Chapter 1754
At six o’clock that evening, Keaton arrived at Jinpeach Restaurant.
He arrived thirty minutes early. Instead of heading straight to the private dining room, he made a detour to the kitchen.
He tracked down the head chef and specifically mentioned that there would be a pregnant woman in their party, instructing them to be incredibly careful with the ingredients.
He demanded they avoid anything unsafe for expecting mothers. If a dish had to include certain spices or components, they needed to place warning labels next to it.
Once he was satisfied with the arrangements, he finally made his way to the private room. He had barely reached the door when a familiar voice called out.
“Keaton p>
He whipped his head around. A few feet away stood Tarquin and Callum.
Callum was dressed in a mid-length trench coat, his hands shoved casually into his pockets, a warm smile spread across his face.
Keaton froze for a second before striding toward him. “Callum p>
Callum stepped forward to meet him. “It has been a while p>
The two men locked into a fierce embrace. Keaton’s voice was tight with emotion.
“You could have at least given us a heads-up before you just showed up p>
Callum chuckled. “I wanted to give you a surprise p>
Keaton took a deep, shaky breath.
“Surprise, my ass. If we had known you were alive a day sooner, we could have started celebrating a day sooner. It has been so long without a word. We all thought you were dead p>
“Don’t worry,” Callum said with an easy smile. “I have got nine lives. I am not that easy to kill p>
Keaton pulled back, looking him up and down. He let out a heavy exhale and clapped Callum firmly on the shoulder, speaking from the bottom of his heart.
“I am just glad you made it back in one piece p>
Callum said softly,
“My dad mentioned that you spent a lot of time and money looking for me after I went missing. I cannot thank you enough. I owe you p>
“Cut the crap. Friends do not keep score. Just sit down and tell me how the hell you survived p>
Callum let out a long breath. “It is a long story p>
Before he could elaborate, Gale and Booker arrived.
Seeing Callum standing there, the two of them nearly lost their minds.
“Thank God you are alive p>
“You survived a disaster like that. You are destined for greatness now p>
As the group exchanged chaotic, heartfelt greetings by the door, Tarquin stood
quietly to the side, keeping a close eye on Keaton.
Seeing that his friend was keeping it together, Tarquin finally stepped in.
“Let’s take this inside p>
They had barely taken their seats when Winona and Elysia rushed into the room.
The moment Winona locked eyes with Callum, the tears spilled over. Even Elysia choked up at the sight of him.
Callum had risked everything for Winona, and Elysia was incredibly grateful to him. They had all lived with the horrifying assumption that Zane had murdered him. Seeing him sitting there safe and sound was completely overwhelming.
Noticing Elysia tearing up, Tarquin walked over, wrapped an arm around her, and gently guided her to sit beside him.
Winona, however, completely broke down. Tears streamed down her face as her voice cracked. “Callum p>
Keaton’s brow furrowed. He wanted to tell her to calm down, to remind
her that extreme stress was not good for the baby, but the words died in his throat. Content belgrigs
Callum immediately stood up and walked over. He gave her a polite comforting hug before helping her intochair He grabbed a tissue and handed it to her
“Take a deep breath. I heard you are expecting. Getting this worked up is not good for you or the baby p>
Winona took the tissue, but no matter how fast she wiped her eyes, the tears kept falling.
She desperately wanted to calm down, but the dam had burst.
Her heart was overflowing with gratitude and a crushing sense of guilt.
Callum had been captured and tortured because of her.
Over the past few months, she had frantically searched for any news of his whereabouts and had even anonymously sent a massive amount of money to his parents.
When every lead went cold, she truly believed he was gone.
The guilt had been eating her alive.
Seeing him alive and well was a massive relief.
But when her gaze dropped to his hand and she saw his missing fingers, a fresh
wave of devastation crashed over her.