Chapter 271: Mother-Daughter Bond

Chapter 271: Mother-Daughter Bond

The moment Sophia finished speaking, she noticed an extra person in the hospital room.

Two people, to be precise.

She recognized Richard and knew he had a fairly good relationship with her son.

What Sophia hadn't expected was Brenda.

She pointed at Brenda. "Who's this?"

William frowned as well, looking at the woman beside Sophia.

She was an elegantly dressed, beautiful middle-aged woman.

Upon closer inspection, one could see she bore at least a three-point resemblance to Laura.

She appeared to be Laura's mother.

After entering, the middle-aged woman had been surveying the room. When she saw William, she showed no sign of retreat.

"So this is your son?" the middle-aged woman asked.

Sophia nodded with a smile. "Yes. Laura was here earlier too, but I don't know when she left."

At the mention of Laura's name, the middle-aged woman's expression froze slightly.

"Let me know once you find Laura." She turned and left without any intention of chatting with William.

Though disappointed, Sophia politely escorted the middle-aged woman to the door.

When she returned, her demeanor had shifted from accommodating to stern.

She frowned at the people in the room. "You'd better explain to me what's going on. Who is this woman? And where did Isabella and Laura go?"

Like Laura, Laura's mother Ophelia had come of her own accord—though she claimed to be looking for her daughter.

"I don't know where they went either," William said, simply telling the truth.

Sophia's frown deepened. "Listen, playing games with me won't help. Laura's family has already come knocking. Your top priority is to find Isabella immediately and finalize your divorce!"

Sophia felt she'd had a decent conversation with Ophelia and had hastily arranged Laura and William's marriage.

"Both Isabella and Laura are missing. We can't reach Isabella right now. Can you try contacting Laura?" William asked Sophia.

Sophia thought William was putting on an act and snorted before pulling out her phone to make the call.

Usually, Laura answered her calls instantly.

Today, the phone rang until it automatically disconnected.

Staring at the unanswered call, Sophia felt confused and finally believed what William had said.

Laura had disappeared along with Isabella!

Richard's mind worked quickly. "Could they have been kidnapped together? Is someone targeting William?"

William couldn't confirm whether Richard's theory was correct.

"I'm going to the police station," Richard decided immediately.

William followed without hesitation. "I'm coming with you."

Sophia grabbed William, her eyes filled with maternal concern.

"What are you going to do there? Your body hasn't recovered. You won't be able to do anything. Stay in the hospital and rest properly. You're not leaving until the doctor gives you clearance!"

Having just survived a critical emergency, Sophia might have been focused on his marriage prospects, but that didn't mean she didn't care about William himself.

Having just recovered from septic infection, the outside world posed nothing but danger to William.

"Mom, I'm not a child anymore. I know I need to look after my own safety."

Sophia still refused to budge.

William had no choice but to invoke the person currently most important to Sophia.

"If Ophelia finds out her daughter is missing, she won't let us off easily. Not only will this marriage fall through, but Laura's disappearance could implicate the entire Montagu family. Mom, can you really bear to watch all your careful maneuvering go to waste?"

Sophia immediately fell silent.

She had indeed put tremendous effort into this.

Losing all that progress would be bad, but if something happened to William again...

After agonizing over the decision, Sophia relented with a resigned wave of her hand.

"Be careful."

William, still wearing his hospital gown, left with Richard.

Only after their figures disappeared from view did Sophia withdraw her gaze, her eyes stinging with emotion.

 

At the police station, both Richard and William were anxious, insisting that Isabella was in danger.

The police agreed to check the surveillance footage first.

Street cameras showed that Isabella hadn't driven when she left home—she'd walked.

After turning into a narrow alley near her neighborhood, Isabella vanished completely from view.

"That's an old alley. Our surveillance system doesn't cover that area. If you really want to find her, you'll need to check if any nearby shops have security cameras."

The officer's suggestion gave Richard and William a lead. They left the station together.

On their way to Isabella's house, Richard received a call from Olivia.

The moment he answered, Olivia's sobbing came through the line in hitching gasps.

"Uncle Richard, can you get in touch with my mom? I've been calling her but she won't pick up. I'm so worried about her!"

William's heart clenched at Olivia's crying.

He wanted to offer comfort but wasn't skilled at consoling words. He opened his mouth but nothing came out.

"Don't worry, we're coming to you right now," Richard said directly before hanging up.

William didn't understand.

"Olivia's just a child. What good does telling her do?"

Richard's lips curved into a slight smile. "Isn't that exactly what Sophia thinks? In her eyes, you're still a child she can't trust with anything. Do you want to raise Olivia the same way?"

"Olivia is worried. We should tell her the truth."

When they met, Richard concisely informed Olivia that Isabella was missing.

But he didn't leave the child helpless—he told her seriously that they would definitely find Isabella.

Then he brought Olivia directly to the alley.

Fortunately, there was indeed a small convenience store at the entrance that had installed security cameras.

However, when they reviewed the footage, William and Richard discovered the recording was extremely blurry—even in broad daylight, faces were barely distinguishable.

"Gotta save money, you know? We're just a small business. We don't lose much inventory in a year. What's the point of installing expensive cameras?" the shop owner explained.

After reviewing the footage repeatedly, they only saw Isabella walking into the camera's frame.

Then she moved beyond the surveillance camera's range, and they couldn't see where she went.