NovelEnglishThe engine of the motorcycle hummed to a halt as Maja reached the heart of the city. Cania wasn't known for its skyline; the
highest buildings were modest high-rises, topping out at about fifteen floors.
Unbeknownst to her, this was the very district where lan had set up his base.
The towering structures she could see, dominating the modest cityscape, were part of the community welfare center.
lan, on the other hand, was already at the airport waiting to pick her up. Her flight had been delayed for hours, and now, to his
frustration, it had disappeared from the tracking systems altogether.
After questioning the airport staff, lan learned that Maja had already taken off on her own.
Cania had a peculiar lack of street cameras, making it nearly impossible to track someone's movements. lan could only gather that
Maja had gotten into a car with another woman, but where they'd gone was a mystery.
Anxiety gnawed at him as he ordered a sweep of the available cameras in the city. Eventually, he spotted a trace of Maja on a
street heading towards the city he stayed right now.
Relieved, lan tried calling her numerous times, but her phone must have died, as it went straight to voicemail each time.
Hurrying back into the city, lan continued the search. But as the city descended into turmoil, many cameras were out of
commission. Finding someone here was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
What irked him the most was Cania's dismal intepenetration rate, less than twenty percent. It meant that the majority of its
citizens would never venture into the online world, and he couldn't use advertising to find her like he could on Forbidden Island.
Maja was oblivious to lan's frantic search. It wasn't until she reached her hotel room that she realized her phone had died.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtFate seemed to have a sense of humor; she and the woman she'd met along the way had booked rooms on the sfloor.
The vastness of Cania overwhelmed Maja, and she had no clue in which city lan might be.
After Maja shared a meal with the woman, her stomach revolted, and she promptly threw up. Accustomed to the rich and varied
cuisine at the Sanders’ residence, the local fare was too much of a shock to her system.
It wasn't that she was overly delicate; her body had simply grown sensitive with pregnancy.
The woman was concerned when she saw Maja vomit. "Are you okay? Did you get food poisoning? The hotel's food is generally
decent; this shouldn't happen."
Maja rinsed her mouth out with water, looking pale. "It's not the quality. I'm just not used to the taste."
"I'll go get you something bland. Just wait here," said the woman, noticing Maja's pallor before quickly heading out the door.
Maja then noticed the woman's sharp and uncompromising air, her gaze lacking warmth—as if her friendliness was a painstaking
effort and not her natural disposition.
But Maja wasn't in the mood to ponder these observations; her stomach was still churning.
When the woman returned, she brought with her a bowl of warm porridge and placed it before Maja.
"Take it."
"Thank you."
After eating half the bowl, Maja felt that her stomach was finally settled.
The woman stood up, ready to leave.
"So, you're looking for your brother in this city?"
"lI don't know, actually. He disappeared over a decade ago. He's eight years younger than | am. I'm twenty-six, so he must be
eighteen by now. But | can only remember what he looked like as a toddler."
It seemed her brother had been missing since he was two or three years old.
Fifteen years had passed; how could she possibly find him? And how did she know he was in Cania?
The woman seemed to guess Maja's thoughts, her lips twitching slightly. "I've never stopped looking for him over these fifteen
years. | finally found out who sold him. He was trafficked here."
The prospect of a child surviving in this rough place after being sold was grim.
Maja didn't want to discourage her but heard the woman add, "I have this strong feeling he's alive. Maybe he's been waiting for me
to cand save him all this time."
Maja said nothing. Everyone clung to their own obsessions.
After the woman left, Maja powered on her phone and called lan.
lan had been near frantic in his search for her, and when she finally called, the tension he'd been carrying dissipated.
"Where are you?"
Maja could tell by his dark tone that he was angry.
She quickly told him the nof her hotel, and lan responded with urgency.
"I'll be there in half an hour. Stay in your room and don't go anywhere else."
With that, he hung up.
Maja sat on the edge of the bed, waiting for him. Although he said half an hour, lan took only twenty minutes.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmHearing the knock, she peered through the peephole and saw him before unlocking the door.
lan stood there, his face obscured by the brim of his cap, a shadow cast over his features.
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