Chapter 460 Yves's Roundabout Search
Anne was concerned about Elissa's pregnancy and chose a quiet restaurant for their meal.
"Sorry, Elissa. You almost got hurt because of me."
"What does that have to do with you? Stop being so formal with me—we're sisters."
Elissa browsed the menu while speaking. "Your problems are my problems."
Anne was deeply moved.
Sometimes family bonds were inexplicable.
She and Elissa hadn't grown up together, yet they felt an instant connection, compatible in every way.
After her grandpa's death and her failed feelings for Willard, she thought she was destined to drift through life alone.
Thankfully, God had given her another chance.
"That's exactly why I'm scared something might happen to you. I just found you—I want us both to live to a hundred."
Elissa flipped the menu page, continuing to order. "We will. We'll both make it to a hundred. Now see what you want."
Anne leaned over to look, but all the checkmarks made her dizzy.
"Elissa, even though you're pregnant, can you really eat all this? I heard you shouldn't gain too much weight—it makes delivery harder."
Elissa pinched her cheek. "Don't worry. Whatever I can't finish, Francis will eat. Besides, my last checkup showed the baby's a bit small."
Anne once photographed a dying mother's final moments.
The entire pregnancy had been healthy, with regular checkups and access to pain-free delivery.
But complications arose during labor. The mother held on just long enough to see her baby, then passed away.
Anne's camera had captured the mother's final moments.
She'd originally been hired to photograph before and after delivery.
Everything during childbirth was unpredictable—you couldn't let your guard down.
"That's good. Proper weight control during pregnancy means less suffering during delivery."
Elissa finished ordering and handed the menu to the server. After sipping water, she teased, "You've never been pregnant, yet you know quite a bit."
Anne leaned against Elissa's shoulder.
"I may not have experienced it, but I've seen plenty. Work brings me into contact with pregnant women, and some classmates had babies in college."
Elissa had never seen that. She believed school time should be devoted to studying.
Back then, survival consumed her thoughts—pregnancy never crossed her mind.
This baby was completely unexpected.
"I know what I'm doing. Don't worry. I order a lot but eat little—Francis will finish the rest."
"Francis can't eat all this either."
"Then you eat more. You're too thin."
Anne laughed helplessly. "If I eat too much, my belly will be as big as yours."
Elissa suddenly said, "You don't have to put on a smile for me. I know how you feel."
Anne froze, tears threatening again.
But she didn't want to cry.
Fighting back tears, she said, "Yeah, I'm sad, but not that much. Willard can't hurt me like that anymore."
"Elissa, let's not talk about this. Baby can pick up on how you feel. I want your baby to be born happy."
Elissa patted Anne's head. "It's fine. If my baby ends up ugly, I'm blaming all your sighing—everyone knows bad moods make ugly babies!"
Anne burst out laughing. "You're terrible."
Elissa patted her shoulder. "Speaking of which, Willard owes you far more. This time he saved you, so call it even. From now on, you don't even need to acknowledge each other—just be strangers."
"But didn't you say he's recognized as uncle?" Anne was confused.
Elissa waved dismissively. "That was to prevent any marital relationship. I didn't know you were already divorced. Since it's real, there's no need for any connection."
Anne caught the key point. "The divorce certificate is real?"
"Not only that—your divorce is legally valid. City Hall has it on record. You're officially divorced."
Anne should have felt happy, but something felt off.
She couldn't quite place the feeling.
Pressing her lips together, she said, "It's good that it's real."
As dishes arrived, Elissa served her food. "So about last night's black market incident—you don't need to worry about it. You're even now."
Anne forced a smile. "That's great."
Elissa didn't call out her forced cheerfulness.
People were like that—first love, especially with someone exceptional, created lasting impressions when unrequited.
But she wouldn't give Willard another chance to hurt Anne.
Francis checked his watch almost every second.
His phone remained silent.
He repeatedly checked the network—everything was normal.
So why no message from her?
Quinton emerged after tending to Willard, whispering to Hayes, "Love really changes people. Mr. Peterson used to be so serious—he'd never even glance at women. Now he's a totally different person. And Mr. Willard Larson? He used to be so proud, but he's changed, thanks to Mrs. Anne Larson."
Hayes said nothing but nodded in agreement.
Francis couldn't wait any longer and went to find Elissa.
She hadn't gone far with Anne.
With his resources, locating them was easy.
Arriving at the restaurant, he didn't go in but waited in the car.
Anne sat facing the window. The restaurant overlooked an open parking lot where she spotted Francis's car.
"Elissa, I think Francis is here."
Elissa glanced over casually. "Keep eating."
"Should we invite Francis in?"
"No need."
Elissa had been intimate with Francis yesterday; today she didn't feel like being around him all the time.
She started to think about her past, but quickly brushed the thought aside. She'd read somewhere that reminiscing about "the old days" was a sign you were getting old, and considering her age, she supposed that was probably true. She glanced at Anne sitting beside her, so full of youthful glow and innocence.
"Did Francis upset you? Why not eat together when he's right outside?"
Elissa said offhandedly, "He doesn't like sweet things, so I'm not including him."
Anne was puzzled. "But you just said you'd pack food for Francis."
Her memory had been terrible lately.
Forgetting things seconds after saying them.
Living with Francis, Elissa had learned to lie smoothly.
"I'll pack the non-sweet items. You eat the sweet ones—they'll improve your mood."
Anne wasn't three years old. She was catching on.
"Why don't you want to eat with Francis?"
"It's nothing. We're always together—I wanted a day apart." Elissa smiled. "Besides, I wanted to eat alone with you and chat."
Still for her sake.
Anne hugged Elissa. "I'm so lucky to have you."
