The Second Life of a Discarded Heiress novel Chapter 19

Raymond sat alone in the empty living room, his mind wandering. He suddenly remembered that, back at the office, the kid had always been on her own.

She must have felt scared, right?

For a moment, he'd actually wanted to press her, to demand exactly where she'd gone. But he forced himself to let it go.

After all, to her, they were little more than strangers bound by paperwork. If he started interrogating her now, she'd probably end up resenting him.

Still, Raymond couldn't help but worry. He dialed Adler's number.

At that very moment, Adler was tangled up with his girlfriend, their goodbyes dragging out with reluctant kisses. Just as things got heated, his phone buzzed on the nightstand, making both of them jump.

The interruption instantly killed the mood. Adler's girlfriend groaned, "Who the hell is it?"

Adler glanced at the screen, jaw clenched. "Damn corporate overlord," he muttered under his breath, the light in his eyes flickering out.

He groaned, half to himself, "I swear I'm quitting tomorrow. I'm done with this."

But as he grumbled, his body betrayed him—he was already pulling his shirt back on.

A few seconds later, he answered the call, suddenly all meek politeness. "Hello, Mr. Carmichael."

His voice dripped with servile charm.

"Find out where Citrine went today," Raymond said curtly, then hung up without waiting for a reply.

An hour later, Adler called back.

"Mr. Carmichael, Miss Citrine went to Crestwood. Beyond that, I couldn't find out anything."

Raymond frowned, his expression growing darker.

If even Adler couldn't dig up anything, someone must have gone out of their way to cover Citrine's tracks.

The next afternoon, when Citrine came home, she found Raymond stretched out on the couch.

She walked over and realized his eyes were shut, his face flushed with fever.

The usually commanding, unflappable man now looked oddly fragile in his illness.

"Raymond?" Citrine poked him, calling his name softly, but he didn't stir.

She pressed the back of her hand to his forehead.

"Damn, he's burning up."