"There was a leak of confidential company data at the time. Lilian was the only person close enough to have access to Alexander's computer, so he questioned her about it. But she denied everything. The two of them argued, and in anger, Lilian ran off crying. Alexander didn't go after her immediately. It wasn't until one of her friends called to say she was missing that he realized something was wrong."
My fingers tightened unconsciously.
"Not long after that, Alexander received a ransom call. The kidnappers had targeted him from the very beginning."
Uncle Steve sighed heavily.
"Maybe if he had simply paid the ransom, Lilian wouldn't have suffered so much. But you know Alexander… he hates being threatened. Instead of paying, he contacted the police. Somehow, the kidnappers found out."
His voice grew quieter.
"And that's when they hurt Lilian."
Silence fell between us.
So this was the truth.
A complicated feeling rose in my chest.
