Chapter 88 Life and Death

It was just in the morning when I and Katniss got ready to go out for breakfast after washing up, and then continue with the rest of the day's itinerary. Just as we were about to leave, the phone placed on the bed started ringing. I picked it up and saw it was an unfamiliar number from Nightfall City. Although I was puzzled, I still answered the call:

"Are you Mr. Montagu?" A strange man's urgent voice came through as soon as I answered the phone.

"Yes, I am. Who is this?"

"I'm from Zephyr Energy Solutions Company. Is your Nathan working with us, as a patrol officer on N-013 Island?" To facilitate distinction, the geological agency has assigned a number to each Serenity Bay Isle, and N-013 Island is where Nathan is located in Serenity Bay Isle. "N" stands for the north, and "013" stands for the 13th island. Hearing the urgency in the man's voice, I had a slight sense of foreboding.

"Yes, my Nathan Montagu is indeed working there as a patrol officer. What's going on?" Despite the bad feeling, I maintained a calm tone in communicating with the other party. What if I was mistaken?

"Can you confirm if your Nathan Montagu is at home?" After verifying my identity, the other party immediately inquired.

"My Nathan Montagu at home? Isn't he on the island? My partner and I are on a trip to Denver, not at home. What's going on?" Hearing the strange question from the other party, my heart suddenly tightened. Could it be that something happened to Nathan, and he ran back home?

"Please quickly confirm if your Nathan Montagu is at home. It's very important." The other party urgently said, seeming to want to find out Nathan's specific location and situation by any means necessary.

"What exactly is the matter? Please explain it clearly." I couldn't be sure what was happening. Until I figured out the situation, I couldn't just follow their requests. What if Nathan was intentionally avoiding them if something had happened?

"Well, 8 days ago, our company received a notice from the meteorological bureau that there will be intermittent heavy rain, thunderstorms, and strong winds of level 7 in the northern area of Nightfall City for about a week starting two days later. Our company has employees stationed on Serenity Bay Isle, so we have been cooperating with the meteorological bureau. In case of severe weather, for the safety of our employees, we will notify them in advance to temporarily evacuate Serenity Bay Isle. After receiving the notice from the meteorological bureau, we immediately informed your Nathan to temporarily leave Serenity Bay Isle and go home, and to return to work after the severe weather passed. The severe weather is expected to end the day after tomorrow, so we called you this morning to inform Nathan Montagu to prepare to come back to work in two days. However, when we called, his phone has been off, and we went to your house based on the address he provided when he applied, but it seems like no one is home, and no one has answered the door." The staff from Zephyr Energy Solutions Company began to explain the situation.

It turns out that before Katniss and I went on our trip, on the day we said goodbye to Nathan at Serenity Bay Isle, Nathan had already received the notice from his company to temporarily evacuate the island. This means that when we bid farewell to Nathan that day, Nathan had already received the notice, but he never told me and Katniss. Perhaps he thought it wasn't necessary to say. But thinking back to the look of envy, loss, and a hint of despair and desolation in Nathan's eyes when we said goodbye to him, I thought I might have misread it at the time and didn't pay much attention. Now, hearing the call from Nathan's company, my heart had already anticipated what might have happened. My hands started shaking, and I couldn't even hold the phone steady.

Nathan's phone was off. If Nathan wasn't at home, there was only one possibility: Nathan was still on Serenity Bay Isle, enduring nearly 5 days of heavy rain and strong winds so far. Thinking of the desolate scene on the island with no shelter, my heart was filled with extreme worry.

"Wait a moment, let me call the landline at home to see if anyone answers." Thinking of these possibilities, I hurried to confirm Nathan's current location.

After hanging up with the staff member, Katniss asked me what was wrong. I quickly explained the situation to her as succinctly as possible. Upon learning the truth of the matter, a hint of panic flashed across Katniss's face, but she was a composed person. She asked me to call home, while she called her mother to inquire about the situation.

I immediately called the landline at home, but despite several attempts, no one answered. Every time the busy tone came through, it felt like a heavy hammer striking my heart, and I unknowingly broke out in a cold sweat. Could Nathan have gone out to buy groceries? Or was he just staying at home with nothing to do, taking a walk outside? Although I knew the chances were slim, I didn't give up that last bit of hope.

