Chapter 306
At Lancaster Ancestral Mansion
William felt the weight of responsibility as he stood before his gathered family, tasked with delivering the grim news. It had been 24 hours since the accident, and the atmosphere in the mansion was thick with concern. Aunt Melanie and Uncle Ben had just returned, and the first thing Aunt Melanie asked about was Rain.
“What’s going on?” their father demanded as he entered the living room, the last to arrive.
William swallowed hard and took a deep breath. “I need to explain what happened yesterday,” he began.
As he laid out the events… the accident, the hospital, and the shocking revelation about Dina posing as Rain… the room erupted in disbelief.
“What?! Why are we hearing this only now? How is Rain? We need to go to her!” his father exclaimed, his voice filled with urgency.
“That’s the issue,” William replied, his tone grim. “Rain was swapped. The woman discharged from the hospital and now in the penthouse with Alexander is Dina Clayton. Michael Astor orchestrated this, essentially pulling the same scheme Rain was investigating. Dina was surgically altered to look like her, and Rain is missing p>
“Oh my God,” Aunt Melanie gasped, clutching her chest. “Dina is alive, and Rain is… gone?” Her voice trembled with worry. Sanya rushed to her side to offer comfort, having been briefed earlier by William when they returned to the mansion.
“Alexander is already working on it,” William reassured them firmly. “We’ve got leads, and we won’t stop until we find her p>
His father, visibly upset, closed his eyes and steadied himself before speaking. “Did you ensure the secrecy of this operation? And by that, I mean no involvement from Arlan Cartier p>
William sighed, recognizing the depth of his father’s concern. “Dad, I understand where you’re coming from. I’ve ensured that this operation remains entirely confidential, handled only by our elite team in the GIS. Uncle Arlan and his team are not involved p>
“Why not involve Arlan?” Vernice interjected. “He’s the best at search-and-retrieval operations. Wouldn’t that help p>
William smirked slightly before replying, “Aunt Vernice, that was during Uncle Arlan’s generation. In this generation, I’m the best… hands down. While we trust Uncle Arlan, the same can’t be said for everyone around him.” His voice took on a more serious tone. “To be blunt, Carla is on our family’s blacklist. We can’t risk critical details falling into the wrong hands p>
The room went silent as William explained further. “We’ve vetted every member of our elite team, and none of them are compromised. That means the leak we’ve encountered in the past came from the general GIS system, accessible to anyone, including Carla. She’s Arlan’s daughter, and her proximity to him makes her a potential risk we can’t ignore p>
His father nodded slowly, though the tension in his expression didn’t ease. “Good. Keep this contained p>
This was a delicate operation, one misstep, and even the smallest alarm could put Rain in grave danger. William’s phone buzzed suddenly, breaking the tension in the room. He answered quickly, his face lighting up as the caller spoke.
“I’m joining the retrieval operation,” he announced, ending the call and turning to face the family. “They’ve located her. I’ll go with brother Alexander to rescue sister-in-law Rain p>
Without hesitation, Ben rose to his feet. “I’m coming with you.” There was no time for debate. The men swiftly gathered their things, leaving Rock behind to stay with the women.
As they prepared to leave, Rock addressed the group somberly. “Let’s all pray that this rescue and retrieval operation succeeds and that everyone returns unharmed p>
Rain’s head throbbed as if it had been struck by a hammer. The pain was excruciating, but she forced herself to stay still, her eyes tightly shut as she pieced together fragments of memory.
The car accident… Matt was with her… her father sedating her p>
And then there were the voices… some faint, some clearer.
Moments ago, she had distinctly heard Michael shouting. She had hoped it was all a nightmare, but as her eyes fluttered open, she was met with the smug, triumphant grin of Michael Astor.
“Finally, my woman is awake!” he exclaimed, his tone dripping with satisfaction. Rain’s eyes widened, her body freezing in place as his hand brushed against her face.
“It took you thirty-two hours to wake up, Rain. I was starting to get impatient,” he added with a chilling grin.
“You… Michael?” she whispered, her voice hoarse.
“Yes, it’s me,” he said smugly. “We’ll be together now. Don’t strain yourself too much, let the doctors check on you and make sure you’re in perfect health p>
As Michael stepped back to allow the medical team to approach, Rain’s mind raced. She kept her expression neutral, refusing to let panic take over. Instead, she focused on her surroundings, her sharp eyes scanning every detail of the room. She had to stay calm, logical and collected if she wanted any chance of escaping this.
It was clear Michael had abducted her from the hospital. But how? Rain’s fists clenched under the blanket as her thoughts inevitably turned to her father. He had to be involved. Michael couldn’t have pulled this off alone, not without her father’s help or, at the very least, his complicity.
Her eyes darted to Michael, and the triumphant smirk on his face gave her goosebumps. “Make sure she heals well because I want to play with her as soon as possible,” Michael remarked amusingly to the medical team checking on her.
She clenched her jaw, knowing how things would turn out for her in Michael’s hands.
“Are you still in pain?” the doctor asked her.
“My head and body are aching. What’s going on? Why am I here? I don’t remember what happened,” she replied. She wondered if she could convincingly pull off the amnesia act… but recalling her earlier reaction, it might seem suspicious. Her reaction had clearly shown that she recognized Michael.
“What is the last thing you remember?” the doctor asked.
A terse silence filled the room as her eyes scanned her surroundings and paused in Michael’s direction. Her jaw tightened as she silently vowed, ’I will get out of here, no matter what p>