Chapter 915 Buying a Life
Caleb and James were shocked.
"What do you mean she's missing?" James asked.
Samuel didn't bother with such a question and immediately started contacting major airports and inter-provincial bus stations in Tycoon City, instructing them to watch out for Susan. If she was found, they would detain her immediately.
James suddenly realized and asked Samuel, "I called your mom earlier. Could it be her? No, it's impossible. She wouldn't do that."
The more James spoke, the more he felt it was possible. But he couldn't convince himself.
James knew better than anyone else how deep Helen's attachment to Susan was. Choosing to protect Susan over Natalie, who resembled Emma in appearance and temperament, was completely understandable.
Samuel looked at James as if he were a fool.
If it weren't for James' unnecessary actions, Susan wouldn't have run away.
Apart from Helen tipping off Susan, they couldn't think of anyone else who could help Susan at the Hastings family.
"What a fool!" Caleb cursed James in frustration.
James remained silent.
Now James and Caleb had no time to mourn. Caleb quickly contacted the security company he hired, while James reached out to Helen.
Helen anticipated James would call her.
After James questioned her, Helen adamantly denied, "How would I know where Susan went? Weren't those bodyguards and caretakers hired by Caleb? If someone goes missing, shouldn't you ask the people you hired instead of coming to me?"
"Helen, you'll regret being so indecisive!" James said angrily. But he couldn't do anything about Helen's arrogance.
Helen sneered. "You'll see if I regret it!"
People are biased. Helen only favored Susan, whom she had raised since childhood.
Except for being Helen's biological child, Natalie was nothing. After Natalie was born, Emma took care of her. She later went missing and was raised by someone else, creating a rift between her and Helen.
Samuel didn't want to break the news to Natalie, but he had no choice.
At least in terms of finding people, Oliver's abilities surpassed those of the Hastings family.
Natalie was joyfully waiting at the hospital for Susan's bone marrow, already planning Susan's examination process and the timing of the infusion. Suddenly, she saw Samuel rushing to the hospital with a troubled expression.
Samuel looked at Natalie with a complex and sorrowful gaze, filled with apologies.
"Trouble?" Oliver quickly caught on.
"Susan is missing," Samuel said. "We're searching for her."
Natalie hardened her voice as she blinked, "Caleb had arranged for someone to watch her. Did he let her go?"
"No. She realized something and ran away."
Although Natalie didn't acknowledge the Hastings family and the elders of the Hastings family were shameful, Samuel didn't want Natalie to harbor deeper resentment or hatred towards her family.
Oliver immediately contacted Jamie to search for Susan's whereabouts.
"Natalie." Samuel looked at Natalie with concern.
"It's okay, I just need some time to process." Natalie waved off Samuel's attempt to comfort her.
Susan wouldn't go down without a fight. It was unexpected yet inevitable.
Samuel nodded, and bid farewell to Natalie and Oliver, saying, "I'll head back to Tycoon City to find Susan."
As Samuel reached the staircase, Natalie suddenly called out to him, "Samuel! She must escaped with Helen’s help, right?"
Samuel uttered, "Yes." He fled, unsure if Natalie had heard his response.
The winter wind howled through the hospital's entrance.
Samuel, usually sensitive to the cold, had once been teased by a young Natalie for it. But now, as the wind blew, he felt nothing but numbness. His heart was also numb.
"Samuel."
Startled by someone calling his name, Samuel snapped back to reality, surprised to see Emily addressing him. "Ms. Reed, what a coincidence."
Emily looked at Samuel with suspicion. "What's wrong with you?"
Samuel, usually confident and in control, now appeared lost and self-loathing.
Moreover, it was the first time Samuel had seen Emily since their encounter. His response was distant and detached, merely uttering coincidence without any hint of mockery or jest, but rather aloofness.
Having known Samuel for many years, Emily could tell that this demeanor was far from normal.
"It's nothing." Samuel lightly chuckled, with his hand at his side.
After a few seconds, Samuel composed himself and said earnestly, "Emily, I apologize for my past actions driven by obsession towards you."
Emily frowned at Samuel. "Were you looking for Natalie? She's upstairs," Samuel said before leaving, averting his gaze.
"Samuel, wait!" In a passing moment, Emily grabbed Samuel's arm.
Emily gazed at Samuel with puzzlement, studying his face intently to decipher any emotions. "Samuel, what's going on with you? You seem strange and off today."
