The morning breeze, carrying a chill, brushed past, causing the sea of flowers to rustle lightly, sending a refreshing fragrance through the air.
Ann Vaughn, however, had no ti to appreciate the beauty in front of her as sothing sharp seed to force its way into her mind, compelling her to face—
"In the maze lies your distant past, which I was never a part of."
"If you are willing, I will accompany you for the rest of your life."
The man smiled faintly, holding a bouquet of dark blue trailing roses, his eyes as deep as ink filled with solemnity and seriousness, along with a hint of barely discernible tension.
When he gazed at her, it was as if he had crossed the latitude of an entire century, finally coming to her side.
The long-enduring mist surrounding him cleared, revealing a face all too familiar to Ann Vaughn—
Jas Vaughn!
Ann froze as if struck by lightning, her body stiffened in place, emotions of shock and confusion flickered in her eyes, along with a sliver of delight she had not even noticed herself.
The man who always appeared in her dreams, whose face she couldn’t see clearly—turned out to be Jas!
How could it be Jas?!
Oh God, is this rely a dream, or did it actually happen?
Also, if Jas knew her and even proposed, then why, from the mont they t, did he pretend not to know her?
—Wait a minute.
Ann snapped out of her thoughts, suddenly recalling what Cyrus Hawthorne had said that day.
She always felt he mistook her for another woman.
But could it be that his words were actually ant for her?
No, that’s still not right...
Aside from that unknown truth of a dream, she couldn’t recall any mories linked to Jas Vaughn.
"Ah!"
An abrupt stabbing pain in her temple forced Ann to squat down, the color vanishing from her face, turning it exceptionally pale.
There seed to be a voice in her head shouting, "Leave here, leave here quickly," and she couldn’t hear anything else from the outside world.
Headaches are benign if dormant, but when triggered, they are debilitating.
Ann, enduring the pain, took a bottle of pain reliever from her bag and gulped it down, barely holding on for about ten seconds before the agony in her head gradually subsided.
She took a deep breath and stood up, taking one last look at the field of roses before hurriedly leaving.
After erging from the flower-walled maze, Ann felt the enormous stone pressed against her heart sowhat lifted, making it not as suffocating.
Ann breathed a sigh of relief and then said, "Kenny, let’s go..."
Halfway through the sentence, Ann suddenly realized sothing was amiss.
Where did Kenny go?!
Ann imdiately sensed sothing was wrong, hurriedly turning back to find the Little Dumpling, only to be blocked by a stranger.
"Are you Ann Vaughn?" The stranger took out an ID from his chest pocket and showed it to Ann. "I’m an officer from The Imperial Capital Police Departnt. A report accuses you of child abduction, which is serious. Please co with us to the police departnt for investigation."
Child abduction?!
Ann was stunned, thinking maybe Jas couldn’t find her, so he used this thod to get her back?
But she quickly dismissed that thought.
Jas would never do that.
Then who reported her...
"You must be mistaken, the child who ca with ..."
"We’ve already taken him into protection, save the rest for when you go to the police departnt," the officer said coldly.
At the sa ti, at a window seat in a nearby café.
Watching the patrol car drive away, a person sitting there revealed a smile filled with unspoken schadenfreude.
"Bad luck for you that I caught you."
...
Over the ranch, a strong gust of wind blew, causing the grass to ripple like waves of wheat. The piercing sound of helicopter blades grew closer, startling Mr. and Mrs. Ed to co outside to see what was happening.
A helicopter stopped not far away, and a tall, trim silhouette, clad in a dark black suit, stepped out with steady steps, his face handso and sharp, radiating an imposing aura that was full of elegance and nobility with every move he made.
As if a king of high stature.
"S-sir, may I ask if you need anything?" Ed stamred, fear gripping his heart as he looked at the man walking toward them and the black-clad subordinates behind him.
He felt that being scanned by those cold eyes was enough to stop one from even daring to breathe.
"I’m looking for soone." Cyrus Hawthorne spoke, his voice icy as he cast a scrutinizing gaze upon Mr. and Mrs. Ed. "Where is Ann Vaughn?"
"An-, Ann, she left for town early, saying she wanted to go, uh, sightseeing..." Startled by the icy aura of Cyrus, Ed nearly couldn’t string words together.
Despite having run the ranch for so many years and hosting countless esteed guests, none had ever exerted the kind of pressure the man before them did, effortlessly with just his presence...
Seeing through that Ed wasn’t lying, Cyrus withdrew his gaze, instructing Mark Joyce in a deep voice, "Head to town."
Mark was about to comply when his phone rang.
"President Hawthorne, it’s your call; it’s from the young master."
Cyrus reached out to take it, pressing the answer button. Before he could speak, a few knocking sounds ca from the other end.
Detecting sothing amiss, Cyrus didn’t speak imdiately and focused on listening.
"Thud—thud—"
A series of knocking sounds entered his ears, irregular in rhythm, as if conveying so ssage.
However, the ssage was not fully conveyed before it abruptly ceased.
Listening to the busy signal from the phone, Cyrus’s eyes narrowed coldly as he ordered in an icy tone.
"To The Imperial Capital Police Departnt."
"Yes, sir!"
...
The Imperial Capital Police Departnt.
Ann Vaughn never expected that her initial plan for a small town trip would be thwarted right after it started, ending up in the police departnt...
And for the absurd charge of child trafficking.
Adding to the absurdity was that the departnt suspected her of involvent in a recent child disappearance case, and after interrogation, directly placed her in detention.
Not even allowing her to make a phone call.
Leaning against the wall, Ann sighed, worried about how Kenny was doing. If he knew she was detained, he might be beside himself with worry...
The more she thought, the further her thoughts drifted. Resting her forehead on her knees, Ann slowly fell asleep.
It was unclear how much ti passed before a sudden sharp pain in her arm jolted Ann awake, seeing a large-diater needle, the blood inside rising steadily.
This is too much!
Ann leaned back, but her shoulders were held firmly, unable to move.
"What are you doing?!"
"Don’t move." The officer drawing her blood sternly warned, "That child kept saying you are his mommy. To verify his claim, we need your blood to compare with his DNA."
So that’s it...
Ann breathed a sigh of relief, but no sooner had she let it out than she inhaled sharply again.
They’re drawing her blood... an awful lot.
Does a DNA test require this much blood?
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