Astraea

Chapter 31:Lakehouse

"Are you sure this is the place?" Brylee asked Brina while looking outside the car that they rented out for that particular 'vacation.'

They stopped in front of a gorgeous lake house surrounded by tall trees. Behind the lake house is a panoramic view of the heart-shaped lake and the lush mountain and forest beyond that lake.

"Yes, I'm sure it is," Brina replied holding a portable computer in her hand.

It took them a month to find Lydia's location. Lorcan grew sulky and grouchy with every minute that passed by without finding Lydia's location making it seem the longest and most difficult hunt that the five sisters had even though Lydia is not a fugitive.

Lorcan managed to find out which country she went to, but where specifically had been a challenge even to Brina.

Lydia is not a fugitive, she can't even inflict harm towards the smallest creature yet when it comes to hiding thou not intentionally, she could be a professional.

The country where she went to, though small and only accessible by boat and plane is starting to earn a name when it comes to tourism. But only a few of its cities were considered first-class cities. The rests were second class and third class but most were just municipalities where the population is just below 1,000.

But the thing is, the country has a lot of secluded or isolated areas where the population is less than 300. Some places were not accessible by public transportation or even public communication. It cannot be reached via the internet. Though the satellite could find it, it would be hard to find if there are any existing communities in the place because it is mostly covered by lush mountains and forest, and houses were built miles away from each other.

Thus it made tracking Lydia quite a challenge.

Lorcan managed to find out the hotel where Lydia last checked in and the day she checked out. Checking out the CCTV footage that she was last seen, she rode a public bus. But where she dropped off was quite hard to find because the certain bus company doesn't have a passenger name record and doesn't even use a computerized system to retrieve information about their passengers.

They just pick up passengers and drop them off.

And it was obvious that Lydia probably dropped off in a place where there were no CCTV cameras because they cannot find her anywhere.

So they had to find her the long and laborious way.

A week ago, they landed in the country via plane and checked in in the hotel where Lydia last checked in to.

They didn't waste any time and the next day, they took the public bus that Lydia rode and found out that there were three drop-off points before the last stop of the bus. Lorcan takes the first drop-off, Brylee and Briony the second, Brina and Bianca the third, and Bell on the last stop.

In the next couple of days, they had to rent separate cars so that they could save time.

Before coming there, they made up a plan on how to narrow down their search area to save time because Lorcan will not have another week of patience and sanity.

They would first search for hospitals and OB-Gyn clinics because Lydia would probably find an OB-Gynecologist since she is pregnant and that would be one of her priorities. As well as apartments, inns or hotels where she might've stayed for the first couple of days after her arrival. But it turns out that she didn't rent an apartment or checked-in in a hotel or inn.

So, they focused on searching in hospitals and clinics. And since a patient's records were always confidential, they had to do some underhanded tactics to get their hands on each and every doctor's patient's records, and sure enough, they found Lydia's name in one of them.

It was Brina and Bianca who found her name as one of the newest patients in a lying-in clinic. They found out that Lydia had a check-up a few weeks ago as well as an ultrasound. Except for the condition of her uterus, everything is fine and the baby is healthy.

Aside from her medical records, they also managed to get her current address.

"I wonder how she found this place? I thought she didn't have any relatives or close friends. Are you sure you know everything about her Uncle Lorcan?" Brylee said then she looked at the man in front of her.

Lorcan is sitting on the passenger seat while Bell is the one behind the wheel of the SUV that they rented.

The truth is, Lorcan didn't know how Lydia found this until just yesterday. When they found out her current address, they checked out who owned the house and who is living with her. Apparently, the house is owned by a couple. The husband is a renowned architect while the wife is an avid fan of Lydia.

Though the couple has their mansion in the city, they choose to live in their second home at the lake.

What he didn't know is how did Lydia end up in this place. He had already hacked her phone and email and there are no indications that she will be going to this place or meeting the couple.

Instead of answering Brylee's question, Lorcan stepped out of the SUV and hurriedly walked towards the main door of the lake house.

"Such a pain in the ass," Bell scoffed behind the wheels and lazily leaned her back, her elbow resting on the open window of the SUV as she indifferently looked around the surroundings.

"Yeah, but you love that pain in the ass uncle of hours because you wouldn't be here if you don't," Briony commented, making Bell glare at her.

Bell was first against them joining their Uncle Lorcan in his quest for the love of his life. She thought that it was just a waste of their time. She should be behind her desk in her office working or strolling around the scums hunting for fugitives and not here trying to be a cheerleader for their lovesick Uncle who doesn't even seem grateful that they are helping him.

But her sisters know her. Bell tends to speak otherwise. Just like their Uncle Lorcan, she finds it hard to express her real feelings, instead, she says the opposite.

"Are we just going to stay here or follow him?" They heard Bianca said and when they turned to look at their Uncle, he already rang the bell.

"Grouchy," Brylee said snidely, "Let's go!"

After a while, they were standing in front of a sophisticated blue-eyed woman in her early sixties. Her hair reached just above her shoulder. One look, you could tell that she is a woman with a pleasing personality though she is staring at Lorcan intently.

"I'm sorry, but she is not here." The woman replied after Lorcan told her that he wanted to see Lydia. And it was obvious that she is not good at lying.

"Hi, my name is Briony and these are my sisters, Bell, Brylee, Brina, and Bianca. We came with our Uncle Lorcan and we've been looking for Lydia Hale because my Uncle here badly needs to talk to her. It concerns the happiness of both and the last thing we checked, she is currently residing here. Could you help us?" Briony decided to chime in because it looks like the woman is reluctant to let their Uncle see Lydia for some reason. So, she has to use her charm and friendliness.

Lorcan frowned. Though he understands that the woman, whoever she is was just protective over Lydia's feelings, he doesn't like it when she insinuated that he is someone that would hurt Lydia. He did, but now he will never.

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