Chapter 24 What did you say?
However, Hailey couldn't stop thinking about the wedding ring on Natalie's ring finger. She had seen it out of the corner of her eye. A seven-carat diamond wasn't enough to shock her. But Natalie's ring had an expensive pink diamond with astonishing clarity, top-notch cut, exquisite design, and extremely rare. Hailey was certain that it was worth a fortune.
Every woman would die for it.
That ring should have belonged to her.
Natalie never trusted Hailey, so she went out to find a servant.
"Hello, may I ask where Oliver has gone?" she asked.
"Mrs. Windsor, Mr. Oliver has left the main house. But I don't know where he goes." the servant answered.
It seems that Hailey may be telling the truth.
Natalie checked the orientation before heading towards the west.
Sitting on the couch, Hailey watched Natalie leave and sneered. Natalie had suspected that she was lying.
She thought, 'So what? She still fell for it!'
Adrian had specifically warned Hailey before coming here. The terrain in the west was complex and had not been maintained for decades. When it was built, it was constructed by a world-renowned architect, making it easy for ordinary people to get lost. And there were many snakes and insects.
On the way, Natalie had been thinking about why Oliver wanted to see her. Besides the incident with Adrian, she hadn't done anything that might anger him.
And she had noticed that Oliver didn't seem to care that Adrian was her ex.
When Natalie finally snapped out of her thoughts, she found herself in an abandoned forest park. The ground under her feet gradually turned into a worn stone trail. Everywhere she looked, she saw tall trees. There weren't any signs of the intricate trails.
The only sounds around her were the rustling of leaves and bird chirps. There were no signs of any other living creatures.
Natalie couldn't help but freeze in place.
Did...Oliver find out that she took Hailey's place to marry him? Was this his punishment?
Or did Hailey lie?
The sky grew dark, and the desolate surroundings grew more ominous. It was all frightening.
Natalie decided that even if it was Oliver's order, she wouldn't follow it through this time. This place...was just too scary.
However, when she turned around to return to the main house, she failed.
All these paths looked the same.
She...was lost.
In the dense forest, there was no light. Occasionally, sounds of chirping and roaring echoed from within, as if...some fierce beasts were wandering around to hunt.
***
Dinnertime.
The members of the Windsor family returned to the dining room, but the harmonious atmosphere they had during lunch had vanished. Victoria was in the hospital for observation. Thankfully, the gunshot hadn't caused any serious damage and the broken bones of her hand had been reattached. Undoubtedly, she had to experience some pain, but there wouldn't be any lasting effects.
"Where are Oliver and Natalie?" Henry was in a bad mood. He couldn't do anything to Oliver, but he could take it out on Natalie.
Little did he expect that Natalie hadn't shown up either.
Adrian frowned as he looked at Natalie's empty seat. Oliver was absent too. Could it be that they were together?
Adrian's anger grew over the thought of those two possibly engaging in an intimate act.
"Dad, Oliver always pays respects to Ms. Norton whenever he comes back. You know that," Edwin said, "As for Natalie, I saw her leaving earlier."
The knit between Adrian's brows loosened slightly as he thought, 'Looks like they aren't together.'
"It was almost dinnertime and she went out?! Unbelievable!" Henry grew even more displeased against Natalie. He turned to Hailey and smiled, "Hailey, you are well-mannered."
"Henry, you're too kind. Please forgive Natalie. She's always been like this since we were young. I'll talk to her later," Hailey humbly smiled and glanced in the direction of the west wing, her eyes filled with joy.
Adrian ate his dinner absentmindedly.
After dinner, he discreetly called Natalie from the bathroom, but he only heard a mechanical female voice.
"Sorry. The number you have dialed is busy. Please try again later..."
It dawned on Adrian that Natalie had blocked him ever since she caught him cheating on her with Hailey.
Natalie appeared cold but was actually a gentle person. But when it came to relationships, she was uncompromising and didn't tolerate any betrayals.
However, the more aloof Natalie was toward him, the more reluctant Adrian was to move on. He even developed a...strong desire to conquer her!
Adrian wondered, 'What if I got Oliver's wife to fall in love with me?
'Oliver always acts like he's the king of the world. It'll be a hard blow to his ego.'
Adrian left the bathroom and found Hailey. "Hailey, would you call Natalie and ask where she is?"
Hailey's smile froze for a moment, as she tried to hide her displeasure. She pretended to be hurt and asked, "Adrian, why are you worried about Natalie? Do you still like her?"
"No. Don't be silly." Adrian embraced Hailey, thoroughly enjoying her devoted love. "Regardless of anything, Natalie is your sister. If something happens to her, you'd be worried, right?"
Hailey scoffed silently, secretly wishing for Natalie to die outside.
"Why don't you call her yourself?" she asked back.
"I'm afraid you'll get jealous. I want to avoid misunderstanding," Adrian said.
His answer pleased Hailey. She dialed Natalie's number and soon heard the same mechanical female voice. "Sorry. The number you have dialed is busy. Please try again later..."
"It seems Natalie is still angry with me and has blocked my number," Hailey said sadly.
Adrian sighed and looked outside. The night was quiet and he was anxious.
If Adrian was a little more familiar with Natalie's number, he would have noticed that the number that Hailey called was not Natalie's at all.
***
The night grew darker.
Surrounded by silence and isolation, Natalie felt more and more alone.
She was terrified, her whole body trembling with fear. But she couldn't find her way out of this forest. Calling Oliver was her last resort.
Liam gave her Oliver's number and she had put it in her phone.
However, nobody picked up.
After trying three times, she realized that her last hope was gone too.
Perhaps, she guessed right. Oliver knew that Hailey was his original fiancée and got angry. This was his punishment for her lie.
Otherwise, why wouldn't he answer her calls?
Suddenly, Natalie heard hissing sounds from the bushes.
She froze, cold sweat soaking through her clothes.
Because she saw the thing slithering through the bushes. It was a snake, its tail as thick as her wrist.
Natalie didn't dare to call again, afraid that the sound would alert the giant python. Shivering in fear, she sent a text to Oliver.
***
Oliver always stayed over midnight when he visited Hillary's grave.
After midnight.
Oliver stepped out of the cemetery and saw Charles waiting outside.
"Mr. Oliver, Mrs. Windsor has gone missing," Charles said.
"What did you say?" Oliver narrowed his eyes.
His dark gaze sent a chill down Charles' back. It was colder than the freezing night breeze.
Charles wondered if it was his imagination. He thought, 'After all, Oliver didn't care about Natalie. She's just a Mrs. Windsor in name only. Right?'
Charles answered, "She hasn't come back since she left this afternoon."
"And you're only telling me now. This is serious," Oliver said through gritted teeth.
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