My CEO HUSBAND sign the divorce novel Chapter 228

Chapter 228: "I have to find her "

I remained in the car for nearly thirty minutes.

The engine was off.

The world outside continued moving.

Yet I felt trapped.

I didn’t know where to look next.

Then my phone rang again.

Jane.

I answered immediately.

"Did you find something?"

"Sir..." Jane sounded confused.

"We checked both the airport records and Mrs. Alicia’s bank transactions."

A strange feeling settled in my stomach.

"What did you find?"

There was another pause.

"It appears Mrs. Alicia purchased several airline tickets over the past few days."

My entire body went still.

"What do you mean... over the past few days?"

"The first ticket was purchased on October 10th."

October 10th.

My grip tightened around the phone.

That was the day she was discharged from the hospital.

Jane continued.

"After that, she purchased several more tickets on different dates."

My breathing slowed.

Not because I was calming down.

Because I suddenly couldn’t breathe at all.

"Different destinations?" I asked quietly.

"Yes, sir."

"Hotels?"

"No."

"Transportation arrangements?"

"No."

"Nothing."

The call ended shortly afterward.

I lowered the phone and stared blankly through the windshield.

October 10th.

The day she left the hospital.

The day I thought she was beginning to recover.

The day I believed we still had a chance.

A bitter laugh escaped my lips.

So while I was trying to help her heal...

She had already decided to leave.

While I was looking for ways to make her smile...

She was planning her escape.

While I was hoping we could start over...

She was preparing to walk away.

Every single day.

Right under my nose.

I leaned back against the seat and closed my eyes.

Why...

Why do things always end up like this?

The question kept replaying in my head as I finally started the car and drove away.

Why?

Why would Alicia leave now?

The more I thought about it, the more I realized something.

The tickets weren’t meant to help her travel.

They were meant to mislead me.

Alicia wasn’t stupid.

She knew exactly what she was doing.

If I found out about one ticket, I’d follow it.

If I found another, I’d investigate that city too.

By the time I figured out which destination she had actually chosen, she would already be settled somewhere else.

Somewhere I might never find her.

The thought made my grip tighten around the steering wheel.

I pressed harder on the accelerator.

Soon, the familiar glass building of Aurelius Technologies came into view.

I drove into the underground garage, parked, and headed straight for the elevator.

The moment I stepped onto the executive floor, several employees greeted me.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Blackwood."

"Sir."

I barely acknowledged them.

My mind was elsewhere.

When I reached the CEO’s office, the assistant immediately stood from his seat.

Surprise flashed across his face.

I rarely came here.

"Welcome, sir. CEO Raphael is inside."

I nodded and pushed open the door.

Raphael was seated behind his desk reviewing a stack of documents.

The moment he looked up and saw me, he frowned.

"Alexander?"

His expression immediately changed.

"What are you doing here?"

I closed the door behind me.

"Alicia is gone."

The words sounded strange even to me.

Raphael froze.

"What do you mean she’s gone?"

I walked toward the couch and sank into it heavily.

"I don’t know."

For the first time that day, my voice sounded exhausted.

"I left her at the villa while she was sleeping."

I ran a hand through my hair.

"When I came back, she was gone."

Raphael stood up immediately and walked around the desk.

"What do you mean gone?"

"Maria didn’t see her leave."

"The house was empty."

I laughed bitterly.

"Then I found out she’d taken a taxi.

His brows knitted together.

"A taxi?"

I nodded.

"The estate security saw her leave."

I pulled out my phone and handed it to him.

"Look."

Finally, I looked at him.

"Raphael."

He met my gaze.

"I have to find her."

The determination in my voice surprised even me.

"I don’t care how long it takes."

"I don’t care where she went."

"I need to find her."

Raphael studied me carefully.

For a long moment, he didn’t speak.

Then he stood.

Without a word, he walked back behind his desk.

He pressed the intercom button.

"Get the cybersecurity team leader and the data analysis department to Conference Room Three."

The assistant sounded confused.

"Immediately."

"Yes, sir."

The line disconnected.

I watched him quietly.

Raphael looked back at me.

"You came here because of Aurelius."

It wasn’t a question.

It was a statement.

I nodded.

Aurelius Technologies wasn’t just Raphael’s company.

It was ours.

Back in high school, before family responsibilities consumed my life, software development had been something I genuinely loved.

Raphael and I spent years building projects together, even after we joined the university.

But then I had to study a different field for the sake of my family business.

While Raphael studied Technology.

When Aurelius was founded, Raphael became the public face of the company while I remained in the background.

Very few people knew I was one of its founders.

Not my family.

Not even Alicia.

For years, Raphael handled everything while I focused on Blackwood Dominion.

But the systems we built...

The resources Aurelius possessed...

The people working here...

They could find information ordinary investigators couldn’t.

Which was exactly why I came.

Raphael folded his arms.

"If Alicia really planned this, she won’t make it easy."

"I know."

"If she’s trying to disappear, she’ll avoid every obvious trail."

"I know."

His expression softened slightly.

Then he nodded.

"Good."

"Because we’re going to need to think several steps ahead of her."

For the first time since discovering Alicia was gone, I felt the smallest spark of hope.

And right now...

That was enough.