Jenny said, "At least, she heard what we said."
Xiao Hei said, "But she's not riding her bike anymore, which increases the difficulty of kidnapping. The kidnappers might give up."
If the kidnappers gave up on the kidnapping, we might lose track of them again."
This was also Luke's concern.
Luke had been in contact with Anthony, who hadn't shown up because he was on another assignment.
Among other things, the FBI had been monitoring several anonymous SIM cards, and the moment the two suspects used the cards, they would be located.
Furthermore, the FBI had been staking out near the kidnapper Marbury Karl's house, ready to arrest him the moment he dared to return home.
But there had been no movement from the FBI, and if the kidnappers gave up on kidnapping Muriel Baldini, then the two kidnappers were likely to disappear again.
Luke's phone rang, displaying Raymond's number.
"Captain, we found traces of the two kidnappers while checking the community surveillance footage."
"Community surveillance showed that yesterday evening at seven, Soster drove a Cadillac into the community with Marbury Karl in the passenger seat."
Luke recalled that at that time, they were still inspecting the scene at Marbury Karl's house. This meant that the two kidnappers had arrived at the community where Muriel Baldini's house was located even before the police. Why hadn't they taken action?
Was it because they were not ready, still casing the place?
"When did they leave?"
Raymond said, "So far, the surveillance hasn't shown them leaving."
"Are you sure they haven't left?
Or have you not finished watching the footage?"
"We haven't finished watching the surveillance."
"Stay in touch." Luke hung up the phone.
But his doubts did not diminish.
Last night, the two kidnappers were very likely also in the community of Muriel Baldini's house. If their target was Muriel Baldini, they wouldn't be far from her house.
Yet Luke had not spotted any suspicious vehicles.
Where were they hiding?
"Jenny, are you sure Muriel Baldini showed no signs of abnormality last night, like signs of being held hostage?"
"Impossible, she had already walked out the door last night. If she had been held hostage, she could've told me to rescue her, but she never called for help."
Xiao Hei said, "I remember that Muriel Baldini had already walked outside. Even if the kidnappers were inside the house, they couldn't have taken her."
Luke thoughtfully asked, "What was Muriel Baldini wearing last night? What was her build like?"
Jenny thought about it, "She's a bit taller than me and wore a loose set of casual clothes with a coat over it, her figure wasn't very noticeable."
Luke countered, "Yesterday's weather wasn't very cold. Why would she wear a coat indoors?"
Jenny seemed to have realized something, "Could it be... do you think she had a bomb on her?"
Luke said, "I'm not sure, but one of the kidnappers is skilled with bombs. We can't ignore this possibility.
If Muriel Baldini had a remote-controlled bomb on her, even standing at the door wouldn't ensure her safety."
Jenny said, "Captain, if you are right, then the kidnappers were in Muriel Baldini's house at the time, and we were outside all night. They couldn't have escaped.
Could they still be hiding in Muriel Baldini's house? Should we inform Captain Chen, who is watching Muriel Baldini's house?"
Jenny's words sounded right at first, but on second thought, issues could be detected.
Putting himself in the kidnappers' shoes, Luke would definitely not stay in Muriel Baldini's house at this time.
Remote-controlled bombs have range limitations. Although Luke was not very knowledgeable about it, the distance couldn't be too far.
That is to say, the kidnappers wouldn't let Muriel Baldini drive to work alone. Once Muriel Baldini was out of their control, she would definitely call the police, and they would be caught in a trap.
Luke asked, "Jenny, did you remind Muriel Baldini to drive to work this morning?"
"No." Jenny also realized, "Could the kidnappers be hiding in Muriel Baldini's car?"
Previously, Jenny had a misconception, thinking that Muriel Baldini was concerned about her safety, which was why she chose to drive.
Indeed, driving is relatively safer compared to cycling.
If Muriel Baldini was indeed held hostage, then this assumption no longer held.
The police had deployed forces around Muriel Baldini's house, and the kidnappers would likely be spotted if they tried to flee.
But hiding in Muriel Baldini's car would be different; it's a case of hiding in plain sight, which would cause the police to lower their guard and create an opportunity for them to escape.