Alice's fingers curled into a fist, ''For once, I thought she would not be a disappointment…''
''Is it?" Helian Chen narrowed his eyes at her, ''She agreed to the marriage just like that and you jumped into rushing it. Did I not ask you to consider it all this while?"
''What's happening here?" Mr. Lu and Mrs. Lu approached the Chen Family.
''If there was some problem with the bride then you should have told us beforehand,'' Mrs. Lu said in a voice loud enough for everyone to catch, ''Why would you put us through such humiliation for your wilful daughter?"
''Apologies, Mrs. Lu,'' Alice spoke up.
Helian Chen grabbed her hand but she looked at the man, making his grip loosen.
The moment he freed her hand, she turned to look at Mrs. Lu with a smile on her face, ''It's not that our daughter is wilful or she has problems. She agreed to this marriage herself but going on, she must have caught wind of your son's reputation as a womanizer so she… ran away. My sincere apologies,'' Alice smiled brighter as she watched Mrs. Lu's face losing color.
Helian Chen's eyes sparkled shortly while he glanced at the woman.
''Come, Ah Sheng. There is no point for us to stay here,'' Mrs. Lu harrumphed as she walked to her son and dragged him out of the wedding hall, followed by Mr. Lu and the distant members of the Lu Family who left soon after.
There were still other guests inside the place but Alice could not bother about their presence, ''Did you send people after her?"
Helian Chen nodded, ''I have locked the place down. She won't be able to leave.''
''What about the cameras? Did they not record her movements?"
''Daisy doesn't leave any leads,'' Helian Chen mumbled.
''Dad, what makes you think she hasn't left already?" Diana questioned worriedly.
Helian Chen fell into contemplation. Daisy was his daughter and undoubtedly, she thought like him in certain ways. If he knew her well, then his guess that she was still inside this wedding venue would be right. The most dangerous place is the safest place in times of escape, after all.
'Ding'
Alice looked at her phone.
'Madam Chen, it seems like you are taking your own sweet time to consider our deal but unfortunately I cannot be patient anymore. I need the money that I have demanded wired in my account right now or else, along with you, every guest present there would be meeting your granddaughter in person.'
Along with the text, there was an attachment.
As Alice opened it, a gasp escaped her mouth. She looked at the picture of the child being held in Daisy's arms in disbelief.
''What?" Helian Chen snatched the phone from her hand when she remained frozen in her position.
…
''Did you check into that room?"
''I did. There were just a few guests staying there. I could not find Elder Miss.''
The first man spoke through his handheld transceiver, ''The 11th floor is clean. Elder Miss is not located.''
Both the men were from the elite security team of the Chen Family. As they walked towards the elevator, they scanned through the hall keenly.
When the two men stepped inside the elevator, they saw a woman standing there already, ''Who are you?" They questioned her, taking in the sight of the unfamiliar face.
The woman trembled, seemingly scared by their threatening voices, ''I-I am Miss Chen's makeup artist…''
Both the men observed the makeup bags in her hand and pressed the switch for the floor right above.
When the door opened, they waited for the woman to leave first before they stepped out, ''Do you think we will be able to find Elder Miss on this floor?"
''You know our elder miss. If she wants to leave, who can catch her? She must have gone away already,'' the other man sweated as he spoke.
''But we will be losing our jobs if we don't get a lead…'' he halted in his tracks suddenly.
"What happened?"
''Why did the makeup artist head in the same direction as us? Elder Missy's room was arranged close to the wedding hall, not on this floor.''
The other man paused as he contemplated over it. He seemed to have realized the same thing as well, ''Regardless of where Elder Miss' room is, the wedding had already started and Elder Miss has disappeared now. Nobody needs makeup at this time. Why would she come here to this floor… unless…''
As they looked at each other, they could see the same realization in each other's eyes and their faces sank.
…
Ryle walked out of the bathroom as he dried his hair with a towel in his hand, his other hand fiddled with the phone in his hand for a moment before he dialled a number.
The call was connected on the last ring.
''Maxie, do you have the heart to be this ruthless to me? You don't answer my calls on time now?" Ryle sighed.
''What is it?" A cool voice came from the other side.
Unbothered by the distant voice, Ryle continued, ''I'm out here chasing a mouse in Beijing. Do you wanna join in the fun?"
''Busy.''
''You are a doctor, not a god. Can you stop burying yourself in that godforsaken hospital all the time…'' Ryle's words were interrupted by a series of urgent knocks on the door.
His brow raised slightly, ''I will call you later,'' he disconnected the call and threw the phone to the bed before walking towards the door.
The moment he turned the doorknob and opened the door, a soft body pressed against his and pushed him back.
'Click'
The door closed with a reverberating sound.
In the dim lights of the room, Ryle could see the indistinct features of the woman who had thrown herself into his arms. The unfamiliar face, however looked up at him with wide dark eyes.
Ryle's eyes narrowed.
''It's you…'' The words left Daisy's mouth before she could think straight.