The rain had fallen all night.
After the thunderstorm, the chill in the air had risen sharply, and one could breathe out wisps of white air while walking outside.
It was deep autumn.
Samuel Johnson, exhausted, drove the fleet back. Having searched throughout the night, not only had he failed to find anyone, but he had also nearly been buried alive by a mudslide.
Once they reached the back mountain, they realized that the place was bigger than imagined, with dense jungles. It was very easy to hide a few people there. Aside from setting the mountain on fire, sending a search team to find someone was like looking for a needle in a haystack, relying purely on luck.
He thought that he had almost done his duty by Tasha Moore, as an ex-boyfriend. He was under no obligation to take on the burden of her kidnapping. As for his mother, a casual response would suffice for her.
The rest was now the police's business.
