseat of the car. Not a single sign of her ever being there until he found Emilia's clutch bag on the floor, under the seat. As he opened it he found her phone, along with a lipstick, tissues, blister plasters, and her wallet. Christopher's heart was pounding. She wasn't there. There was nothing that would give away the true events of that night.
After thorough questioning by police, Jonathan slowly was able to recall that he picked Emilia up from the agreed spot, but not much more.
Christopher was at the police station, pacing back and forth. His heartbreak quickly was forgotten and it was overshadowed by worry about Emilia's wellbeing.
He knew things were serious when he was brought to the defectives that meticulously documented every word he spoke to them.
Christopher remained near them, awaiting any news at all. He send Patrick away to monitor both, the manor and Emilia's apartment.
Christopher went from sobbing to punching the walls more than once during the long hours of the night and morning.
When Patrick showed up, pale and exhausted, he wanted to punch him for leaving the post.
"Sir, there was a letter delivered for you." Patrick said warily as he passed the letter to Christopher. Same yellowish envelope as many times before.
"You know what to do with these."
"Yes, sir. But it was not delivered by any delivery service. It was attached to the dog's collar after he was running around the gardens."
"Has Barky been harmed?"
"No, sir."
Christopher opened the letter and his heart stopped. It was a different kind of threat.
"Sir?" Patrick's face somehow lost the remainder of the blood left in it.
Christopher got up and walked back into the detectives office. By now, there were two FBI agents there too. He placed the letter without a word in front of the man that was leading the search.
"You must find her!" Christopher said with fury that made his eyes spark dangerously.
"Sir, I understand that you're upset but we're already doing everything we can." The middle aged man said defensively.
"You do not understand. Someone took my wife. She is in danger."
"Your wife?" The man repeated stupidly.
"My wife's life is at stake and this is what you're concerned about?!" Christopher snapped at last, the vein on the side of his face became more protruded, and his face was tinged with red.
"Of course our priority is to bring your wife back home safely."
"They have her. Work out what to do to bring her home."
"Of course."
The FBI agent took the letter. The two agents were young. They've looked inexperienced. But somehow, Christopher was more reassured about their presence than the older detective's.
"The group X has targeted multiple people from prestigious backgrounds in recent years. It is not a surprise that you have become an aim." The woman spoke with a voice that showed confidence and knowledge.
"Ransom." Christopher sighed. "It shouldn't be an issue."
"Paying ransom rarely actually does what intended." The detective chipped in again.
"Private ransom payment secured a hostage release in 73% of cases." The FBI agent said carefully. "Do you have £5 billion?"
"I'll liquify some assets and I will have it within twenty-four hours." Christopher said decisively. "Will I have the time?"
"Possibly." The agent spoke with uncertainty that Christopher disliked. "We consider a 72-hour period most significant, but truly, the first twenty-four hours is a deal breaker."
"It's been eight hours." Patrick's voice came from behind Christopher, reminding him of his presence.
"Cosby, get any assets you can on the market. Withdraw money from all of the accounts you can, even if it takes several banks."
"Of course, sir." Patrick agreed.
"Mr Hayden, I will encourage you to follow through with their demands. The group rarely hurt their victims in the past, and it only happened in the instances where the demands were ignored. At the very least, it will buy us all some time."
"Certainly." Christopher agreed.
"We have a specialist reviewing all CCTV footages to see anything suspicious within the entire borough. The car has been swept for the fingerprints. However, we believe that no one entered the vehicle. The driver was injected with the heavy duty sedatives through the open window. There are no signs of struggle within the car." The woman explained. "I believe that the driver had a reason to stop the vehicle. I will attempt to interview him within the next two to three hours. We're waiting for the sedative to wear off first to get a more accurate information."
"Thank you. Please, I beg you, get my wife back safely." Christopher's voice broke showing his despair.
"Mr Hayden, it is my responsibility to do all that I can. The police just agreed to send out dogs and a search party to sweep through the radius of the vehicle."
"Uh-huh." The detective still seemed disgruntled.
"We confirmed the time of your wife's departure with the driver. We have a tech specialist looking at the GPS tracking of Mrs Hayden's…"
"Dr Hayden." Christopher corrected her.
"Dr Hayden's phone to try to narrow down the time that the car stopped moving."
"Again, thank you. If you do find her, I'll make sure to reward you and your unit accordingly."
"Absolutely not." The woman shook her head, her black curls swirling around her face. "Please, have some rest. It will be a long day." She looked at the watch which made Christopher look at his. It was already two in the morning.
Christopher nodded and with hesitation left the office. He started making the calls to gather the funds which Patrick was collecting as banknotes, from one bank branch at a time.
Hours have passed with minimal progress.