Chapter 9
After sending Priscilla home, Edward hurried back to his own house as soon as possible.
But when he saw the empty villa, he was momentarily stunned.
The childish plush pillows that used to sit on the sofa had vanished, the pair of couple slippers he once scoffed at were nowhere to be found, and even the wedding photo that hung in the living room had been taken down.
Standing in the middle of the empty living room, an unprecedented panic swept over him completely.
Thinking of something, he rushed upstairs and pushed open the bedroom door.
He found, even more despairingly, that the violin she once treasured was also gone.
With trembling hands, he sent her a message.
But all he received in response were rows of red exclamation marks.
Not only that, even his texts and calls had all been blocked.
He roared furiously at the servants, “Where did Anastasia go? Why is everything gone?”
But the servants, confused, reported honestly, “Mr. Copeland, ever since you left last night, Mrs. Copeland instructed us to throw away all these things, and none of us have seen Mrs. Copeland today.”
Edward spoke through gritted teeth, his voice trembling unconsciously, “Has Anastasia been acting strange lately?”
The servants all shook their heads, indicating that nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
Edward’s face was as dark as thick ink, and the oppressive atmosphere around him made the servants afraid to even breathe too loudly.
Suddenly, one servant timidly raised her hand.
She knelt before Edward, her voice trembling, “Mr. Copeland, Mrs. Copeland gave us some unwanted trinkets a while ago.”
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Then, the other servants also raised their hands one after another, all confirming that Anastasia had indeed given them things.
Edward’s brows twitched violently, suddenly, he didn’t dare listen any further, as if what they were about to say next would be something he absolutely couldn’t bear.
“Mrs. Copeland gave me this diamond ring, saying Mr. Copeland had already bought her a bigger
one.”
This was… their wedding ring.
“Mrs. Copeland also gave me this scarf, saying it was just taking up space.”
This was… the scarf he had once knitted for her himself.
***
The things he once gave her, the things she once cherished, had now all been casually given away to others.
He clenched his fists, unable to believe what he was seeing, his mind completely blank.
At that moment, Thomas somehow found a gift box.
“Daddy, this is a present from Mommy for you.”
His voice helped Edward regain a shred of sanity.
Edward took a few deep breaths to calm himself down.
Even so, his hands still trembled as he slowly tore open the gift wrapping.
But when he saw the bold words Divorce Agreement, the psychological defenses he had built up completely collapsed, and a flood of despair and helplessness overwhelmed him.
How could this be… How could it end up like this…
He stared fixedly at those words, his chest feeling as if it were blocked by a giant stone, making it impossible to breathe.
It was only then that he noticed a USB drive placed at the bottom.
He opened it on the computer, finding three video recordings and one audio file.
The first video was at the kindergarten, showing Priscilla stabbing her own palm with a wooden
stick
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The second video was at the nursing home, where Priscilla poured scalding hot water on Laura and even personally unplugged her ventilator.
The third video was at the cemetery, where Priscilla scattered Laura’s ashes with her own hands.
Edward’s eyes were bloodshot as he played the audio recording again.
“Don’t worry, Daddy followed your instructions and told the kidnappers early this morning to only hurt Mommy’s hand. It won’t affect Priscilla’s competition.”
***
She knew. She knew everything.
Edward’s eyes were filled with blood, his face written all over with helplessness and despair.
Little Thomas, who understood much more than before, tugged at his sleeve and softly asked, “Daddy, where’s Mommy? Is she never coming back?”
For some reason, although he had always wished for her to leave, now that the day had truly come, he didn’t feel good at all.
He even thought, “No, Daddy will bring Mommy back. I will definitely find her.”
Edward made a promise to him.
Then he crumpled the divorce agreement into a ball, tore it to pieces, and let the countless scraps of paper flutter through the air.
She was only missing, not dead.
As long as she was still alive, no matter where she ran, even to the ends of the earth, he would find her.
But before that, there was still one more thing he needed to do.
Edward looked down at Priscilla’s smug face on the screen and let out a cold laugh.
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Chapter 10
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Chapter 10
