When they left the airport, they rented a car and the first hotel they went was the one closest to their spot. The air was young and bright, with the sun sprinkling down on the skeletal trees. Mariana winded down the window and felt the fresh cool breeze. She smiled as she felt her joy rising that she would soon be able to enjoy this with their kids.

"I hope it doesn't take us too long to find the place that are our kids are at," Micah said, leaning next to her head.

"Same." She smiled and pecked his cheek. His arm was just next to her, so she rested her head like it was a pillow. Their eyes peered over the small hedge that gated the premise. They saw Mason walking in with the agents behind. There were two other buildings attached to it with the height gradually descending, and the light settling on the pastel setting.

Mariana got out some peanuts and stuffed them into her mouth as they waited for them to come out, hopefully with their kids. Her nails pattered against the window and she laid her hand flat. She imagined her precious children putting their tiny hands on the other side.

But their hopes were crushed when Mason and the FBI returned with no kid by their side.

"We showed them the picture and the names but they weren't in their system," one of the agents said.

"So they are not there then." Micah sighed as Mariana's head drooped in disappointment.

"No but don't worry, we still have four more to check," Mason said, crossing off one, "I'm sure they will be in one of them." He turned back and gave them a reassuring smile, but his lips started shaking from worry.

They drove along the street where the vegetation became more scarce and barren along the sidewalk. It was like it had been eroded away by the harsh weathers like a riverbank.

They stopped in front of the next hotel which was called Hotel Ferihegy. It was smaller than the last and rundown. Its bleak eyes stared back at them blankly with their concealed curtains.

"This looks like some place a criminal like Mona would be," Mariana muttered with disgust. She rolled her eyes as she imagined Mona and Electra rotting somewhere in garbage like sewer rats, while her poor babies suffered in the background.

"Don't worry, we'll find her," Mason said and got out with the agents. Mariana and Micah's eyes locked onto their backs as they watched them enter the building that seemed unwelcoming with the silence that wavered around it.

"That does not look like a hotel. It looks like some abandoned house," Micah said.

"Heh, yeah it does." Mariana chuckled a bit. She flattened her face on the door and yawned. "I just hope we find the hotel they are staying in soon. I'm so tired of waiting all the time."

"Me too. It's taken us long to get here, so I hope it doesn't take long to get them back." He looked out the window and hovered over her head.

Mariana sighed in frustration and flopped onto his chest. She patted her head as her patience was quickly diminishing. Every biting, waiting moment was eating at her and her legs twitched impatiently. It only got worse when Mason and the agents came out with no kid beside them.

"They are not there either." Mason sighed as he got inside the car. He ticked it off the list and stuffed it back into his pocket.

"Urgh, where are they!" Mariana exclaimed.

"We still got three more to do. So there's this still hope," Mason said.

"I really want them to be found." Mariana sulked and leaned on Micah's shoulder. Their heads dropped together like withered flowers. Mason peered at them through the mirror and felt pity. He hoped their kids were in the next hotels they were going to go to.

They continue driving. Apart from the nerve-racking thought of where their kids might be, the scenery of trees and shops were returning. They watched the seeming never-ending trail of the GPS, and Mariana stuck her head out the window.

She watched as they passed the people walking in front of the houses, with rounded trees as their companion. She narrowed her eyes and wondered if Mona was among them, trying to run away before they caught her.

A train track followed them all the way to the next hotel, Hotel Timon. The outside was colored beige and blended well with the surroundings and roofed with dark plates.

Mariana smiled as she liked the look of the place. It was a humble-looking hotel, but she couldn't wait to take their children back to their proper homes.

But that time was still long to come as the men came back with no results. Mariana started biting her nails as their options were quickly running out. She shuffled next to Micah, and they huddled to the side, worrying together.

"We've not run out of options yet," Mason said, trying to keep their hopes up. But he didn't like crossing off another unsuccessful attempt.

Next one was also unsuccessful, and so they were down to the last one. It was a homely hostel with white, rippling gates and the outside was painted coral. There were plant pots hung on the small balconies, which contrasted with the small trees outside.

"I hope this one works," Mariana muttered and clutched Micah's hand. She stared at the bottom of the seat, her face feeling flushed and her chest felt tight and knotted. She could do nothing except feel the hot sweat drip down her temples and the accelerated beating of her heart disturbed her with its erratic thumping.

She continued staring but it was interrupted when Mason tapped on the window. Mariana looked up as Micah opened the door.

"Hey, he said he had them in his hostel," Mason said.

"Really?" Mariana and Micah spoke in unison.

"Yeah, the owner is going to show us to her room." Mason opened the door wider which Mariana tumbled out.

"Come on Micah! Let's go get our kids!" She pulled him out of the car, and they raced towards the door. Micah muttered a silent "thank you" to his brother.

Once they were all in, the owner led them down the corridor. Mariana and Micah held hands tightly while walking behind Mason and the FBI. Her eyes roamed around and she hunched her shoulders since it seemed like the walls were closing in on them.

"This is the room Sarah Harris stayed," the owner said, and they watched the door slowly unlock. They all braced themselves but the door revealed an empty room. They all walked in, their mouths hung open in confusion.

"Are you sure its this room?" Micah asked.

"Yes. I don't know why she not here," the owner said, "I didn't see her earlier."

"I think I know why..." Mariana muttered. Her eyes were to the window. It's curtains flowed freely from the wind that blew from outside.

She held back her tears and went up to it. It was wide open and a strand of hair was caught in the lock. She took it out and recognized it to be Elisa's tight curl.

