It was exactly like what Evan had seen, yet it wasn't Beverly.At that very moment, the flicker of hope in his heart faded, and his worry reached its peak. He quickly walked out of the room."Where on earth are you, honey?" he muttered under his breath.Behind him, Jessica's scolding and Lucas' apologetic replies echoed through the room.When he reached the doorway, he suddenly stopped, and his gaze flicked toward the wardrobe. He stepped toward it and reached for the handle."Hey! What are you doing? There are important documents inside!" Jessica protested, panicking.Evan turned to glance back at James before slowly pulling the door open.Just then, a bodyguard ran in from the hallway. "Mr. Gray! We found Mrs. Gray! Her phone signal shows that she's at the banquet hall!"Everyone in the room breathed a collective sigh of relief.Evan's hand paused, but the next moment, he yanked the wardrobe door open.There was nothing inside other than a locked safe."You've crossed a li
Fire trucks, ambulances, and police cars arrived at the government complex, one after the other. They surrounded the whole area, their sirens echoing down the streets.Inside the now-empty building, faint rustling sounds echoed through the halls. Bodyguards, armed with sharp blades, dispersed and searched floor by floor. Whoever was holding Beverly captive would not be spared."Mr. Gray, this is the floor plan of the government complex, as well as the accommodation arrangements for the international dignitaries and their teams," Lucas said, flipping through the documents to show Evan.Evan ordered decisively, "Find where James Bronson is staying."Lucas quickly located it. "Eighth floor!""You lot, follow me. The rest of you, keep searching."James' cold, indifferent expression flashed through Evan's mind, and the rage surging through his chest nearly seeped out through his eyes. He didn't care who James was. If he'd dared to take Beverly right from under his nose, then Evan wa
"I want to eat cake!" Harold whined.Harold was Beverly's beloved son, and he was at Dissonance Hotel, so there was no way she would miss his birthday party."I'm on my way," Evan said before hanging up.The car sped back into the city, heading straight downtown."You guys head to the hotel. If you see my wife, report back to me immediately," Evan ordered, then split up with a few of his bodyguards.Failing to find her despite searching for so long made him feel an overwhelming sense of helplessness. He didn't dare think about it, yet he couldn't help himself.Beverly would definitely show up at the banquet hall today to celebrate Harold's birthday. If she hadn't, then something must have happened. And that meant she could only be trapped inside the government complex. The Rolls-Royce pulled up in front of the government complex. The place loomed over them with solemn authority, and entry was impossible unless one was a government official. So it was even more impossible for
"She hasn't been identified yet," one of the technicians said. "I'm not sure why the system alerted us, saying that the original data was corrupted, making facial recognition impossible. Mr. Gray, do you have any other photos of Mrs. Gray?""Yes, I do!" Evan answered, immediately sending every photo he had of Beverly, including solo shots as well as pictures of the two of them together, to the technician.After receiving the photos, the technician uploaded them into the software. However, not two seconds later, it started beeping again.The message "Data corrupted. Unable to identify" kept flashing over and over across the screen."What's going on?""Mr. Gray, a large number of hackers are targeting Mrs. Gray's photos online. We need help from the Cybersecurity Office to investigate. Until then, the facial recognition system can't detect her. "But we've already scanned half the area. There's no trace of her west of the intersection, so you can manually search the east side!""M
James calmly watched Evan, while Evan's eyes remained fixed on the back seat of the sedan.Suddenly, a familiar ringtone sounded from inside the car, breaking the silence with startling clarity. Evan's heart pounded as he yanked open the car door."Mr. Gray! Mrs. Gray vanished at the intersection," a shout rang out, piercing through his eardrums.At that very moment, the phone call dropped due to poor signal. Yet, the phone inside the car continued to ring.Evan released the door handle and strode through the sea of cars to his bodyguard's side. "What happened?"The black sedan gradually merged into the departing traffic. Beverly rolled down the window and watched Evan frantically rush off with his bodyguards in tow. She tossed her phone into traffic, and the tires of a passing car crushed the phone case inscribed with "Beloved Wife," instantly shattering the phone.As if sensing something, Evan glanced back at the black sedan with the national flag. The window was rolling up,
Over at the IT department on the base, everyone had returned to their seats, swiftly tapping into the network connected to Beverly.One by one, traces of "Beverly Sinclair" began to vanish from Alterra's internet system. Her elementary school transcripts, graduation photos, marriage registration records—everything that had once existed about her online was gradually erased.When James noticed Beverly staring at the computer screen, her eyes glistening with tears, he silently handed her a tissue. His voice was low and magnetic as he said, "I'll be staying in Alterra for a few more days. During this time, you can still think things over. If you can't bear to leave, you don't have to."Beverly took the tissue and forced her tears back. Smiling, she shook her head. "It's not that. I just feel a little sentimental saying goodbye to my past, that's all."James gave a soft grunt in acknowledgment.…Meanwhile, a procession of cars arrived at the sports arena. Evan was busy accompanyin