"I’ve found her... I’ve found Evelyn Walters."
Silence.
Dylan frowned, pulling the phone away from his ear to check the screen.
The call was still connected. Odd. He pressed the phone back and tried again to speak, this ti louder, "Boss... can you hear ?"
Finally, Axel’s voice could be heard from the other side, "Are you trying to joke with , Dylan?"
Axel’s tone was cold enough to make Dylan shiver. "That’s not funny."
The tension feels heavier than before.
"B-Boss..."
"Stop spewing nonsense," Axel snapped, his voice rising. "And get back here. Now!"
...
Royal Apex Hotel.
Dylan slipped his key card into the lock and stepped into the presidential suite, quietly closing the door behind him.
The sound of the ocean filtered through the half-open balcony doors, waves crashing in a lazy rhythm against the shore.
The scent of rich espresso drifted through the air, and there was Axel Knight, already dressed to perfection in a charcoal suit that probably cost more than Dylan’s entire year’s salary.
Axel stood near the balcony, one hand in his pocket, the other holding his coffee cup with effortless poise.
He didn’t look at Dylan at first; instead, he stared out at the blue horizon like a man surveying an empire.
When his gaze finally shifted, it landed on Dylan with all the subtlety of a knife. Axel’s lips curved into a dry, mocking smile.
"Well," Axel said with a smirk, "...look who’s decided to crawl back. Tell , Dylan, did you have a wild encounter with a hurricane on your way here, or do you just like to look like hell when we’ve got a eting in thirty minutes?"
Dylan glanced down at his untidy slim-fit shirt and crooked tie, realizing just how disheveled he looked compared to his boss.
He straightened quickly but didn’t let himself flinch under Axel’s stare.
"I’m sorry, boss. I ca straight here because... because I found her."
Axel didn’t react. He took another sip of his coffee before answering with calm and composed annoyance. "Found who?"
"Evelyn Walters," Dylan said carefully, almost in a whisper, as if saying the na too loud might break the fragile reality of it.
The silence that followed was sharp.
Axel didn’t move, didn’t blink, didn’t even set down his cup.
After another dozen seconds finally passed, Axel turned toward him, his expression unreadable.
"You’re joking?"
Dylan shook his head. But Axel didn’t believe him.
"For God’s sake, Dylan! Tell you didn’t co barging into my suite, half-dressed and drinking cheap coffee, to throw that na around like you want to humor ?"
"Axel, this is not a joke..." Dylan firmly answered. It’s rare for him to call Axel by his na; he only does so when he has no choice but to speak to his best friend, not his boss. "I saw her... just now before I called you."
Axel frowned as he saw how serious Dylan was now.
Still, it’s hard for him to believe it. A light chuckle escaped his lips, but there was no humor in it.
He shook his head and placed the coffee cup on the glass table with a soft click. His eyes stayed fixed on Dylan.
"Do you know how many leads we’ve tracked in the last four years? How many tis have people sworn they saw her, only to find out it was just smoke and mirrors? And now you expect to believe that Evelyn Walters magically appears to hand you your morning latte?"
Dylan’s eyes widen slightly as he asks, "Yes, Boss... she is the one who gave this latte. How do you know?"
Axel’s brows rose. He gave a slow, incredulous shake of his head.
"That’s the best you’ve got? You vanish for half the morning, and you co back telling Evelyn Walters is suddenly a barista?"
"Not just a barista," Dylan said carefully, hands clasped behind his back in his usual posture of deference. "She was working at a café. She... looked different, but it was her. Sa eyes. Sa face. And when she saw , I could tell she recognized too."
’Is he telling the truth?’ Axel stared at him for a long mont, his jaw tightening.
"Do you have any idea what it’s like to search for soone, Dylan? For years, to tear apart cities, burn through investigators, and still co up empty-handed?"
"Yes, Boss," Dylan let out a long, deep sigh. "I’ve been with you the whole ti."
That response gave Axel pause. His eyes narrowed.
"So let get this straight," Axel said slowly, the sarcasm returning to coat his words.
Dylan’s eyebrow furrowed, but he said nothing, simply listening to what Axel was about to say.
"Four years of failure. And just as I decide to let go of her ghost, you wander off to get a coffee, then BAAM! You see the woman whose very na I vow to forget. And she was serving muffins and foaming milk to make you a latte like she never disappeared from the face of the earth."
"Wow! Boss... How do you know? Well, boss... That pretty much sums up what I’m trying to tell you," Dylan repeated, firr this ti but still respectful.
Axel let out a dry laugh, shaking his head.
"God, if you’re wrong about this..." His voice dropped to a near whisper, deadly calm. "If you’re wrong, Dylan, I’ll make you pour coffee for the rest of your life. No boardrooms. No etings. Just aprons and na tags. Do you understand ?"
Dylan nodded once.
"I get it, Boss." He hesitated, then added in a low voice, "But I’m a hundred percent sure I’m right."
Sothing flickered in Axel’s eyes, an emotion too quick to pin down before he masked it with another smirk. He straightened his cuffs and picked up his watch from the table.
"Well then," he said smoothly, slipping it on, "let’s see if the universe really does have that twisted sense of humor."
Dylan exhaled in relief, though he kept his posture stiff. He knew Axel wasn’t convinced yet, but he also knew his boss well enough to recognize the truth: Axel Knight was going to see Evelyn Walters with his own eyes.
They took the car.
A few minutes later, the vehicle slowed and ca to a stop in front of the Beach Side Café.
Axel leaned back against the seat, his sharp eyes narrowing as he asked, "Does she work at this café?"
Before Dylan could answer, the door of the café swung open.
Axel’s world stopped.
A woman stepped out. At first glance, he thought it was just soone with a familiar face.
But the longer he looked, the tighter his chest felt. Her hair, once long and flowing, was now shoulder-length, framing features that had matured and hardened over ti, but he recognized her.
Evelyn Walters.
No doubt.
His pulse hamred, but nothing could have prepared him for what ca next.
She wasn’t alone.
In her arms, she carried a child.
Axel’s sharp gaze instantly caught the dark stains spreading across her clothes.
Blood.
"Boss... she has a son. And he’s injured."
Dylan’s voice snapped Axel out of his frozen trance, but the words struck harder than any blow could.
Without thinking, Axel pushed the door open and stepped out, his long strides eating up the distance between them.
And then, her eyes lifted to his.
For a heartbeat, the world went silent.
Her gaze was glassy, rimd with unshed tears; her face was pale, as if every ounce of strength had been drained from her.
He had imagined this mont a thousand tis; what he would say, how he would confront her. But not like this. Never like this.
"A-Axel...?" Her voice cracked, trembling on the edge of despair. She stopped in front of him, clutching the small boy in her arms as if she could shield him from the world.
"I need your help, Axel..." Her lips tremble. "Oliver... he... he’s injured. Please... help ."
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