“You lost your phone?” Niamh felt it was not that simple. If his phone was lost, why did she receive the extortion message, and why did Ava receive messages that were seemingly sent by Daniel?
Kendrick also found it very suspicious. “You lost your phone, but where did you go last night? Why didn’t you come home?”
Facing Kendrick and Niamh’s doubts, Daniel frowned. He seemed to look troubled.
“When I was going to pick up Ava from work yesterday evening, I ran into an old woman who had trouble walking. She was separated from her family. I figured that since it was still early, I would send her home, but who knew her home was so far away?
“When I wanted to tell Ava, I realized that I had lost my phone. There were no cars where the old woman lived, so I had to wait until this morning.”
Daniel frowned again. “I didn’t expect this to happen.”
Gina was surprised after hearing what Daniel said.
“Dan, did you… Weren’t you with that Ava last night?”
“No.”
“…” Gina had an embarrassed look on her face. She felt slightly embarrassed when she recalled what she said about Ava not long ago.
She even thought that Ava was deliberately making something unnecessarily complicated, but it turned out that Ava really had no idea where Daniel had gone.
“This is bad.” Niamh’s heartstrings tightened, and her whole body became tense. She stepped aside and dialed Ava’s phone number, but still, no one answered.
Daniel felt curious when he saw that. “What’s wrong? What do you mean by bad?”
“Someone sent messages to Ava while pretending to be you, and my wife also received an extortion message. All signs indicated that you, Daniel, might have been kidnapped. Ava suspected that the mastermind behind your kidnapping was Naya’s mother. She probably went to find Naya’s mother because she was worried about you, but now, we can’t reach Ava.” Kendrick told Daniel the whole story.
After hearing this, Daniel’s expression turned solemn. He habitually wanted to take out his phone to call Ava, but when he touched his empty pocket, he remembered that he had lost his phone.
However, it did not seem that his phone was lost accidentally. Otherwise, how could someone send messages while pretending to be him? “I’m going to the Mendez family’s manor now to see if Ava is there,” Daniel said and strode toward the door.
Gina grabbed him. “Dan, are you crazy? What will the Mendez family think if you just go there and demand Ava from them? Also, what do they mean when they said you were kidnapped and went missing? What nonsense is this? How could Naya’s mother do something like that? Besides, aren’t you fine and well?
“What’s more, their precious daughter has already gone to prison. You’re more or less related to this. If you go to them now, aren’t you just asking for trouble? Listen to me and don’t go.”
Gina repeatedly discouraged him. Of course, she did not care whether something bad had happened to Ava.
However, Daniel’s attitude was firm. “I have to make this trip.”
“Sigh, Dan!” Before Gina could stop him again, Daniel broke free of her grip and went out the door.
Niamh and Kendrick followed suit.
“What’s this all about? There’s endless drama every day. Aren’t you just trying to let that woman marry into our family? How annoying!”
Gina complained in dissatisfaction and plopped down on the sofa.
She thought about it, and finally, she picked up her phone to call Esther.
However, even though the call went through, no one answered.
Gina did not want to call again, so she stopped caring about this. In her opinion, nothing was going on. It was all a scheme that Ava deliberately created in order to marry Daniel.
It was now noon. In the dilapidated building that was waiting to be demolished… 3
Ava suddenly felt a biting chill amidst her drowsiness. She shivered and finally woke up from the cold.
In her blurry vision, Ava saw a figure slowly walking toward her. She raised her head with difficulty and saw a familiar face with a sinister smile through her wet eyes.
It was Esther.
Ava closed her eyes, recalled what had happened before she passed out, and slowly opened her eyes again.
“Of course, it’s you.” Ava took a deep breath and recomposed herself.
She remembered, but as soon as she moved, she was kicked violently from behind. This kick hit her lumbar, causing indescribable dull pain.
“Ah!” Ava reflexively let out a muffled groan as she curled up, the ice water soaking her whole body and penetrating her skin layer by layer. At this moment, she felt extremely uncomfortable, but she still did not give in. She was still trying to stand up. Just as she was trying to get up, Esther walked over and slapped Ava twice in the face without saying a word.
“You b*tch, do you finally know the pain? Do you know that my Naya is in prison suffering a hundred, no, a thousand times more pain than you are now?” 1
Esther raised her foot and kicked Ava, who was lying beside her feet, with a frightening and sinister smile on her face.