After getting no response from calling home, I started calling Nathan's mobile phone with hope. Just as the staff member had mentioned, Nathan's phone was indeed switched off. At this point, Katniss had finished her call with her mother. During this time, Nathan hadn't contacted Sophia either. The day before the severe weather arrived, Nathan had gone to see Simon at her place, and even took Simon to the amusement park for a day, buying snacks that would last a week. When Nathan said goodbye to Simon, Sophia mentioned that Nathan's eyes were teary, seeming very emotional. She found it strange at the time since it had only been half a month since they last saw Simon, so there was no need to be so emotional.

Hearing these details, my panic reached its peak. The possibility that I least expected and least wanted to think about seemed to be becoming more certain. If Nathan had stayed on Serenity Bay Isle and not returned home, enduring 5 days of severe weather, and had not contacted us or turned on his phone, I couldn't bear to think further. I quickly called Zephyr Energy Solutions Company to provide detailed information, then started booking tickets online to return home immediately. My heart and Katniss's were both praying for Nathan.

Three hours later, after an anxious wait and torment, Katniss and I boarded the return flight. However, due to the ongoing severe weather in Nightfall City, with occasional thunderstorms, all flights had been grounded. We could only fly to Aurora Springs first and then take a train back to Nightfall City.

Upon hearing the possibility that Nathan might be in trouble, Katniss was visibly distraught, with guilt and self-blame written all over her face. She occasionally wiped away tears. Although I saw Katniss displaying these emotions, at that moment, I had no mental capacity to focus on them. Nathan's safety was the top priority. At that moment, nothing else mattered to me. I only cared about Nathan's current situation because with my mother gone, Nathan was now my most important family member. But I couldn't afford to panic. As a man, I had to stay calm at this moment. I had to be the pillar of strength now.

During this time, Katniss would occasionally comfort me, helping me consider various possibilities to ease my mind. I also tried to reassure myself internally. Perhaps after leaving Serenity Bay Isle, Nathan went on a trip by himself and coincidentally lost his phone? It was a possibility, but if Nathan had lost his phone, he should have used a public phone to notify us immediately to avoid worrying us.

In our anxious wait, we finally arrived in Nightfall City in the afternoon. We decided to go home first to see if Nathan was there. Sitting in the taxi, watching the rain beating against the windows and listening to the howling wind outside, my heart kept praying. Now, with the tall buildings in Nightfall City, the strong winds could be blocked, so the winds experienced in the city area were much milder compared to outside the city. Seeing the strong winds in the city area, I could only imagine how intense the thunderstorms and storms on Serenity Bay Isle, without any barriers, would be.

When the taxi arrived downstairs, I got out and rushed upstairs. At the doorstep, I took out my keys and opened the door, desperately hoping to see Nathan sitting on the couch watching TV, then showing a surprised expression, "Why are you back early?"

But this was just wishful thinking. The house was quiet, tidy, and spotless. Without even taking off my shoes, I ran to Nathan's bedroom, my bedroom, the bathroom, the balcony, and so on. I frantically searched the house, but there was no sign of Nathan anywhere.

After giving up hope at home, Katniss and I quickly went to Zephyr Energy Solutions Company where Nathan worked to meet with their supervisor. Once we explained the situation, Nathan's company also became alarmed. Both I as a family member and the company jointly reported to the police, and the police informed the fire rescue team.

Katniss, Zephyr Energy Solutions Company, the fire rescue team, and I arrived at the riverside. We saw that the river had risen significantly, and due to the heavy rain, we couldn't see far on the river, while the strong wind continued to howl. Leaving the city area and coming to the riverside, we realized how fierce the storm outside the city was.

Due to the wind speed reaching level 7, accompanied by heavy rain, the rescue helicopter couldn't take off to rescue Serenity Bay Isle. Additionally, as the fire rescue team didn't have large boats, and the larger cargo ships strictly adhered to the Department of Transportation's rule of "no sailing in level 7 winds," as sailing at this time was extremely dangerous. With all these circumstances, we could only wait for the severe weather to weaken before the rescue team and I could go to Serenity Bay Isle for the rescue. Hearing that rescue was currently impossible and we had to wait at least another day, I looked towards the direction of Serenity Bay Isle, but I couldn't see it. The wind was too strong, and I didn't have an umbrella. I let the rain soak me, allowing the water to penetrate my clothes. At that moment, I couldn't feel the cold. The cold wind and river water hitting my face made me feel numb. Countless thoughts raced through my mind.

