Chapter 541

Chapter 541

Missy continued, "As for your future and career, she doesn't care at all."

Every word hit Jacob right where it hurt most.

He slammed his glass down hard on the table.

"She just looks down on me..."

"You don't need to be so down. As long as you follow the right person, you'll have plenty of opportunities." Missy consoled him gently. "Sometimes you have to rely on yourself. I hate fake people the most. If you're willing, you can come find me."

Missy elegantly placed a business card in front of him.

That bit of resentment in Jacob's heart, fueled by alcohol and these words, rapidly expanded.

Missy was the one who truly understood him.

Meanwhile, Aline dragged her exhausted body back to the hospital. The moment she pushed open the door, a strong sense of unease gripped her.

The bed was empty.

The blanket was neatly folded, the water glass on the nightstand was gone—everything was so clean it was as if no one had ever been there.

"Larry?"

Aline's voice trembled. She rushed out and grabbed a passing nurse.

"Where's the patient from this room?"

"His family picked him up this afternoon. They've already completed the discharge procedures," the nurse explained.

Family?

Aline's mind went blank for a moment. Besides Sandra, who else could it be?

She frantically called Elsie, her voice already breaking, "Olivia! Larry's gone! He was taken away by the Borgia family! Don't you think this whole family is completely insane? Are they trying to kill Larry?"

Elsie was shocked when she got the call and rushed over immediately.

The two tried everything, used every connection they had, but got the same result—the Borgia Mansion was heavily guarded, and Larry had vanished without a trace, hidden away completely.

This time Sandra was determined to keep him separated from Aline.

As night fell, Aline sat in the car, staring blankly in the direction of the Borgia Mansion, like her soul had been drained.

Seeing her friend like this, Elsie's heart tightened too.

She pressed her lips together, struggling internally for a long time before finally pulling up the number she least wanted to contact and dialing it.

The phone rang for a long time before someone picked up. Ronald's deep, somewhat lazy voice came through.

"What is it?"

Elsie had no patience for small talk and got straight to the point. "Larry was taken from the hospital by his mother and hidden away. Can you find him?"

Silence on the other end for a few seconds.

Then Ronald's voice came again, with a disgusting, confident transactional tone.

"Yes. Come keep me company for three days, and I'll help you find him."

Elsie almost laughed from anger.

"Ronald, you're really shameless."

After saying that, she didn't even bother listening to his response and hung up directly.

Then she tossed her phone onto the center console. The screen had already gone dark, and the car was deathly silent.

Aline hugged her knees in the passenger seat. All night, she was like a soulless statue, staring blankly at the dark outline of the Borgia Mansion.

She didn't eat, drink, or sleep.

Elsie tried to speak several times but swallowed her words.

Any comfort seemed pale and powerless at this moment.

Sandra had made up her mind this time not to let Aline contact Larry.

In this suffocating atmosphere, a ringtone suddenly broke the silence.

It was Aline's phone.

She acted as if she hadn't heard it. She just sat there motionless.

Elsie reached over to grab the phone. The caller ID showed "Director Team - Benjamin Sullivan."

She held the phone in front of Aline.

"Work matter. Might be urgent."

Aline's eyes moved slightly. After several seconds, she numbly answered the call.

"Hello."

"Aline! Where are you! What the hell is going on with your Jacob?" An angry male voice roared from the other end. "He sold that song Lonely Island to our rival Skyflare Entertainment again! Now, two shows are using the same theme song. You've made our production team look terrible!"

"What?" Aline's voice sounded like it had been scraped with sandpaper, dry and hoarse.

"What do you mean what! Three million dollars in penalty fees—your studio better wait for the lawyer's letter!" The person yelled and hung up with a bang.

The phone slipped from Aline's powerless hand and fell onto the floor mat.

Elsie immediately understood what had happened. She started the car, turned the steering wheel, and made a clean U-turn.

"Where are we going?" Aline finally showed some reaction.

"To find Jacob." Elsie's voice was cold.

They went to the studio first—empty.

They called Jacob's phone—it was already off.

Just then, the studio assistant's frantic call came in.

"Ms. Taylor! This is bad! It's all over the internet!"

Elsie opened social media. A trending topic was #Singer Jacob Miller's Messy Private Life#.

There were all kinds of indecent photos and exposés—Jacob hanging around nightclubs, being intimate with different influencers, and even clear photos of him signing contracts to "sell one song twice."

The comments below were filled with nothing but criticism.

The address the assistant sent was a shady place.

Before the car even stopped, Aline had already pushed the door open and rushed out, plunging into the chaos.

The drumbeats pounded against her chest, making it hard to breathe.

The wildly swinging lights cut faces into fragments. She pushed away a drunk who stuck to her and finally saw a familiar figure seated in a corner booth.

Jacob was surrounded by several shady-looking men, reeking of alcohol, with someone forcing a bottle into his mouth.

Aline rushed over in a few steps, snatched the bottle away, and without thinking, smashed it on the table.

Broken glass and alcohol splattered everywhere.

"Jacob!"

He looked up, squinted to make her out, and actually pulled a smile.

"Ms. Taylor, you're here."

A crisp slap.

The jeering around them stopped.

Jacob turned his head, covering his face with his hand. The slap seemed to have sobered him up.

"I dug you out of the mud bit by bit—was it so you could come back and roll around in it again?" Aline's voice trembled, each word filled with anger and frustration. "I carefully protected your talent, and what happened? You plucked out every feather yourself, just to destroy your own dreams?"

Jacob suddenly stood up and shoved Aline hard. "Stop acting like a saint! You dare say you had no selfish motives? You're just afraid I'll get famous, afraid I'll go solo, afraid I'll escape your control!"

"What did you say?" Aline staggered back a step, her whole body frozen.

Jacob shot back, "Did I say something wrong? Missy Forbes was right! You've only ever cared about your own interests. The moment you knew you'd lose money, you immediately came looking for me. Aline, have you ever truly cared about my dreams? I don't want to be poor anymore! Not even for one more day! I want to be famous! I want to make big money! What's wrong with that!"