"I'm lucky to have you too."
Elissa had Hope as an intimate friend.
But she yearned for blood family.
Someone to prove she wasn't a pitiful orphan with no one in the world.
"Alright, eat properly."
In the car, Francis continued checking his watch every second.
He noticed Anne had been looking at his car for a while.
If she'd spotted him, Elissa certainly had too.
She was pretending.
Unable to resist, he sent a message.
Elissa replied: [Finished checking on Willard?]
Francis knew that yesterday's enthusiasm had cooled considerably today, partly because of what was happening between Willard and Anne.
He was caught in the crossfire.
He texted: [Didn't visit. Just asked the bodyguards about the situation, then came here]
Elissa sent a nodding emoji.
Francis waited—no follow-up messages.
Having quit smoking, he now ate mints when agitated.
The driver heard him crunching mints like bones.
The sound sent chills down his spine.
"Mr. Peterson, please don't do anything rash."
"I won't."
Francis understood the current situation. No matter how angry, he couldn't act like before.
Now he had to manage his emotions internally.
In the restaurant, Anne was losing her appetite.
"Elissa, I'm so full..."
Elissa said, "Then let's pack up."
She called the server to box the untouched food.
The sun was shining beautifully. Elissa stretched and gently caressed her growing belly.
Francis had a clear view. Seeing them packing up, he walked in.
Anne felt guilty. She'd seen the car but pretended not to, then the man himself appeared before she could escape.
"Francis, you're here." She greeted him.
Francis nodded coolly, then looked at Elissa. "Honey, it's getting late. Can we go home?"
Going home meant they'd just be busy with separate things anyway.
"Sit down and eat something first. You didn't have lunch today." Elissa pulled out a chair for him.
Anne was amazed.
She'd said she wouldn't eat with Francis and would pack food to go.
Now that he was here, she was telling him to eat more.
Completely unpredictable.
Francis pulled out the chair and sat, surveying the uncleared dishes.
"Why did you order so much? Don't you always say not to waste food?"
Elissa had suffered hunger and was certainly mindful of food.
But pregnancy brought sudden cravings—wanting everything, then losing interest after a few bites.
Coralie said this was normal, nothing to worry about.
"Eat more." Elissa kept piling food on his plate.
Francis ate with refined movements.
After Elissa's umpteenth attempt to serve him, he asked, "Can you reach Coralie?"
Elissa nodded. "We stay in touch."
Francis's lips twitched.
Such preferential treatment for women.
When he'd called earlier, it went straight to voicemail.
"Could you have her come over?"
"For what?"
"Willard's injuries are severe—he can't function independently. Louis says only Coralie can treat him."
Elissa's impression of Willard was mediocre at best.
But to prevent Anne from feeling perpetually indebted to Willard's 'kindness,' she called Coralie.
She explained the situation.
Coralie was gathering herbs when Elissa called, finding the spot with the best signal.
"Say that again—I didn't catch it clearly."
Elissa repeated everything.
"Send me the medical records."
Elissa looked at Francis, who had Louis send Willard's files.
Louis was smarter—asked no questions, just sent the records.
Elissa forwarded them to Coralie.
Francis raised an eyebrow slightly.
She even had Facebook access.
Yves wasn't even on her Facebook.
"I see them," Coralie said. "I can treat him, but I'm not that miraculous. Actually, Louis has better treatment options."
Beating around the bush because he knew Elissa could contact her.
"I'll fly back after finishing here, but first, try asking Louis if he actually wants to help."
Elissa knew the Armstrong family secrets.
She agreed and hung up.
Turning to Francis, who was drinking soup.
"Is there something you want to tell me?"
Francis set down his bowl and wiped his mouth with a napkin.
Then he spoke, "I do want Willard to recover quickly, but I didn't trick you into making that call. The reason Louis isn't treating him is because he knows just how badly Willard is injured, though he actually could help him.
"The real purpose behind this roundabout method was to get you to contact Coralie. Now, they've definitely tracked her location. Yves is going after Coralie, and Louis is heading to Willard's room."
As Francis predicted, Louis arrived at Willard's hospital room.
He placed his hand directly on Willard's spine, locating the injury, his slender fingers moving deftly.
Willard felt like something had pricked him, but when he tried to dodge, he sat up completely.
Louis pressed his back, examining and questioning simultaneously.
Confirming Willard's bones were fine and only external injuries remained, he left with peace of mind.
Willard was speechless. How petty—just a few critical words, and yet he'd held a grudge for so long.
Obviously capable of healing him, yet claiming it was about tracking.
Tracking...
He realized the problem.
Grabbing his phone, he texted Francis: [You set up Coralie. Aren't you afraid your wife will take the baby and remarry?]
Francis sent multiple bomb emojis.
He didn't hide this from Elissa.
Francis: [Louis said only Coralie could get you walking. I was helping you—remember you owe me a favor]
Willard was speechless, thinking, 'Always talking about owing favors for every little thing.'
He replied that he understood, put down his phone, and plotted how to make Louis uncomfortable.
Elissa waited for Francis to put away his phone. "After all that, you're still siding with Willard."
Seeing Willard's message, she realized calling Coralie had exposed her location.
If Coralie overthought this and believed she'd actually worked with Yves to track her down, she'd lose a friend—a friend she'd wanted by her side for the delivery. But now, that seemed unlikely.
"If Coralie stops being my friend, you're in trouble."
Francis pulled her into his arms, soothing gently. "Coralie and Yves have been playing this game for years—she won't blame you."
"Besides, Coralie is smarter than you think. When she asked you to get Louis's medical records, she already understood Yves was using roundabout methods to find her."
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