Lost and Found: Return of My Mysterious Fiancee

Victor only needed a glance to understand what was on his mind, and he couldn't help but let out a cold snort.

He hadn't realized before that Luke Gill, this young man, had such a scheming mind. Still, Luke was someone Victor favored, not to mention his own son-in-law. Their relationship, no matter how strained, was closer than that with Phil Walker. Although displeased, Victor quickly brushed it aside. After all, he hadn't arranged for Luke to marry Ella Bailey because Luke seemed honest. "Rest assured, the Langdon family will assign people to assist you. If anything happens to you, the hidden family's plans could be exposed. If that happens, we'll truly be in danger."

Ella Bailey's eyes shifted slightly, a trace of impatience flashing in her gaze. "You brought him here to run the lab. Then why bring me along? I'm still tired."

Her casual, dismissive tone sparked Victor's anger. He gave her a cold, sharp look. "Can't I call you over for nothing? Look at yourself! Ever since I barred you from handling family matters, you've been acting so aimless. Who are you showing this attitude to? If you hadn't failed in your duties all these years and failed to retrieve what we needed, would the Langdon family have had to resort to this?!"

"This mess we're in now-you're partially responsible!"Content is property © NôvelDrama.Org.

Ella slouched in her chair, intending to slack off. Victor's scolding went in one ear and out the other. But when she heard his final remark, her half-closed eyes snapped fully open.

"What do you mean I'm partly responsible?! I followed all your ideas about Elsa back then. How is it my fault that it didn't work out?!"

She couldn't stand Victor's habit of shifting blame. The old man! Always looking for someone to take the fall for him. Dream on!

Clearly furious, Ella Bailey didn't bother to hold back. "You forced everyone around me to leave and made me marry Luke Gill just so I'd throw myself fully into your plans. Over the years, have I ever disobeyed a single one of your orders?" "Every time you wanted to deal with Elsa, wasn't I the one acting as the villain outside? And now, since things didn't work out, you're blaming me for being incompetent? Elsa is suing you now because you overstepped, not me! If you hadn't dragged up events from years ago and angered the Dyer family's elders into a hospital bed, would Tina have stepped in to help Elsa? She probably didn't even know what you did before!"

"And now that you've failed, you're looking for someone to blame? Sorry, but I'm not taking the fall for this!"

Her whole demeanor radiated fury, even in her gestures. "You've backed yourself into a corner, and that's on you. Don't try pinning it all on me. If you want to blame someone, blame yourself for being too ruthless back then!" "You! You-!"

CRACK!

The table under Victor's hand split in two with a loud snap, collapsing to the floor. Cups and teapots crashed onto the ground, shattering into pieces. The sharp sound echoed for a long time.

Tea spilled across the floor, splashing high before pooling and rolling forward. Mixed with scattered tea leaves, the mess spread across the room.

The servants outside heard the commotion but didn't dare lift their heads. Even the butler hesitated to enter and clean up.

At that moment, only Luke Gill moved. His eyes flickered briefly, and the suspicions in his heart dissipated after Ella Bailey's final words. "Dad, calm down, calm down. Ella, he's just doing this for your own good. How could you talk to him like that?"

"And how I speak to my dad is none of your business, you freeloader!" Ella Bailey sneered coldly.

Seeing Luke Gill's darkened expression, paired with his helpless act of maintaining a "good son-in-law" persona in front of Victor, made her feel immensely satisfied.

Victor, still fuming, pointed at Ella and cursed. "You insolent brat! Luke is your husband. He always speaks well of you, and look at you! All these years, you haven't improved in the slightest. You-" "Dad!"

Victor suddenly clutched his chest, a muffled groan of pain escaping him.

Luke Gill's face changed drastically. He helped Victor back into his seat, calling for the servants to clean up while speaking rapidly, "Dad, I'm fine. Don't let this upset you. If there's anything you need, just tell me. I'll handle everything. Let Ella rest for now."

"She's rested long enough-"

"Sir! Sir!"

Before Victor could finish his sentence, a bodyguard rushed in from Maplewood, his face pale with alarm. Without even noticing the tense atmosphere in the room, the man dropped to his knees with a loud thud. "Sir, Master Ozan-Master Ozan is missing!"

Victor, about to scold the man for addressing someone as "Master Ozan," froze when the words fully registered.

He couldn't catch his breath. His chest heaved as he coughed violently.

Luke Gill patted his back in an exaggerated show of concern. It was a long while before Victor, who looked like he was on the verge of passing out, managed to regain his composure. "You-you're saying Ozan Bailey is missing?"

The bodyguard nodded. "Yesterday, I followed your instructions and went to Maplewood. When I arrived at their home, the door was wide open. The furniture was covered in dust-they must've left some time ago. The villagers said the same, that a group of people came days ago and took Ozan Bailey and his whole family, including Kael Bailey, away!"

Luke Gill's right eyelid twitched uncontrollably. "It's Tina! It must've been them who took Ozan Bailey and his family!"

Meanwhile, at the Brookes family estate, Tina and Jared arrived just as the family was waking from their afternoon nap.

After some time recuperating, and with Tina's help in nursing their health, Brandon and the others had largely recovered. Seeing Tina return, everyone lit up with joy.

Emily even offered to cook herself, though Isaac, knowing her track record, quickly stopped her. Otherwise, their rare family gathering might end with a trip to the hospital for food poisoning.

"Tina, come here! Sit down!" Ian called cheerfully to his granddaughter. "Your master is here too. I haven't seen you in so long-I've missed you terribly."

"Grandpa, we just saw each other two days ago," Tina said as she walked over with her arm linked through Jared's, bluntly exposing the old man's exaggeration.

Master Tam burst into laughter. "Give it up, old man. Playing the pity card won't work on Tina."

Knowing his disciple well, he shook his head with a chuckle. "She's so busy these days. If she's come back, it must be because she needs something."

Tina's smile didn't reach her eyes as she quirked her lips. "Master, you seem to know a lot. Been spending more time online lately?"

"Do I need to go online?" Master Tam snorted proudly. "Dexter told me everything when he came by. You, girl, always stirring up trouble-what are you trying to accomplish this time?"