Just then, Rayna thought of something. Her fingers trembled, and the grape fell onto the carpet.
Glancing at Curtis, she asked with difficulty, “Do you think Arnaud found her? He knows I'm close to Jessie—”
Curtis bent over, picked up the grape, and threw it into the trash can. “Rayna, you're overthinking it. Arnaud knows Wyatt is close to me. If he's really working with Gianna, that means she's betrayed both Wyatt and me. Arnaud and his brother made a bet-on agreement with their father. Besides, Boniel's biased toward Jefferson, and Arnaud can't enter Aploth's market. Thus, Arnaud can't take the risk of offending me again.”
Everything he said sounded reasonable, but the worry in Rayna's heart kept growing. “I can't think of anyone who's capable of helping Gianna in secret, apart from Arnaud.”
“Then don't think about it for now. We'll ask Gianna once we find her,” said Curtis.
“Where's she?”
“I've already sent someone to look for her. There's no news from them yet.”
Rayna had lost her appetite to eat the grapes. The thought of Wyatt in the hospital and Jessica's fate still unknown put her mind in a mess. There was no way she could calm herself.
“How am I supposed to calm down when Jessie's still missing?” Rayna murmured while massaging her forehead.
Curtis' heart ached when he saw her beginning to worry again.
He was about to say something to reassure her when his phone vibrated on the coffee table. It was a call from Gabriel.
Curtis answered it and exchanged a few words before his expression turned icy cold. With a grim tone, he instructed, “Find out the source of the news and get someone to deal with it.”
Upon hearing that, Rayna looked up and noticed a frown on Curtis' face. “What's wrong?” she asked.
After ending the call, Curtis gazed at her and said truthfully, “Someone posted the news about Wyatt's attack on Twitter. It has already alerted the police.”
“Only a few people know about this matter. Where did that person get the news from?” asked Rayna while launching the app on her phone.
She did not even have to search for the news, for the main page was bombarded with news about the son of the Lopez family getting stabbed.
Rayna's hands trembled when she saw the series of posts, especially the pictures of Jessica on the official page of Norwal City's police force, with its caption informing the public about their collaboration with the other states' police to capture her.
Curtis hurriedly sat beside her and took her trembling hands.
Meanwhile, Rayna shut her eyes and remained still for some time before calming down. “Those people are really cold-hearted. I can't believe they've been keeping an eye on Zenisan Villa and even followed us to the hospital. The minute they got the news, they quietly published it and created this chaos. I bet they must be delighted to see us panic.”
“Every single police in the country is looking for her, no matter if she's dead or alive. It's going to be difficult to suppress the incident. That makes finding Gianna our main priority and waiting for Wyatt to regain consciousness second,” Curtis added to her words.
Suddenly, Rayna's gaze turned frosty and sharp. “The news on Twitter and other news portals got replaced really quickly. I'll contact a private investigator and buy some hot celebrity gossip from him. We can use them to cover up this news. As for the police, I'm afraid I'll have to leave it to you.” As she said that, she glanced at Curtis.
The look of fear and uneasiness on her face from earlier had been replaced with a calm expression.
After all, Rayna knew well that crying and dwelling on guilt would only be a waste of time. Rather than doing that, she could use the time to deal with more pressing matters.
As long as Jessica's body isn't found, that means she's not dead.
Rayna pursed her lips and pleaded earnestly, “I can't negotiate with the police since I don't know many people from the police force. I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you to talk to them to make them stop looking into Jessie's matter.”
Curtis was glad to see how quickly Rayna processed everything in her mind. Smiling, he said, “Rayna, you might not have noticed it, but you've become more independent. You can weigh all the pros and cons and identify which matters to resolve first.”
Really?
Rayna stared at him in a daze.
Curtis leaned forward and caressed her face. “I hope you can be this calm no matter where you are in the future. Of course, I hope you'll live a better life, have people you want to protect, and even do things you love. But... I hope you can come straight to me, telling me you're tired and letting me hug you when you feel so.”
The warmth of his palm made her want to rub her face against it.
Just as she shifted and wanted to say something, anguish bubbled in her heart. In the end, she merely nodded, unable to bring herself to utter what she wanted to say.
Suddenly, she knitted her brows and winced while instinctively placing one hand on her belly.
Seeing her frown as if feeling uncomfortable, Curtis asked, “What's wrong? Did you eat too much just now? I'll get you some digestive tablets.”
The moment he got up, she tugged at the hem of his shirt.
Rolling her eyes, Rayna explained with her face scrunched up, “I don't need it, nor did I eat too much. It's just the babies kicking me.”
It felt so uncomfortable that she rubbed her belly and complained, “They've been kicking me day and night. These little brats just don't sleep. All they do is torture me!”
“Are they really that naughty?” Curtis squatted in front of her and leaned on her bulging belly as if to hear the babies' heartbeats. The sight amused Rayna.
She did not budge, allowing him to perform such an affectionate action.
When Curtis was done listening to their heartbeats, he straightened himself and touched her belly, warning, “Stop making Mommy upset, or I'll beat you guys up when you're born.”
Rayna chortled. “It hasn't even been six months. What's the point of telling them that? I hope I can go into labor early, too. This pregnancy is making me so frustrated. I feel like I'm watching them fight each other every day.”
“It must be hard on you.” Curtis kissed her belly through the shirt, feeling bad for her. “How I wish I could share your pain so that you don't have to suffer so much.”
Rayna was not used to his acts of kindness; it made her feel conflicted.
Even her hand that was in his felt as if it was burning.
Right then, the phone in her left hand vibrated, and it pulled Rayna back to reality.
Hastily pulling her hand out of Curtis' grip, she checked the name of the caller and tilted her head to the side before answering the phone. “Jefferson—”
“I just saw the news and found out Jessie's in trouble. I've already sent someone to deal with it. Where are you, Belle? Are you all right?” Jefferson sounded anxious.
Upon hearing that, Rayna felt her heart wrench. She calmed herself and said gently, “I'm fine. Curtis happened to be here, so I discussed some matters with him. If you're not busy, can you come over and pick me up?”
“Sure. I'll head over there now.”
Curtis, who was standing in the corner of the clean house, heard every word of their conversation.
“Rayna, you need to rest,” said Curtis.
Packing her things into her bag, Rayna responded coolly, “Yes, but not here. Thank you for taking me in last night. I won't forget this favor I owe you.”
She got up to leave, but Curtis had no intention of moving aside. “Rayna, we need to talk,” he said with a grim expression.
“We have nothing to talk about.” Rayna gazed directly at him; her eyes were cold with no emotions. “Mr. Faymon, we can't return to the past. I'm not a child you can coax with some sweets. Anyway, I'll be in Norwal City before it's time to give birth. Even so, it has nothing to do with you.”
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