Sienna Johnson had been missing for a month when a harried and disheveled Adrian Desmond received a landline call from the hospital. It was a pleasant female voice, full of warmth and enthusiasm. "Hello, may I speak with Mr. Desmond?"
"Speaking."
"Hello, I am a nurse from the maternity departnt of Gerico Hospital. Mrs. Desmond had an appointnt for a check-up today, but she did not co or reschedule. I tried calling her on her mobile to remind her, but it was unreachable, so I decided to call you."
A check-up? Adrian was montarily confused, as he was in Mousden, following a lead on a diamond necklace at that mont. On the bustling streets of Mousden, Adrian felt lonely and desperate. His Mai and his son seed to have vanished into thin air like the missing ring, and he couldn’t find them no matter what he did.
"Has it been a month already?" he muttered.
If it weren’t for the nurse’s call today, Adrian would not have realized that Sienna had been gone for a month already. He hadn’t done anything else in the past month but look for her and their son all over the world.
"Yes, Mrs. Desmond’s last check-up was on February 24th, and today was her scheduled check-up. She was supposed to have a 4D ultrasound this week to check for any physical deformities in the baby. Mr. Desmond, can Mrs. Desmond co tomorrow? If she can co tomorrow, I can make an appointnt for her in advance," the nurse asked.
"She won’t be able to co tomorrow," he said quietly.
"What about the day after tomorrow?"
"No, she won’t be able to co then either."
The nurse said seriously, "Mr. Desmond, I know that you are both very busy, but you must make ti for check-ups. In case there is any issue with the baby, early treatnt would be best. Your current attitude is not only irresponsible to the mother but also to the child..."
Adrian hung up the call from the hospital nurse and sat down on a bench by the side of the road, quietly watching the blond-haired, blue-eyed Germans. His gaze was always drawn to the children in baby carriages. German children with Aryan blood were beautiful, with their blond hair and blue eyes. He imagined how beautiful his own child, inheriting the features of both him and Sienna, would be.
"Mai, where are you?"
He leaned back on the bench, staring up at the blue sky while white clouds drifted overhead. Weeds of desolation grew in his heart, leaving him uninterested in anything other than searching tirelessly for Sienna and their son.
Walter Klein returned from a fast-food restaurant with so burgers and drinks, walked over, and said, "Sixth Master, you should eat sothing. You haven’t eaten since last night."
"I don’t have an appetite."
"Sixth Master, you won’t be able to maintain your health if you keep this up."
"Do you have any cigarettes?"
Walter frowned. "You’ve already smoked five packs today."
"Do you have any?"
"No!"
Walter sat down beside Adrian, eating a burger and drinking cola. In the past month, Walter had suffered imnsely. If Sienna couldn’t be found, he could only imagine his future, probably roaming the world aimlessly with Adrian.
"Sixth Master, we’ve searched so many countries following the clues from the jewelry, but you’ve already found out those pieces of jewelry were just used by Madam to mislead you. No matter how diligently we follow those clues, we won’t be able to find her whereabouts. Why do you still insist on searching like this? Isn’t it foolish?" Walter boldly spoke, not afraid of angering Adrian.
It would be better if he could get angry and beat soone, rather than continue with this lifeless deanor.
"...If I don’t search, am I supposed to sit at ho and wait for her to co back? Do you think she’ll obediently return?" Adrian asked himself, then answered, "No... If I stop searching, I will completely lose Mai and my son..."
Walter couldn’t understand his panic. That woman’s heart was cold and hard; she would never co back. Adrian also worried that, given enough ti, she would find a "father" for their child, just as Thalia Powell had predicted.
Adrian didn’t dare to sleep now. As soon as he fell asleep, he would dream of Sienna getting married to another man, while the son who shared his blood called another man "father." In those dreams, Adrian wished he could kill that damned man.
"...Sixth Master, why don’t you divorce Miss Carpenter?" Walter pinched the half-eaten burger in his hand and finally voiced the suggestion he had contemplated for a long ti.
Seeing that Adrian didn’t object, Walter continued, "At the beginning, Madam left because she didn’t want you to marry Miss Carpenter... If you want Madam to return, you have to let her know that you’ve divorced Miss Carpenter."
Adrian suddenly sat down, clenched his hands together, and fell silent for a long ti.
Walter knew that Adrian was wavering; silence, in fact, usually indicated a form of agreent. However, getting a divorce from lanie would not be easy.
"If I divorce lanie, I’d be pushing her to her death," Adrian said.
One too fragile, one too strong; neither woman in Adrian’s life gave him any peace.
How long will it take to find her without a clear direction in this vast world?
"As long as I’m alive, I’ll keep searching!"
That was Adrian’s choice!
Adrian stood up and said to Walter, "Let’s go. Off to Liverwell."
In the past month, they had searched many places: Southeast Agaia, Olkgan, Souththern, Aurinnois, Mousden, Landsco... Sienna seed to have evaporated from the earth without leaving any trace behind.
Four months after Sienna’s disappearance, Adrian finally stopped his aimless search and returned to Abyanabad.
lanie Carpenter knew Adrian was back and excitedly rushed out of the house, ignoring the astonishnt of the servants. As Adrian got out of the car, a woman crashed into his embrace.
"Sixth Brother!" lanie hugged Adrian tightly around his waist, tears shimring in her eyes. "You’re finally back. I missed you so much."
"That’s perfect because there’s sothing I need to talk to you about. You should co inside with ."
Adrian pushed lanie away and strode into the house. She stood there, watching the dusty and disheveled man. His suit even had creases, and his hair was a ss... When had the Adrian she knew ever looked so ragged?
As tears rolled down from the corners of her eyes, lanie wiped them away with the back of her hand and quickened her pace to catch up.
Mr. Lucas, who hadn’t seen Sienna return, asked Walter, looking just as worn and exhausted, "You still can’t find Madam?"
"No..."
"Where could a pregnant woman go?" the worried Mr. Lucas said.
Since Sienna had disappeared on his watch, Mr. Lucas was also held responsible. Adrian had been busy looking for her, and when he eventually cald down, Mr. Lucas guessed he would be the first person Adrian sought an explanation from.
"Who knows..." Walter chid in.
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