“Ava, do you and Eveline think you’re very smart for setting up a trap for my Naya so that she’ll admit to all those crimes she unknowingly committed and she’ll finally go to jail because her crimes are beyond dispute?”
Esther suddenly reached out and grabbed Ava, who was shivering from the pain in her lumber. “25 years. Do you know how many 25 years a person has in one’s life? When Naya is released from prison in 25 years, I don’t even know if there’s any chance of me seeing her again. If she sees the person who harmed her back then married to the man she loves, do you know how much pain she’ll be in?”
Esther roared, pulling on Ava harder and harder. “You b*tch, you b*tch! You guys colluded and made my daughter suffer so much. I’ll make your life a living hell as well!”
After Esther finished cursing as if she had been possessed, she ordered the two burly men beside her.
“Do it. Teach her a lesson she’ll never forget.”
“Yes, boss.” The two men obeyed Esther and strode to Ava.
Ava felt the fear of the unknown overwhelming her. She tried her best to stand up and run, but she was grabbed by her hair.
“Let go! You lunatics! The police will find this place soon. You’re committing a crime, and if something happens to me, none of you will be spared!”
“How dare you remain so stubborn?!” Esther sneered. “Beat her until she can’t speak anymore!”
Those two men were doing this for money, so when they heard Esther’s order, they quickly executed it.
Ava was just kicked a few times and she was in so much pain that she could not stand it anymore. She tried to struggle, but it was to no avail. 1 The two men yanked her up and started beating her mercilessly. Soon, Ava was thrown to the ground with bruises covering her body.
“Naya is my only daughter in this life. She was supposed to have such a happy and blessed life, but because of you, she has to be locked up for 25 years! As her mother, how do you expect me to accept this, huh?”
Esther towered over Ava, who was almost at her last gasp. Then, a sense of pleasure gushed from the bottom of her heart.
She bent down slightly and grabbed Ava’s hair, her eyes aggressive.
“My daughter’s life is over, and so is yours.”
Esther warned with a grim face. At this moment, she no longer had the image of a graceful and elegant lady. She was like an irrational town shrew who was doing completely crazy and ridiculous things.
Ava lay down on the uneven ground as she listened to Esther’s constant curses in her ear. Then, she closed her eyes weakly.
She was wrong.
She was too impulsive when she took this step.
She should have listened to Niamh and not impulsively looked for Esther.
She should have stayed at Waldburg Corporation and waited for Kendrick to find out some clues before taking action. Now, she did not even know if she would be able to go back alive.
Ava thought silently, but it was too late for her to regret this.
At this time, she was still worried about Daniel in her heart. “Danny…”
‘Where the hell are you?
Are you near me?’
Esther, who was about to go back, heard Ava muttering Daniel’s name in a daze. She spun around and walked back to Ava.
“You’re still thinking about men at this moment, huh?” Esther sneered contemptuously. A sinister smile that was very similar to Naya’s reached her eyes. “Before you become deaf and blind, I’ll tell you the truth. Daniel is fine. No one kidnapped him. He should be home by now.”
Upon hearing Esther’s triumphant reply, Ava suddenly opened her tired eyes. “What? Did you say that Danny is already home?”
“Yes, he has returned home safe and sound.”
“…” Ava widened her eyes in astonishment and looked at Esther, who had a complacent expression on her face. “Is this a trap you set on purpose?”
“You and Eveline set up a trap to frame my precious daughter. So, of course, I’m going to retaliate. I originally wanted to teach Eveline a lesson too, but lucky for her she didn’t come to look for me with a fool like you.”
There was a trace of unwillingness in Esther’s eyes, and at the same time, she was projecting more resentment on Ava.
“Aren’t you good friends? You colluded together to bully my Naya. Why didn’t she accompany you to find Daniel this time, huh?”
“Heh.” Ava smiled and said sarcastically, not showing any weakness, “It’s fine that I fell for your trap because I was impulsive, but do you think Niamh will let you play her like a fool too? Back then, I wondered why Naya was so sinister and vicious. Now, I know. Like mother, like daughter.”
She raised her exhausted but still stubborn eyes to meet Esther’s menacing eyes.
“You saw what happened to your precious daughter, right? You’ll be like her too, sooner or later.”
“Shut up!”
Esther slapped Ava’s face after flying into a rage out of humiliation. Slap!
Ava could taste the metallic taste of blood spreading in her mouth. However, she did not give in. Instead, she smiled.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.