Win My Husband Over to Find My Child
Chapter 182: Her Disappearance Six Years Ago

Chapter 182: Her Disappearance Six Years Ago

"...disappeared?" Calix’s brows arching, his entire countenance expressing his bewilderment over Edward’s statement, "Did you just say... she disappeared for more than one year?"

Edward tightened his jaw, nodding once before rephrasing his previous words, "Mrs. Charlene vanished from high society. To be exact, the Li family secretly sent her to a faraway place."

The mention of the Li family alarmed Calix, morphing his expression from shaken to shock laced with disgust. His face all scrunching up, he peeled his eyes from Edward, staring at the file in his hands.

"The Li family had a hand in my wife’s disappearance? Did they deliberately keep her whereabouts hidden?"

"Yes, Boss Xu. Six years ago, Mrs. Charlene vanished around March. She only reappeared the next year during the summer."

Edward diligently reported more about the surprising discovery.

"Mrs. Charlene had no friends. She had just graduated from her university around that time. It seemed like no one outside the Li family noticed her disappearance. From how this was played out, it’s obvious that the Li family deliberately hid her."

Calix unconsciously tightened his hold on the file, almost leaving marks on the edges of the printed papers. He still had a hard time adjusting his mind to Edward’s remarks.

’She disappeared in March... around two months after the accident six years ago... Then, she returned after more than one year.’

Following that thought, Calix’s gut twisted. His mind quickly pictured the likely scenarios that led the Li family to conceal Leslie’s whereabouts.

The further he expanded the possibilities, the sicker he felt in his stomach.

Instead of being purely shocked by the finding, Calix was flabbergasted to know one of his guesses became the truth. He had already imagined the Li family’s involvement in...

Shaking his head, Calix pushed the thoughts away. Without looking up, he asked Edward, his tone indicating his exhaustion, "Was there anything memorable after she returned?"

Edward slightly shook his head, "Mrs. Charlene started working for the city library in the same summer[1]. She’s not particularly close to anyone there. She’s known to keep to herself."

Devastated, Calix thinned his lips out of displeasure. He resented himself so much for all the reasons that were only known to him.

"I’ll read the rest of the findings," Calix exhaled a deep sigh, his forehead wrinkling. Then, what happened yesterday crossed his mind, "Edward, did you come across any drowning incident?"

"Pardon?" Edward was alerted by Calix’s inquiry, "Boss, did you mean Mrs. Charlene encountered such an incident?"

Calix nodded once, his gaze sharpening, "My sister-in-law said that my wife almost drowned before but, she didn’t specify when did it happen. I’m asking just in case you chanced on the incident."

Calix hadn’t brought up about looking into the drowning incident mentioned by Irene to Edward. This was the first time the latter heard of it.

"I’m sorry, Boss Xu. I haven’t found anything like that," Edward swiftly answered, "Perhaps, it happened when Mrs. Charlene was much younger. I’ll look into it."

"Yes. Do so," Calix gestured to the door with a tilt of his chin, "You may go now. Tell anyone not to disturb me for an hour."

"Understand, Boss."

After slightly bowing at Calix, Edward stepped out of the office. Yet, he abruptly halted his steps when the former suddenly called for him.

"Boss, is there anything else?"

Taping two fingers on the desk, Calix returned Edward’s question with one of his own, "About the other thing. When will the result be out?"

Edward blinked, recalling the surprising request Calix handed him last week. His boss’ actions solidified the assumptions he didn’t dare to ask.

No one else should know about this yet. If not, chaos might erupt.

Thus, Edward took a few extra steps to caution against people with malicious intentions.

"Within this week or the next. Should we request to speed up the process?"

"There’s no need," Calix refused despite being unable to hold back his curiosity much longer, "We don’t know what kind of tests they have to do. Just report to me when it’s done."

"Yes, Boss Xu."

This time, Edward truly left.

Calix pushed the swivel chair back before standing up. Holding the file in one hand, he slowly strode to the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Silvercrest City sprawled out below the Xu International skyscraper. The dazzling sunlight of the spring day blanketed the entire city in its warmth as the lives of the city residents went on.

Calix shifted his gaze from the cityscape, focusing on the file. Pursing his lips, the deep creases on his forehead revealed the silent chaos storming within him.

"Is this really it? Do my expectations come true?"

Whispering to himself, Calix let his eyes read what was displayed on the first page. He carefully took in everything before flipping to the next one.

The more Calix read the short report, the more certain he was about his theories. Despite wanting truthful answers from Leslie, he was unwilling to confront her when she was in a vulnerable state.

"No matter what... I don’t sense any vile intentions," sighing once more, Calix pinched the space between his brows, "She even looked... desperate at that time."

Swallowed by the tension whirring in his mind, Calix inadvertently recalled the particular night Leslie came up with the request of finding the little girl named Calliope[2].

"I’m looking for a girl aged five named Calliope. She should be in an orphanage somewhere. Sorry... I have no other information aside from her name and age. I can’t even... describe how she looks right now."

Fear dampened her countenance as she shakily explained what she wished him to do on her behalf. She even admitted there was something else she hadn’t been frank about with him, citing she needed time before telling him the truth.

"Leslie... is this what you’re hiding?"

Closing the file, a sense of defeat spread within Calix. He hated himself for going behind her back – inadvertently found what she wanted to conceal.

Perhaps, she would hate him forever once this matter came to light.

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Reference:

1 - 54

2 - 31