"Me?" The man pointed to himself with a confused expression that Liz was starting to despise. He looked incredibly dumb.
"Yes, you! I can't believe how stupid you can be! Is there nothing in that brain of yours that remembers me? You brag about being smart and all, but your memory is shorter than a finger!"
Liz wanted to keep ranting, but her eyes caught the gaze of two confused children. When Liz lived with Ruby, she learned not to swear in front of kids because they imitated.
"I mean... you're just a little forgetful. That's... all."
Liz lowered her voice, feeling a bit awkward. Five pairs of eyes stared at her in shock. Her harsh words must have been quite a spectacle.
The woman, who had previously been speaking Italian, waved and invited them inside. She knew that kind of conversation wasn’t meant for children to hear.
Then Anne-Marie broke the tension. She giggled. "You’re just like my mother," she said.
“
“Missing? What do you mean?” Ed frowned. He didn’t want to misunderstand.“Correct. I received a report from the police. Rein Cardenas, Senorita Liz's work partner, reported that she suddenly disappeared from a fashion show, hasn’t been reachable for almost twenty-four hours, and hasn’t returned to the hotel.”Ibanez handed Ed a copy of the police report."The police confirmed Senorita's identity here, and our people there realized who she was and told me," Ibanez explained further.Ed abruptly stood up, shocked by this unexpected source of information.“No one from the police should inform Ruby! Have they contacted her yet?” Ed asked.“Uh... I...”“Tell them to delay it! Now!” Ed snapped, frustrated.Ibanez complied, but his instincts were still not as quick as Otiz’s. For such details, Ed still had to give direct orders. Otiz would have anticipated this and prevented the information from reaching Ruby.“Book a flight to France,” Ed said, while Ibanez was still sending the message.“Y
"Not in the police report." Ed had skimmed through it earlier. There was no mention of a witness. This news was very fresh."They’re the type who wouldn’t talk to the police," said Ibanez."Oh, illegal." Ed immediately understood that the witness was likely an illegal immigrant. They wouldn’t talk to the police but might open up to the right person."Get more people together. I want everyone who’s not busy to come and help search." Once he realized Liz was in danger, Ed became serious."Yes, Don Rosas." Ibanez quickly sent out more messages."Does anyone know where Liz was taken?" Ed asked."I got the license plate number, and the car that used to take her was found parked at a small airport outside Etampes. It seems Senorita Liz is no longer in France." Ibanez nervously read the rest of his team’s report."Shit! What is this? Was she sold or something?" Ed didn’t want to think the worst, but it was
"They are so different," Liz said, chewing on the sandwich, her first meal of the day."Hm?" Anne-Marie, who was with her, turned to follow Liz's gaze—staring at Eren playing with his two children."Do you mean their personalities? It's hard to tell by their faces. I've known them since they were little, but sometimes I still mistake one for the other from afar. But up close, I can always tell. Asher rarely smiles," Anne-Marie explained further, and Liz agreed.Looking at Eren in the daylight, up close, dressed normally, Liz could never mistake him. Eren was tidier and smiled more—definitely more friendly. He even apologized easily earlier, something Asher would likely never do."He's like me," Liz murmured."What?" Anne-Marie didn't catch Liz's mumble; she was already distracted by one of her children coming over."Nothing." Liz shook her head. The murmur had been primarily directed towards herself.Eren and Asher shared
“Why is there another car?” Ruby turned around and saw one more car that had indeed been following them.Ruby only noticed it after they reached a quieter road. The car had been with them all along.“Yes, because it’s necessary. This area belongs to the Val family,” Ed explained with some relief.That was the first question Ruby had asked since their trip from Paris to Italy—Lake Como. She had been silent since they left the restaurant.“What do you mean by ‘area’?” Ruby only knew that Val was Ed’s friend."His family has a business here, and I'm not exactly supposed to enter casually." While gritting his teeth and squeezing his phone, Ed stated that he would likely smash it if he had the ability.That frustration was directed at Val. In such a critical moment, none of his calls to Val had come through. Not even a response. Ed wasn’t sure if Val’s phone was off or
"I didn't kidnap anyone." Eren's weak voice was heard again."You knocked her unconscious and took her to another country! Isn't that a kidnapping?" Asher glared at the face that looked so much like his own."I didn't know who she was; she kept calling out the name Anne-Marie! What do you think I was supposed to do?!" Eren wasn’t backing down."You mentioned Anne-Marie?" Asher finally looked at Liz, after barely glancing her way before."Uh… yes. You’ve mentioned her before." Liz nodded."You still remember?" Asher was surprised, as he recalled mentioning the name only in passing."Why did you bring up Anne-Marie when you were with him?" Ivy abruptly interjected, clearly curious."Nothing!" Asher was dismissed immediately. However, Liz, being honest, provided a more thorough response at the same time, ensuring that she was genuinely heard."I own a boutique, and Asher said he wanted to buy a gift for a woman&
"Have you seen this woman?" Ruby inquired, pointing to Liz's photo on her phone."No! No... English." Before she hurried away, the woman she asked stumbled over her words and shook her head.Ruby sighed, experiencing yet another setback before she could formulate a proper question. It wasn't as straightforward as she thought, and many people there don't know English.Yesterday, Ruby had felt smart and confident in her English fluency, but now she was back to feeling helpless. Her knowledge was useless in a crucial moment.“I think you should rest,” Theo suggested worriedly, urging Ruby to stop. He couldn't be much help, either, not knowing English.“I haven’t found her yet, Theo. She’s my sister.” Ruby ignored the suggestion and kept walking, though she was clearly struggling. Her breath was ragged, and sweat beaded on her forehead.Her body hadn't expanded significantly yet, but her belly had, and it was
"Why leave her?" Ivy questioned Matteo's suggestion to leave Liz behind in the speedboat while they went ashore to meet Ed."Wouldn't it be better if they saw Liz safe and sound?" Ivy still didn't understand Matteo's reasoning."What if they spot her and launch an immediate attack? Rosas is the vengeful type. He might believe that we really kidnapped her and are holding her hostage in order to demand something."Matteo was a bit pessimistic, wanting to talk first before bringing Liz out—after everything had calmed down. Matteo knew Ed didn’t come alone—he had brought his men. A commotion was highly likely."Liz, is Ed the patient type?" Ivy inquired, attempting to determine which course of action would be more beneficial."No." Of course, Liz wouldn’t describe Ed as patient and knew full well that he was vengeful, as Matteo had said. Liz herself was at a loss for suggestions at the moment, as she was overwhelmed with confusi
“What about them?”As she saw a speedboat approaching the dock where they were waiting, Ruby stepped closer to Ed. It didn't take long, not even five minutes.“Seems like it,” Ed said.Only those two speedboats were approaching the dock, despite many others coming and going. No one got off for a while, except the person anchoring the boat.“Did they know where Liz was? I've asked around, and no one has seen her nearby.” Ruby was growing impatient.“I’ll go ask.” Ed grabbed Ruby’s arm as he finally noticed movement from within the speedboat.Three people emerged. One was Asher, and the other two were unfamiliar—Ed had only seen them in photos years earlier. They had aged and changed, especially Matteo Ranallo. Ed remembered his face from the photo when it was still intact, along with his hands.The burn scars on Matteo’s face were far worse than Ed's—even bef