The two of them left the room hand-in-hand, got into their car, and headed to Hughes Residence.
When Thomas and Yannie arrived at Hughes Residence, the whole place seemed to be in chaos.
Mr. and Mrs. Hughes could not seem to get in touch with Steven at all, nor could they find Denise anywhere. The two of them were absolutely sick with worry.
At this moment, Kate was sitting elegantly on the sofa, consoling Mrs. Hughes as best as she could while ordering her men to go in search of the missing siblings. “Mrs. Hughes, please don’t overthink this. Steven and Denise are grown–ups now, so I’m sure they’re fine.
“Perhaps they’ve found a private place to catch up as brother and sister.”
“Catch up?”
Mrs. Hughes furrowed her brow. “What do they have to catch up on when they see each other every day? Besides-“
She took out her phone and showed Kate the video that was taken at the entrance of Howard Group. “Look at this! Steven was at Howard Group this morning, and he even stood up for that bitch, Gwen!
“Since Denise didn’t leave the house with him, they’re probably not together at this moment!”
The more she thought about this, the more upset Mrs. Hughes became. “Steven must be with that bitch right now. We must find them immediately and bring Steven home as soon as possible!”
“She’s right.”
Mr. Hughes sighed. “Steven is a kind soul, and that Gwen certainly is a looker. If Steven can’t resist her deceit and end up agreeing to help her recover Luke’s memories…that would be a disaster.”
Mrs. Hughes burst into tears when she heard this. “That’s right. That body belongs to Luke, but we forcefully erased all his memories and consciousness to replace them with Steven’s. If they somehow find a way to recover Luke’s consciousness…all our efforts would’ve been for nothing!”
With that, she turned to stare at Kate longingly as though seeking an answer from her. “Katie, tell me, will it be hard for them to find a way to retrieve Luke’s memories?”
“Yes, it will.”
Kate nodded when she saw the concern in Mrs. Hughes’ eyes. “Don’t worry. We’ve spent a lot of time and effort erasing Luke’s memories in the first place, so it definitely won’t be easy trying to retrieve it. However…”
She furrowed her brow. “We still have to find them as soon as we can. Steven is too unsuspecting. The longer he stays in Gwen’s company, the higher the probability of something bad happening.”
Kate was not stupid; she had seen the way Steven looked at Gwen.
Whether it was Luke in the past or Steven in the present, both of them seemed to have fallen for Gwen.
Kate was not worried about Steven regaining Luke’s memories; the doctor who had been in charge of Steven’s case was one of the most outstanding in this field–not even Dr. Liddell could compare.
Therefore, even if they wanted to, Kate knew that it would take them years before they could restore Luke’s memories and consciousness.
However, she was worried about the possibility of Steven falling for Gwen.
This was the most fatal flaw in their plan.
Just as the three of them were pondering over Steven and Denise’s whereabouts, someone kicked the front door down.
Thomas, Yannie, and their group of bodyguards stormed through the door.
“Mr. and Mrs. Hughes.”
Thomas strode into the living room. “May I ask, where is your precious and beloved daughter hiding?”
Mr. and Mrs. Hughes exchanged a nervous glance.
A split second later, Mr. Hughes stood up. “Mr. Howard, may I ask what is the reason you’re looking for Denise?”
Thomas could not be bothered to entertain him at all. “My daughter has gone missing, and Denise is the prime suspect. Now tell me, where the hell is she?”
Mrs.Hughes frowned when she saw Thomas storm in, then instinctively hid behind her husband’s back.
She peeked at him tentatively and asked, “What does Denise have to do with your daughter disappearing?”
Myr.Hughes furrowed his brow, glanced at the guards who stood behind Thomas, then forced out a wry smile.
“That’s right.There must’ve been a misunderstanding, Mr.Howard.”
“Misunderstanding?”
Thomas scoffed, took out his phone, pulled up the news of Tina and Dan being arrested, and tossed his phone to Mr.and Mrs.Hughes.
“Tina’s been arrested, and since Denise has always been her loyal partner-in-crime, there can’t bea misunderstanding!”
The color drained from Mr.and Mrs.Hughes’ faces.
The two of them exchanged glances and then picked up the phone.
A photo of Tina in handcuffs stared back at them.
Thomas was telling the truth; Tina and Dan had been arrested for murder.
Mrs.Hughes fell silent, her mind spinning at high speed.
More than 20 years ago, they had chosen to adopt a child out of their guilt for abandoning Luke.
When Denise grew up to be a charming little lady, they decided to marry her off for social relations to aid their family’s rise to power.
The Howard family was the only people who were worth their time and effort in doing this.
Therefore, Denise’s sole mission was to get married into the Howard family and become their daughter-in- law.
However, due to Mr.and Mrs.Hughes’ distaste for Dan, they decided Thomas would be a better target and thus brainwashed Denise into thinking he was the love of her life and coerced her into plotting with Tina.
With Tina arrested and Denise gone without a trace, there was no point trying to protect her anymore, considering her and Tina’s plan had failed miserably.
It was far more important to get on Thomas’ good side in times like this.
At the thought of this, Mrs.Hughes curled her lips into a smile and batted her lashes innocently at Thomas.
“You probably don’t know this, Mr.Howard, but Denise isn’t our biological daughter at all– we adopted her many years ago, and thus, what she does outside of this house has nothing to do with our family at all, and even until now, we’re looking for her as well.
“If you find her, please let us know–she’s gotten into a lot of trouble that we want her to take accountability for.”
Thomas could not help frowning when he heard this.He turned to glance at Yannie with a look of disbelief.
Yannie, too, was surprised by this.
“Is that true? Denise isn’t your biological daughter?”
Thomas asked solemnly.
“Of course it’s true!”
Mrs.Hughes almost leaped out of her chair.
“We still keep the documents of her adoption upstairs! What she does has nothing to do with this family at all! If you don’t believe me, I’ll show you the adoption papers right now!”
Thomas furrowed his brow and waved his hand in dismissal.
“There’s no need.”
He did not need confirmation for this.
“Well, if Denise ever returns, please get in touch with me as soon as possible–it’s urgent.”
With that, he grabbed hold of Yannie’s hand and left.
“The Hughes family is…certainly heartless,”
Yannie could not help lamenting as soon as they left the house.
Denise had lived with them for more than two decades.
Even if they had adopted her, this did not dismiss their relationship.
“I can’t believe you’re surprised by this.”
Thomas sneered.
“If they were heartless enough to abandon Luke when he was a baby, what’s to say they wouldn’t do the same for Denise?”
With that, he turned to glance at her and added, “By the way, what were you saying to Bethan on the phone?”
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.