Sylvia had been in the operating room for three hours. Madelyn waited outside, repeatedly calling Forrest's phone, but he didn't answer.
Restlessly pacing back and forth, she wondered, "Where on earth could Forrest be?" She didn't have any contact numbers for Forrest's close ones; she only had his.
Suddenly, a thought crossed Madelyn's mind, ‘Could he be with Alex at Portsmouth Fishing Village?' Besides that place, she had no idea where else he might go.
Madelyn quickly found the phone number for the owner of Happy Seafood Grill, Jeff Massey.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtWhile the phone was dialing, she thought, "Please pick up!" Meanwhile, at Portsmouth Fishing Village, Jeff was being held captive by a group of thugs. They had driven out all the diners who were enjoying their meals.
"What do you want?" Jeff asked.
Fred played with a knife in his hand. "Oh, nothing much, just a little something. But you'd better behave yourself, or this knife in my hand might lose its manners. If anyone calls you and asks anything, you better answer that you don't know. If you dare slip up, be careful about your life." "Okay... okay..." Jeff, despite being a burly man standing at six-foot-three, couldn't do much against so many people. They outnumbered him, and he noticed a bulge around Fred's waist that looked like a gun. He didn't dare make any sudden moves.
Just as he finished speaking, the phone on the counter rang.
Fred gave him a stern look, and Jeff nervously picked up the phone. "Wh-Who is this?" "Mr. Massey, it's me, Madelyn. | want to know if Alex is with Forrest. Or have you seen Forrest?" Jeff replied, "I... | haven't seen him. Don't ask me. I... | don’t know anything." Fred took matters into his own hands and hung up the phone without warning. "You're cooperative. Remember, if she calls again, you know what you should say?" Jeff responded, "Yes, | know... | know." Fred and his gang left immediately. He dialed a phone number. "Mr. Jardin, everything here is resolved.” "Good, keep an eye on her." "Yes, Mr. Jardin." In the hospital, Madelyn stared at her handphone, feeling a growing sense of unease. 'Mr. Massey's voice sounded so strange.
He seemed really afraid. Could something have happened to him?" Madelyn dialed Margaret's number, asking her to come over from the Jent residence without alarming anyone else.
Thinking it was an urgent matter, Margaret rushed over without finishing her meal. "Ms. Jent, what's the emergency?" Madelyn instructed Margaret to stay with Sylvia at the hospital. She would take care of Sylvia once she woke up.
Margaret readily agreed.
Madelyn needed to find Forrest. Sylvia's condition seemed off, and just now, the doctor had asked her to sign a risky consent form. Madelyn thought that if Sylvia really couldn't make it through the day, Forrest would forever regret not being able to see his mother one last time.
Madelyn wasn't one to meddle in others’ affairs, but she knew that as a mother, even on her deathbed, a person's greatest concern would be their child.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmPerhaps Ethan might know Forrest's whereabouts, but she dismissed the idea. Ethan's feelings toward Forrest were nothing but brotherly animosity.
She had tried calling Ethan's phone earlier. It was switched off.
Madelyn took the last bus to Portsmouth Fishing Village. The place was remote, and by the time she arrived, it was already dark.
She used her phone's screen as a flashlight to navigate the pitch-black roads, but her phone quickly ran out of battery.
As she inquired along the way, she learned the location of Alex's house.
Alex was at a tattoo parlor, working on a client's tattoo when she was surprised to see Madelyn. "What brings you here?"