In the movie Amber Alert, a little girl named Charlotte Bryce gets kidnapped by a man named Aaron, who is driving a black car. Her mother, after seeing the car and realizing Charlotte wasn’t at the park playing with her brother, immediately calls 911, as she fears that she won’t ever see her daughter again. Obviously the police quickly got involved, but they’re not the only ones who tried to find Charlotte. There was a woman named Jacqueline, who was on her way to work, and spotted the Amber Alert while riding in an Uber with her driver, Shane. Despite having their own plans and responsibilities, they decide to chase after the black car, which matches the description, because they think they might be able to help. Do they, along with the police, find Charlotte in the end? Read this explainer to find out!
Spoilers Ahead
Why did Amber and Shane go after Aaron?
Amber Alert begins with a black car circling around parks to look for little children, and when the driver spots them, he lures them with toys or dolls and then kidnaps them. This is exactly what happened to Charlotte, who at the time of her abduction, was playing with her brother. Things happened so quickly that Charlotte’s mother couldn’t process it and therefore failed to take a clear look at the license plate. Charlotte’s mother only noticed “the black car,” which made searching for the car even more difficult, like searching for a needle in a haystack. When Charlotte’s mother called 911, the dispatcher, Cici, was horrified and quickly issued an Amber Alert after talking to her boss, Sergeant Casey, because they knew they had to act fast. The description was clear: a little girl wearing white socks and pink shoes in a black car. So the police were already after the car, and Charlotte’s mother was understandably panicking to find her daughter. But it wasn’t just the police looking for Charlotte.
There was a woman named Jacqueline who was late for work and therefore took an Uber with a driver named Shane, who was on his way to his son’s surprise birthday party. When they saw the Amber Alert they both wanted to help even though they had their own plans. The film later revealed Jacqueline’s true intentions for joining the search party for Charlotte. Jacqueline wanted to find the girl because she knew the pain of losing a child, as she had lost her own baby, who was stillborn. Jacqueline finally spotted a black car that matched the description and convinced Shane, the driver, to follow the car. Even though Shane thought it was the police’s job to find the girl, when he saw how determined Jacqueline was, he decided to help. They were scared, especially when they noticed the man who got out of the car had a gun tucked in his back pocket and the windows were tinted so dark they couldn’t see if Charlotte was inside, but they could only see a little girl’s feet, which matched the description as well.
So, Jacqueline had a gut feeling, and she placed a tracker on his car to keep an eye on him. As they continued to follow him, the man stopped by the road to smoke a cigarette, and Jacqueline and Shane pretended to have car trouble to stay close by without looking suspicious. The man introduced himself as Aaron and said he wasn’t the kidnapper but just a dad taking his daughter, Olympia, to a medical checkup because she had arrhythmia. He seemed like a devoted father, and his story was convincing, plus, the license plate didn’t match the one from the Amber Alert, and the kidnapped girl’s name wasn’t Olympia, it was Charlotte. So, Jacqueline and Shane thought they had the wrong guy and were ready to move on. But something kept nagging Jacqueline, and she called the dispatcher, Cici, and asked if the tip about the other black car came from a gas station, and if the man’s name was Aaron. When Cici confirmed it, both Jacqueline and Shane realized they had just let the real kidnapper slip through their fingers, because it was Aaron who had called the dispatcher so that they would look for the wrong car and he could buy some time to make a getaway.
Did they find Charlotte in the end?
By the time Shane and Jacqueline realized Aaron was the kidnapper, he was already too far away, and they lost track of Aaron. But Jacqueline had done something smart, as she had placed a tracker and a recorder in Aaron’s car earlier, through which she figured out that Aaron was headed towards a pharmacy. When Sergeant Casey confirmed the location, Jacqueline and Shane decided to go there before the police arrived, as they were closer to the spot. When they reached the area, they saw Aaron coming out of a two-story house and they knew this was their chance. But as they entered the building, they realized it was like walking into a horror scene, because the place was filled with creepy puppets and cages, and had a big bulldog guarding the house, and the staircase twisted up to dark, empty hallways, which was really unsettling. While searching, Shane found a gun and loaded it with bullets to prepare for the worst. On the other hand, Jacqueline stumbled upon what looked like some albums filled with photos of little girls, surrounded by creepy dolls, which seemed like Aaron had been keeping children in cages to play some game with them, and naturally, Jacqueline was horrified. She continued to go upstairs and eventually found a room filled with cages and there, in one of the cages, they found Charlotte. They didn’t waste a second; as they tried to break the cage, Aaron came back, but Shane and Jacqueline acted fast and freed Charlotte to get her out of the cage. Jacqueline managed to make a run for it with Charlotte, but they weren’t safe yet. Aaron had a gun and started shooting at them. One of the shots hit Jacqueline in the shoulder, and she fell to the ground. But before it was too late, Sergeant Casey arrived and shot Aaron from behind, killing the perpetrator instantly.
In Amber Alert’s ending, Charlotte was finally safe, and as for Shane, he was unharmed, with Jacqueline being rushed to the hospital right away. Maybe after this incident, their life will change too as they’ve now seen firsthand how quickly things can go wrong and how someone’s life can change in an instant. Shane, especially, will probably be extra protective of his son after seeing what happened to Charlotte. But, thanks to the extraordinary bravery of these two ordinary people, they were able to bring Charlotte back safe and sound to her mother in the end, which was truly worth remembering.
What Will Happen To Charlotte And Her Mother?
I think this traumatic experience will have a deep impact on both Charlotte and her mother and maybe Charlotte will grow up being extra cautious and even be afraid of cars or strangers for a long time. Her mother may always feel restless and worry about her daughter’s safety even in safe places because she will maybe never fully trust that everything is okay. We’ve seen from many interviews how survivors of kidnappings, like those who escaped notorious criminals like Ted Bundy or Jeffrey Dahmer, are still haunted by their past trauma, even as adults. So, we can imagine what kind of toll this will take on a little girl.
