Chapter 501 Like a Lost Lamb
After asking around the nearby markets, Courtney then started to check the nearby stall one by one until she finally found the familiar silhouette in East Borough Market on Vine Street an hour later.
Not far away, she could see a middle-aged man fish a fat carp out from the tank before descaling before he took out its guts and placed it in a black plastic bag. Handing it to an old woman, he took the money at the same time to complete this motion in one swift motion.
After receiving the money, the man was so busy that he did not have the time to wipe his sweat as he quickly attended to his next customer.
Standing from afar, Courtney watched all this in silence. If not for the recognizable tattoo on the back of the man’s neck, she would have a hard time linking this honest and hard-working man to the same evil man that walked out of Old Master Duncan’s room.
Taking her phone out, she then took a photo of him.
Not long after that, the man received a phone call only to hang up with a heavy expression. After telling the person beside him, he removed his waterproof overalls before heading to the market’s exit.
Just as Courtney was about to follow him, her phone rang at this moment, which surprised her, after which she shut her phone off while rejecting the call at the same time.
From the west exit of the market was a small park nearby. As the man hastily walked there, he would occasionally turn back and be alert as he looked around, making Courtney, who was hiding and sneaking around, nearly lose him.
After he had crossed the road, he went into the park’s side entrance. While she hid under the thick greenery, Courtney finally knew why the man came.
She immediately took her phone from the bag only to realize she had shut it off, just as she wanted to take a photo. Yet, it was this slip of attention that gave the two people the chance to disappear.
Feeling a sense of unease, Courtney was about to leave when she felt a person appear behind her. After that, a dull pain spread from behind her head as she tried hard to properly stand up. She still slumped onto the ground in the end.
Right before she lost consciousness, she could see from her blurry vision that a shadow approached her and took away something from her hands.
…
Eric, who came out from Sakura Restaurant, reported to Alexander upon getting into the passenger seat.
“A female waitress said that Mrs. Duncan came here an hour prior, but she didn’t manage to find the person she was looking for. On top of that, she said that she might have gone looking at a nearby market…”
As Alexander used his hand to support his forehead, his rationality had been overwritten by panic since he wanted to turn the whole city upside down just to locate Courtney and Tina at any cost.
“Eric, you…”
Just as Alexander was about to take action, a message was sent to him, making his phone ring.
“The shrubbery at the west entrance of Vine Park.”
Reading this message, the few words were enough to make his blood boil.
“Go to Vine Park.”
When Alexander found Courtney, she had already been dragged to the deepest parts of the park. Finding her first, Eric then pointed to an unconscious Courtney leaning against a huge rock before he shouted, “She’s here!”
As Alexander stopped at that moment, his tall stature suddenly slumped in the sea of greenery.
Eric, who had been ecstatic to find her, was shocked when he turned back to see that Alexander’s bloodshot gaze had turned into one on the verge of tears. The man’s usually cold expression was replaced with one that looked like a missing child that was feeling helpless and lost.
“President Duncan—”
Standing on the spot in a daze, Eric then looked at Alexander approaching Courtney with heavy footsteps before leaning over to carry her, as the blood flowing from behind her head dyed his white shirt red.
“To the hospital.”
Alexander almost could not say anything with a hoarse voice.
Inside the ward of the Melrose City Hospital, Linda had her hands in her coat with a stern expression. Shaking her head, she asked, “What did Courtney get herself into now? Why does trouble never stop looking for her after the day you two married?”
Alexander, who was beside her, shuddered a bit upon hearing this as he recalled his recent memories. Now that he thought about it, it was not just after they had married as it seemed like nothing had gone her way the moment he met her.
“You should go on first.”
Staring at the pale face on the bed, Alexander had regained his usual composure without any hint of panic and unrest on his face.
Nodding, Linda was about to exit the ward when she suddenly turned around and stated, “Courtney might not wake up tonight, but you sure need a rest.”
Her words fell on deaf ears as it echoed around the room. After looking at the statue-like man, she then paused for a second before leaving.
Caleb was waiting for her with two lunch boxes at the entrance when she was scared by the bodyguards that were positioned beside the door by Alexander. Clutching her chest, she then stared at both of them before saying, “I think you two should go in and persuade him to rest. Your president seems to be on the verge of collapsing. After all, he has already arranged for such a tight security detail, so what does he have to be afraid of?”
Linda then took the lunch box and happily smiled when she saw the butter prawns she had been craving for.
Placing his hand around her shoulder, Caleb walked with her in the direction of the doctor’s office before his voice echoed in the long hallway of the hospital.
“I heard something that happened between them. If you’ve heard it, then maybe you wouldn’t be so puzzled too.”
“Then, how about you tell me that?”
Caleb’s words were unheard as they faded into the distance.
As the two disappeared from the hallway, the door to Courtney’s ward was opened once again with Cameron coming in with teary eyes and an apologetic look while holding her hand from under the blanket.
“The doctors said that it was nothing major as the person who attacked her had controlled their force.”
“Who is it and why?”
Alexander did not know how to reply to her as he still did not find any useful leads, making him tighten the hands that were on his legs until the veins popped.
“She must have been attacked because she managed to find something, but…”
“But what?”
“The person who attacked her should be the same person that sent me her location.”
This was something that Alexander did not understand, as every incident that happened seemed to be targeting the Duncan Family or Courtney. From the incident where Natasha fell down the stairs to Tina going missing, these were all very cruel and direct methods. Only this time, they let Courtney off, even though this was the perfect opportunity to strike.
Cameron frowned upon hearing all this as she paced around the ward with unease and even cursed quite a lot. Frustrated by her actions, Alexander was about to say something when he saw Courtney turning her head in distress.
Hurriedly, he then grabbed her hands.
“Alex…” As Courtney mumbled, she then suddenly opened her eyes. Seeing a light above her, she felt a bit dazed.
“Courtney.”
Cameron and Alexander calling her name at the same time made her snap back to reality.
“It’s Raymond.”
The moment she opened her eyes, Courtney could feel the sweat in her palms as she kept recalling the scene she saw just before she collapsed.
