Game Over

Investigation

As soon as they saw Mario leave, Tina ordered all of them to delete any evidence of them being there and to move to the new location. She knew Mario would find out soon enough about the girls' kidnapping and would bring the police there. Burn it all. I don't want even a speck of evidence they could use to track us. Remember to turn off all cellphones before we leave and to take the routes that you were assigned to. We will meet up in the new location at 11:00 pm on the dot. 

Champ and Sun went with Nawat to the hospital so they could keep an eye on him. What are we going to do, girls? Pitchy asked. Do any of you remember anything that could us find them? Any glitch in the game that might have given you a glimpse of where they are? Tina asked all three. Chompu and Faye shook their heads. All I know is that Fa and Char mentioned hearing a chant before they were zapped into the game. 

Sun mentioned something about the threats they received lately. Maybe there's a clue in them. Faye said. Let's go check them out. I can't sit here and do nothing while Fa and Char are stuck Buddha knows where. They all left in an MGT van and went to the girls' homes. They checked Char's first and saw the different threats telling her to stay away from Fa and that she wasn't good enough. These are her so-called fans? Marima scoffed. They treated me the same way and we did nothing wrong. Some people get really obsessed about these things. Chompu said.

They didn't find anything in Char's apartment, so they headed to P'Fa's. Most of the threats looked the same as Char's. A few of them threatened to hurt Char and P'Fa's family if she didn't pay them money. Did she tell any of you about these? Heidi asked the rest. No. You know P'Fa doesn't like to show her feelings openly if she can avoid it. Tina said. While looking through some drawers, Nude, who hadn't said a word, found a folder with the word Investigation on it. Hey, check this out. 

They discovered an ongoing investigation into the fans that had threatened Charlotte and followed her home. I knew she would do something to protect Char. She even hired security to watch Char from afar. Nude kept reading further and found the name and phone number of the guy P'Fa had contracted. Char must have known about it. With how anxious she gets, Fa wouldn't have just let anyone follow her around without giving Char a heads-up. Heidi said. Tina dialed the number, and it went straight to voicemail. Hi. This is Tina Wigg. I'm calling regarding Charlotte Austin. I was wondering if you could give me a callback. It is extremely important. Thank you. 

There's something else. Marima showed them a separate folder with the letters TN on it and read one of the paragraphs. 'After the events that occurred in September 2022, the following restraining order has been put in effect against Tina Suppanad. Ms. Suppanad is not allowed to be within 50 feet of Ms. Engfa Waraha and Ms. Charlotte Austin or any of their families. Failure to comply with this directive would result in prison time with a minimum of two years for Ms. Suppanad.' Did any of you know about this restraining order? They shook their heads. Boss might have known something but didn't tell any of us. Heidi assumed. 

As they continued the search, the phone on P'Fa's desk started to ring. They all looked at each other wondering who would answer it. We should answer. It might be the kidnappers. Faye grabbed the phone and Nude started recording the conversation just in case. Hello? Who is this? Oh, Mr. Maurer. They collectively let out the breath they were holding. No, P'Fa isn't available right now. Haven't you heard what happened?... What do you mean you saw her yesterday? Where?? Umm can you go to the MGT headquarters? Yeah, we'll be there soon. Thanks. Faye looked at the group. He might know where Fa and Char are. Let's go. 

Woah! What do you mean she and Char were kidnapped? I saw them yesterday. We did a movie scene and everything. Mario was as confused as them. What movie? They've been missing for two weeks. Nude sighed and showed him the footage of one of the many news reports. No. That can't be true. Like I said, I saw them yesterday. They're participating in a movie with Tina Suppanad. It's supposed to be a secret. Pitchy grabbed him by the collar of his shirt. You've seen that little bitch? Mario tried to get away from her. I don't understand what the hell is going on. Can you let me go please? Chompu helped Pitchy calm down. 

Since they were all stressed out, Tina sat beside Mario and explained the situation. Mr. Maurer, Fa and Charlotte have a restraining order against Suppanad. They've been missing for two weeks. Some of us have seen them when we were trapped in different levels of a video game. Mario's eyes widened. I know it sounds crazy, but they are trapped. We think they were with some fans who didn't mean to harm them at first, but now that we know they're with Tina Suppanad this is a much more serious matter. Do you think you could take us to the place where they were filming the supposed movie? Mario nodded and sighed frustrated. I can't believe I helped her. I am so sorry. I will do anything I can to help get them back safe and sound. 

By the time the police arrived to check out both locations, all evidence of Fa and Char being there was gone. With Mario's testimony, the case finally turned into a kidnapping investigation instead of a disappearance as they were treating it before. The girls kept the details about the game to themselves knowing the police wouldn't believe it. Reports were made on national and local news, radio stations and anywhere possible about Tina Suppanad kidnapping Fa and Char. Suppanad smiled at her phone screen seeing that her plan was going exactly as she wanted.