Alexander’s POV
"Sir, could you please co to the police station?" the officer said over the phone.
"Did sothing happen?" I asked.
"Our officers found Miss Sumr earlier today, sir."
My grip on the phone tightened instantly.
"I’ll be there in an hour."
Without waiting for a response, I ended the call.
Just as I suspected.
Lilian had been hiding in Velaridge City this entire ti.
And whoever had been protecting her,I would find out soon enough.
I left the study and headed upstairs to the master bedroom.
It wouldn’t be safe for Alicia to co with in her current condition, but I still wanted to tell her where I was going. I didn’t want another misunderstanding between us.
When I entered the room, however, Alicia was asleep.
She lay quietly on the bed, her breathing steady and peaceful.
I stood beside her for a mont, watching her.
No matter how urgent the situation was, I couldn’t bring myself to wake her.
In the end, I decided to tell her when I returned.
I grabbed my coat and left.
Jim was on leave today, so I drove myself.
I wanted to handle everything as quickly as possible and get back ho.
Alicia had never been comfortable with excessive security around the villa, so I had removed most of the guards and replaced them with additional surveillance systems instead.
As I drove, I picked up my phone and sent her a ssage.
I had to go take care of sothing. I’ll explain everything when I return.
After sending it, I put the phone away and focused on the road.
Thirty minutes later, I arrived at the police station.
"You’re here, Mr. Blackwood."
"Where is she?"
"This way, sir."
I nodded and followed the officer through the building.
As we approached an office, I could already hear a woman’s voice from inside.
The officer opened the door.
Everyone inside looked up.
The chief officer sat behind his desk.
And beside him sat Isabelle Sumr.
The mont she saw , she visibly stiffened.
"Thank you for coming at such a short notice, Mr. Blackwood," the chief officer said.
"Please, have a seat."
He motioned toward the chair opposite Isabelle.
I sat down and gave her a brief nod.
"Mrs. Sumr."
"Mr. Blackwood," she replied awkwardly. "It’s been a while."
The officer cleared his throat.
"You’ve probably already been inford."
I turned to him.
"Where is she?"
"She’s currently in the interrogation room."
His gaze briefly shifted toward Isabelle before returning to .
"She appears to be ntally unstable at the mont, but we’re trying to gather as much information as possible."
I frowned.
"What do you an unstable?"
I leaned back slightly.
"She visited my grandmother only a few days ago and contacted my wife afterward. Is that sothing a ntally unstable person would do?"
The officer imdiately shook his head.
"We don’t an she’s unaware of her actions, sir. What we’re saying is that she isn’t exactly herself right now."
He paused.
"She was found alone in an apartnt. And her dical records says the accident she suffered a few weeks ago appears to have affected her ntally."
This ti, Isabelle spoke.
"The doctors ntioned it after her surgery."
I remained silent.
I knew Lilian.
And I knew how easily she could use her trauma to manipulate situations.
She had done it before.
She could try again.
But it wouldn’t work this ti.
Then another thought crossed my mind.
"Which apartnt was she found in?"
The officer hesitated.
"It belonged to Daniel Caldwell."
A slow smile appeared on my face.
Just as I thought.
After Daniel’s arrest, I had ordered my n to monitor all of his properties more closely.
Even so, we had found nothing.
Now it all made sense.
She had been hiding in one of his apartnts all along.
"So what happens now?" I asked.
The officer folded his hands.
"For the ti being, she’ll undergo further psychological evaluation."
"If her condition is confird to be severe, treatnt will beco the priority before any legal proceedings."
I nodded slowly.
At this point, there was nothing left to worry about.
Lilian had been found.
No matter how long it took, she would still have to answer for her actions.
"My lawyer will handle everything from here."
I stood up.
"Mr. Blackwood."
Isabelle’s cautious voice stopped .
I turned around.
She had also risen to her feet.
"Don’t you want to see her?"
For a brief mont, the room fell silent.
Then I shook my head.
"There’s no need, Mrs. Sumr."
My voice remained calm.
"I won’t have anything to do with your daughter from now on."
Pain flashed across her face.
She stepped closer.
"I know my children have caused you a lot of trouble. Especially Lilian."
Her voice grew softer.
"On their behalf, I’d like to apologize."
I studied her quietly.
For as long as I had known Isabelle Sumr, she had always been humble.
Even after the incident years ago, when she had every reason to bla , she never did.
Instead, she kept insisting that it wasn’t anyone’s fault.
Looking back now, I couldn’t help but wonder if she had known more than she ever let on.
But I didn’t dwell on it.
"You don’t need to apologize, Mrs. Sumr."
With that, I turned and left.
As I walked through the hallway, I caught a glimpse of Lilian through the glass window of the interrogation room.
She looked nothing like the woman I rembered.
Her hair was ssy.
Her face was pale.
And a noticeable scar stretched across one side of it.
It was probably from the accident.
This sight would have worried alot a few months ago.
But now I felt nothing.
It felt like I wasn’t even supposed to feel anything.
I didn’t stop.
I kept walking.
Once outside, I got into my car and checked my phone.
There was still no reply from Alicia.
I wondered if she was still asleep.
Then I rembered sothing she had said before.
She wanted to see Lilian herself.
If Lilian truly was ntally unstable now, then eting her wouldn’t be safe.
But if Alicia insisted, I wouldn’t stop her.
I would simply make sure she wasn’t hurt.
With that thought in mind, I started the engine and drove back toward the estate.
>
"Welco back, sir."
"Thanks, Maria." I loosened my tie as I stepped into the villa. "Is Alicia still sleeping?"
I’d been gone for almost three hours.
Maria shook her head.
"No, sir. She woke up earlier. I took her lunch upstairs before I went to the laundry room."
I nodded and headed upstairs.
Without another word, I pushed open the bedroom door.
The room was empty.
My gaze swept across the bed.
The blanket was slightly creased, proof that she’d been there recently, but Alicia herself was nowhere in sight.
I checked the walk-in closet.
Nothing.
The dressing room.
Nothing.
Frowning, I moved toward the bathroom.
"Alicia?"
No response.
A knot ford in my chest.
"Are you alright?" I asked, concern creeping into my voice.
Silence.
I knocked on the door.
"Alicia?"
Still nothing.
My grip tightened around the doorknob.
"I’m coming in."
I pushed the door open.
The bathroom was empty.
I froze.
For a mont, I simply stood there staring.
Alicia always locked the bathroom door whenever she was inside.
Slowly, I stepped back out.
Maybe she was on the balcony.
I walked over and pulled the curtains aside.
Empty.
The balcony doors were shut.
My brows furrowed.
Then I rembered the parenting books she’d been reading lately.
Maybe she was in the study.
I imdiately headed downstairs.
The study was empty.
"Alicia?" I called.
No answer.
The uneasy feeling in my chest deepened.
I checked the library.
The living room.
The dining area.
Every place she occasionally visited.
Nothing.
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