She cradled it in her hand and was close to weeping. They were so close, too close, yet too late.

Micah came behind her and she handed him the hair. He recognized it almost instantly, and his hands began to shake while holding back his tears. Like this may be the last thing they see of them.

Mariana started crying into his hands. She was so sure they would be able to find them this time. But they were gone. Gone without a trace and it seemed like they had nowhere else to turn.

They went outside and sat on some chairs. Mason opened up the map and he looked at it with the FBI to see if there was any more places they could check. Meanwhile, Mariana and Micah did the same but on a different table while having a small snack.

"Alright so where can they be?" Micah opened up google maps and started panning round the area. Mariana looked over his shoulder while eating her ham and cheese croissant sandwich.

She dropped some crumbs onto his screen, and he wiped them off. He widened out the map to get a better view, but the frustration of having no idea where Mona went led to him forcefully moving the map around.

"Urgh where are they?" He sighed in frustration.

Mariana munched on her food and slid the phone towards her side. "Let me see."

She started looking over where Micah stopped. The bread swirled in her mouth like her finger circling the map. She was just going through a few places until one caught her eye.

It was just outside Hungary towards the east. In the north of the country Romania. It was the county of Maramures.

"That's it," Mariana said slowly, "that's where she's at."

"Really, in Romania?" He looked over the area. "How do you know?"

"I remember her telling me this is where she lived when we were talking about our childhood." Mariana pointed to the county again, this time with more conviction. "She has to be there. It's right next to Hungary and it makes the most sense for her to go back home if it's this close."

"Actually, yeah, that makes sense," he said and took his phone back. "So how are we going to find her house?" He started pressing in for directions of where they were at.

"That's the thing... I don't exactly know where she lives." Mariana scratched her head. "All I know is she lives in Maramures, but she did say she lived in the countryside."

"Um okay," Micah said, as he stared down at the map because most of the area was rural. But they only had Maramures to search which didn't seem to bad.

"Okay so its a five hour drive. If we leave now, we could still find them while it's still bright so it would be easier."

"Alright, I just hope this works." Mariana got up and finished her croissant. "We don't know for sure if she is going there but it is our best shot."

"Yeah, it's worth the chance." He took the phone to take to Mason.

"Hey, we have an idea on where Mona might be."

"Really?" Mason said, his head perking up with an eyebrow raised. "Where?"

"I have a feeling she's gone to Romania, and she's going here," Mariana explained and showed them the map. "It's just a guess, but she did say she used to live so it's likely that's where she went." She grabbed a pen from the table and drew the location.

"Are you sure she's there?" one of the agent's asked.

"Like 80% sure." Mariana shrugged. "I dunno, but it's better than nothing." She sighed and quickly wiped her stinging eyes that brimmed with tears. She was just tired of searching and everything. This place was their last resort. Otherwise, if they weren't there, she wouldn't know what she would do.

"Yeah it is better than nothing," Mason said and got up. "Alright, we'll go to Romania to find Mona." He picked up the map and scrunched it back into his pocket since it was no longer use.

"Okay, let's get going," the agent said and got up with his partner. "The sooner we leave, the sooner we'll find them."

They all gathered their thing and got into the car. They quickly revved up the engine and set the route towards Maramures. Once the first direction seeped into her ears, she squeezed her eyes tight. She silently hoped for the best as the engine roared quietly in the background.

Her body rocked back and forth. Her heart palpitated crazily inside. Her fingers fought with each other as they had a very long journey ahead.

They speedily drove through the country on the highway. The radio blasted through the speakers to lift them out of their sunken spirits and have a positive mindset. That their kids will certainly be there.

"So when we get there, what's the plan of finding Mona?" Micah asked as the crispy wind hit his face.

"Well since we don't know which part, she's in, I'll say the best way is just to drive through the whole county and investigate each town we come across," the agent said, "we could show the locals the picture and see if they recognize her."

"Sounds like a good plan," Mason said.

"Yeah..." Mariana sighed. She just hopes this chance would work. Unlike the hotel thing, they were going on a complete guess that Mona was heading for her hometown. They just hoped that guess would be right.

A few hours later, they crossed the border and entered Romania. The stopped in the city of Baia Mare, the capital of Maramures. They got out of the car to stretch their legs.

"Whew! That was a good ride!" Mariana said and stretched her back.

"Yeah it was very relaxing. Now we can focus on where our kids might be around here," Micah said.

"That's right," Mason said, "that long drive has calmed down our nerves so we can think properly and not miss anything." 

"So, where are we going first?" Mariana asked. 

"I'll go check the map to see which is the nearest town from here so we can start looking there," one of the agents said. 

So they got back in the car and then set off straight ahead on the map. The first place on the map was Firiza so they went.

Mariana had the window down and stretched her head out like a giraffe. She felt the gusty wind as they passed the crystallising river that rippled along the landscape. She took a picture of the clouds that skated over the Carpathian Mountains and the light that glistened along the trees, showing the mixture of green that glowed over the river. 

They entered the village that was surrounded by trees and kept their eyes out for Mona amongst the houses. It was nice and peaceful as they drove along the road while peering anxiously at everyone.

But a house down the road caught their eye. It had a black, spikey gate attached to a brick wall. Walking alongside it was Mona who unlocked the gate and went inside.

"There she is!"

"Okay, let's go get her," Mason said and increased their speed. It was not long that they were in front of the house and ready to go catch Mona.