Chapter 324 - 322: Someone Has Been Kidnapped

But Vivian Sheridan, as if possessed, stubbornly blocked Cecilia Sterling’s path, pleading earnestly, "Cecilia, we’re also looking for a restaurant. Why don’t we eat together?"

"You can have whatever you want. It’ll be my treat, as my apology to you."

"Besides, for me to run into you right after arriving in Lorcain today... don’t you think it’s fate? Maybe this is a sign from the heavens, a chance for us to sit down and clear the air. Don’t you think so?"

Her tone was exceptionally sincere, her attitude sufficiently fawning and servile.

But Cecilia just stared at her and responded icily, "To me, this is just a jinx."

Vivian Sheridan never seemed to imagine that after she had humbled herself to such an extent, Cecilia Sterling would show zero regard for their past, not sparing her a shred of dignity—especially not in front of her boyfriend.

Vivian Sheridan’s smile froze on her face, her eyes filled with utter astonishment.

Her boyfriend, Trask, seemed to sense that something was amiss, but before he could sort it out, the couple had already brushed past them and walked away.

Vivian Sheridan snapped back to her senses and spun around, just in time to see Cecilia Sterling holding her boyfriend’s hand as they entered a private fine-dining restaurant.

She bit her lip, unwilling to accept it. Though her eyes rimmed with red, they burned with the fire of jealousy.

Just moments before, she and her boyfriend had come out of that very restaurant—not after finishing a meal, but after taking one look at the prices and deciding they couldn’t afford it.

Her family’s financial situation was by no means poor, but she still couldn’t bring herself to spend several thousand per person on a single meal.

"Vivian, are you okay?" Trask asked tentatively. "Did you have a misunderstanding with your friend?"

Vivian Sheridan hid the emotion in her eyes and shook her head, looking utterly pitiful. "It’s nothing. Let it be. Let’s just go."

Trask didn’t press further. He put on a cheerful act and said, "Hey, I just saw a restaurant downstairs with a great group deal. Want to go check it out?"

The two words "group deal" seemed to strike a nerve with Vivian Sheridan.

The same woman who had just claimed "it’s nothing" now whipped her head around to glare at Trask, her eyes red. "A group deal?" she shrieked, losing control. "Why do I have to settle for a group deal? I came all this way to see you, and you take me out for a cheap meal deal? Is that all I’m worth to you? A discount?!"

Trask was dumbstruck, utterly baffled as to why the normally sweet and understanding Vivian Sheridan was suddenly lashing out like this.

He scrambled to placate her, completely flustered. "That’s not what I meant. Please don’t be angry. Just tell me where you want to eat, and I’ll take you. We won’t use any deals."

But the more he said, the more pathetic and frustrated Vivian felt.

She admitted to herself that she wasn’t as pretty as Cecilia Sterling, but at least in high school, she had been able to best Cecilia in every other way. How had everything flipped since college began?

Was it all because Cecilia had chosen a university in Lorcain?

If she had known, she would have picked a university in Lorcain, too.

Inside the restaurant, Cecilia Sterling and Saul Thorne took a seat by the window. Saul was quietly watching Cecilia’s expression, worried the earlier encounter might have ruined her appetite.

As she opened the menu, Cecilia glanced up at Saul and suddenly smiled. "Why are you staring at me?"

"What’s wrong with looking at my own girlfriend?"

"I’m fine," Cecilia said, not wanting him to worry. "She’s nobody important."

They hadn’t seen each other in a long time, and she wasn’t about to let some nobody ruin their precious date.

Saul relaxed but still spoke apologetically. "I’ve been swamped. It was hard enough to squeeze out this one day off, and things are only going to get busier from here."

Cecilia met his gaze, asking with some confusion, "I understand the nature of your work, but aren’t you in the Internal Review Division now? A desk job? Why are you suddenly so busy?"

She wasn’t complaining, just genuinely curious.

If he were on the front lines in the Detective Unit or the Detective Division, it would be normal to get slammed during a major case.

Saul explained calmly, "The city is in the middle of a special anti-crime initiative. It’s a massive, long-term sweep, and all the precincts are coordinating closely."

He couldn’t help but smile and ask, "You don’t really follow the news, do you?"

The municipal bureau held a press conference about it, calling for public oversight and encouraging citizens to report any suspected gang-related criminal activity. Anyone who follows the news would know about it."

Cecilia froze. As Saul spoke, the face of Wesley Yates instinctively popped into her mind.

Thinking about her brother’s recent, uncharacteristic behavior, Cecilia’s heart sank with a thud.

But she quickly masked her feelings, nodding as if nothing was wrong. "I see. Well, work comes first. Don’t worry about me. What’s a few months of being a de facto widow? If things get too bad, I’ll just go to a club and order a few male models to quench my thirst."

"You dare and I’ll lead a raid on that club myself!" Saul declared.

Cecilia laughed. "Alright, Mr. Big Shot, I was just kidding. But no matter how busy you get, make sure you take care of yourself."

Saul lowered his voice. "You know better than anyone just how good my health is."

Cecilia shot him a playful glare, then turned and called over the waiter. "A dozen Gillardeau oysters with lemon, please. Thank you."

Saul: "..."

*

「The next morning, at nine o’clock.」

Eugene Jacobs was still handcuffed to the hotel bed. He had been lying on his back, waiting, for the entire night.

The air conditioning hummed. He looked like a dehydrated, shriveled orange—his face was sallow, his expression utterly listless.

He couldn’t move, didn’t dare to shout, and certainly couldn’t reach the phone to call for help.

He had the sinking feeling that he’d been played for a fool.

BEEP—

The sound of a keycard swiping at the door made Eugene Jacobs’s face light up. He thought Daniels had finally returned.

But when the door opened, a middle-aged woman in a housekeeping uniform walked in instead.

"AH!"

"AH!"

The housekeeper shrieked at the sight of Eugene Jacobs on the bed, which in turn startled him, and he found himself staring wide-eyed and screaming right back at her.

The housekeeper ran out, still screaming, and didn’t stop until she found the floor manager in the housekeeping office.

"What is it? What happened?"

Seeing the housekeeper’s panicked expression, the manager’s heart leaped into his throat. In the hotel business, the one thing you feared most was discovering a murder, and his mind immediately jumped to the worst possible conclusions.

But the housekeeper cried out, "Someone’s been kidnapped!"

"Kidnapped?"

The police and the fire department arrived at almost the same time. Eugene Jacobs never imagined the most humiliating moment of his life would involve firefighters using their tools to forcibly remove handcuffs from his wrists under the strange, pitying stares of a crowd of first responders.

And because he had been cuffed for so long without being able to move, his limbs had gone completely stiff. The moment he was helped off the bed, his legs gave out, and he fell to his knees with a THUD in front of everyone.

A police officer stood before him and stated blankly, "Sir, we’re going to need you to come with us to the station to give a statement."