Silence befell Geralt. Was this how it needed to be? Had all that had happened to Arianne not been sadistic enough already?His lack of words, to Mateo, spoke volumes about his conviction—or rather, its faltering.“Ralt, there is no turning back for me,” Mateo said. “This is the only time I stopped being a nice guy; you understand why, don’t you? I just want it to be her and me. Us, together. But I can’t make that happen any other way. It’s she who didn’t want to leave Mark! After all that I’ve done for her, she just keeps clinging to this… faith in him! I have no other way! There’s only one way to resolve this, Ralt, and it’s to rescue her from here!”Geralt drew a sharp inhale of breath. “The fact that she never thought of leaving Mark Tremont despite everything is a solid, irrevocable testimonial of her love for him, don’t you see? What good do you think dragging her away from him is going to do? You will never possess her heart, Teo. The two of you will be doomed to grind out th
When Mark spoke, his voice was quaking as much as he was. “M-Must continue searching… T-Tell all of our people that we’ll… We’ll find her no matter how difficult it is, no matter the cost, no matter life or d-d-death… I want her found!”How close to the truth the parcel implied was already beyond his care, for the note and the earring had defeated his mental fortress. It had been days since anxiety became his companion in the dark, denying him his nightly reprieve and forcing him to turn to medication just to emulate some form of emotional stability.Home had become the den of his nightmares. He feared stepping inside the Tremont Estate because being in there, with emptiness surrounding him, forced him into confronting Arianne’s absence. Then there was Smore’s questioning; he feared the boy’s endless pelts of “Where is Mom, Dad? Where is my mom?”Deep down inside, he had become just a mortified man who wanted to run away from everything.Mark had not told Jackson nor Tiffany about
Tiffany was roused from her slumber by the commotion. “Mm? News of Ari? Oh, uh, wait! I’m—yawn—coming with, um, you...?”Jackson took one glance at her eyelids, which refused to open, and tucked her back under the sheet. “It’s all right, honey. Go back to bed,” he cooed. “I can go there alone; I’m only heading to Mark’s place, anyway. But you, sweetheart? You better get enough sleep. Remember, we’ve got our brats to take care of during the day. Better not worry yourself dead over Arianne, okay?”Without further ado, Jackson rushed to the Tremont Tower after the call. Turned out, a short drive was enough to make a man perk up and feel refreshed.“Is Mateo really, well... not-dead?” he asked straight off the bat.Mark passed the earring to him. “An anonymous sender delivered this to our doorstep today. It was one half of the pair Arianne was wearing on the day she went missing. I bought it for her, so I distinctly remember that there was no strange four-letter word on it during purch
Knowing that Mateo’s plan to whisk her away was nigh, Arianne panicked a little. “No, no! I’m not leaving with you!”Mateo spared her only a brief glance. He did not even give her a word.News of recent development had hit him: Mark’s people had begun watching every airport in the city. He had to move and fast. Even if he could not leave the country, changing the location he housed Arianne was still a must.Yes, he suspected betrayal from his dear pal Ralt. How else could he explain Mark’s obviously-guided focus on airports? The only explanation was if that bastard was somehow tipped into knowing that Mateo was still alive, and that he was the one who’d abducted Arianne!The old woman finished packing all of Arianne’s things. “Everything’s in order, sir.”Mateo nodded. “Wait for us outside. I’ll be with you in a moment.”She gave a confirmatory hum and went out, Arianne’s suitcase lumbering along.The room was left with just Arianne and Mateo. By this point, all of the favorable
Mateo casually replied with a “Yeap.”However, Arianne was in complete shock. She could not help but feel that what Geralt had said was meant for her. ‘How did Mark even think of keeping an eye on every entrance and exit in the airport? If he thought that I was purely being kidnapped, then the kidnappers would either want money or my life. I would definitely not have been taken overseas or to a city that’s far away!’Arianne suddenly realized why she thought that there was something wrong with Mateo and Geralt. ‘Geralt must have used the return of my earrings as an excuse to leak some information to Mark…’As Arianne peeked out the car window to look at the expression on Geralt’s face, Mateo suddenly reached out his hand and shut the car window on Arianne’s side. “It’s hot outside, and we’ve got the air conditioner on in here.”Arianne huddled herself and coldly said, “Stay away from me! My whole being feels sick just by looking at you!”Mateo’s body unknowingly froze but soon ret
Obviously, Mark had had his men keep an eye on this airport as well. However, since it was a smaller sized airport, there were not many men placed there.Before they got out of the car, Mateo put on a pair of sunglasses and a face mask. Of course, he had prepared a set for Arianne as well.Expectedly, Arianned refused to wear it and get out of the car. However, Mateo had already thought about it beforehand and handed over the syringe and drug to the old lady in the front passenger’s seat. “I’m getting off first, bring her with you later. Be careful.”After Mateo got out of the car and entered the airport, the driver took up the syringe after filling it up with the drug, ready to inject it into Arianne. Obviously, she struggled with all her might. “Don’t touch me!”The old lady moved to the back seat and forcefully held Arianne down. “Ms. Wynn, stop struggling. Otherwise, you’re the one who’s going to suffer if I have to stick this needle in you. The drug is only going to put you to
As they rushed to the airport, Mark continuously urged Brian to drive faster. ‘I’m so close to finding Arianne, so close to bringing her back to my side…’However, despite everything, luck was not on Mark’s side. Halfway there, the roads were so packed in traffic that there was nothing that could be done unless they could fly.Brian was feeling extremely impatient. “Sir, there seems to have been an accident in front, causing this traffic jam. I don’t believe we will be able to move forwards any time soon, nor can we reverse since there are so many cars behind us. What should we do now?”Mark was so furious that the color on his face changed. He got out of his car to check on the situation of the traffic jam. ‘We definitely won’t be able to move for at least another 20 minutes. I can’t just stay here and wait!‘If Mateo is at the airport, this means that Arianne is definitely there as well. The woman that I constantly dream of is right in front of me, so what reason do I have to not
Mateo wanted to personally check on her himself, but he was also worried that the repair work in the airport would be completed and he needed to continue with his flight registration. He frowned and said, “Be quick about it and don’t mess it up. She’s much smarter than you think she is. If she escapes, it’s going to be your head!”The driver nodded his head and bowed as he reassured Mateo continuously. Then, he rushed off to the washroom. However, before he had even arrived there, the old lady suddenly ran out alone. “We’ve got a problem! She’s gone!”The driver suddenly felt a “Buzz” in his head. “What did you say?! She can’t possibly have been able to stand properly, so how did she manage to disappear?! Have you tried looking for her?!”The old lady looked to her surroundings. “I've been guarding her the entire time, but it was getting suffocating in the washroom. Seeing that she was still vomiting, I came out to get some fresh air. But the moment I went back inside, she was gone.