âI-I know,â Yulissa stammered.Zyon continued furiously, âThatâs good, then. Your task is very simple this time. Youâd better not mess things up again, or Iâm going to teach you a lesson.ââDonât worry. I wonât.âThey had made two plans from the very beginning.Plan A was to kidnap Yulissa and lure Xavier into the trap. Then, they would make him addicted to drugs, which would ruin his reputation and make him face social death.Now that Plan A had failed, they had to launch Plan B.However, Plan B was to make Xavier die for real.After hanging up, a pale Yulissa opened the door and walked toward Xavierâs ward.âThe breeze is a little strong. You might catch a cold. Here, you can have my jacket.â Christopher removed his jacket and moved closer to drape it over Winnie.However, Winnie was not used to having strangers touch her. When she saw Christopher reaching out, she dodged it instinctively, leaving his hand still hanging in the air. Suddenly, the atmosphere became awkward.Feeling a little uncomfortable with the sudden silence, Winnie explained hurriedly, âItâs okay. Itâs late, anyway. We should go home.
Besides, itâs warmer in the car.âChristopher nodded. âOkay. Iâll send you home.âWith that, both of them turned to leave. However, it was too dark that Winnie accidentally missed a step and was about to fall.In the blink of an eye, a strong arm shot forward and held her waist steadily.Feeling the armâs warmth and the strength, Winnie could not help but praise, âWow. Youâre really strong, Captain Bennett.âAs she lifted her head, their gazes met.Her gaze was calm and straightforward, but Christopherâs was festering with emotions.âAre you okay?â His heart was racing as he let go of her reluctantly.âYes.â Winnie got to her feet.Before entering the car, she paused in her tracks and eyed Christopher, asking, âCaptain Bennett, have we met before? Iâm not trying to hit on you, but I canât help but think Iâve seen you somewhere. To be more specific, Iâve seen your eyes. I think it was sometime around three or five years ago.âAs she said that, she raised her hand and covered her view of Christopherâs lower facial features. âLike this. Your eyes look somewhat familiar.âSuddenly, Christopherâs lips curled into a smile.He always had a mask on when he was on duty as a SWAT officer back then. Hence, all that was exposed were his eyes. Still, she remembered my eyes. What a great memory.Just as he was about to correct her that it was five years ago, Winnieâs phone suddenly rang.When she saw who the caller was, she lost the mood to chat with Christopher.She quickly answered it, asking, âHow is everything, Dr. Houghton? Is he awake? What? Are you joking? Howâs that possible? Iâm going to the hospital now.âWinnieâs words were all Christopher could hear during the entire call.Seeing Winnie hanging up the call in a rush, he hurried into the driverâs seat and instructed, âGet in. Iâll send you to the hospital.âUpon arriving at the hospital, Winnie ran straight to Xavierâs ward.By the time she entered the room, Josiah was already in there.Winnie asked, âWhatâs going on?
What do you mean heâs missing? How can people go missing in your hospital?âFrowning, Josiah explained, âI went for a meeting. By the time I returned, he was gone. I canât even get through his phone, so I thought youâd taken him away.â Winnie was displeased. âHow is that possible? I was outside the entire time. Shouldnât you check the surveillance footage first instead of calling me to make accusations?ââIâve done that. He was escorted by someone.â Josiah fixed his eyes on Winnie.âWhat are you staring at me for? I told you, I didnât do it! And based on what youâre saying, he wasnât carried away, right? That means he was already awake by the time he left. By the way, whereâs Yulissa? Is she still here?â Yulissa suddenly came to Winnieâs mind.âYes. She popped by the ward before Xavier was escorted away.ââYou should ask her, then. Who knows? She might know something.ââYou donât say? Of course, Iâve asked her. She knows nothing.âWinnie smirked. âDo you believe her just because she said that?ââIâd rather trust her over you!â Josiah was about to continue scolding when he suddenly received a text on his phone.He then unlocked his phone to read the text, and a frown instantly formed on his forehead. âWhat the hell? He sent me a text, saying heâs got a lead on Dumbo and is on the way to find her.ââWhat?â But Iâm here! Where is he going to look for me? âQuick! Give him a call and find out whatâs going on!âJosiah had already dialed Xavierâs number before Winnie said that.Alas, no one picked up.
âNo oneâs picking up! Whatâs going on? Why is he sending me a text but not answering my call?â
Josiah said.Unable to wrap his mind around the situation, he dialed Xavierâs number again.Meanwhile, Winnie figured Xavier was in trouble.Thereâs only one explanation as to why Xavier can only text instead of answer callsâthe one holding on to Xavierâs phone is not Xavier himself.At that moment, she could only think of one person who wanted to harm Xavier, which was Zyon, the person working with Yulissa.At that thought, Winnie rushed to Yulissaâs ward.The door was kicked open with a bang, causing Yulissa to be startled by the raging woman who barged in.Yulissa did not recognize who Winnie was, for the latter was wearing a mask. âWho are you? What do you want?âWinnie stepped forward and pressed Yulissa on the bed. âCut the crap. Where have you guys taken Xavier to?ââWhat are you talking about? I donât understand. Iâm going to call for help if you keep this up.âWinnie pinched Yulissaâs broken finger. âStop pretending. Do you think I donât know youâre working with Zyon? Youâd better tell me where Xavier is now, or youâre going to lose this finger for good.ââOw⦠It hurts⦠Who on earth are you? I donât understand what youâre saying. Xavierâs in the room, isnât he? He was still sound asleep when I was gone. Whatâs with you? Ah⦠Please⦠Donât hurt me. Please donât do this. Iâll really lose my finger if you break it. Iâm begging you. Please donât hurt me,â Yulissa implored pitifully because she noticed Josiah entering the ward.Josiah hurried forward and pulled Winnie away. âWhat are you doing? Have you lost your mind? She just had her finger reattached. Besides, I said Iâd already asked her. Why donât you believe me?ââPfft! Iâd be an idiot if I did.â Winnie could not be bothered to argue with Josiah. It looks like Yulissa wonât be telling the truth.Hence, she had no choice but to call Christopher.
âIâm so sorry for troubling you, but I need you to track a number.â