If it were anyone else, the conversation might have turned into "Emily, are you still obsessed with me?" or "Emily, are you holding onto me because you've fallen for me again?" But Samuel and Emily, both in their thirties, had a maturity.
They had long outgrown such petty games of testing each other.
"I've just come to realize some things." Samuel pulled his arm away. "Emily, it was right of you not to marry me."
Samuel believed it was best to steer clear of the Hastings family.
Once, Samuel had wanted to keep Emily by his side, knowing that no one else would ever want to stay with him as much as she did. But he cherished and valued her, fearing she might get entangled in the Hastings family.
Samuel even wondered if he would turn into someone like Caleb in his later years, a man he had been groomed to be by Caleb himself.
If that were the case, Samuel didn't want Emily to witness that ugly side of him.
So, if Emily had grown to despise Samuel, then it was best to end it there.
"Natalie, what's wrong with Samuel?" Emily went upstairs and met Natalie outside the ward. After asking the question, she noticed that Natalie also seemed off, making her slightly anxious. "What's going on?"
Natalie looked up at Emily and said, "Susan ran away."
Emily had just received news that Susan was willing to donate bone marrow. She had come to the hospital to congratulate Natalie and Lucas, but upon arrival, she was hit with the news.
Emily seemed to understand Samuel's behavior earlier, and she couldn't quite put her finger on it.
"Emily, what did you ask Samuel earlier?" Natalie snapped back to reality.
"Nothing."
Natalie was already overwhelmed. Emily didn't want to burden her with Samuel's issues.
After a moment to collect herself, Natalie entered Lucas' ward.
Lucas had been transferred from the ICU to a regular ward.
Lilian was in the room chatting with Lucas. Mostly, Lilian was talking to Lucas who occasionally said something that made Lilian glare at him
After a two-second glare, Lilian, who had a good temper, resumed talking as if nothing had happened.
"Sis."
"Natalie!"
Seeing Natalie enter, Lilian and Lucas greeted her happily.
With the hope of recovery through bone marrow transplantation, Lilian and Lucas were in good spirits.
Natalie looked at Lucas, who was actively undergoing treatment, feeling a sense of sadness. She had no idea how to break the news to Lucas that Susan was missing.
The bone marrow transplant was still uncertain.
"Sis, why are you looking at me like that?" Lucas faded his smile as he quickly noticed something was amiss. "Where's Oliver? Isn't he with you?"
"He's dealing with company matters. Some things have to go through him," Natalie lied on the spot. "Lucas, you must cooperate with the doctors and recover before we can talk about marriage."
Lucas instinctively glanced at Lilian.
"Did you hear that? You better get well, or you'll disappoint me!" Lilian proudly lifted her chin.
With Natalie backing her up, Lilian was resolute!
Any hint of doubt that had briefly crossed Lucas' mind was quickly dispelled, and his attention was soon captured by Lilian.
As Natalie left the ward, she ran into Oliver. "How's it going? Have they found her?"
Oliver shook his head. "Not yet."
Susan knew that to evade capture, she had to leave no trace of her identity. She didn't use her ID, bank cards, or even her old phone, which still showed her location at the Hastings family estate.
"Don't worry. We'll find her," Oliver's voice was low and menacing. "Once we do, she won't be able to escape again." His words were filled with paranoia and threat.
Natalie grasped Oliver's hand. "Oliver, don't forget what you promised me!"
Susan had initially planned to leave Tycoon City immediately but found herself trapped.
All major routes by land, sea, and air were being thoroughly checked for Susan's whereabouts. Out of caution, she didn't dare to take even a black cab.
Hiding in a narrow and dimly lit bridge tunnel, the fierce winter wind pierced through from all directions, chilling her to the bone. The air was foul, akin to a garbage dump.
"Where are you from? Get lost. This is my territory!" A disheveled vagrant approached Susan, shooing her away impatiently.
As the vagrant drew closer, Susan caught a whiff of an even stronger stench and recoiled in disgust.
With one step back, she was pushed out of the tunnel.
With ventilation on all sides, it grew even colder.
Susan reluctantly glanced back at the tunnel but didn't dare to return. Vagrants were snotty and filthy, and she feared what they might do to her.
A shiver ran down Susan's spine at the thought.
When Susan had left the Hastings family, she had planned to avoid Natalie for a few days before negotiating terms with her.
But at that moment, Susan changed her decision!
She accessed an extremely secretive website and registered as an anonymous member, posting: “Buying a life with five million dollars.”
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