Chapter 372 A Nighttime Intrusion into Patricia's Room
The scene was too heartwarming, too idyllic.
Martin watched for a while before finally breaking the silence,. "Grandpa, Grandma…"."
Upon hearing his voice, the LangleysGregory and Jessica turned instantly. Tears welled up in their eyes as they saw him, leaning on their canes with excitement.
"Martin, you're back!. Did you bring Patricia with you?"
Martin shook his head and did not conceal anything from them, explaining the situation in briefbriefly.
Mrs. Langley'sJessica's face turned red with anger after hearing the story.
"How can someone be so shameless, to hold onto a person who doesn't love them? ?" Jessica said, tears streaking down her face. "My poor Patricia, having to feign madness to protect herself."
Tears streaked down Mrs. Langley's face as she spoke.
Mr. LangleyGregory comforted her with a gentle pat on the shoulder.
"Don't cry,; at least now we have a lead!. We must believe in Martin's abilities; he'll find a way to bring Patricia back."
Mrs. LangleyJessica, of course, believed in her grandson.
"Thank you for your patience and understanding these past few days! ," Martin said. "I'll be staying in Ivara City for a while, so why don't you take this opportunity to head back home and rest up? When I'm ready to leave, I'll have Alan bring you over."
Though hiring a nanny for the kids had crossed his mind, the incident with Randy had left him wary of trusting anyone too easily. No matter what, they'd need their closest kin watching over them, especially with little Maria being not even a month old. It was crucial that nothing happened to her.
Mr.Gregory and Mrs. LangleyJessica, although reluctant to part with Maria, nodded in agreement when Martin suggested it.
Martin had them stay the night to rest, and arranged for Alan to drive them home the next day. In the afternoon, he would personally pick up the three little ones from daycareschool.
Seeing Martin, both Randy and Fannie's eyes brimmed with tears, and they burst into happy sobs, rushing into his arms.
"Daddy, you're finally back? I! We missed you so much!"."
Charles's eyes glistened, too, but he fought back the tears.
"Daddy, did you find Mommy? Did she make it to the meeting on time?"
He remembered how excited he had been when he got that call from Mommy, so thrilled that he couldn't speak for a while, half-convinced he was dreaming. Although he had always believed his mommy was still alive, the confirmation of this belief had overwhelmed him to the point of being beside himself. It took him ages to calm down and reclaim his voice.
Gently patting the little ones in his arms, Martin replied, "I saw your Mmommy, yes. But her situation is a bit complicated right now. I've come back to sort some things out, and in a few days, I'll go back and bring her home."
He didn't want to worry his children, so he kept Patricia's predicament to himself.
Randy and Fannie were easily mollified, but Charles knew there was more to it.
That night, after Randy and Fannie had fallen asleep, Charles, with his laptop in arms, came into Martin's room alone.
"Daddy, is Mommy being held by someone or something?"
The only thing thatreason she would make herask him to erase their call logs was if...
Martin realizedRealizing he couldn't hide the truth from him and, Martin nodded,. "Yes, Hunter staged a whole scene to make us think your mommy was gone. In reality, he took her to Country M country and cut off all her means of communication."
Charles' cherubic face suddenly seemed etched with frost after hearing the whole story.
He whipped out his notebook and swiftly began to work his magic on it,. "I checked the number Mommy called me from. It's registered under the name James."
". I looked into all the contacts associated with that number too."
". Weirdly, there was only one contact in the list, and guess what? Registered under James as well."
". Hunter used to have a right-hand man named James when he was the CEO of the Miller Group. I matched their Social Security numbers to make sure it's the same guy."
From the methodical way Charles spoke, you'd never guess he was just five.
"Then, through James' phone records, I found several suspicious numbers over various days. Eventually, I narrowed it down to..."
The way Charles spoke so methodically, you'd never guess he was just five. Martin felt a pang of heartache and hugged him tightly,. "I'm sorry, Charles!"."
Charles tensed slightly, confusedpuzzled as to why his daddy was apologizing out of the blue.
"The last four years, it's Daddy who's been absent!. From now on, in your life, I'll be there for you. I won't miss out again, and I'll take good care of you and your siblings."
Charles blushed, embarrassed,. "Why bring this up all of a sudden?"
Martin didn't answer; he just smiled.
Suddenly, he felt a sense of relief.
At first, he couldn't fathom why Charles would launch a cyber-attack on the Langley Group using the initialalias 'C'.
Hadn't he always known that heMartin was his daddy?
Despite harboring this question, Martin had never asked.
He respected all of Charles' choices and decisions.
Now, it dawned on him that maybe the answer wasn't so important after all.
As long as their family was together, nothing else mattered.
It was the first time Charles felt such intimacy with his Ddaddy, and although it was slightly uncomfortable, a warmth bubbled inside him, a kind of warmth that he'd never experienced before.
"I wasn't finished talking!"," Charles protested.
Martin chuckled,. "No need to finish. Hunter is too cautious; you won't find any traces he left behind. Your mommy has already told me where she is., and I'll find a way to bring her back. You should be living a carefree life, like any five-year-old should."
Charles sensed that his daddy had things under control, so he didn't continue.
It was the first time the father and son slept alone side by side.
Little Maria was in her cradle beside the bed.
And Martin stayed home for half a month.
After, then took a secretive flight to D country, and then boardingCountry D, only to board a passenger plane with Carter to Country M country without a sound....
...
Nighttime.
Patricia lay on her side in bed, her hand resting on the pillow as athe night's gentle breeze wafted through the room.
The white gauzy curtains swayed under the moonlight, casting an entrancing dance of shadows.
Suddenly, the window flew open from the outside, and a dark figure agilely somersaulted in, landing with precision.
WithHearing the noise behind her back to the window, Patricia heard the noise and tensed up immediately. Her hand shook slightly on the knife's hilt of the knife nestled under her pillow, and her palm breakingbroke out in a fine, nervous sweat.
Footsteps approached, getting ever closer.
She dared not to make a move, her back muscles rigid with tension.
At night, every Every sense seemsed magnified.
To Patricia,, and each step of the intruder was like a death knell from the Grim Reaper himself.
Finally, the footsteps ceased.
A dark presence loomed over her, casting a deep shadow on the bed.
A suffocating pressure enveloped her like a net, making it hard for her to draw breath.
Then, the figure pounced, pinning her down with his arms braced on either side of her, caging her between the bed and his chest.
"Ah..." Patricia shrieked, eyes clamped shut, and without a second thought, she reached for the knife under her pillow.
Chapter373
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