Chapter 44 They Are a Family. Why Am I Going?
Hearing Madison's voice getting closer, Quentin quickly got up, pushed aside the weeds above, and loudly called for Mom.
Hearing her child's voice, Madison rushed over in excitement, and others, too, listened to the sound and came running toward them. Madison located the dry well, and Nicholas hurried over and climbed down to lift the two children out, with Madison ready to receive them at the top.
With relief, Madison cried tears of joy, holding the two children while Nicholas stood by, gently patting and comforting her, “Madison, don't cry. We've found the kids.”
Madison released the two of them, reached out to touch their faces, and carefully examined them. Quentin had some scratches on his face, and his hands were also injured. Both children's clothes were torn. They must have suffered a lot.
"Mommy finally found you. Except for the injuries on your face, are you hurt anywhere else?" Madison asked urgently.
"Mom, I'm okay. It's just that Hannah twisted her ankle when we jumped out of the window."
"A twisted ankle? Let me take a look quickly."
As she spoke, she rolled up Hannah's pant leg and saw that her ankle was already swollen. She couldn't hold back the tears that started to fall again.
"Mom, it's okay, it's not that painful. Don't cry, Mom." Hearing her daughter's comfort, Madison's tears fell even harder. Hannah hates pain the most but was still consoling her despite the swelling.
Matthew hurried over, having driven at high speed, and upon exiting his car, he saw a family of four holding each other. He stopped in his tracks.
Victor noticed him getting out of the car and approached him, "Matthew, I didn’t expect you to come."
That's a long drive. How fast did Matthew have to drive to get here? Victor wondered.
Seeing that Matthew hurried over after hearing that Madison might faint yet now stood still instead of going around, was he not going to make an appearance to let Madison know he'd arrived?
"Matthew, aren't you going to go over and greet her?"
"No need, since the kids have been found, I'm leaving now. You arrange for someone to send their family home later," Matthew said, opening the car door, ready to leave. The family was reuniting, so why should he interfere?
"Matthew, how should we deal with the three kidnappers we caught?"
"Ever find out who the mastermind behind this is?"
"Not yet interrogated."
"Send them to the police first. Then find out who's behind this."
Matthew was still worried that the person behind this would try again if they failed this time, so now that the people were found, he wanted to nip any future troubles in the bud by locating the mastermind. He'd see this good deed through to the end, ensuring that the issue was resolved.
Victor watched Matthew's car fade into the distance, shook his head, and turned to walk toward Madison and the others.
"Madison, I've arranged for a car to take you guys home."
Madison wiped her tears, "Thank you for today, Victor. Thanks to you, we found Quentin and Hannah so quickly."
"Don't thank me. If anyone, thanks Matthew. Matthew just came, but then he left."
"Matthew was here? I should thank him."
Observing Madison's demeanor, Victor didn't quite know what to say. After all, Matthew was the one who had initially wanted the divorce. It wasn't fair to blame her for moving on and finding someone new.
"Let me give you a ride back," he offered.
"We may need to make a trip to the hospital first. Hannah twisted her ankle."
"Ankle twisted? Get in the car, and then let's hurry to the hospital. It's late now. I'll have Mitchell call ahead so they can prepare for us."
Madison thought it made sense. They'd probably have to wait if they went directly without notice. It was worth troubling them this one more time.
So, she picked up Hannah and climbed into Victor's car.
"Nicholas, I'll take Hannah to the hospital. Could you take Quentin home and let Rachel know we're okay?" Madison was thinking of Rachel waiting at home for news, and Quentin hadn't eaten all day and should rest after eating something. His injuries were mostly scrapes. He'd be okay with a bit of iodine for disinfection.
"All right. Take care of yourself, too, and call me if you need anything."
"Sure." Madison turned to her son.
"Mom, don't worry, just take Hannah to the hospital. I'll be good and wait at home for you guys," Quentin assured, knowing his mother had just found him and his sister and must be worried.
"Great, Quentin. You're a star. Mom and Hannah will be back tomorrow."
Victor drove Madison and Hannah to the hospital. Due to his planning, they went straight to treatment without any delay. The doctor said the situation wasn't serious. A few days of observation and no walking should be fine.
After settling them into their hospital room, Victor left to deal with some other issues.
Watching her daughter in the hospital bed, Madison's tension from the day finally started to ebb away.
*
Hearing that Victor had caught several people, Brianna panicked. She knew they'd be in trouble if Victor got his hands on them, and it would inevitably drag her down, too. She forced herself to calm down. There had to be a way out.
She entered her room, pulled out her phone from the innermost drawer, and dialed the only number saved on it. As soon as the call connected, she pleaded, "Father, help me..."
After hanging up the phone, Brianna felt relieved. With her “father” intervention, she was sure she'd avoid any fallout.
Victor arranged for people to bring the three kidnappers to the police department, along with evidence of the trio's abduction of the children. Meanwhile, he sent others to seek evidence to identify the mastermind behind the scenes.
Matthew left and returned to the villa. Having spent a night in the hospital, that day marked his first time going home since bringing Madison back that night. On the bed lay the gown she'd left behind. Matthew walked over, picked it up, and paused for a moment just as his phone rang—it was a call from Brianna.
"Matthew, where are you? How are you feeling?" Brianna asked tentatively.
"I'm home, I'm alright," replied Matthew, tugging at his tie, feeling irritable. Ever since he found out that day that Madison was remarried with children, he felt like there was a weight on his chest he couldn't lift.
"Did you go out today?" Brianna probed, wondering if Matthew knew about Madison's two kids and if he knew they were his.
"I was at the company. What's up?"
"Nothing... just, you've only just recovered, don't push yourself so hard, rest early." Brianna couldn't quite discern what he knew or what he'd discovered and hurriedly hung up the phone, worried she might have said too much.
Matthew didn't pick up on Brianna's nervousness. His mind was preoccupied with the image of Madison and her family of four in an embrace, too busy to care about anyone else's issues.
Staring at the gown in his hand, he suddenly envisaged Madison wearing it, sitting on the large bed, and he thought he saw the softness of her chest—Shit! Striding to the wardrobe, he threw it in and headed into the bathroom. Moments later, the sound of suppressed sighs mixed with running water filled the room.
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