Chapter 11

He toyed with his phone, his gaze lazy. With his long legs and broad shoulders, his extraordinary temperament drew the eyes of everyone passing by.

Dominic was growing impatient. "Have you found anything yet?"

The assistant ran over in a panic, his face looking rather grim. "Mr. Dominic, we couldn't find any boarding information for the Madam."

Dominic looked at him in silence for several seconds.

To the assistant, each second felt like a year. "Mr. Dominic, perhaps the Madam went home early. How about we go back to the villa and check?"

Dominic put away his phone. "Let's go."

The car moved swiftly. A journey that usually took an hour brought them to the villa in thirty minutes.

The villa was shrouded in darkness. It had been half a month since he last stepped foot here.

Dominic’s heart gave a violent jolt, his thoughts spiraling into chaos.

He hurried up the stairs, searching every room, but he couldn't find that familiar figure.

Adeline’s things were all there—her clothes, her makeup, the gifts he had given her...

Everything was exactly as it had been, except she was gone.

"Baby, where are you hiding? Come out quickly!" he sent a voice message to Adeline, his voice trembling.

"If you don't come out, I'm going to get angry!"

"I told you not to throw a tantrum!"

"I’m done playing around with Bianca. Come home immediately. If you keep acting up, your mother is going to suffer again."

Dominic stared fixedly at the phone screen. The chat box remained unresponsive, showing only his solitary voice messages...

It wasn't until his eyes grew sore from staring at the screen that Dominic finally realized, with a delayed sense of shock, that Adeline truly didn't want him anymore.

Dominic tossed his phone aside and lit a cigarette, taking a deep drag. As the smoke filled his lungs, the pain in his chest intensified.

He refused to believe Adeline had left him. For ten years, he was the only one by her side; he was her entire world. Without him, she had nowhere to go.

Perhaps he had gone too far, and Adeline simply didn't want to forgive him for the moment.

The cigarette in his hand burned down to the end, the embers scorching his fingers, but he didn't even notice. He desperately searched his mind for places Adeline might have gone.

The next second, his phone rang.

He scrambled to answer it, forcing his voice to remain steady. "Adeline, you've taken this joke too far. Get back here now."

The line was silent for two seconds before the assistant’s voice came through. "Mr. Dominic, we can't find the Madam. All of her information has been deactivated; only a few commonly used apps are still logged in."

Dominic’s brain buzzed as if struck by lightning. Was Adeline planning to disappear completely?

The next moment, the assistant delivered another blow.

"Also... your mother-in-law was transferred to another hospital a month ago. We can't find her now."

Dominic’s knuckles turned white from gripping the phone. He let out a cold laugh. "Gone? And you can't just go find them?"

Hearing his laugh made the assistant’s scalp tingle with fear. "Mr. Dominic, I..."

"I’m giving you exactly one day. Find my wife and my mother-in-law." Dominic hung up the phone curtly.

The assistant was frantic, but he didn't dare call back.

After hanging up, Dominic stood alone in the empty living room, surrounded by endless darkness.

His heart felt as if a piece had been carved out while the wind howled outside.

The assistant searched for an entire week without finding a trace.

Dominic went from smashing things in a rage to a gradual, eerie calm.

The subordinates assumed Dominic had moved on from Adeline.

But only those close to him knew he was on the verge of a total breakdown. Adeline’s departure was like a piece of flesh being gouged from his heart, nearly costing him half his life.

The assistant stood to the side, looking at Dominic in the high chair.

The man was leaning back on the sofa with his feet propped up on the desk, appearing to be napping.

"Mr. Dominic," the assistant said tremulously.

Dominic removed a piece of Adeline’s clothing that had been draped over his head. "Speak."

"We are... still... searching."

Dominic lowered his gaze, staring at Adeline’s photo on the desk. No one knew what he was thinking.

"Leave."

After saying that, Dominic covered himself with the clothing again, as if nothing had happened.

The moment the assistant stepped out of the room.

A massive crashing sound inside made everyone outside the office turn pale with fright.

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The secretary, who had been about to knock, suddenly didn't dare to.

"Give it to me." Bianca appeared suddenly, taking the documents from the secretary's hand. "Mr. Dominic is in a bad mood. I'll take them in for you."

The secretary smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Miss Bianca."

Bianca smiled back. Dominic had given her the privilege to enter and leave any part of the company at will.

Thus, she held the documents and entered directly without even knocking.

Upon pushing the door open, she was terrified by the scene before her.

Dominic’s face was livid, his eyes bloodshot, and the floor was littered with shattered glass from cups and vases.

He was staring deathly at his phone, the blood on his hand staining his shirt cuff.

"Dominic, what are you doing? Why aren't you taking care of yourself?" Bianca ran over, clutching his hand with a look of intense heartache.

Dominic coldly pulled his hand away. A smile remained on his face, but his tone lacked the doting warmth of the past.

"Why are you here?"

Bianca spoke piteously, "It’s because you’ve been at the company the whole time and haven't come to see me. The baby and I both miss you."

Dominic stood up. Instead of coaxing her, he picked up his lighter and lit a cigarette, completely ignoring the fact that she was pregnant.

Amidst the swirling smoke, Bianca coughed several times.

"It's fine. Stay away from the company from now on."

Bianca felt a chill run down her spine and instinctively looked into Dominic’s eyes.

"But I’m carrying your chi—" Before she could finish, Dominic grabbed her by the neck.

"Don't test my patience. Just focus on your pregnancy, and you’ll get your rewards." He was still smiling, but the warmth didn't reach his eyes; they were like ice.

Bianca panicked for a moment but still forced herself to speak. "Dominic, since I can't compare to Adeline, why did you divorce her for me?"

"You think you’re worthy of being compared to my wife?"

Hearing his words, Bianca’s eyes instantly turned red. "What do you mean by that?!"

She desperately hoped he was joking, but Dominic’s next words ruthlessly crushed her hope bit by bit.

"It was just a temporary craving for something fresh, and you actually took it seriously."

Dominic looked down at the woman, his dark, deep eyes now cold as frost, containing a subtle trace of undetectable impatience.

"Take care of the pregnancy. Once the child is born, I’ll compensate you with a hundred million. For now, stay out of my sight."

Looking into the man's eyes, a flash of fear crossed Bianca’s heart.

"Dominic, did Sister Adeline have someone badmouth me again? She dislikes me so much; it seems she really won't stop until I'm driven away."

"I wanted to stay by your side forever, but she... since she’s forcing me like this, maybe I should just take the baby and leave you."

She sobbed, covering her face and turning to run out, just as she had done successfully countless times before.

However, after running several steps, she never heard anyone come after her.

The tactic that had never failed in the past was now taking too long to work.

Bianca kept looking back multiple times, her pace becoming exceptionally slow. Even as the elevator reached the floor, he still hadn't chased her.

The look of grievance on her face froze in place, and she stood there unsure if she actually had to leave.