Did the storm come too quickly, and Nathan didn't have time to evacuate Serenity Bay Isle? Or did Nathan have enough time to leave Serenity Bay Isle but clung to a sense of luck, unwilling to return home? Or did Nathan simply not want to leave Serenity Bay Isle, leaving it to fate, engaging in a suicide determined by God? Remembering the despair and desolation in Nathan's eyes when we said goodbye, remembering Sophia's description of Nathan's tearful farewell to Simon, it seemed to indicate that Nathan had already prepared for a permanent farewell to us.

Katniss stood beside me, tears streaming down her face, biting her lip so hard it seemed to bleed, her face filled with deep regret and self-blame. Perhaps her thoughts were similar to mine, believing that Nathan had resigned himself to a certain fate, and both Katniss and I seemed to have guessed the reasons behind it. The fire rescue team and Zephyr Energy Solutions Company personnel tried to comfort us, asking us to go home temporarily and promising to organize a rescue mission once the storm subsided. But would there be time for all of that? Would it even matter? If Nathan was still on Serenity Bay Isle at that moment, was he still alive? Looking at the rising river, had the island already been submerged?

After the assessment by the fire rescue team, they believed that the chances of Nathan surviving if he was still on Serenity Bay Isle were very slim, and they advised Katniss and me to prepare for the worst. Despite this, we still held onto that last sliver of hope, no matter how small it was. At that moment, Katniss and I had no mental capacity to reminisce about the joy our trip had brought us. I felt no cold or pain at that moment. I was like a walking corpse.

Nathan's company reassured us that they wouldn't give up on the rescue, covering all expenses, and taking full responsibility if anything happened to Nathan. But at that moment, I didn't care about what they said. I only hoped for Nathan's survival. As long as Nathan was alive, I was willing to pay any price.

I don't know how I made it back home. Katniss helped me change into clean pajamas. I stayed in our bedroom, while Katniss sat on the living room couch. I could hear her crying, her inner turmoil evident. After a long period of silence, Katniss started tidying up the house, even though we were worried, life had to go on for the time being. After we returned home, we didn't exchange a single word. Katniss, with an unknown emotion, prepared dinner, but I had no appetite. Finally, with Katniss's comforting, I symbolically took a few bites.

Katniss was washing the dishes in the kitchen, and the washing machine in the bathroom was cleaning the dirty clothes from our trip. I sat on the bed in the bedroom, my mind racing. At that moment, a bright light flashed through my mind. Did Nathan return home before the incident? It was then that I remembered the surveillance equipment at home. While Katniss was still in the kitchen, I quickly, with stiff hands, opened the surveillance system at home. I closed the bedroom door, so if Katniss's footsteps came out of the kitchen, I would have enough time to close or minimize the surveillance video window. I fast-forwarded the footage to the first day of our trip, and I saw Nathan's figure in the surveillance. He returned home with his keys, holding a briefcase, contents unknown.

After entering the house, he went to his bedroom, then placed the briefcase in the drawer of his bedside table. Nathan then looked at the room we hadn't tidied up before leaving, a slight smile on his face. He quietly started tidying up the house, his face showing a sense of nostalgia and reluctance. His gaze lingered on every item in the house, as if trying hard to remember everything.

After finishing, he focused on the family photo on the living room wall. He looked at it quietly, his face occasionally showing love, longing, admiration, and sweetness. Nathan gazed at the family photo for a long time, displaying all emotions on his face.

After a while, Nathan, with a much older figure, slowly walked to the door, put on his shoes, took one last look at the house, then closed the door behind him. The video only showed the immaculately clean room.

I fast-forwarded the video until our return, but Nathan's figure never appeared in the house again. I shut down the computer, remembering the briefcase Nathan had placed in the drawer of his room on the first day he returned. After turning off the computer, without thinking about anything else, I hurried to Nathan's room, opened the drawer where Nathan had placed the briefcase in the video. Inside, I saw a brown leather document bag, lying quietly in the drawer.