Alex returned to his shabby apartment, feeling a mixture of anticipation and exhaustion.
"Ah! I'm tired," Alex exclaimed as he fell onto his bed.
"I want to sleep a little," he muttered. But then he shook his head, got up, and put Bella's belongings on the table. He cracked his knuckles before powering on the laptop.
The device booted up quickly, and Alex began searching her drives, hoping to find something.
"Come on, give me something—anything," he exclaimed inwardly as he went through her files.
He checked her photos, documents, and videos, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. There were school assignments, pictures with her friends, and a few family videos.
"There's nothing here. Maybe I should check her chat logs and in-game chats," he muttered, opening her online chats.
He scrolled through conversations on various platforms—social media, messaging apps, and email. However, he found nothing suspicious.
"There's nothing suspicious in her chats either. Most of them are typical teenage gossip and complaints," Alex thought as he walked to the kitchen.
He poured himself a glass of water. "Am I missing something?" he questioned himself. "But what is it?"
He returned to his seat, still brooding over what he was missing.
TAP TAP TAP.
"What am—"
TAP.
"Isn't it too clean?" Alex thought.
"That's right. No matter how good a teen is, there's always something in their gadgets they don't want others to see."
"But where should I look?" he questioned himself.
He pondered for a while but couldn't come up with anything.
He sighed, feeling the weight of the case pressing down on him.
Just as he was about to shut the laptop and call it a night, his phone buzzed.
He glanced at the screen and saw that it was his mom calling.
"Hey, Mom," he answered, trying to mask his exhaustion with a cheerful tone.
"Alex! Honey, are you working right now?" his mom asked, her voice sounding hopeful that he would say no.
"No, Mom. Although I have something to do, I have time to talk to you, so don't worry," Alex reassured her.
"Oh! Did you get a case?" his mom asked with curiosity.
"Yeah, Mom. I'm having trouble getting some clues," Alex admitted.
"Then why don't you tell me about it? Maybe it will help," she suggested.
He hesitated, then decided to share a bit. "It's about a missing girl, Bella Harrington. I've been going through her laptop, trying to find anything that might give me a lead."
"Oh dear, that sounds serious. Have you found anything so far?"
"Not really. Everything seems normal. It's like she has nothing to hide. It's frustrating, Mom. I'm running out of ideas."
"Well, sometimes it's the little things that matter. Do you remember that time you lost your wallet, and we found it because of that silly little game you used to play with your friends?"
Alex chuckled, recalling the memory. "Yeah, you're right. I had completely forgotten about that game. It was hiding in plain sight the whole time."
"Exactly! Sometimes the clues are right in front of us; we just need to change our perspective a bit."
He smiled, appreciating his mom's wisdom. "Thanks, Mom. I'll keep that in mind. Maybe I'm missing something simple."
They chatted a bit more and shared a few laughs before Alex ended the call.
"Hiding in plain sight," he mused.
He reopened Bella's laptop and started to think differently about what he was seeing.
He began to look for anything that might seem mundane but could hold deeper meaning.
"Wait a minute…"
As he scrolled through her photos again, he noticed something odd. In several pictures, Bella was wearing a bracelet he hadn't paid much attention to before.
It was a simple leather band with a small charm—nothing flashy or expensive. But in the last few photos, the charm had changed. It was now a small crescent moon.
"Could this be a coincidence, or is there something more to this?" he wondered.
He quickly started researching the symbol, cross-referencing it with local gangs and any recent criminal activity.
The pieces of the puzzle were starting to come together.
"Thanks, Mom," he whispered.
Alex started researching the crescent moon with renewed vigor. He searched the internet, finding connections to a local gang known for its subtle yet significant presence in the city. They had been involved in various criminal activities, including robberies and suspected kidnappings.
Several recent news records detailed their operations, describing them as meticulous and hard to track.
"She's in danger," Alex worried as he looked at their criminal activity.
He wanted to go out immediately but stopped himself when he looked at the time.
"Damn! It's past midnight. No wonder I've been feeling so sleepy," Alex muttered as he yawned.
"I'll pick this up first thing in the morning," he said to himself.
He changed into pajamas and fell onto his bed.
He immediately fell asleep, proving how exhausted he was.
However, unbeknownst to him, a pair of eyes were watching from the rooftop opposite his building.
Hidden in the shadows, a figure observed Alex's every move, noting his late-night research and his eventual decision to go to bed.
The watcher remained silent and motionless, ensuring that their presence went undetected.
As Alex drifted off to sleep, his mind filled with the new information he had uncovered. The silent observer remained vigilant, their intentions and identity a mystery.
The watcher stayed in position, observing Alex for a while before disappearing into the night.
...…..
The next morning,
Alex woke up early and made breakfast for himself before heading out.
He went straight to the Harrington mansion to inform Cassandra about his findings.
He reached her house in a few hours and got past security relatively quickly as the bodyguards knew he was the detective.
"What's up, boys?" Alex remarked with a smirk.
He went into the mansion and headed straight to Cassandra's room.
He tried knocking on the door, but it opened the moment he touched it.
Alex's mind stopped working as he looked at the heavenly sight in front of him.
'WOW!' thought Alex as he looked at Cassandra, who was standing naked!