The Secret Obsession of the CEO
Chapter 81: A Little Hope

Chapter 81: A Little Hope

"Where could they be? There aren’t even signs of them. How could a truck that big leave no trails?" Lennon said waving the stick he was holding in his hand.

"Maybe if you’re covered up more, you could see more clearly, " Derick mumbled sarcastically.

"What did you say?" Lennon shouted pulling up the hood of the trench coat he was wearing. "I can’t hear you over the sound of rain!" He shouted pointing the torch right at Derick’s face.

"How could you?" Derick said covering his eyes. All he would be hearing is the sound of rain against his expensive trench coat.

And who walks into the woods wearing polished oxfords and a suit? Does he have any sense?

"You don’t have to be here, uncle," Derick did not want to bear with Lennon anymore. He wanted to be alone here and now he is getting slowed down by Lennon. He’s never liked this uncle of his but today he is irritating him so much he wants to become a murderer.

"Why not?" Leon looked at him pitifully. "I want to help!"

"I..." Derick clenched his hand into fists. "We don’t have time, uncle. The sun has gone down and the predators will be out. We have no time to waste..." He pointed at the distance. "I have the people sent by Mrs. Delport. They have bloodhounds. We will find them soon. You don’t have to struggle here..."

"Hounds? It is raining, Derick! What good are their noses?" Lennon stepped to Derick’s face.

"Is this really about time constraints, Derick? Or is it something entirely different? Do you even want them to be found?" Lennon asked and Derick glared at him.

"Your father is a Justice of the State Supreme Court and is rumored to be the next Supreme Court Justice. He can call the President at his private number. So what if the rangers are not helping? You could have forced them to help! You could have called the President and he would have sent the Navy Seals! And yet you are here... Just guessing where they might be... And bloodhounds! Pah!" He spat at the side.

"I know how jealous you are of Liam, Derick. You ... And your intentions towards that child..." Lennon grabbed Derick’s collar. His blue eyes shone with rage. "I’m going to be watching over you, Derick. So get used to my presence!"

Lennon let go of Derick’s collar and fixed his shirt for him. "Come on... Let’s keep on moving..." He walked to the front waving his hand.

"Child?" Derick scoffed at Lennon’s back. He clenched the gun in his waist.

Ugh! I hate him so much! Should I pull the trigger?

Derick wondered for a moment.

"There..." The handlers of the bloodhounds pointed in the direction the dogs were barking at.

"There are tire tracks!"

Derick’s heart skipped a beat and he ran at them. There were tire tracks and he recognized it was from Frank’s truck.

"Come on, we can find them soon..."

-----

"It will be fine, Cherry..." Liam gently patted Rory’s head.

"That...monster...do you think it’s dead?" She asked and he looked at the distance.

"Of course!" He said, clenching the knife hard in his hands. "I saw him getting banged hard on his head by the branch."

He exaggerated to make her feel at ease. He hoped that creature was dead. He would have preferred it better if he ended that creature by his hands.

Rory leaned on Liam’s shoulder. Her entire body hurt out of the cold. The wet clothes stuck to her skin and the blasting rain had no signs of stopping.

She was scared and regret filled her heart. At the horizon, she saw light. She didn’t know if that means that the rain would stop soon. But she lost hope. They were in the middle of nowhere and she didn’t know if they would ever be able to get out.

Not to mention the weird creature she encountered here and the other predators she knows exist in this forest.

She believed she won’t leave. And her heart squeezed in pain for the baby she gave birth to.

"Ellie does not drink from the bottle, Fizzy. What if she’s staying hungry all this time? She’s so..." She held her chest and wept. "I don’t want to die here...not like this... Not leaving my daughter... She’s so little and... What have I done! God! What have I done!" She lamented.

Liam held her hands that were cold as ice and blew in them to warm her. She was obviously regretting her decision to follow him here. And he couldn’t even blame her.

"Do you remember, Cherry... Back in high school, you were interested in Burke?"

Rory stopped crying and looked at him. Not because she was interested in the topic but because she was perplexed.

She didn’t understand why he mentions the point guard she used to like back in high school. He was the best basketball player and she thought he was interested in her too because she always called her "Brave", "Merida" and other cute nicknames.

But when she expressed her interest, he left her. He stopped coming behind her and talking to her.

It was a very long time ago.

"What? Why are you bringing that up now?" She asked.

Liam with a smile, pulled her to the side to face him.

"I would have agreed to stand with the apple on my head," Liam said with a goofy smile.

Rory blinked.

She did give that guy an apple and asked him to meet her in the gym. She was having her bow with her because she was on the archery team and she needed to go for practice. He stopped talking to her after that.

Wait...did he think that I gave that apple to place it on his head and be my target practice? What the...

"I said that to him because I wanted to meet him alone," Rory said. She still had no idea why they are talking about it. But remembering the good old days brought a smile to her face.

"Haha..." She laughed. "What an idiot! So he ran away scared that he’d become my target practice?" She could not control her laughter. "Maybe I should have sneaked into his locker room and french-kissed him as other girls... Maybe that would have been obvious for that doofus!"

Liam’s face hardened hearing her talking about french-kissing another guy so easily. And she is calling him a doofus. How can she call another guy a doofus when he is right in front of him?

"That reminds me of another doofus..." With her face brightened with a smile, she held his hand.

"You weren’t there when Ellie was born, right?" She said. Liam’s heart was pricked with pain but he was shocked to see the smile on her face.

"If you were there, you’d have met that other doofus. He was one of the interns there and he was covered in whole with PPE and I couldn’t see his face. But..." She laughed.

When Ellie was born, they suspected that there was some infection going on in the hospital and everyone was on their PPE. She didn’t even see the face of the doctor who delivered her baby.

"He was a nice guy and he held my hand through the whole thing, you know..." Rory’s face turned somber for a moment remembering the pain she endured for half a day.

She wished Liam was with her. But he was not. It was that intern who stayed with her and held her hand when she was giving birth. She didn’t even know the name of the guy, but she is forever grateful for his support.

"But he was such a doofus..." She giggled. "Just when I was crowning, the doctor asked him if he wanted to take a look. He walked like a hero with his back straight and he took a peek and plop..."

She covered her face and started to laugh. "He...he fell flat on his back like a cut pole..." She laughed until her eyes watered. "And he was dragged out of the room by the others. It was so entertaining to watch. He was wearing a wedding band. I hope he does not faint when his wife is giving birth," she let out a sigh and laid on her back looking at the sky.

It was so dark and the rain has slowed down considerably. She could see stars here and there. She saw a little hope.

She smiled in her heart. A lot of situations arouse in her past where she had lost all hope. But she survived. There were always people who offered her help.

Her grandpa, that nameless intern, and many others.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

"We will survive this too, Fizzy," she said. She opened her eyes as she couldn’t feel the rain on her face.

"What?" She asked Liam who was on top of her, shielding her from the drizzle.

"I am glad I entertained you," he said.

"What?" Rory knitted her brows. "Entertained? What do you mean?"

"I’m the doofus," he kissed her forehead. "Burke...was not. He ate the apple and wanted to meet you. But it was I who led him to believe that you’re looking to hurt him."

"What?" Rory’s eyes widened.

She thought she understood him but she didn’t, at the same time.

The rain stopped.

She saw colors reflected in his irises.

"Aurora..." He smiled looking at the sky.