Chapter 423 A Double Hit is Deadlier
Suddenly, the sky opened up with torrential rain.
The seaside tide rose quickly, waves crashing violently against the shore.
Felicity witnessed both Ethan and Ashley fall into the water and burst into maniacal laughter, her expression twisted with derangement.
Ryan's police car hadn't gone far. Seeing this unfold, he shouted, "Arrest her immediately!"
Felicity didn't resist as officers handcuffed her.
Pauline came running from the monitoring room, frantic with worry. "Mr. Reid! I saw them fall into the sea on the security cameras. The tide's rising rapidly with this rain. What should we do?"
Ryan spotted someone surfacing in the water. "Look, there's Ethan! Get me a life vest—I'm going in after him!"
Someone quickly handed him a life vest. Ryan put it on and jumped into the sea.
Pauline paced anxiously on shore. "Be careful, Mr. Reid!"
She watched Ryan swimming toward Ethan, desperately wishing she could reach out and pull them both to safety.
Felicity continued her deranged laughter.
Irritated by the sound, Pauline slapped her across the face. "Felicity! My mentor never did anything to you. Why are you trying to hurt her?"
Felicity's laughter didn't stop. "Because she deserves to die! She killed my child! Three lives to pay for one—companions for my dead baby!"
Knowing Ashley would never do such a thing, Pauline glared at Felicity. "You monster! Take her to the police station!"
The police led Felicity away.
Turning back, Pauline saw Ryan pulling the unconscious Ethan toward shore.
Ryan called out, "I have got him! Help, quickly!"
Both Ryan and Ethan were dragged onto land.
Ethan remained unconscious. Despite several attempts at CPR causing him to cough up seawater, he showed no signs of waking. The paramedics loaded him into an ambulance.
"Mr. Reid, where's my mentor?" Pauline asked desperately.
They both looked out at the vast sea, with no sign of Ashley anywhere. Anxiety and worry consumed them.
"Ashley! Where are you? I'm coming to save you!" Pauline shouted, putting on a life vest and preparing to jump in.
Ryan held her back. "Are you crazy? The rain's getting heavier and the tide's rising. You'll drown if you go in now!"
"Mr. Reid, please don't stop me! I need to save her!" Pauline pleaded.
Ryan, sweating profusely from stress, gave an order, "Send in professional diving rescue teams immediately! We must find Ashley as quickly as possible."
"Yes, sir!"
Pauline still insisted on rescuing Ashley herself.
With no alternative, Ryan knocked her unconscious.
Looking at the churning waves, Ryan felt a terrible premonition growing stronger.
With waves this powerful, anyone who fell in would likely lose their life.
In that moment, Ryan's heart ached for Ethan.
The next day
Ethan had been unconscious all night, plagued by nightmares of Ashley being swallowed by the sea, never to be seen again.
"Ashley!" he cried out, sitting bolt upright, his body drenched in sweat.
Finding himself in a hospital with an IV in his hand, he yanked out the needle and stumbled toward the door.
Blood streamed from the back of Ethan's hand.
A nurse entered and gasped at the sight. "Mr. Yates! You can't remove your IV like that. You're bleeding—we need to treat this immediately."
"Get out of my way!" Ethan roared.
He pushed past the nurse and staggered down the hallway. Outside the window, rain continued to pour, intensifying his agitation.
Michael, James, Doris, and Garrett arrived together, horrified at the sight of Ethan looking disheveled and bloodied.
Michael moved to block his path. "Ethan, you're bleeding everywhere. You need treatment now."
"Grandfather," Ethan said frantically, "Ashley's home, right? She must be home, isn't she?"
At the mention of Ashley's name, Michael swayed slightly, his face turning pale as he looked away, grief evident in his eyes.
Seeing this reaction, Ethan trembled.
A terrible feeling washed over him.
Ethan looked toward James, who also averted his gaze, his expression filled with regret and sadness.
Then he turned to Doris and Garrett, who bore the same expressions of grief and sorrow.
Doris took Ethan's hand. "Ethan, listen to me. Ashley fell into the sea. Professional rescue teams have been searching for twenty-four hours without finding any trace of her. It's possible that..."
Ethan stumbled backward and collapsed to the floor. His face drained of all color as he mumbled, "No, that's impossible... it can't be..."
James spoke softly, "Ethan, I'm so sorry. It's hard for all of us to accept."
Michael added, his voice heavy with grief, "The storm lasted all night. The tide rose dramatically. The rescue team can barely continue—they're preparing to withdraw..."
"I don't believe it," Ethan muttered. "Ashley can't be gone. I need to find her myself. Move!"
Ethan struggled to his feet, pushing past everyone, determined to reach the shore.
But as he stood, he wavered, overcome by intense head pain and ringing in his ears. Clutching his head, he couldn't withstand the pain and collapsed unconscious.
Everyone cried out, "Ethan!"
Someone called out, "Doctor! Someone's collapsed over here!"
Ethan was placed back in a hospital bed. His face was completely devoid of color, like a broken doll without a soul.
James sighed and said, "Dad, Ashley's death is devastating enough for him. Do you think he could handle learning he has no blood relation to the Yates family?"
Michael glared coldly at him. "Don't make things worse at a time like this. We'll say nothing about his true identity. From now on, he is a child of the Yates family!"
Michael looked out at the pouring rain and prayed, "Please, God, make this rain stop. I'd give my own life if it meant my grandson's wife could be safe. Please don't let anything happen to her—let them grow old together..."
Nearby, Doris pressed her palms together in silent prayer.
Garrett sighed softly.
The family kept vigil in the hospital room while Ethan remained unconscious.
With their own responsibilities to attend to, Doris stayed behind to care for Ethan. Noticing he was sweating profusely, she went to get some water. At that moment, a man appeared at the doorway and entered the room.
Just then, Ethan opened his eyes to see the unfamiliar man.
Ethan's gaze darkened as he asked coldly, "Who are you?"
"My name is Rafferty Yates, Tony's son. Mr. Yates, the paternity test between you and your father came back negative. You're not actually blood-related to the Yates family at all. To put it bluntly, you're nothing but an illegitimate child."
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